Home Improvements!

 Ginger said she wanted a fence so she could roam free about the estate. What Ginger wants, Ginger gets.  We should have done this 4 dogs ago!

I love it!

But Daddy!  It's a squirrel!!

Our Long Summer at Home

Following is a not-so-brief update on our Spring and early Summer activities.  As it turns out, this is the longest period we have been home for as long as I can recall.

We left our Florida home at The Great Outdoors (TGO) on April 15. That's a little earlier than we usually leave, but the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour. was having a viewing at the Lucas Theatre for the Arts in Savannah. Dorcas' friends Dianne and Mark live in Pooler GA, just off a Savannah I-95 exit and invited us to spend the night in their cul-de-sac. They have a new 45' Entregra motor home and have 50 amp service at their home. SWEET! We invited them to the film festival and we all went to town and ate at the The Olde Pink House before the show.  Great southern food and a bonus, the house is haunted!  We spent a 2^nd night on the cul-de-sac, and the next day we did a trolley tour of Savannah. Among other things, we saw Forrest Gump's bench. Savannah is about half way between home and TGO. Mark and Dianne have said we could spend the night there any time. So, it looks like we have a new traditional stop-over when going to and from Florida.

Our Florida Home at TGO

An added benefit of getting home a little early from Florida is that we could enjoy our azaleas first hand. In most previous years friends and neighbors have sent us photos saying “Your azaleas sure are pretty. You should be here!”

Azaleas in bloom at the Whitley abode

Sidney and Matilda lounging with the azaleas

Dorcas and I travelled to Alaska in 2011, and we had a great time. For the last year or so we have been planning to return in 2016, 5 years after our first trip. But our schedule would be tight. We arrived home from Florida on April 17. If we were going to Alaska we wanted to leave the first week in May. That just didn't leave a lot of time to get ready, plus we had a number of conflicting events upcoming. We both had jury summons for the time we would be gone, and I had a must-do appointment with my ophthalmologist, which would likely require some follow-up visits. Resurfacing our 33 year-old deck was at the top of the list, and we were not going to Alaska before it was done. At some point, probably while re-surfacing the deck, we decided that Alaska was a non-starter this year. After we made that decision it was like a weight had been lifted. We made alternate plans for a trip departing later in the summer, that should be a really good trip. More on that later.

The Deck Project

Over 10 years ago so-called friends had been commenting on the terrible shape our deck was in, and that we should do something. The deck was built in 1983, the year our house was built, and there were plenty of rotting deck planks and nails that wouldn't stay put. Thankfully the joists and the railings were in pretty good shape; just fairly weathered, It was time to do something. I had bought the lumber back in October last year, but we weren't able to get to it before leaving for Florida. In Florida, my friend Hank, suggested I would be happier using an impact driver, rather than a drill. So before leaving Florida I went to my go-to on-line hardware store (eBay) and bought a cordless Hitachi impact driver, which uses the same li-ion batteries as my other cordless Hitachi tools.

So, starting the 3^rd week in April we tore into it, literally. The first task was to move my radial arm saw from the basement to the deck, no small chore. I had 2 options: 1) take it apart and take it through the house or 2) haul it up from the lower drive way and over the deck rail. I chose option 1, which in hindsight was probably the wrong choice. It took most of a day to move the saw.

Next we started pulling up boards. Our plan was to start at the edge next to the house and remove 2-3 rows, than put down a new row. The rows next to the house were in pretty good shape, and the nails were tight in the joists. That end of the deck is better sheltered from sun and rain. Pulling up the old boards and hammering out the nails was probably the hardest part of the job. Cutting and screwing down the new boards was relatively easy. All told it took us about a week, including long and frequent breaks to escape the heat and to attend to a few other crucial errands during that time (Pickleball). It looks great, I think. Dorcas was a HUGE help. I had big fun hauling the debris to the landfill. I kept some of the best scrap and made some outside work tables for behind the house.

The beginning of the project

What a mess!

See that rotted wood?  UGH!

Almost done

Finished!!!

The Shed

I have been wanting a storage shed for some time. My biggest hesitation regarded where I would put it. Our lot is fairly steep in the back, there are some trees, and I figured setting up a shed would be difficult. One day in late June I was on Peters Creek Parkway and pulled into the Leonard USA lot to do some window shopping for sheds. I liked what I saw there; the prices seemed reasonable and the price included delivery and set up. They said the 4-foot rise on the back end would not be a problem. A few days later Dorcas and I went back and placed an order. We ordered a 10' x 16' metal building with a few options: a 7' roll-up door and metal studs on 16” center (as opposed to 32” on center.) The shed was a custom job and delivery would be in about 2 weeks ( i.e. forever!)

The good news: I finally got the call that my shed could be delivered today. The bad news: on that day we were camping at Stone Mountain State Park. I asked when they could deliver again, if I didn't take it today: answer about a week (another forever!) Dorcas was out hiking and unreachable by phone. So I made a command decision and rushed off the mountain in the Element towards home.

The shed arrived about an hour after I got home. The guy had a pretty slick trailer with a movable bed and an articulated tongue. He was able to back down the drive and put the shed within inches of my stakes. There was only one mishap. Before the building was completely off the trailer, they jacked up the rear end and placed the rear on some blocks, so it would be somewhat level before moving out the trailer. When pulling the trailer out, the shed fell off the blocks and the blocks punched a hole through the floor. Crap! They were able to get it level and set up in about an hour and a half. I then got in the car and drove back to Stone Mountain.

Pretty cool trailer

My back woods are pretty steep

Finally all leveled up

Improved ventilation

Over the next week or so I began modifying the building:

• Built a 3' work table along the back wall.
• Installed racks for hanging tools
• Installed and bolted metal shelving to the wall
• Installed steel cable tie-downs

A few days later a guy from Leonard USA came and replaced the broken floor panel. Unfortunately, he didn't bring paint. A few days after that another guy came by and re-painted the floor.

At some point the electrician arrived. They made a 24” trench from the house to the shed and bored under the driveway. They installed ump-teen outlets, inside and out, and installed an LED motion light over the door. I also found a few electrical projects for them in the house, since they were here.

The sure made a mess of my new lawn

A trencher is an amazing tool

Electricians at work

Fully outfitted

My remaining projects are to replace my temporary ramp with a permanent ramp and to add lattice to the underside of the building. Dorcas says I need air conditioning and DirecTV to be complete.

Motor Home Maintenance and Repairs

I do as much maintenance and repairs on the coach as I can. Obviously I like to save $$$, but just as important, I enjoy the satisfaction and confidence of knowing I can do it. I like to understand how things work. I have fixed a lot of things on the road that would have interrupted our trip if I had to call a repairman or get towed.

• Changed engine oil and filter. This would cost over $400 at a diesel repair shop, but the parts cost me a little less than $100.
• Changed the oil and fluid for Allison transmission. The fluid alone costs about $45 per gallon, and it takes about 4.25 gallons. Not a terribly difficult job, just messy.
• Replaced the switch that illuminates a dash panel warning light telling the driver that the outside step has not fully retracted. This red warning light has been irritating me for years. The hardest part of this task was finding the part.
• Installed a device on the refrigerator boiler that monitors the boiler temperature and shuts down the fridge when the boiler gets too hot. Gas absorption refrigerators used in RVs are very sensitive to unlevel operation. Operating while unlevel can quickly overheat the boiler resulting in permanent and fatal damage to the cooling unit. When the boiler cools, the device will restart the fridge.

With labor rates at $120/hr at RV shops and about $90/hr at diesel shops. I will do as many repairs as I can as long as I can.

OK, that brings us up to date with most of our major projects. Oh yeah, I spent some time making our bird feeders more squirrel resistant. Also, we both spent a lot of time in the basement (it sure is cool down there!) disposing of junk and organizing. It helped that I could now move all my gasoline power equipment out into the new shed. Dorcas says I can't buy any more industrial shelving.  We  took the motor home up to Stone Mountain State Park for 4 nights nights and paddled with the Lumber River Canoe Club for their annual picnic at Princess Anne.

On July 10 we left home for our big summer trip. We are currently in Shenandoah National Park, where internet service is practically nonexistent. In my next post I will share a new chapter in The Adventures of Dorcas and Myron.

How We Spent Our Summer Vacation

Once again I have found myself hopelessly behind in updating this journal. Here is an attempt to get caught up in one fell swoop. This is the tale of how we spent our summer vacation.

Missouri River Camping

Faithful readers last found us in mid April preparing to put-in on several rivers in southeast Missouri for extended camping trips. We did paddle four days and three nights on the Eleven Point River in the Mark Twain National Forest. After taking off the Eleven Point we drove to Van Buren MO and camped a night at the developed camp ground at Big Spring. Then we bought ice and groceries and put in for seven days on the Ozark National Scenic Riverways. The water was relatively high, so we were able to put-in on the Prongs section of the Jack’s Fork River and paddled until the Jack’s Fork converged with the Current River. We spent 7 days and 6 nights on the river, taking out at Big Spring. It was a very nice float. The flow was less than it was when we were there three years ago, but it was a very nice level. The weather was very nice for both trips. The temperatures were mild, and we only had some light rain at one camp. We enjoyed the company of our fellow trippers: Wayne and Lynda and Harry. For those who would like to read more here is Wayne's account of the trip.

Hanging Rock State Park

From May 12 -17 we were camped at Hanging Rock State Park, attending the annual spring gathering there of the Lumber River Canoe Club. Hanging Rock State Park is one of the finest state parks in NC and is only 30 miles from our house. For the next four days we paddled successive sections of the Dan River. The Dan River is a jewel among Piedmont rivers, and we always enjoy paddling there. It has enough riffles and obstacles to be interesting and requires some maneuvering. It has outstanding views with high bluffs and thick rhododendron banks. We enjoyed good food and outstanding companionship with our friends in the Lumber River Canoe Club. Don Meece wrote a detailed report on the trip.


Down East NC and Lighthouse Tour

On May 27 we departed for a few weeks in down east North Carolina and the outer banks. Our primary objective was to attend a rally of the Southeast Country Coachers on Hatteras Island. Prior to the rally, SECC club members John and Lillian invited all rally attendees to visit and stay at their farm in Aurora prior to the rally. We ended up staying 7 nights at Old Hole RV Park, their private 15-site park, which is only available to friends. We very much enjoyed their hospitality. During our stay they hosted a spaghetti dinner, a pig pickin', a fish fry and a brisket dinner. The nights when there weren't fancy cookouts there were plenty of leftovers. Our stay there coincided with the Aurora Fossil Festival. Aurora is home to PCS, a huge phosphate mining and processing operation. The mine produces ore which is rich in fossils, particularly sharks teeth. Fossil hunting is not currently allowed in the mine, but PCS trucks over loads of ore to the festival site so people can dig through them looking for fossils. They also offer bus tours through their mining and manufacturing facility. I particularly enjoyed the plant tour, because I had heard a lot about PCS during my Air Quality career. They have a number of acid production plants and at one time were one of the largest polluters in the state. They also had the dubious distinction of being the most highly fined facilities in the state. Perhaps things may have improved since then. Most of the people in Aurora are dependent on the mine either directly or indirectly. I learned quickly not to tell folks that I used to work as an air quality regulator for the state. While staying at the "Old Hole" we made several side trips. One day we took the ferry across the Pamlico River and explored historic Bath, North Carolina's oldest town. On another day we drove to little Washington and visited with our friends Dave and Audrey. But mostly we just hung around the "Old Hole" and took it easy, listening to the juke box and enjoying the company sitting in the rockers on the front porch.

Finally we left the Old Hole and drove to Hatteras Island where we stayed 3 nights at Camp Hatteras in Rodanthe. We were camped on the sound side, and it was very hot and windy during our entire stay. There were about 20 other Country Coaches at the rally, and we enjoyed meals and happy hour with our motor home friends each evening. One night the club hosted a fish fry in the rally hall. On the next night we had an old fashioned weenie roast over a wood fire on the beach. It was very quaint and nostalgic. During the days we explored the OBX, mostly the parts south of our camp. We visited Cape Hatteras and climbed the lighthouse tower. There we saw a very interesting video showing the moving of the lighthouse almost 1/2 mile to it's current location. We also took the ferry to Ocracoke, where we walked around the island and visited the Ocracoke lighthouse, which is now open to visitors. We enjoyed a crab cake sandwich and a brew on the waterfront deck at the Jolly Roger Pub.

After the rally we moved about 15 miles north and stayed 4 nights at the National Park Service CG at Oregon Inlet. That CG has no hookups, and we were able to benefit from our solar array. From there we spent the days primarily exploring the OBX north of that point. We visited the NC Aquarium on Roanoke Island and the Wright Brothers National Memorial at Kitty Hawk. One day we drove as far north as NC 12 goes up the OBX to Corolla. There we climbed the Currituck Beach lighthouse. Finally, in order to celebrate the high winds that we had been enjoying, I bought a new stunt kite, a Prism Quantum, at Kitty Hawk Kites. I had bought a Trilby triple-ganged stunt many years ago and had been flying it some on this trip, but the Prism is a whole different animal. This video shows some stunts that Prism kites can do, and it is extremely impressive. I can do some pretty basic stuff, like loops, stalls and landings that are not quite crash-and-burns, but nothing like the stunts in this video. Check it out!

Finally, we visited the Bodie Island lighthouse, but learned it was closed for renovations, and we could not climb it. This put only a small damper on our quest to climb all the lighthouses on the OBX. Actually it was interesting to see it shrouded in scaffolding and canvas and to listen to the wind whistle and scream through the scaffolding. We'll catch it next time.

Lumber River Camp Out

The Lumber River Canoe Club is a very active club with trips scheduled practically every weekend. A traditional annual trip is the overnight trip from Fair Bluff NC to Nichols SC each July. Some years we make this trip and some we don't. This year we were able to make it. The only bad thing about this trip is that we need to meet for the shuttle at 9:00 am on Saturday, which means we have to get up about 4:30 am. That's right 4:30, in the morning. That usually means we can't party very hard on Saturday night. We had a very pleasant paddle punctuated with frequent swim breaks. The highlight of the trip was Don's new antique wood and canvas canoe. Don bought this canoe a few months ago and had paddled it on some day trips, but not on an over-nighter. At some point early on Saturday he hit a submerged cypress knee and poked a hole in the bottom of the boat, whereupon it started leaking like a sieve. Don is a trooper. He borrowed a bilge pump from one of the kayakers and started bailing. I think he will be looking for someone qualified to replace the canvas skin on the outside of the hull.

We camped at a large shaded sand bar on river left fondly known as "The Oasis" about half way between the state line and Nichols. There was an intense but brief shower shortly after we arrived, which helped cool things down a bit. There was more swimming, an extended happy hour and a shared meal consisting of heavy hors d'ouevres. Dorcas and I, as well as many other of the old folks, crashed early and slept soundly. Sunday morning we cooked a hearty round of breakfast burritos, a riverside standard. The paddle to Rice Field Cove Landing near Nichols was slow and easy, with more frequent swim breaks. On the drive home we enjoyed another tradition: dinner at Skipper's Seafood near Thomasville with our friends Wayne and Lynda. Here is Don's account of the trip.

Home Stuff

In between these trips we did a number of projects around the house and I discharged one civic responsibility. In years past by mid-July we would have already departed for our annual trek to the upper Midwest and Minnesota. This year however, I was summoned for jury duty on July 26. Bummer. I had been summoned earlier last year for a date when we were to be in the Florida Keys. I wrote a very nice letter to the clerk explaining our travel plans and our reservations and suggested a specific 3-week period which would be perfect and not interfere with any travel arrangements. They did postpone my jury service, but ignored my specific window and assigned me a totally random date. Luckily that date did not conflict with any plans. It turns out that my number was not called that time,and I didn't have to report to the court house. This time I figured if I tried to change the date I could end up with a worse conflict and decided to just roll with it. This time I did have to report. There were three jury trials scheduled that day. After sitting all morning and then going to lunch, about half of the pool (not me!) was called away for one of the trials. They never came back, so I don't know what happened with them. About 4:00 PM they said the other two cases had been resolved and we were dismissed. About a week later I got my check for $12.00. Such is our system of juris prudence.

Another project that has occupied much of our summer is our yard sale. To put it bluntly: our house is a mess. Dorcas and I are both hopeless pack rats. It runs in both our families and we have never been able to overcome it. We have stuff in boxes from when we combined our households more than 10 years ago. We have stuff in boxes from our offices when we each retired. We have stuff in boxes from each of our parents houses and my grandmother's house after they passed. Etc., etc., etc. So, we decided we had to do something. I am reluctant to just throw something away if it has some value. We donated some clothes and other items to charitable organizations, but we decided we would also have a yard sale. All summer we have been going through boxes, closets and drawers; pulling stuff out of the rafters and off the shelves in the basement and staging stuff in the basement for a sale. We scheduled the sale for Friday and Saturday Aug 6 & 7. We advertised in the paper and on Craigs list and put signs and balloons out on the road. We had the sale on our new concrete driveway (more about that later), which was perfect. Our road is a narrow dead-end road with little parking, but somehow most of Forsyth County came down our road and looked at our junk. It was a lot of work, but we pulled it off, unloading at least all the major/big items. We had a lot of traffic and cleared a little over $900. We certainly haven't solved the junk problem in our house, but we made some serious headway. Whew! I'm glad that's over! After we cleaned up on Saturday our friends Wayne and Lynda came over. We then dined at Foothills Brewing, had a few brews and attended a Winston-Salem Dash baseball game. The home team won. Life is good.

Motor Home Maintenance and Repairs

The tires on the coach were manufactured in Oct 2003. Motor home tires usually "age out" before the tread wears out. Conventional wisdom suggests tires should be replaced every 5-7 years, although there is a great deal of controversy and disagreement on this point. Some say you are courting certain death if you go over 5 years. Others say they have run their tires 10 years or more and to change them simply because they have a birthday is wasteful. The manufacturers waffle on the point but do suggest internal inspections of the side wall after about 7 years. In any case my tires are almost 7 years old. All my friends with 2004 coaches have just had their tires replaced, so I figured it was my time. Besides, my right steer tire had recently shown some abnormal and very serious wear on the outside corner. I called Bill Plemmons, the big RV dealer in town, and asked for their recommendation for a tire dealer and an alignment shop. They suggested Stokes Tire in King and Auto Spring Company in Winston-Salem. After long consideration I had already decided I wanted the same model tires that were on the coach now. This was unfortunate, because that is not a common tire and Stokes Tire had difficulty locating a set, at least from a distributor who could get it here within a week. I was in a bit of a time crunch with our upcoming trip. Stokes Tire finally located 6 tires, but they were not as fresh as I would have liked; in fact were not as fresh as he had promised when I ordered them. Two were manufactured in March 2009 and four were manufactured in October 2009. I really didn't want to buy stale tires, because they would have to be replaced again that much sooner (remember the 7 year rule?) But I had no choice if I wanted that model and wanted them before I left on my trip. So I took the coach to King to have them installed. I have never watched them install large truck tires. I don't know if they do it this way everywhere, but here it was a manual process. The coach was jacked at one wheel position and that wheel was removed. The tire was then removed and re-installed manually, meaning laying the wheel on the pavement and using tire bars and no iron tire machine. They could not spin balance tires of that size so they put a granular beads in each tire which will distribute as the tire rolls and provide balance. This process was repeated for each of the 6 wheels and took about 4 hours. I also had the brakes inspected while the wheels were off. They looked like brand new. The coach is equipped with an engine compression brake, or Jake brake, so the service brakes get very little wear. I won't say here how much the set of new tires cost, but it hurt. It hurt a lot.

A few days after installing the tires I went to Auto Spring Co. for an alignment. At Auto Spring Co they align wheels manually, the old fashioned way, rather than using a computerized machine. My coach has independent front suspension (IFS) and the camber, castor and toe-in are all adjustable. The guy put a device on each wheel with level bubbles and checked the camber and castor. He used a rod to set the toe-in, measuring the distance between each tire. It turned out that the castor on the right front was off by 7/8", which explained the sever tire wear I had recently seen.

I changed the oil and filter on the engine, an annual project. This task is not too difficult but it is rather messy. The crankcase and the filter hold about 27 quarts. I have made the job easier by replacing the oil pan drain plug with a valve so that I can easily stop the draining oil and empty my pan. Perhaps the hardest part is filling the engine with the fresh oil. There is very little clearance between the oil fill and the top of the engine compartment, such that you can't simple pour the oil in from the bottle. I devised a funnel with a long hose, and stand on a ladder. That seems to work pretty well.

I have had problems with my refrigerator seemingly since we got the coach almost four years ago. In February 2009 the cooling unit blew out, releasing its pressurized contents and rendering the fridge useless. This failure was caused by the manufacturer using steel tubing that was too thin and which would fail after a number of heat cycles. It was the subject of a recall, but the recall did not fix the underlying problem. It simply installed a plate to separate the explosive gas that would ultimately be released from the LP burner, so that when it did fail, it would (hopefully) not burn down the coach. Mine failed and I replaced the cooling unit myself with an aftermarket unit. It seemed to work fine for a while, but during the last 8-10 months it has cooled erratically, cooling normally for about a week, then soaring into the mid 50 degree range for a while, then cooling again. After much research and discussion with technicians, including the one who sold me the cooling unit, it was determined that this cooling unit had now failed. The cooling unit was still under warranty and the company agreed to ship me a replacement. The problem was that they were out of stock, and they could not deliver before my Midwest trip. CRAP! They offered to send me a similar rebuilt unit to install and use until I returned, after which they would send me a new unit like the one I had bought originally. This would give me a working fridge for my trip, but would mean I would have to change out the cooling unit twice. An all-day job for me and not fun. But I didn't have much choice, so they sent me the rebuilt unit and I installed. it. It worked for about a day then began to not cool so good. After monitoring its performance for a few days and trying a few tricks suggested by the dealer, he determined that that unit was defective too. So now I am days away from leaving on a 10 week trip, I've spent dozens of hours messing with it and I still don't have a working fridge. We have no choice but to leave home with a large cooler packed with ice food, and try to have a new unit shipped to us somewhere on the road. Oh the joys of RV ownership! This story will be continued ....

The Taj Mahal Driveway Project 2010

We bought a 25' travel trailer in 2000 and started practicing for retirement. I realized after backing the trailer down my steep driveway and around a sharp 90 degree bend and the lower corner of the house the first time, that I never wanted to do again. It was too stressful for Dorcas, who was the recipient of my irate rants as she tried to keep me from hitting a tree or the house. Soon I hired a guy with a Bobcat to cut a loop around the west side of the house back to the street, making for a complete circular driveway around the house. I put down several loads of gravel. but never really finished it. It wasn't perfect, but it was functional. One problem was that it was narrow, uneven and held water. It wasn't really a suitable place to park the coach. Consequently I usually parked the coach behind the house on the old driveway. That meant it was difficult to get the cars into the garage (notwithstanding all the crap in the garage where the cars would normally be parked; see topic above). And I still couldn't drive all the way around the circle because there would be the coach or another vehicle blocking the way. It was kinda like one of those little tile puzzles where you have move the tiles around in a frame to get them all in a certain position. It was also just unfinished. It looked bad, and I had plans in my head that would make it so much nicer.

So, after procrastinating many years, Dorcas and I decided to bite the bullet and finish The Driveway. We would smooth out the vertical transition as it rises to the street, pour a wide level pad at the bottom and build a decorative retaining wall on the bank next to the house. Folks who know me also know that when I undertake a project such as this, I tend to go all out and don't take any shortcuts. So it was with The Driveway. We ended up pouring 54 cubic yards of 3500 psi concrete, 6" thick with 1/2" re-bar on 12" center. As they say in the trade you only get one chance when you pour concrete. We put 48' of 15" reinforced concrete pipe under the driveway below the path where the gravel always washed out, with a formed concrete catch basin and cast iron grate. The lower pad is level, 24' wide and 35' long (short edge) to 45' long (long edge). It is wide enough to park the coach on one side and drive another large vehicle around it. In fact, I made the pad wide enough to park 2 motor homes side by side. We are also good if we upgrade to 45' motor home (heaven forbid!). I have also installed PVC conduits under the concrete for an electrical service panel and a gutter pipe. We included 5' stamped concrete aprons at the edge of the road at both the new and old sections of the driveway. There is a decorative stacked block retaining wall on the bank between the pad and the house, with block steps up to the front yard. Most of the grading and forming was done by a contractor, but I put in a fair bit of sweat equity. The wall, however, that was all me. It was very hot and humid and the blocks weighed more than 60 pounds each. Seldom could a block be set without moving it several more times before it was right. This was certainly the most difficult home improvement project I have ever undertaken; much more difficult than our painting project last year. Perhaps I'm just getting old.

All in all it came out extremely well. The steps are only half completed, I haven't completed all the final grading and I haven't wired my electrical pedestal. In October we will plant some new grass, ground cover and some shrubbery. I expect the last 10% of the project will probably take another year to complete. But it's looking nice!

Daddy's Got a New Pair of Eyes

I have been resisting getting eyeglasses for some time. I have used readers more and more often over the last few years, but my far vision was still pretty good. At least the NC DMV thought so when they issued my license to drive the big rig in December. However, I have seen further deterioration in both my near and far vision, to the extent I was really starting to have problems seeing well, particularly if the object was closer than 3' or further than 4' away. When I went in for my annual retinopathic exam in May, I also had a full vision exam. The doctor. was amazed that I hadn't gotten glasses before.

So, I took the prescription and got my glasses. They do help my vision, but I really don't like wearing them. I guess it just takes getting used to. I feel sorta like those little Geico eyeballs that keep following everybody around on TV. I got the lined bi-focals and am starting to think I should have gotten a progressive bi-focal. Oh well. We'll see.

Wow, I can actually read that road sign!

On the Road Again .... Again

We really wanted to leave home for our summer trip today, but with our painting and repair projects we weren't sure we would make it. We could wait and leave on Saturday, but we needed to be in NW Ohio early on Sunday morning and didn't want to push it. Finally, we decided we would quit painting Thursday night, finished or not, and pack and leave on Friday. While we didn't finish completely, it was close enough; the rest can wait until October.

This morning we began packing for our three month summer trip. I mean, we hadn't packed anything! We finally hit the road at 7:00 PM, well after the Friday rush hour. We drove until about 11:00 PM and are spending the night at the Tamarack Center in Beckley WV, where they allow RVs to park overnight in a dedicated section of their parking lot. Tomorrow we will continue north to Bowling Green OH and attend the FMCA convention. After that we will move further north to Thousand Trails in St. Clair MI. After that we are not sure where we are going. We will ultimately land in Ely MN near the end of August for our annual Boundary Waters canoe trip, however our route there is uncertain. We will probably spend time in northwest Michigan and Michigan's Upper Penisula. We may loop through Ontario and travel the north shore of Lake Superior through Canada. We will regroup and make a plan after the FMCA convention. We will take out from our Boundary Waters trip in mid-September. After that we will make a decision where to go and when to come home. Where we go in September and October will likely depend on where all we get to in July and August. We will likely arrive home in the first or second week of October. Ours is an unstructured life on the road.

Home Improvements

Our house was built in 1983. I have lived in it since 1986. The house was built by Bill Pope, a builder whose company builds primarily commercial buildings. Bill built the house for himself, but while building the house added on many extras and features and drove the cost higher than he had intended. So, after living in the house for three years, Bill decided to sell the house to cut his losses. "Overkill Bill", as he is known around town, typically builds structures which are over-engineered and over-built, as in the case of my house. For example, the footings are extra deep and wide and have steel reinforcing; the basement has eight feet of clearance throughout its 2000 square feet; the roofing was a 40 year shingle by Byrd, the best in the industry (now out of business); the windows, hardware and fixtures were top quality; etc. Because of the quality of the construction and materials, I have had to do very little maintenance or repairs to the house. The roof, exterior paint and one of the heat pumps are all original.

But alas, all good things must end. The roof was showing some serious damage on the south side. On the north side there was a serious crop of moss flourishing. It wasn't leaking yet, but no doubt it would be soon. Also, the paint was blistering, cracking and peeling in a number of places, particularly on the south side. I was beginning to see some water damage on the windows, the wood sash on the bay window was completely rotted, and sections of the garage doors were rotted. One section of gutter was leaking and hanging limp and water was running down the fascia behind the gutter. It was time to take action. With a little over two weeks before our next long trip and fair weather in the forecast, Dorcas and I tore into it. To make a very long story short, over the past two weeks Dorcas and I prepped, caulked and painted the exterior of the house, had a new roof installed, had 34' of new gutter installed and re-built the sill on the bay window. There was one section of eave on the west side of the house that I could not reach with my 24' extension ladder (thankfully!!!!). It turns out there was a professional painter working up the street on my neighbor's house. He gave me about five hours of time, at a very reasonable rate, and painted that high eave and a few other tough spots.

It was a very productive two weeks. The neighbors watched us working so long and so hard, they figured we were selling the house. Maybe we should sell it, but we aren't ready just quite yet. At least now we can travel and not worry about continuing water damage. I think when I have to do it again, I may hire that professional painter to do the whole job. Life is too short to scrape paint.