David and Anna's house, RichardsonSunday, 23 May through Saturday, 12 June 2021
RV repair
I took the RV in to Dodie on Monday the 24th, and 2 weeks later he called to tell me it was ready. In that time they'd done an incredible amount of work, despite his concern that parts might not be available (because there's currently a shortage of parts in many fields - like air conditioning).
They found that the screws holding that door hinge had vibrated loose, which doubtless explains why it finally split. And they replaced the hinge and tightened the screws, so now the door actually works like a door should.
And speaking of doors, they installed a screen in the upper screen door that didn't have a Dexter-sized hole in it. It's a little weird having an ordinary screen door that keeps out bugs.
They replaced the motor and the bent shaft on my awning and replaced the covers that are supposed to protect the hinges, so now I have an awning that actually rolls out and back in the way it's supposed to.
They found that the reason my heater didn't work, even with the new thermostat, is that air had gotten in the lines. They bled the lines and say that it now works just fine. I'm taking their word for it because it's way too hot to turn on the heater, even for a test.
The RV's state registration expired at the end of May, so while they had it, they took it to get the state inspection done. The day I got it back, David took me over to a DMV office (he said I shouldn't bother taking the RV over there because I'd never find a parking place, and he was right). In Austin, they have you take a number and sit down to wait, but here you just stand in line with people being only vaguely conscientious about social distancing. But I had to get a current registration sticker before I dared drive the RV much. So that's done.
I've been driving around with 2 big dings in the windshield ever since Amarillo (or someplace up there) and I decided to take this opportunity to get it replaced. Maybe I didn't need to, but those cracks have been bothering me ever since they happened and I wanted to stop having that niggling worry all the time.
They checked the house batteries and found that they were nearly dead and replaced them.
I'd lost a hubcap while I was in Iowa or thereabouts and asked them to find a new one. Dodie told me they had to order an entire set, but I decided to do it. The first set came in the wrong size. The second set came in damaged. And by then it was time for me to pick the RV up, so I still have a hubcap missing.
More than a year ago, I stopped getting power to my TV or DVD player. They both plug into the same outlet, so once when I was in town, David decided to plug them into an extension cord that I could then plug into a different outlet - the one by the kitchen sink. And that's what I've been doing ever since. Sometimes it's been a bit of a nuisance to run the cord from the upper cabinet where the DVD player lives down to the outlet between the sink and the door, and still keep it out of the way when I'm coming in and out. And it takes up an outlet that sometimes I wish I had the use of. Sometimes it's just seemed to be too much trouble and I don't use the machines even when I vaguely want to. I asked Dodie to figure out what was wrong and fix it, and he reported that his guys hadn't found anything wrong. They didn't know what my problem had been. They thought maybe I'd been trying to use them while the engine was running, so they carefully explained to me why that wouldn't work. But I know for certain that's not what I'd been doing, because I already knew it wouldn't work. And it's certainly not what I'd done over and over and over when I'd tried to use the TV, with or without the DVD player. So I still don't know why it didn't work, but now it does.
They did an engine tune-up and changed the spark plugs and wires and so forth. That's the first one in all these years. Neither Anna nor David has a very high opinion of Fords but, as I pointed out to them, my Ford engine is about the only thing that hasn't needed repair. I get the oil changed about every 5,000 miles and I think a new air filter once. And that's it. So it deserves new parts and I hope that doesn't throw it for a loop.
An incredible amount of work, isn't it? That tune-up was by far the most expensive part of it, because of the labor time involved. My total bill was $3,500 and I feel like it was absolutely worth it. To me, my door hinge is almost worth that much all by itself.
RV repair, part 2
David drove me over to pick the RV up, and on the way back to his house I noticed the radio wasn't working and that I didn't seem to have an odometer, both of which I regard as essential to life on the road. One of the earliest lessons I learned in my RV ownership time is that there's a switch that has to be turned on to activate the radio and the back-up camera and some other stuff - though I have no idea why or what the point of having such a switch is. I could see from the driver's seat that the switch wasn't turned on, so with difficulty I found a place where both David and I could pull off the road for me to turn on the switch. Back off down the road with a now-functioning radio but still no odometer. Found another place to pull in, went back to consult with David, and we decided to go right back to Dodie's place.
Back there, one of the clever guys who worked there very nicely pointed out to me that there was a wheel that provided more or less amounts of illumination to the dashboard gauges, and when he turned it to more illumination I could suddenly see my perfectly functioning odometer. So I told Dodie the diagnosis was that I was a complete dope and I appreciated his patience with me. Yes, I already knew about the wheel but had never changed its setting in all these years so had forgotten its existence.
In the meantime, while I was checking these various non-malfunctions, I noticed the refrigerator also wasn't working, and that it continued to not work even after I'd flipped on that special switch. I knew I had propane but, when I double checked it, I found that in fact I didn't have any propane at all. Two different gauges told me the tank was empty. I realized later that, while the guy was bleeding the air out of my propane heater, and then restarting it, he likely used whatever propane I'd had left in the tank. Anyway, I needed it so the refrigerator could work, and David and I went over to fill the tank, which didn't take as much as I'd expected. Just under 8 gallons filled the tank that had been completely empty. Good to know.
Once I had the RV back, I decided to spend a couple of hours cleaning it more thoroughly than I'm able to do when it's full of critters, their paraphernalia, and all my stuff. That turned out to take several hours longer than I expected, especially when I found that the freezer had, of course, defrosted itself while it was turned off. There was an inch of water in the bottom that I had to mop out. Then I found that because the refrigerator had been turned off and closed up all this time, a fine crop of mold was growing in many places inside. So I had to clean all that out too.
Meanwhile the day was seriously heating up so I turned on the generator so I could run the AC, and once it was clean I tried cooling off the frig. The freezer cooled off right away, but the frig stayed warm. Even after it ran for hours, it didn't want to cool off. So once again, I drove it back to Dodie's for help, and sat there for ages while one of his guys used a thermometer that has a separate sensor attached to measure the inside temp while keeping the door closed. It didn't get below 65° inside in all that time. So he suggested I keep it set on its coldest setting for 24 hours and then measure the temp again.
The shop explained that the usual solution to my sort of problem is a new coil (or something, I can't remember), and with parts and labor it could cost a big chunk of the cost of a new frig and not have as long a warranty. So I told them to start looking for a new refrigerator for me. Before I bought my RV, I'd heard from many people that these RV refrigerators don't last very long, and mine had already lasted more than 3 years with constant use, instead of the intermittent use that's more expected. I figured even if mine came back up to the proper temp after 24 hours and seemed to be functioning fine, it would be just a matter of time before it'd go out on me, and I didn't want that to happen in July in North Dakota, for instance.
We agreed they'd start looking, understanding that I was planning to leave town in a week, and that I'd check back in with them on Monday the 14th.
The next day, David used a similar thermometer he uses to check meat he's smoking or cooking, and it said the frig had cooled so well it was now close to being a freezer. So we moved the setting from 5 down to 2 (I usually keep it at 1, but David and I decided 2 would be safer). We figured we'd check it again the next day before loading it with food.
Critters
Dexter had his surgery and came home with 8 or 9 stitches across his back. The vet had used wire for the stitches for some reason, but they didn't seem to bother Dext. The vet advised me to put a shirt on Dext until the stitches were taken out, to keep him from worrying at them, so Anna sifted through her less-desired clothing and came up with a couple of tank tops. They sagged so Dext nearly stepped on them and couldn't pee without messing the shirt, so Anna used a rubber band and some twist-ties to custom fit the shirt to the dog. And that's what we did for 10 days while we waited for him to heal. The stitches came out just fine, and both the vet and Anna suggested using Neosporin on that little place under his ear that was having a harder time healing. I'd never used that before, but Anna told me it was good for a wide range of sore places, so I put it on that spot of Dext's before bed.
The vet said the lump I felt in his side wasn't actually a lump but instead the end of a floating rib that was sticking out now and then. But the vet also found a lump I hadn't known about under Dext's left ear and took it out. Just a little one that needed only 1 stitch. Unfortunately, the Gentle Leader (collar) I won't take Dexter for a walk without hits him exactly where that place is, so it took a lot longer to heal than the place on his back. I gave Dext pain pills for 5 days and antibiotics for 10 days, neither of which was a problem because I just put them in his food, and he'll eat anything.
When Gracie was recovering from her stroke, that vet gave me medicine for her, and getting those pills into her was a real problem. Food is meaningless to her unless she's hungry - and not even then if it's something she doesn't like. So even coating the pills in peanut butter - which she loves - wasn't good enough. I had to stick the pills/peanut butter onto some inner mouth part, and thank goodness peanut butter sticks to things or I'd've never gotten them into her.
Gracie's vet had suggested getting her some CBD. One day I was with Anna when she went to a health/vitamin store, and I asked about CBD products for pets. And walked out with a bag of peanut butter/cranberry CBD wafers that cost $28 for a bag of 36. A LOT of money, it seemed to me. But Gracie loved them and would eat them even when she wasn't eating anything else. And they seemed to help her relax at bedtime.
So after Dexter's surgery, I started giving them to him, too, at bedtime. He loved them, and he slept well too.
We kept having intermittent rain/thunder/lightning most days, and I finally got the bright idea of giving both dogs a CBD wafer when we first heard it thunder. And it seems to help. With Gracie, I combine it with her Thundershirt. These wafers tend to put them to sleep, which is much better than having Gracie try to dig a hole under my bed (Anna and David have hardwood floors so digging really isn't a good idea).
Gracie seems almost completely recovered from that stroke. But I'm wondering if she lost some of her eyesight in one of her eyes. When she's looking at something on the ground, she doesn't look at it straight on. Instead, she tilts her head to the left and puts her face closer to the ground. I don't know if that means her right eye isn't working right or if it means her left eye is weak and she's compensating. Either way, it's not like it was before. Otherwise, she's much better and is starting to want to play with Dext again. Earlier, she was too unsteady on her legs to want to play.
Dermatologist
I've been vaguely worried about some rough spots on my face. A dermatologist I went to before I left Austin 3 years ago told me that places like that that I'd had before were pre-cancerous and I should be sure to see a dermatologist once a year. Well, I've been having a big enough problem seeing a regular doctor once a year to get my blood pressure meds re-upped and had no idea how to find a dermatologist. But since I was going to be in one place for a while, I decided to give it a try.
I ended up going online and checking, as best I could, the dermatologists that were nearby. And I found one that had plenty of positive comments online - comments that seemed to have been written by real people - and she seemed to be well-established here, so I called. I couldn't get an appointment before Monday, June 7th, but I made the appointment, figuring I'd just cancel if it turned out I'd be leaving town sooner. But I was still here by then so David took me to her office.
Dr. Koriakos seemed to be the only doctor in the office, and judging by the number of patients who were scheduled ahead of me, and the number who were waiting when I came out, she's got a thriving practice. She reminded me of Dr. Shung, my primary care doctor in Austin, who seems to have boundless energy, be very knowledgeable, and is willing to take the time to listen to me and ask questions.
She found a bunch of places on my arms and hands that I'd been ignoring that were the same types of places on my face, and she checked the rest of my upper body just in case. Then she used liquid nitrogen (I think it was) on all these many places and gave me some written instructions for what to expect and how to care for them and also gave me some sample products to care for them, and then said to come back by in 6 months or so if I were back in the area. She urged me to wear sunscreen, pointing out that the sun shines brightly in North Dakota too. I was impressed with her.
Dog grooming
One of the things I'd wanted very much to do was get the dogs bathed, wash their beds and air them out. I honestly can't remember when they last had a bath. I had to wait 3 days after Dext's stitches came out, per the vet, and David drove me and both dogs over to the place they used when their dogs were still alive. Strong scent of perfume in the air, so I emphasized that I wanted them to use unscented shampoo. The guy looked at me and said, "So does that mean you don't want us to spray them with perfume before you pick them up?" Yeah, that's what it means. I really don't want to live in a very small enclosed space with 2 refugees from a French bordello.
Back at the house, I had to wait until the yardwork guys had finished their work (Thursday's their day) but we got all the beds outside to air and I washed the covers and the towels I dry them with and so forth. Then back to pick up the dogs.
They remembered to keep Gracie scent-free, but Dext had a definite aura, which he clearly hated because he kept rubbing around on the grass afterwards. I think, though, that they'd just started spraying his head with that perfume when they suddenly remembered and stopped, because it wasn't all over him and it wasn't seriously strong, just sort of. But they'd gotten massive amounts of hair off Gracie, and it was nice to have the dogs feel clean to pat and smell clean again. And those were the things I wanted to accomplish.
Travel plans
I spent days trying to figure out my upcoming travel itinerary and making campground reservations to fit. I had 2 main hurdles to deal with: the holidays (4th of July & Labor Day) that always attract even more campground crowds than are usual, and the seriously rural nature of the states I'll be going to. A not insignificant additional problem is that summer is when everybody wants to go camping, so campsites at state campgrounds are harder to come by and on weekends are almost nonexistent.
After taking a good look at my trusty AAA maps, I realized that North Dakota has only 2 real cities - Bismarck and Fargo. Bismarck is in southcentral ND while Fargo is on the border with Minnesota. Other than those 2 cities, there are only small towns scattered around the state so I can't expect to find easy access to private campgrounds. Or to a wifi signal, for that matter. And while there are a reasonable number of state campgrounds, ND is a large state so there's a lot of miles between them. I finally made a reservation at the only KOA in the state - at Bismarck - for the entire long 4th of July weekend, and may end up staying a full week. Then I've got 2 nights in state campgrounds, and it took me days to get those reservations because their computer program was having glitches and I couldn't get anybody to answer the telephone. And my 2nd weekend is booked at a city campground in Fargo on the Missouri River. From there on, I'll be heading into rural North Dakota.
August will be in South Dakota, which is far more popular than North Dakota because of attractions such as Mt. Rushmore. August 1st, when I'll move into SD, is a Saturday so I was back to the problem of where to stay on a weekend. I ended up cobbling together a full week spread among 3 different KOAs in that Mt. Rushmore area. And given the popularity of SD and the time of year, I went ahead and made reservations at 3 different state parks and yet another KOA to get me through half the month. From there I'll be traveling around rural South Dakota, ending up at a state park on the last night of the month.
September is Wyoming, another state with major tourist draws, such as Yellowstone National Park. And also with a national holiday - Labor Day. I'd intended to wait until the end of the month to try for campsites near Yellowstone, but checking around I found I could get a week's worth of reservations at 3 different KOAs, and then a night actually in Yellowstone National Park. I found I had to stay in the park because all other campgrounds are too many miles away. They aren't really, but to travel from any of them into the park to see the geysers, for example, and then to travel back to the campground - I'd spend an entire day driving instead of sightseeing. Wyoming's not quite as rural as the Dakotas, but it's far far more mountainous. There I'll be back into pieces of the Rocky Mountains, which will be a big adjustment after not seeing any mountains since last September in Colorado.
My current plan is to go from there to Utah in October, New Mexico in November, and Arizona in December. That schedule likely means I'll have to miss some things I'd like to see because of probable snow or ice or even wildfires. But as I've found, I can have plans derailed by bad weather in just about any state at just about any season (though not always be snow). I still remember trying to dodge that tornado in Alabama last December. So I'll just play it by ear and see how it goes. Fortunately, I've seen the Grand Canyon twice, and while I'd love to see it again, I still carry a very clear memory of it, so not seeing it won't blight my life.
Relaxation
David and Anna left town for an overnight to spend time with some friends south of Waco, and I spent most of the time they were gone watching movies. It's not like my usual schedule includes watching a movie every night, because I don't. But when I do, I usually start it at around 4:00 so it'll be over around 6:00, and I can walk the dogs and be in bed by 7:00.
D&A have a somewhat different schedule, including usually eating much later than I do. They modified that significantly while I was there, especially when they started noticing me getting crabby because I was hungry, but movies didn't figure into their usual plans. And since Anna doesn't seem to enjoy them as much as I do, I didn't feel right about suggesting we do something she wouldn't much want to do. Plus, if we started a movie after dinner, it'd be running so late I'd be falling asleep before it was done so I wouldn't enjoy it either.
But with them gone, I took a day out of my travel itinerary planning and watched one after another after another. In all, I went through 10 movies while they were gone. I've never done that before and don't expect to do it again any time soon, but it was fun. And I ordered a pizza for dinner, which was enough for lunch the next day too. Except for walking the dogs now and then, I sure didn't burn up many calories.
And a few days after my 2-week post-vaccination period, when I was deemed to be fully protected, they had a friend over for dinner. Completely weird being in an indoor space with a stranger and none of us wearing masks. But they'd assured me their friend was as cautious about this virus as I was and had been fully vaccinated for quite a while so was as safe as anybody is these days. Still, a strange experience after this past year of isolation.
Finally . . .
. . . this was a long period to spend ashore, so to speak, after being on the move for so long. I spent the first couple of weeks being nearly exhausted just by walking from D&A's kitchen to the back bedroom that was David's office before I and my critters moved in. Of course, much of that was likely due to that stomach virus I was dealing with, and the way it sapped energy out of my body. But still, the RV is smaller than their family room, so it was a big adjustment in many ways. The dogs never did quite figure out how to keep from sliding on the wood floors, though that didn't slow Dexter down much. And while both dogs seemed to appreciate having more space to stretch out in, I think Lily was the happiest with the new situation. She appropriated several areas in different rooms of the house as her own and insisted that any passing human needed to stop and turn on the bathroom water faucet for her to drink out of (which we mostly declined).
And for me, it was a big relief as one after another of the problems that had been niggling at me got resolved - the door that wouldn't stay closed, the growth on Dexter's back, the rips in the screen door with bug season beginning, the broken awning that would begin to mold if I couldn't get it fixed, the heater that didn't quite work, my COVID vaccination. And I also had several problems solved that I didn't know I was going to have: Gracie's stroke and the malfunctioning refrigerator.
None of the 3 of us humans expected I'd end up staying so long - I think we all envisioned 2 weeks, maybe 3 at the most - so 5 weeks was verging on me feeling like I should start paying rent. It was Robert Frost (I had to look it up) who said, "Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in." And I can truthfully say that at no point did either Anna or David make me feel like they grudged the enormous amounts of time and energy they spent for me, and in fact made me feel like it was all just fine and dandy. They showed an incredible level of generosity and I'm really grateful they're my family.
