Stuck In The Sand, Back To The Grind

  

Sunday

I woke early, anticipating getting everything ready for the move back to RC.  I worked on the inside and Ted went over to visit those who were up and moving.  I decided to fix my own breakfast, rather than waiting for everyone else.  By the time they had breakfast  ready, I had everything done.   There was just last minute stuff to do.    After Ted had his breakfast, he took care of the outside.   Oh No, the big slide got hung up.  As I pushed the switch, several of the guys pushed from the outside to get it in. There was a corner of some stripping that was bent and caught. (Once home, Ted removed the strip.)   Ted finished the rest and we were ready to leave by 10:00am.  Our target time was noon (low tide).  It was a good thing we were ready, because we were STUCK, up to our axels in sand with the wheels spinning and needed to be towed.  It wasn’t a big surprise.  We figured that it would happen and were prepared.  My truck is 2 wheel drive, but there were several 4x4 trucks with the towing straps ready to help if needed.  They tried plywood planks under the wheels, no luck there.  Then one of guys hooked up his 4x4 to no avail.  Another tried with a truck with more power, a little movement, but still stuck.  That’s when the used both trucks in tandem.  That did it and we were towed out to the hard pack.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get any pictures.  I caught up with Ted and we were off.  That’s when I started feeling the tension building in my neck and shoulders.  I did not want to go back to work, but I know, it’s just that much closer fulltiming for real.

                            

Once off of the beach, Ted parked the rig and unhooked so that he could get some diesel and air up the tires.  (We had to air down for traction in  the sand.)  That’s when the capture plate for the hitch came off.  (It is held on the king pin by only one set screw.)   Ted put it back on and we were on our way.  Soon, we were heading north on CA101, then east on CA41 over to I5 at Kettleman  where we topped off the tank and used the public scales.  (As I suspected I was overweight.  Now I know that, I have to start purging again.)  I will need to get rid of almost a ton of stuff.  

About half the way home we stopped at Harris Ranch for dinner.  We shared a hot spinach/artichoke dip, a t-bone steak with baked potato, green beans and peach cobbler with vanilla ice cream.  It was very good.  After dinner I took over on the driving.  I’m not that crazy about driving at night, so Ted drove the last part and pulled into Aspen Grove Park about 9:30pm.  He backed into my site in the dark with one try.  I’ve just gotta say, he still amazes me.  Since we got back so late stayed and left early the next day to get to work in San Francisco.

Monday

I took the day off because I would have to wash the rig  to get the salt and sand off, but it rained all day.  That was convenient, so I put on my rain gear and got the hose out and rinsed it all down.  I hope that the rain got the roof clean, because I can’t get up there.

I also got the laundry together to do this Friday and started purge more stuff.  Everything is back where it belongs.

Well that is my my “vacation” in a nut shell.  Thanks for coming along with

Susan and Angel

Another Day Enjoying The Good Life

                                     

Friday

Just another day at the beach.  We had breakfast around 9:00am.  Most everyone was a late riser.  I  guess that’s because they all stayed up until the wee hours of the morning, not me though.

For breakfast it was scrambled eggs with chorizo, hash browns,O'Brien, and the typical Mexican condiments.   After breakfast they did their dune runs. again not me,  I stayed in camp.   For lunch most of us went into town, some back to the Splash Café and some others and Ted and I went  to Mo’s Barbeque.  We shared  a sampler,  ribs,pulled pork, chicken, potato salad and beans.  It was sooooo good.

The rest of the afternoon was spent visiting with everyone for a while and later I took a nap and wrote the last post on live writer.(All the while listening  to and feeling the wind buffeting the rig)  I would have done more, except that I used most of the battery on my laptop.  Later when we turned on the generator, and then recharged it.  Then it was time for dinner,  Pasta and wonderful red sauce, garlic bread and salad.  (Reen sent some home with me. There’s a lot so I froze it in individual portions.)  I was able to stay awake a couple of nights until nearly 11:00pm.  That’s what happens when you have some wine, good company and a great campfire.

     

               That’s me and Angel on the left, and Billy, Reen, and Ted on the right.

Saturday

Another great breakfast. Same morning routine.  Some more people arrived last night and a couple more this morning for one day. 

                                

                                      Heading out to the dunes.     

We had lunch in the rig and later I drove into Grover Beach to the Big Kmart to look for a sweat shirt, didn’t find one that I liked, but found some lounging pants with smiley faces and a tee shirt for Ted.

                                      

             On the back of the shirt it says the same, except see front.

                                      

There was a Bolo tournament in the afternoon.  That Steven in a wig.  (Small world,  He actually worked with my Grandson Nick in Hawaii)

                                

                      Later back at camp I took Angel for a walk by the water.

                                    

                                            Read a little, napped a little.

                    Dinner was burgers and all the trimmings, and another fire.

                     

           Yes, that’s actually three fires.   There were about twenty people around the fires.

That was it.  Then off to bed.  Tomorrow we would be heading back to RC.

Stay tuned for Sunday’s adventure.

Thanks for visiting

Susan and Angel

Destination: Pismo Beach

                             

Wednesday

I guess the trip stated earlier in the day.  Up early 4:00am, couldn’t sleep,  Most of everything that had to be stowed, was stowed the night before except the last minute stuff.  We went out for breakfast at IHOP, (just easier), stopped at the store for things on Ted’s food list and headed home to dump the tanks and do the rest of inside and outside check list.  I did it all while Ted watched to help if needed.  I pulled out of my space at 9:50 am and we were on our way to Clovis to meet with Reen and Billy at their home.  There was pizza waiting for us while we waited for Billy to get home from work.  Thank you both for your great hospitality.  We left there around 6:00pm  and waited for Steve at a spot just outside of Lemoore near the Naval Air Station.  We drove to Kettleman  to top off the tank with #2 Diesel and it was a smooth and cool drive the rest of the way into Pismo Beach. 

                                                

There was a bit of rain, maybe just enough to cool the tires and engine.

                        

We arrived after 9:00pm, We checked in at the gate, paid the fees, (half price with disabled pass).  Now we just had to look for a beacon on a flagpole belonging to one of the others in the group to find where we would be setting up camp. It was definitely interesting driving out on the hard pack at low tide. There was a creek that we had to cross, where it was and how deep it was is constantly changing, so we just had to be careful. Fortunately we were following the other rigs that we met along the way here. 

           

Since it was dark, I just let Ted do the set up.  It didn’t take long to get the slides out while we were still hooked up to the truck.  We had to do a little “damage control”.  It wasn’t too bad, a few unbreakable things on a shelf that I didn’t have last time tipped over and the back part of the recliner got in the way of one slide (easy fix).

After all the introductions of those that were here, it was off to bed.  It was really cool going to sleep with the sound of the ocean outside my window.

Thursday

                        

Up at 4:00am (internal clock going off ----- hopefully that will change once I retire).  I just stayed in bed and read a book hoping to go back to sleep until Ted got up.  He  would be doing the cooking, so it wasn’t long before he was up too.

Everyone was given a list of what to bring to spread out the cost and keep control of the food costs and waste.  It seems to be working well.  Great breakfast, bacon, eggs, hash browns, juice and coffee. 

           

After breakfast most everyone went out in their ATVs and 4x4 pickups to the dunes right behind where we are parked.  the rest of us just hung out in camp getting to know each other and wait for everyone to get back. 

       

                        

A trip to the Splash Café as a group was in order for lunch.  We got it to go and took it across the street to Harry’s where we ordered drinks and had our lunch.  The clam chowder was excellent, especially with the seafood topping. Ted and I also had some grilled cheese sandwiches, really good.  I of  course took half of mine home.for another meal. 

On the way back we stopped at RV World to find a particular kind of clips to put light on the awning.

                   

It rained a little bit and then cleared. Came back to camp to do nothing.  More dune runs were made.  Soon it was time for dinner, Tacos!  More good food.  Then the campfire and all the stories.  Everyone had a good time, some had a little more “fun” than others.  The others had fun watching the ones that were having the “fun”.  I actually stayed up until nearly 11:00pm,  that’s really late for me.  Off to bed and my down comforter.

Thanks for hanging around for this long post.

          

Thanks for visiting

Susan and Angel

Well “My Spot” is Goin’ to The Beach !!!!

                              

Ted will be here later tonight and tomorrow morning we will be on our way to Pismo Beach to meet up with up his Dodge Truck Club.   We will be parking on the beach, so we will have to go during low tide on the hard pack and then park above the high tide.  Yes I am a bit nervous, but Ted has been camping there for the last three years and assures me that it is safe and there are enough trucks there that can tow me out.  We are making every effort to make sure I won’t get stuck.  Ted has made some large, heavy duty jack pads to disperse the weight.  I also removed some heavy items that were in my  bedroom closet which is over the king pin.  I’m getting a bit anxious, since this will be the first time that I have towed my 5th wheel any distance and I will be boondocking too.  I did drive it and backed it into my site when we took the basic training class a month ago.  I guess I will find out what I can and can’t do or use without full hook ups.  Ted says that we won’t spend much time in the rig during the day because there is so much to do.  Okay, I guess that’s alright.  I just hope that we have good weather to do that.

 

Monday night I stopped by to visit with Gypsy, On The Road Again, in her new “digs”.  It will be really nice when she gets it the way she wants.   There are two bedrooms with a lot of built in storage and the kitchen has tons of storage too.  I think that once she gets the carpet done she will be able to move forward with putting it all  together. 

On a lighter note.       If anyone is in the Rancho Cordova CA area and you are looking to increase your summer wardrobe, you might want to check out the K Mart on Sunrise.  I had purged so much when I moved and lost so much weight, that I just had to splurge and get seven tops, (4 sleeveless shirt, 2 short sleeve shirts and 1 camisole top), a pair of capris, and a jacket and pants to match.  You ask, “and how much did you spend on all those clothes?   A whopping $20.90 !!!,  When they have a clearance sale, it is really good.

                          

This past weekend I bought a Dometic Refrigerator/Freezer and a pair of X Chocks and a folding stool at  Camping World.   The refrigerator/freezer was on sale a couple of weeks ago, but I had to get a rain check and it finally came in a few days ago.  I will need the extra freezer space for the frozen fruit that I use in my protein smoothies.

      

The chocks will work better when we are parked on the sand. The folding stool, I can use when hooking or unhooking the hoses, because I can’t get on my knees.  (no picture of the stool)         Just preparing for when I’m out there for good.

Enough of my rambling.  I had better finish this so that I can get a few more things done before I go to bed.  Right now it is kind of weird because it is the first time that I am in here while it is raining,   I sure hope that there are no leaks. 

Have a great week and thanks for visiting

Susan and Angel

Truck Fixed and Dumb Move

 

It’s been a while since posting, when I have to work a full 40 hours, I am just too tired to do anything worth blogging about.

Going back to last Sunday, I must mention that Gypsy (On the Road Again) came for a visit. Of course she got the tour and liked “My Spot'’. We got caught up on what went on this summer since the last lime we met and what our plans are for the near future.

Wow,  Time just flies when you let life just happen.  Yesterday, Friday, I had an appointment to have some work done one my truck.  When we went to the Empire Mine near Nevada City, the blower for the A/C stopped.  There was still cold air, so the compressor still worked, thank God for small favors!  Last week I finally found someone that wouldn’t charge and arm and a leg to figure out what was wrong.  The dealer would charge $134.00 just to diagnose what it was.  Not going there!   So, last Friday, I went over to “Your Neighborhood Garage” in Rancho Cordova where Carl, Jesse’s electrical guy took a look ( no charge) and thought that it was probably the ignition’s electrical switch.  Later on while I was out an about, I got a call from Carl.  He had been checking out records and said that 8 out o 10 times that replacing that part would fix it, so if I wanted, I could purchase the part from the dealer directly to save some time, replacing it would probably take about an hour.  That’s exactly what it was and how long it took.  I would recommend “Your Neighborhood Garage” to anyone.  He just charges for parts and labor and is knowledgeable and friendly.

From there Angel and I went out to the DMV in Folsom to drop off the license plates for the KIA Sedona that I no longer have.  Who knows why they sent them to me!  Then I did a bit of grocery shopping at WinCo. 

I also stopped at Folsom Lake RV to ask a question.  I went in  with Angel and left my purse and locked the truck.  While there I decided to get the electrical adapters.  (Ted has a 20 amp  generator for our trip to Pismo Beach)  Of course I had to go get my wallet, but I did a dumb thing.  Not realizing it, I set my keys down on the seat and locked the truck again.  Fortunately, I have Coach Net.  One of the fellas at FLRV called them for me.  There would be no charge and they would be out in about an hour.  Gee, that’s a dangerous place to leave me for a whole hour with everything RV.  I restrained myself, Derek brought me a cappuccino, I tested out one of those 0 gravity chairs and only a half hour later my truck was unlocked and I was on my way.  This was the first time that I have used Coach Net and I was definitely impressed with their service.   After all that we went home and the rest of  day we didn’t do much of anything.

I am trying to come up with a way to keep things from popping out of some small shelves while towing. The spring type rods are too big, I’m experimenting to make something that will do the same thing.  Today, I ran around looking for maybe thin wood to cut down or foam core board to cut to size. 

I went out to IKEA to get an LED floor lamp to use instead of the overhead lights.  That’s another dangerous place for me.  I always check out the “as is” room. I have gotten some really good deals there, just a pillow and pillow covers this time.  Has any one out there used rugs on top of there carpets?   I was thinking about putting carpet down to help keep the carpeting clean the one on top could be taken out to clean rather than risk getting the sub flooring wet.  Any thoughts?

I had every intention on washing the truck this afternoon, but didn’t, maybe next week. Now it is late and time to go to bed.

                     

Good night  all and thanks for visiting

Susan and Angel

Just Hangin’ Out Here in The Spot

 

First of all I would like to remember all the families that lost loved ones ten years ago on 9-11-01.  I pray for all of you and those who responded to that horrific disaster. 

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This weekend has been a slow one for me.I haven’t done much.   I did move some containers from the basement into the shed to get some weight out for when we go to Pismo Beach.  Saturday we went up to High Hill Farm on Apple Hill just east of Placerville CA.  I have holding on to some blown out goose eggs for several years that I was going to give to an artist there.  Every time that I went there I had forgotten them.  What’s weird was that when I got there,  she no longer has the booth.  Oh No! Now what?  So off I went looking at all the other vendors there.  Then  this lady came looking for me to tell me that Dorrie, that’s the lady that does the eggs had come up for the day.  Wow what a coincidence.  I searched her out and gave her the eggs.  It seems that with the economy she only does them out of here home now.

The other reason to go up there was to get one of there Apple Pies, Yuummm.  That I did, but now I would have to share it,  I’m not about to eat a whole pie by my self.  That is exactly what I did today after church  The newlyweds, Karen and Pat came over to check out My Spot.  

The rest of the day I have been reading, catching up on blogs and listening to all the jets flying over and the “bombs” going off.  The Capital Air Show was going on this weekend about a mile and a half from the RV Park. 

I will have to get to bed a little bit earlier tonight, because I start my new shift at work tomorrow (it’s a half hour earlier than what I have now).

That’s about it for now.  I hope that you all have a better week coming up and that those effected by the floods get dried out soon.

Thanks for visiting

Susan and Angel

The Labor Day Road Trip

 

“Old Sac” wasn’t enough, Road Trip!   John and I decided to go to visit the Empire Gold Mine State Park in Grass Valley  on Hwy 49 north of I 80. 

                                

          Inside the Visitor’s Center they even have water available for dogs who visit. 

       

There were two tours that we went on.  This is the actual Mine Tour. This is the shaft that the miners would ride down.  It has since filled with up to the natural water table after it was closed, no longer producing gold.  They say that 80% of the gold is still there.

                               

John is standing in front of one of the shafts that Mr. Bourne the owner would take his guests to show them “The Mine”, so that he wouldn’t have to take them to the real one.  They were satisfied so they would go back to “The Cottage” and their other activities.

      

The other tour is the Cottage Tour.  How would you like to live here.  Mrs. Bourne preferred living in their home in Napa.  With the mine going 24/7, it was too noisy and dirty.   This cottage cost them $25,000. to build back then.  You can probably multiply that by 20 for today’s prices.

   

                             The rooms and the grounds are beautiful.

   

                              

                         This is how Angel got around when we went inside.

We enjoyed these tours too.  There was a lot of walking and a lot of it was up hill.  I really got my exercise.  After looking at displays in the visitors center, we decided to go find Cousin Jack’s to try the typical Cornish miner’s meal, pasties.  I had been there before and liked what I had then.  John had the Chicken Combo with Chili and I had the Greek Jenny with Spinach and Artichoke Hearts. mine was good and John liked his too.  Angel sure does like the dog biscuits.

                                          

Another great day.  Home from here and early to bed.  We both have to get up early.

Thanks for joining the tour with

Susan, Angel and Company (John)    http://whatsupwithsusanandcompany.blogspot.com/