Remedies, Repairs, and a Ride through the City of Lights...

   Tired from a busy weekend, we spent most of Tuesday unpacking, catching up on phone calls and emails, and Valerie used a box or two of tissues due to a nasty head cold she picked up along the way to Michigan and back.  The few items in her shopping cart during a trip to the store included Puffs with Vicks, Zicam, Cold-Eeze, and Mucinex.



   Wednesday, George had an appointment at the Apple Store for assistance in restoring Valerie's contact list, which somehow dropped several groups that had previously been there.  But a van driving through the RV park advertising Mobile Mechanics reminded him we needed work on the Splendide washer/dryer combination.



   A call to their number resulted in a visit from their tech named Patrick.  When the suspected lint build-up problem appeared not to be the cause of our laundry woes, a call to the manufacturer's rep, Darrell, helped to determine a problem with a sensor that had become dislodged.  Valerie ran the first load through with quite a bit of lint on the clothes, a second (empty) load through, and finally a completed load without the machine going into default mode.



   George, with the help of the Apple associate, was able to restore Valerie's phone contacts, and by evening, it was finally time to at least take a drive down The Strip in Las Vegas.  The moon was nearly full but there seemed to be a lot of haze in the air.



   Valerie was able to get a few shots of the City of Lights out the window using her cell phone camera.  It appears much has changed since our last visit a few years ago.  We indeed intend to do some exploring, but now George has begun to sneeze.



   The Oasis RV Park where we are staying is close to The Strip as well as some outlet mall shops.  Valerie has plans to meet some friends from her high school days this weekend, and Valentine's Day is tomorrow.  It's time to dose up on cold meds and get out and about to paint the town a little.



   There are so many shows to see and we need to make some decisions.  Valerie has tickets near her friends for Cirque du Soleil's Beatles Love.  Sunday, we look forward to dinner with RV School instructor J.D. and his wife, Marti Jenkins.

   In the meantime we have decisions to make for our trip south to Florida when we leave Las Vegas on the 18th.  Ideally we would take I-15 north to I-70 to meet with the school's instructor in Fort Collins.  That would allow us to make the easterly sweep through Kansas City, where we also have business.  But the weather will be a huge consideration in our planning.



   Right now, it's time to get up from the desk, medicate and pack the pockets full of tissues.  There is so much to see and so little time!  Life is indeed too short!


 
 

Cold Hands, Warm Hearts ...

   Friday morning we were up early in Las Vegas, packing last minute items for a flight to Detroit, Michigan.  We dropped the Shelties off at PetsHotel in nearby Henderson when George realized he had forgotten his hearing aids.  We found our way to the economy parking lot and waited for the shuttle which took us to the airport then rode the tram to the terminal in which Southwest Airlines was located.

Captain Charlie and Princess Zara suspect it's not going to be a typical day at the RV park.

Lake Michigan below is partially frozen!

   Had we paid attention, we would have noticed in small print near the upper left corner of our boarding passes the words "TSA PRE," which would have allowed us to avoid the usual removal of shoes, belts, jackets, laptops, etc.  We were hurried onto our plane with continual prompting that we needed to hurry for our push to the gate, only to find once seated that we were waiting on our pilots.  We arrived only twenty minutes or so behind schedule to a temperature of 7 degrees and snow flurries.

   George's brother, Jack, picked us up and delivered us to the home he shares in Ann Arbor with his delightful wife of 50 years, Helene.  George's sisters, Alein and Linda had already arrived, having driven from Minneapolis.  Jack and Helene are blessed to have their children and grandchildren nearby, and they were in and out for frequent visits, board games and shared meals.  Valerie kept wishing for a full-blown blizzard to fully experience winter, but had to settle for flurries, which was all that materialized.




   The big event, which was the reason for our trip, took place on Sunday evening, when a group of family and close friends gathered at Mangiamo's Italian Grill in nearby Saline to celebrate Jack and Helene's 50th wedding anniversary. We left the house in something of a hurry, disappointedly forgetting our good camera.  But the food was delicious, the video  presentation George was honored to prepare for the occasion was well received, and we were reminded of the beauty of enduring love.  More than one person felt compelled to express their gratitude for Jack and Helene's accepting nature and adoption into their family.

Twins Jim and John are making last-minute preparations.

Cake and flowers!

Posing for photos!

   Following breakfast on Monday, we were again at the airport and this time prepared to dodge the regular screening lines with our TSA PRE boarding passes in hand.  Warm weather and wagging tails awaited us in Las Vegas.

We'll be home soon!

   Our hearts remain filled with the warm sentiments and the example set by Jack and Helene, which is best expressed so beautifully in one of my favorite quotes from the Holy Bible:

   "Love is patient; love is kind and envies no one. Love is never boastful, nor conceited, nor rude; never selfish, not quick to take offense. There is nothing love cannot face; there is no limit to its faith, its hope, and endurance. In a word, there are three things that last forever: faith, hope, and love; but the greatest of them all is love." -- 1 Corinthians 13:4-13

The dogs' were glad to see us!

A Day Late!

    Upon retirement it becomes easy to find oneself confused about what day of the week it is.   This week it happened again!  We had planned to leave Congress on Monday and instead stayed until Tuesday.  Tired from a busy weekend and having gained an hour upon entering Pacific Time, and with much to do to prepare for the upcoming weekend, we awoke quite early this morning.

The sun is shining but it's definitely jacket weather!

   George was anxious to complete a video presentation for his brother and sister-in-law's 50th wedding anniversary celebration we plan to attend.  Valerie's mind was distracted by her need to get back into an exercise routine and incoming email during this, our busiest time of year, when the holidays are behind us and snowbirds are considering the trip home and snowbirds to be are contemplating how they can escape the wrath of winter.

The pigeons are making a mess!  Walk quickly beneath the billboards and cover your head!

   Valerie set off on a morning walk and, at the first turn around the bend, was horrified at the sight of a recently burned out trailer.  George later learned from the owners the fire is still under investigation and they are still attempting to salvage their belongings, but it will likely be determined to be one of the 'refrigerator' fires, caused by a defect in the design of RV refrigerators.

Burned Alfa Fifth Wheel in the Park

   The morning air was crisp, around 43 degrees in Las Vegas, and a few bends later she was amused by a sign on a motorcycle cover at one site that read "If you let your dog pee on my motorcycle cover, please leave your site number so I can pee on your RV."  We were later shocked as we sat inside the front door as a couple allowed their three dogs to exceed the 6' leash rule, come onto our site and bark at our dogs a few feet away in their ex-pen, and allowed them to pee and poop all over every one else's sites rather than walking them down to one of many designated dog areas.

Rude pet owners necessitate this!

The Splendide is sloshing lots of water today!

   Our motor home came plumbed and ready for a small combination washer/dryer, which we early on decided was a necessity during our travels.  To do so, we sacrificed precious weight and space.  But there's been a continuing problem with lint accumulating inside the Splendide 2100 XC's interior duct.  The unit stopped functioning properly recently but it was not a good time and the one technician we contacted promised to return and did not.  Today we spoke to the technical help desk and they provided the following procedure to dislodge blockage and return the machine to working order.  The procedure is time consuming, and we should know tomorrow if it did the trick.  Valerie blogs as we complete the third and final wash cycle according to the directions:

    "Start the unit without clothes and with the dry time off on cycle #11.  When the water stops entering the unit push and hold the start button until all the lights come on then release the button.  *NOTE: If the water is not at least half way up the glass repeat this step. (We have needed to do the extra step on each cycle.)  Move the cycle knob to cycle #2 push the extra rinse button then press the start button once (do not hold) then let it run through that complete cycle.  Do this 3 times then try the dryer.  Do this 1 time a month to keep clean."  

Captain and Princess don't seem to mind the designated dog parks.

   By now it's late and Valerie has laundry to do and has realized that she needs to wash and pack warm clothes, which would be ready if not for cooler temperatures the past several days, for our flight to Michigan on Friday.  The dogs need brushing and nails clipped and food and favorite things packed and a we need a test run to the local PetsHotel and airport tomorrow.

Watching "Last Vegas" in Las Vegas

   It wasn't a good day for a much needed a nap as we had rented a RedBox movie which needed to be watched and returned.  We worked on the video and answered calls and email messages and wondered where the day went, and then realized not only had today slipped by too quickly, but that extra day we had planned to prepare for our trip, well somewhere -- like the time zone, it too had slipped away.  Tomorrow will be busy!  Let's hope it proves more productive and does not include a trip to the laundromat.

Two of our favorite people will soon celebrate 50 years of wedded bliss!

   At least Valerie's iPhone finally caught up with the time change today -- just in time to go the other direction when we fly into Eastern Time.  We're looking forward to another busy weekend with family in Michigan.  It appears that the family snowbirds will be welcomed with lots of snow.  Fifty years of marriage is really something to celebrate!  We celebrate our love for these phenomenal people we are very proud to call family!  Happy Anniversary, Helene and Jack!

It's a pretty sunset despite the power lines and cars and street lights!

The Road to Sin City...

"Where's everyone in Las Vegas?

Having some fun in Las Vegas.

Everything's bright.

Stay out all night.

You'll feel right in Las Vegas!" 

-- Tony Hatch/Petula Clark/Pierre Delanoie/Majenta

   We broke camp at North Ranch and set out around 11 this morning from Congress up Highway 93 towards our destination, Oasis Las Vegas RV Resort, approximately 225 miles.  The weather was moderate and the road was more mountainous than expected.  The scenery was nice, especially since this was an unfamiliar drive for us.





   We were amused to learn that the road is known as Joshua Tree Parkway of Arizona.  The only town we passed through en route to I-40 was a very small town called Wikieup, Arizona, which we easily would have missed had we blinked our eyes on the way through it.  We laughed when we saw a sign in the desert that read "Mowers Ahead," but the last laugh was on us, as they actually were out mowing the brush alongside the road. We stopped for lunch at a Subway inside a Love's Travel Center in Kingman, Arizona to stretch our legs and give the dogs a break.





   Highway 93 turned north again off of I-40 through Lake Mead National Recreation Center and Boulder City.  We had waited to fuel up as it appeared on our Gas Buddy Application that we would save approximately 20 cents per gallon by fueling in Nevada.  Because we were tired and didn't see any good prices along the way we drove straight through to the campground.





   The website of the RV resort advised that GPS navigation is flawed so we followed their directions and drove right to it.  We spent some time setting up since we plan to stay for a couple of weeks here, followed by a grocery run first to Sam's Club and then to Walmart Supercenter.  We picked up the movie Last Vegas from the Red Box rental kiosk, which we've heard is extremely funny.  Groceries are put away and the dogs are taken care of, and we're looking forward to lots of fun in the town that never sleeps.





   It's going to be interesting, we discovered, since Valerie's iPhone failed to change to Pacific Time and George's did, although they are both using Verizon's towers.  It's been a long day though, and the sleeping should be good, to whichever time zone we choose to abide.

   Which brings us to a second quote for today's blog...
"Does anybody really know what time it is?  Does anybody really care -- about time?" -- Robert Lamm

Back to Basics ...

   "I have wandered all my life, and I have traveled; the difference between the two is this -- we wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment." -- Hilaire Billoc

Setting up!

Many hands make light work.

   It was 2007 in Goshen, Indiana when we were first introduced by our friends, Von and Christina Starkey, to the Escapees' RVers Boot Camp program.  But now since we assumed ownership of the RV Driving School, George has become one of the instructors, which means we attend three per year -- one in Congress, Arizona, one in Livingston, Texas, and one wherever the Escapade, which is moved year-to-year, is being held.  This year's Escapade is scheduled for May 9-11 in Goshen, which will bring back many fond memories of a time we were on the learning end of this fantastic program.

Introductions by Mark Nemeth, Boot Camp Director

   The Boot Camp typically begins on a Friday afternoon and ends around noon on Sunday.  Attendees learn important aspects of RVing such as RV basic systems, RV driving tips and techniques, RV weight load and management, hitches for towables and motor homes, personal, tire, and fire safety, with elective topics such as selecting the perfect RV and full time RV lifestyle.  We were fortunate to have experienced instructors, Denny Orr, Sharon Del Rosario, and Don Lundby, available by appointment for private driving lessons before and after the boot camp seminar schedules.  Our instructors do a phenomenal job, and they are some of the most knowledgeable, patient, and courageous individuals you will have the opportunity to meet!  Boot Camp also includes opportunities for obtaining helpful tests of tire pressure gauges, fire extinguishers, and getting accurate and complete weight and height figures for your RV.  We can't imagine an RVer that could not benefit from this program!

George's seminar

Break time!

   Mark Nemeth is the Boot Camp Director and he does a fantastic job with lots of help from some great Escapees.  We are proud to be part of such a great program, and highly recommend attendance to anyone considering the RV lifestyle and including folks who have been RVing for some time.  There is always something new to learn and some wonderful opportunities to meet fellow RVers.  If interested, call early as classes fill very quickly!
http://www.escapees.com/BootCamp/Default.aspx

Mac, the Fire Guy, gives his outdoor demonstration.

   Many of the Boot Campers stayed for the Super Bowl party in the Activities Center here at North Ranch.  We enjoyed good food and conversation, despite the game, which was a complete run away!

Super Bowl snacks

   It's been a busy weekend indeed, and in our free time we have been planning our next couple of weeks in Las Vegas and beyond and taking care of regular business.  Our work is challenging and fun at the same time.  We made new friends and caught up with old friends, and look forward to new adventures and new places.

   I just want to reiterate that the Boot Camp staff works very hard with the assistance of some awesome Escapee volunteers in setting up and clean-up following these events.  It is indeed an honor and a privilege to be a part of this knowledgeable, fun and hard-working team!  We took time to celebrate and share our experiences over dinner this evening, and tomorrow we will be on the road to our next destination!

After Boot Camp we enjoyed dinner with staff at Golden Corral in Surprise, AZ