The Palms is clean and shiny

FYI, our new Follower from May 4, Harriet Mayeaux, has a brand new blog, Giddyup! Gumbo, which is the name of her future RV.  She plans to RV part time, during the Spring and Fall, hopefully starting this Fall. Good luck, Harriet, I'm looking forward to reading your posts as you prepare to purchase your rig and get on the road this fall!  :)

I have a bright and shiny RV again.   In the afternoon the sun was shining so brightly off her chrome, The Palms looked like she was smiling.

The last time The Palms was washed and waxed was June of 2011, so she was due, boy was she due!  I didn't realize how dirty she was until Gary was finished and I saw her again in all her super white glory.

Washing and waxing The Palms took him most of the day, he started right before 10 a.m. yesterday morning, and finished right before 4 p.m.  Six hours.  That's a long time, and he got everything that was dirty, streaked, caked with bugs, and also all the black areas that got over-spray from the wax job last year. Gary said that shouldn't have happened - you should never get wax on those black areas, but the black parts all over the rig had been sprayed. Around the windows and all the other openings on the sides, right below the front windshield, the black below the bumper, all over.  Last year they sprayed on the wax and buffed it out on the body, but there was a lot of over-spray and they didn't take care of it. 

Gary puts the wax on a cloth and rubs it in, then buffs it out with another cloth.  First the white areas, then the decals, which bleed their color on the cloth and will end up on the white if not done separately.  It's all man power.

 Cleaning bugs off.

A couple of interesting things Gary said that I thought I'd pass on.  Like most people, I thought I got a cheaper price than the big rigs because The Palms is only 24 feet.  Gary said it actually takes him longer to do Class C motor homes because they have a lot of chrome and they aren't a flat surface.  They have all the little places he has to fit into and get clean that aren't part of the one-piece, rectangular Class A's and buses that have long, clean lines.  I guess that makes sense.  He also said the siding on my rig is more porous than the clear coat on some of the big rigs, so waxing takes longer.

 See that sticker on the window, lower right? It's been there for a year.

I tried to get it off, and it flaked, but Gary got it off with a razor blade.

I love my kitchen. :)

 Katie was pretty good, considering Gary was outside all day,

but she didn't like him getting near the windows.

Ruff! Ruff!

 

Now The Palms is good for another year. Thanks, Gary, you did a great job!

The Palms with the big moon rising Sunday night.

Every time there's a full moon, I want to get a GREAT photo of The Palms with the full moon behind it.  Usually the moon looks really small or there are RVs in the photo that are distracting.  Some day I'm going to be in the desert or forest with no close neighbors, and the moon will be that big orange orb slowly rising behind The Palms, and I'll get the perfect photo.  When that happens, you'll all be the first to know!

That's it for me and Katie for today - have a great Tuesday, everyone!  :)

Another free Kindle e-book about RVing

Here's another free Kindle e-book about Rving - Winnebagos in particular, it looks like - available today through Amazon.com.

Dance of the Winnebagos (Jackrabbit Junction Mystery Series #1)

By: Ann Charles

I won't recommend many of these Kindle books, I know non-Kindle owners could care less, but when I see free e-books about RVing, I can't resist. I'm surprised when I see them, it's such a niche market.

I post about these freebies when I see the daily e-mail in the morning, and I order them right away.  I don't know how long they are free, maybe only for that day. I haven't read them when I post, so they might be a hit or a miss, but since they are free and most of us are frugal, they are worth a download if you're interested.

I'm not going to do any reviews, I'm usually in the middle of another book, and it might be a while before I read them.  I'll leave it up to you to decide if you want to download them.  Free e-books are a mixed bag.

My wash and wax guy is just starting on The Palms, so I'll either post later today or tomorrow and let you know how it went.  I'm excited about The Palms being clean and shiny again, but a little anxious about someone blasting water on her and walking on her roof.  He's been doing this for years and some of the really nice big rigs used his services, so I have to figure he knows what he's doing. He washed the Allegro Bus across from me and it looks really nice.  The owner was happy.

From Me and Katie, have a good Monday, everyone!  :)

Hey, is that a leak? :(

My first leak.

So, yesterday afternoon I'm sitting here reading blogs and watching Dr. Phil, feeling really good that I've gotten so much done.  What's that saying, "*Pride goeth before a fall?"  I glance over at my couch.  Is that water leak line longer than it was before?

I noticed a month or so ago that there was a line, like a salt water line, on the bottom of my couch where it meets the carpet. The first time I used my new shower head, I had it too high and when I got out of the shower, I saw that I had water running from the bathroom, out the door, and down the rig onto the carpet.  I assumed the water was wicking up the couch material, re-adjusted the shower head, and that was the end of it.

The water line stain.  I hope my carpet cleaner spray will take it out.

Today, however, I got down and felt the couch and it was wet.  SHOOT!  It's one of those jack-knife couches that pulls out into a flat bed, and I have a large storage area under the couch seat.  I pulled out the couch partway so I could see under into the storage area, and it was wet.  Some of my stuff, my white cowboy boots (I'll probably never wear them again, but still, I love them), some clothes, my sleeping bag.

I took everything out, putting anything wet into a pile for the dumpster.  (Shouldn't the person putting things into the dumpster be called the dumpster?)  I haven't used any of those things in a year, so I'm sure I won't miss them.  Some of the dry things of importance that were saved were the RED cowboy boots, the silk two-piece top and Capri pants - my only dressy clothes, and the cool snowy weather cover up.  Also my digital pictures frames.

I put my hair dryer on it for a while, then because I forgot the A/C was on and the circuit breaker tripped, I turned it off, figuring it was hot enough to dry on it's own.  I put my little stool between the couch seat and bottom to keep it open so it'll dry.  This full-timing is really a two steps forward, one step back. 

Katie can't figure out what's going on. She keeps looking at the couch.  She likes to lay on it, or on the back of the couch in the sun, and her blanket and toys are in one corner, that's where she eats her treats.

Hey Mom, what's going on?

There is a black plug that screws into the top of the tank and it wasn't screwed on tightly. I think I overfilled the tank yesterday morning and caused it to leak out of the plug.  That's were the water is coming from - the plug.  So I tightened the plug, turned off the park water and turned on my water pump and let some water flow out of the tank.  I'll use it all up, and then when I leave here, I'll re-fill it, but not quite so full. I'm hoping that will take care of the problem.  But I won't put anything back under there for a while. I want everything totally dry and want to make sure it was just overfilled with a loose plug.

Water tank under couch with strap holding it down, and black plug.

Texas Yellow Rose left a comment asking what the plug is for.  I've never used it, I fill my fresh water from the outside fill opening.  I don't know why this tank has this plug, or when it would be used.  Maybe when winterizing, or cleaning the tank?  Do any of you use this plug on your tank?

I dried everything I could, and put a towel over the plug.  When I checked it later, the towel was dry, so I'm hoping that was the problem. I didn't realize the plug was loose, and I always fill my water until it just starts to come out, but I won't do that anymore. With the plug on tight I hope to be okay. 

I learned more about The Palms today.  Boy, I'm getting tired of this learning experience stuff.  At least this one didn't cost me money, just my white cowboy boots and sleeping bag, and the rest that's now in the dumpster.  Is that the way you all learn about your rigs?  When there's a problem?  My advice to you:  you might want to check your plugs.

This morning Tom and Lonni (Weigh To Go, LLC) stopped by to put covers on the tire valve stems that were missing the little covers. He said dirt could get into them, and you always want the covers in place.  That was nice of them, certainly something they didn't have to do, and they didn't charge me. Thanks again,  Tom and Lonni! :)

Today was laundry day.  When I put in a load of laundry, I hop over to the showers to get a shower in one of their really nice bathrooms.  Big full length mirrors.  So this morning I got all the wash done, the bed stripped and re-made, long, hot shower, and now everything is done for the day.  I made a salami and cheese sandwich with chips on the side, and I'm back in full-timing heaven.

Moon over The Palms last night.

From Me and Katie, have a great Saturday, everyone!  :)

* It's actually King James Version, Proverbs 16, " Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall."  Per my Internet research. :)

Katie=12.4 pounds; The Palms=11,760 pounds

WELCOME to our new follower, Theresa! She wants to be an RVer, but for now is following blogs about RVing.  I followed tons of blogs for more than a year before I got my RV.  Theresa is hoping to start traveling next year.  I hope that works, it sure is fun to be on the road in an RV, and we're happy you are following along with us.

WELCOME to our new Follower, Harriet Mayeaux!  Harriet, you don't have any information shown, so I can't give you a plug for your blog.  If you have one, please leave a comment with the blog address so I can check it out.  I guess you are either an RVer, a future RVer, or an RV dreamer.  Whichever one it is, Katie and I are happy to have you along on our adventures.  (NOTE: Harriet's new blog is: Giddyup! Gumbo.)

Welcome Aboard to you both!

Don't forget to check your moderation and spam folders.  The old version of Blogger gave an indication that there was something in those folders, but this new one doesn't.  After I blogged about a couple of free Kindle books, I've had some followers' comments end up in those folders.  Also some others that were just normal comments, not referring to Kindle, were in there.  (Denise, this might be your answer as to why my comments aren't showing in your comment section - they might be in your Moderation or Spam folders.)  FYI.

Katie went to her new vet yesterday, Dr. Pollock at Anasazi Animal Clinic in Camp Verde, AZ, and everything was fine.  Her weight and temp were good, and she got her shots.  She shook a little, which is unusual for her, so I knew she was nervous, but she didn't bat an eyelash.  She was so good.  When they took her temp, though, her eyes got round and she looked insulted.

So Katie is good to go for another year.  Dr. Pollock wasn't concerned about her nose, he just said to get some Triple Antibiotic Ointment at the drug store if it becomes a problem. He didn't see anything wrong.

I'd recommend this animal clinic if you are ever in this area. The staff and doctor were all very nice, spent time talking to Katie and petting her, making her feel comfortable, and the clinic was nice and clean.  I'm glad I chose this clinic.  For those of you who are interested, Office Visit/Exam was $40, Rabies and DHP Booster shots $20 each, total cost $80.

I asked the vet if I could give Katie people peanut butter in her Kong toy, and he said, yes.  It won't hurt her, but don't give her too much, because it has fat in it. She loves this stuff, so I'll keep giving it to her.  It gives her a little challenge and keeps her busy for a while.  Here she is trying to lick the peanut butter out of the Kong.

Then our weighing company came over, it's called Weigh To Go, LLC.  It is owned by a husband and wife, Tom and Lonni Case.  They were great!  It was more involved than I thought it would be.  Some of you know this, but for those that don't, here's what happened.

 Tom getting out the scales and other tools.
(Click on the photo for their phone number or website)

As Tom got out his tools and the scales, Lonni got all the information on The Palms from the Forest River stickers inside my driver's door.  They take into account if your tanks are full or not, and add that into the weight equation.  Then Tom laid out the scales so that when I drove up on them, I'd be completely level.

Tom checked all my tires to see what kind they are and how old they are, and he measured each tire's pressure, except one. One rear outside tire's valve is laying against the hubcap, and none of his tire pressure tools could get it. They measured the distance from the front axle to the rear axle.  Tom got under the Palms to see exactly where all the tanks are located.  (While he was right near the cabin step, he found a place where a critter chewed through the insulation and chewed the covering off a copper wire that controls the step.  He said next time I'm in for service, have them repair that area.)

After they checked everything and got all the information they needed, I drove up on the scales and they recorded those numbers.  

While Tom put away their tools, Lonni went into their truck to enter all the information in her computer and printed out a report for me.

One thing Tom said is that the tire pressure shown on the side of the tires or suggested by the maker of the RV is only an estimate.  You can't know how much the tire pressure should be unless you weigh each tire with it's load.  You need to know how much weight that part of the rig is carrying.

Also, if one tire is carrying a heavier load in the front or in the back (my passenger front tire is carrying more than the driver side tire), you always inflate both the front or rear tires at the higher PSI.  That makes sense. You want the tire with the heaviest weight to be inflated correctly.

He said it's okay if the tire pressure is 2 to 3 pounds more or less than it should be, but try to keep it in that range for optimum safety and performance.

Then Tom came in and we sat down and went over the report.  He explained everything on each page, and The Palms came out with flying colors.  We are balanced well, each tire had the correct pressure within the approved limits of 2 or 3 pounds.  Tom couldn't get to that one tire - when I get the tire valve extensions I want them to check that one to see what it is.  He said it looks, feels and responds like the others, so it should be okay. I'll also have the tire company put the correct pressure into each tire, according to our weight chart.

The GVWR  (Gross Vehicle Weight Rating) for The Palms is 14,050 pounds, and she weighed in at 11,760.  I can add more weight if needed and not worry about it, we're 2,290 pounds light.  Not that I want to add more weight.

Also, the Wheelbase/LOA Ratio was measured. They measured the overhang in front and back in realtion to the axles, and that came out very good.  Of course - we're only 24 feet.  We don't have a lot of overhang, but that helps give us a better ride down the road.

They measured The Palms from bumper to bumper, and she's 23.5 feet (24 feet if you also measure the ladder).  I've seen limits for vehicles of 24 feet, so The Palms would fit into that measurement.

I haven't been good at checking my tire pressure, but Tom said losing pressure is more of a problem if your rig sits for a long period.  Since I drive The Palms every ten days to two weeks to dump, shop, etc., that keeps my tire pressure more constant, and that's probably why my tire pressure measured within limits.

So - whew! - we are good.  Tires are good, pressure is good, rig is balanced, and total weight is good.  And, if I buy something that is kind of heavy, I'll know the best place to store it, weight-wise.

At $50, well worth the cost.  This is a safety issue, and I thought I was okay, but now I know.  I would advise anyone who has access to one of the companies along the way to take advantage of the service. What you don't know could hurt you.  And if your rig is within all the limits, you won't have to worry about it as long as things stay pretty much the same.

When they were setting up, my neighbor across the way came over and asked if she could cut my hair when they were done weighing The Palms instead of doing it today.  That was just fine with me, and so after Tom and Lonni left, she came over and cut my hair outside while I sat in one of my chairs with her cape over my shoulders.  It was kind of windy, so when she got most of it off, we came inside for the fine tuning.  When she was done it looked really good, she went home and I swept up and got my hair wet and used the hair dryer to style it.  It looked pretty good as it was drying right after the cut.  When I "styled" it with the hair dryer a round brush, WOW, it's one of the best hair cuts I've every had.

After she cut my hair, she trimmed Katie's nails.  She did a good job, and Katie behaved.  The hair cut and nail trim only cost me $20.  What a bargain. 

Yesterday was a very eventful and productive day.  Now we just have the wash/wax of The Palms on Monday and our appointments will be done.

Every month I think I'll save more money, but it's amazing how all these come up from month to month, whether it's the rig registration and insurance, health issues for me or Katie, keeping The Palms (the truck, tires, coach and all the things in it) all running and checked out.  On my balance sheet each month, there are always Miscellaneous Expenses I wasn't planning.  Having the annual spreadsheet will really help in the years to come, because I'll have a good list of these odd-ball things that don't happen every month and I'll be able to plan for them and have a good idea what they will cost.

Roger, who did most of the research and work on my generator/converter issues back in Quartzsite, answered an e-mail I sent him.  I told him where I was, and he said I am in the Goldilocks zone.  Not too hot, and not too cold.  I liked that.  And I like being in the Goldilocks zone.

I just took a break from blogs and defrosted my freezer. It's been a year, so that's not bad.  I was starting to lose some space, and it was definitely time.  I used the old hair dryer/dull plastic spatula method, and it didn't take long.  I'm going to wait a while to defrost the fridge, which has the same ice on the upper shelf/back area.  I kind of like it there, because I put my little milk and water bottles there, and the ice keeps them colder.  When I start losing space on the shelf, I'll defrost that, too.

That's it for now.  From me and Katie, have a great weekend, everyone!  :)

Apointments, apointments, apointments, and apointments

One nice thing about staying put for a month is that I can get a lot done.

Tomorrow at 10:00 Katie is going to the vet for her annual exam, rabies shot and the other vaccines that are due. I'm also going to have them look at her nose.  Today after one of our walks we got back and I looked at her, and both of her nostrils were brown.  But... it looked like dirt, and it wasn't all there before our walk.  I got some foaming soap and warm water on a washcloth and carefully washed off her nose, and - what do you know? - it all came off.  Now I'm wondering if the brown spots are just dirt that stuck on her nose when we were walking and she was sniffing the ground.  If her nose was running, maybe some of the dirt and dust stuck.  So we'll see tomorrow.

Then around 1:00 a company staying in the park for a Safari RV Rally is coming over to weigh The Palms.  They weigh each wheel and then will give me a report.  I've been told with the size of my rig there's no way I can be overweight, but I want to make sure, and also make sure we are balanced.  If we're good, then I won't worry anymore, if there's something that needs to be fixed, then I can fix it.

Then on Friday I'm getting my hair cut.  The woman across from our site is a hairdresser, and she's going to cut my hair for me.  She said she charges $10, but I said I'd give her $15, $10 doesn't seem like enough.  That's still less than anywhere else I can get my hair cut, and I usually give them a $5 tip at the cheap hair chains, so I'll just consider the extra $5 to be a tip.  It's still cheap.

Monday around 9:00 another company is coming by to give The Palms a wash and wax.  He charges $150 for a small rig, $175 for a larger one.   That's what I paid last year at Santee Lakes RV Park in San Diego. The owner came over to look the rig over and give me an estimate. I wasn't sure about him doing the roof since I have the solar up there now, and I was worried about it.  He said we should definitely do the roof, otherwise the dirt on the roof drips down the sides, leaving streaks on the clean rig.  He said they would be very careful up there.  I told him I wanted him, the owner, to do the work and would wait until he had a free appointment.  I've been wanting to get The Palms clean and waxed for a while, so it will be good to get this done.

My neighbor checked my tire pressure this evening, and they were good.  The rear tires were a little low, but he said they are fine.  He checked the front and rear inside tires, but we couldn't find the valve for the rear outside tires.  He said maybe the hubcaps need to be removed to check those tires.  I think I'll hop on one of the forums and see if the answer is there.  But at least I know I'm good on 4 out of 6 tires so far.

I got a couple of bird feeders, one for finches and a new hummer feeder.  Unfortunately I don't have a tree in my site and there's nothing to hang the feeders from, so I also bought two window holders with two suction cups. They will hold up to five pounds, so I put each feeder on one.

It was interesting to watch the finches, but they were making such a mess on the rug and concrete pad below the window, they were covered with little black seeds.  I finally took that one down and stored it for when I'm in the forest or desert.  I put the other hummingbird feeder there, so now I have two hummer feeders up.  I'm not getting many hummingbirds yet. The man across from me found a hummer laying on the concrete, and he picked it up.  It has a purple band around it's neck and was very pretty.  He put it in a bush, and it later flew away.

There are a lot of birds here, mostly small ones, and the birdsong in the morning is really nice.

Katie is always extra ready to go outside, in fact she bugs me a couple of times a day - and it's not for a potty break.  She loves chasing after the lizards that hang out under the rocks and bushes here.  There are tons of them.  It's kind of hard on Katie since she is on a leash, but she doesn't give up.  I was outside reading my Kindle the other day and Katie just stood "on guard" watching the bush behind The Palms.

Boy, are these guys fast.  I don't know if Katie could catch one if she wasn't leashed.

This Green-tailed Towhee (thank you, Sondra!) was around the dog park area - he was really pretty, lots of different colors.

Green-tailed Towhee

Cottonwood tree in the park.

Pretty terrain across the street from this RV park.  One of the volunteers said there are fossil imprints in the soft white rocks in this area.  Katie and I walked over and checked it out, but we didn't find any.

I'm interested in getting results from our two appointments tomorrow.  I'll let you know what happens.

From Me and Katie, have  great Wednesday evening, everyone!  :)