Man, I am definitely my own worst enemy.
Got my camper! LOTS of stuff to learn, like how to turn on the hot water heater (I get HOT water?!!!!), how to turn on the electric heater (ELECTRIC HEATER!!!), how to turn the fridge to electric or gas (WTH, they actually make those?!!!), how to crank the satellite dish (OMG! A SATELLITE DISH!), how to work the awning (which I promptly broke, lol) and how to fix it, lol, and how to put on the stabilizer bars, and the easiest way to clean out my septic system (I still can't believe I get a tub/shower! though the clean up part....)
Drove it home the 1/2 hour drive and on the way I noticed that when passing semi's, they weren't letting me back into the right lane. Something was up. Got it home - took FOUR tries to get it backed into the yard (I'm rusty on which way to turn the wheel while looking through mirrors) and then checked - yep, no signal lights. Well that's scary! So I called them, they said to bring it back in - which I did without any problems, and an hour later it was agreed by all the shop mechanics that it was "WEIRD", lol and that I need a new converter box on the van - which they don't carry. And OH, they said... your spare tire is FLAT. NICE, lol. So I have to take it back in to my favorite mechanic, of course. :P
My neighbors are jealous. They saw me pulling in with it and waived hi, and then just went back into their houses and I haven't seen them since. I'm even noticing silence from creepy neighbor - which is weird because with it finally being spring, he'd normally be outside working. Oh well... though I am just a little concerned about the weirdness of it.... things are pretty quiet. Once I got the camper blocked up and unhitched, I packed it and it's ready to roll (except for food) and my best friends came to check it out - they really like it and are thinking of getting something similar themselves.
And then this morning, off I went to volunteer at the shelter for the church's "Weekend of Compassion", which they do every May. What the church does is things for the community - you have a need? The church will do it. Oil changes for single mom's and widows and divorcees; a new roof for a recently divorced mother of 4; bedrooms for 2 little kids living in an empty basement; and today's project - fresh gravel in the kennels and overall clean up and repair at the humane society.
Ok backtrack a bit.... getting ready, I was FREAKING myself out. When I initially volunteered, I was the only one. I still would have gone, but the coordinator didn't make me feel all that welcome. There's that whole "macho cowboy" thing out here.... some of these guys don't think women are capable of ANYTHING. And then there's me that has a full tool box and knows how to use it! And so, all morning, I was dwelling.... what if the project coordinator refuses to let me participate because I'm a woman? How would I handle it? I went through all kinds of scenarios to prepare with. I finally decided to just wing it, get my butt over there early, and see what I can do....
I got there 15 minutes early and I figured that since I was already used to poop patrol, I offered to take that job (to the staff's relief, lol).... scrubbing and scrubbing and scrubbing kennel floors. AWESOME dogs. So well behaved. It all went smoothly - the coordinator turned out to be awesome too and all my worries were ridiculous. AND, as I cleaned I got a chance to talk with the shelter staff about disease control and that was SO EASY! What worked best for them? A bucket of water, a splash of bleach (but in small amounts because it irritates the dogs) and Dawn dish soap! We shared information with each other - they just got new outdoor kennels and hadn't set up procedures for cleaning them yet either so we discussed options, shared ideas - benefited all of us!
Part of the process of cleaning the kennels was to rinse them down at the end. The hose they had was broken in half, taped in sections to keep it from leaking and only reached 1/2 way along the kennels. As I tried to work with it, I thought NO WAY was that going to work. And so, after telling the project manager what I was going to do, I snuck out and bought a 100 ft heavy duty hose and a multifunction sprayer. I spent $42. I got back, hooked it up, started spraying everything down when the shelter supervisor came out.... I've never seen anybody's eyes light up over a garden hose more than I did with the shelter staff today - especially when I told them it was theirs to keep. What a fun day!
We finished everything by Noon so I got home and took the dogs up to Big Hill for some biking - trails were patchy - dry in the sun though spongy; 1 foot of snow still melting in all the shadows. The dogs had a BLAST. Flopping in mud puddles, sniffing everywhere, spotting deer once in a while, and big snow drifts to flop into to cool off.
And after I got them fed, I even got a chance to go visit my friend Jack in the nursing home again - he wasn't having a good day today - he couldn't remember who I was this time... but that's ok! I brought lots of chocolates and a HUGE jar of his favorite peanuts and we talked for about 20 minutes before they came to get him for dinner and so I promised to go back again in a few weeks.
And so I'm beat - and a little sunburned. I'm gonna sleep well tonite! LATER!
Drove it home the 1/2 hour drive and on the way I noticed that when passing semi's, they weren't letting me back into the right lane. Something was up. Got it home - took FOUR tries to get it backed into the yard (I'm rusty on which way to turn the wheel while looking through mirrors) and then checked - yep, no signal lights. Well that's scary! So I called them, they said to bring it back in - which I did without any problems, and an hour later it was agreed by all the shop mechanics that it was "WEIRD", lol and that I need a new converter box on the van - which they don't carry. And OH, they said... your spare tire is FLAT. NICE, lol. So I have to take it back in to my favorite mechanic, of course. :P
My neighbors are jealous. They saw me pulling in with it and waived hi, and then just went back into their houses and I haven't seen them since. I'm even noticing silence from creepy neighbor - which is weird because with it finally being spring, he'd normally be outside working. Oh well... though I am just a little concerned about the weirdness of it.... things are pretty quiet. Once I got the camper blocked up and unhitched, I packed it and it's ready to roll (except for food) and my best friends came to check it out - they really like it and are thinking of getting something similar themselves.
And then this morning, off I went to volunteer at the shelter for the church's "Weekend of Compassion", which they do every May. What the church does is things for the community - you have a need? The church will do it. Oil changes for single mom's and widows and divorcees; a new roof for a recently divorced mother of 4; bedrooms for 2 little kids living in an empty basement; and today's project - fresh gravel in the kennels and overall clean up and repair at the humane society.
Ok backtrack a bit.... getting ready, I was FREAKING myself out. When I initially volunteered, I was the only one. I still would have gone, but the coordinator didn't make me feel all that welcome. There's that whole "macho cowboy" thing out here.... some of these guys don't think women are capable of ANYTHING. And then there's me that has a full tool box and knows how to use it! And so, all morning, I was dwelling.... what if the project coordinator refuses to let me participate because I'm a woman? How would I handle it? I went through all kinds of scenarios to prepare with. I finally decided to just wing it, get my butt over there early, and see what I can do....
I got there 15 minutes early and I figured that since I was already used to poop patrol, I offered to take that job (to the staff's relief, lol).... scrubbing and scrubbing and scrubbing kennel floors. AWESOME dogs. So well behaved. It all went smoothly - the coordinator turned out to be awesome too and all my worries were ridiculous. AND, as I cleaned I got a chance to talk with the shelter staff about disease control and that was SO EASY! What worked best for them? A bucket of water, a splash of bleach (but in small amounts because it irritates the dogs) and Dawn dish soap! We shared information with each other - they just got new outdoor kennels and hadn't set up procedures for cleaning them yet either so we discussed options, shared ideas - benefited all of us!
Part of the process of cleaning the kennels was to rinse them down at the end. The hose they had was broken in half, taped in sections to keep it from leaking and only reached 1/2 way along the kennels. As I tried to work with it, I thought NO WAY was that going to work. And so, after telling the project manager what I was going to do, I snuck out and bought a 100 ft heavy duty hose and a multifunction sprayer. I spent $42. I got back, hooked it up, started spraying everything down when the shelter supervisor came out.... I've never seen anybody's eyes light up over a garden hose more than I did with the shelter staff today - especially when I told them it was theirs to keep. What a fun day!
We finished everything by Noon so I got home and took the dogs up to Big Hill for some biking - trails were patchy - dry in the sun though spongy; 1 foot of snow still melting in all the shadows. The dogs had a BLAST. Flopping in mud puddles, sniffing everywhere, spotting deer once in a while, and big snow drifts to flop into to cool off.
And after I got them fed, I even got a chance to go visit my friend Jack in the nursing home again - he wasn't having a good day today - he couldn't remember who I was this time... but that's ok! I brought lots of chocolates and a HUGE jar of his favorite peanuts and we talked for about 20 minutes before they came to get him for dinner and so I promised to go back again in a few weeks.
And so I'm beat - and a little sunburned. I'm gonna sleep well tonite! LATER!
Replies
Congrats on your camper! I have the camping bug myself, and my friend owns a little \'Bowler\' (remember those?) from 1972 (!) which she has fixed up and took me to see and it is SOOO cute! She has offered to lend it to me and I\'m thinking of taking her up on it now that spring is finally here!
You\'re a good soul for helping out at the kennel - I love dogs too (I only have one but he\'s a rescue and an awesome dog). Still some snow huh?!
You sound happy! Nice to read your journal!
UGH!!! Backing a trailer. I haven\'t had to pull my horse trailer in over a year. My back up skills were okay but not great. I guess I need to start practicing again.
You are going to have so much fun camping in this trailer. So much fun learning all about it and how it works.
You have new challenges for your life and that\'s always good to keep you going. You do sound happy and are definitely moving forward with your life.
Oh that is sooo cool! I know there\'s a little motorhome or truck & travel trailer in MY future, too. We should all meet up sometime/someplace and have a DS Camping Jamboree!
I have found that the LONGER the trailer, the easier it is to back up AND to learn to never get yourself in such a tight spot that you can\'t PULL FORWARD and try again. It does take some practice and the restraint NOT to OVERSTEER, but you\'ll get it.
So where are the PICTURES? I\'m busting to see your little house on wheels!
Congrats on the camper! Love camping!! Just returned from a few days in the Smokies ....Would love to have another RV myself - makes it SO much easier to take your 4 legged family members along. Enjoy!!!