Category: Humor
Put Tab A Into Slot B…
July 25, 2012 by Traveler8343 · 2 Comments
Do you know how, after doing something thousands of time, it becomes second nature and you can do it without really thinking about it? Well, that’s kind of what this story is about, except in reverse. Let me explain: After a 300 mile drive, my tired wife and I pulled into a service station for another all-too often refill of our gas tank. My wife usually does this, since she uses the stop as an opportunity to visit the station’s restroom. As she walked around the back of our SUV, I pulled up on the gas tank door release lever. I watched in my rear view mirror as she swiped the credit card and lifted the nozzle from the pump, while turning toward the car and inserting the nozzle in the tank. As I watched, she then pulled the nozzle out of the tank, looked at it for a moment, and then reinserted it again. After another moment, she removed the nozzle and turned back toward the pump. She seemed to be staring at it as if something was wrong. “What’s wrong?” I called... [Read more...]
RV Dumping: The Unfortunate Learning Curve
July 17, 2012 by Dalin Brinkman · 4 Comments
Even as an RV newbie, I was well aware of the fact that dumping was one of those things you don’t get wrong. The unfortunate consequences of such failure could (and did end up being…well lets just say we can’t use that term). This task was delegated to me by my wife. She has handled most of the RV maintenance, but somehow, this task was mine to do. I thought about complaining about getting all the dirty jobs, but I figured it might be smart of me just to keep my mouth shut (and probably my nose). I noticed that there was all sorts of different types of dump hoses around the campground. Some people had hoses with stilts that looked like caterpillars snaking across the ground. Others had glass openings in them. Why anyone would WANT to see that stuff was beyond me. Then there was that rock. An RV friend told me in passing that it was extremely important to have a rock. I had no idea why. All I knew was that every dump station I had seen had a nice big rock next to it. RV Dumping Education So... [Read more...]
WHATS A TOAD? – A RV Newbie’s Vocablulary List
July 8, 2012 by Professor95 · 3 Comments
I couldn’t help but laugh at Dalin Brinkman’s July 5th blog sharing his dismay over the vocabulary folks new to RVs encounter. Later in the day, I began to think more seriously about Dalin’s dilemma. The part of me that is still a teacher kicked into high gear. I remember all too well how overwhelmed my beginning students were when they were exposed to an entirely new vocabulary during my first few lectures. I decided to try and do something that just might give those still wet behind the ears with RV lingo a leg up on understanding – so I did what I would do with my students and whipped up a vocabulary list with simplified definitions intended to help them get started. Please, for those readers that are veteran RVers and accomplished linguist in the field, keep in mind that this is my seat-of-the-pants first time attempt to provide such a listing on this blog site. If you have an obscure term or RV related abbreviation you want to add, please feel free to use the comments section. ... [Read more...]
A Shoreline Away from Water? RV Vocabulary Challenges
July 5, 2012 by Dalin Brinkman · 3 Comments
Owning your first RV has a lot of challenges. One of which is the whole set of new vocabulary words that come with it. I was in for a rude awaking this week as I took my motorhome into the repair shop for the first time. As expected, the mechanic came back with a litany of repairs. He spoke with a worry so great it made it sound like my RV was on fire and the only way to put it out was throwing thousands of dollars of cash on it. Mechanics Love RV Newcomers I tried to get through the tone of his voice to what he was really saying. It was at that point that I knew I was in over my head. He said, “Your shoreline is having a problem.” My what? I don’t even live near a lake and there is no shoreline in my driveway. What is he talking about? I didn’t dare ask for clarification. I’ve learned that asking any naive question about cars to your mechanic starts to make them salivate like Pavlov’s dog. All of sudden items you have never heard of need to be fixed in ever increasing numbers. I... [Read more...]
Bears, Boredom and Bullies
June 29, 2012 by Good Sam Team · 1 Comment
Each spring our family makes an annual pilgrimage into the wilderness. This year, like most, we selected a cozy campground that sits tucked away in a mountain forest as our base camp and settled in for a few days of hiking and exploring. Our campfire provides a relaxing atmosphere at the end of each day’s activities. Spring is the perfect time of year for our family. The weather is sunny and cool, wildflowers are blooming and showing off a thousand vibrant colors, and wildlife is out in abundance. The happy melodies of songbirds provide a wonderfully calming musical backdrop as we hike, stopping frequently to photograph the many splendors that the forest offers. Wild Animals Enjoy Springtime Too During the first day of our trip while hiking we enjoyed watching a pair of gray squirrels dancing to the music of a ruby-crowned kinglet as he roosted atop a lodgepole pine. At lunchtime we made our way back to camp just in time to see a black bear lumbering his way through a nearby meadow,... [Read more...]
Where Cavemen Store Their RV’s
June 28, 2012 by Dalin Brinkman · 1 Comment
Winterizing your RV is a lot of work with zero payoff. Basically, you are just spending time “preventing” problems from. Realizing that I was going to be buried in RV related activities for the rest of the week, I longed to get away and jumped at the chance to go zip lining and hiking through caves for a couple of hours at night. I looked forward to a lot of fun and a chance to cool off from the 95 degree weather I was experiencing at 5 p.m. in the evening. I wasn’t expecting to walk past RVs 50 feet underground. happening. Chalk that up with brushing your teeth, taking out the trash and other completely non-exciting things we do to make sure things don’t go bad. It’s not something most people long to do. So I couldn’t help but be fascinated by the non-winterizing option I saw while I was at the Rally in Louisville this week: Storing Your RV in a Cave. Sure enough, as I walked into the entrance of the cave to the Louisville Underground, I was passed by RV’s driving out.... [Read more...]
HOW TO ATTRACT BLACK BEARS (…and get a picture, too.)
June 10, 2012 by Professor95 · Leave a Comment
Even with the population of black bear increasing in Virginia, the possibility of seeing one is still an uncommon and exciting experience. These creatures can range from 90 to 500 pounds in weight and stand as tall as 7 feet when erect. Male black bears are naturally larger than females. Black bears are somewhat nocturnal, or crepuscular (active at dusk and dawn). Seeing one during the daylight hours is less likely as they are naturally afraid of humans and somewhat solitary animals. Black bears in Virginia are mostly vegetarian eating a variety of roots, nuts, seeds, berries, grasses, insects, and fruits. But, when given a chance to eat meats they will not hesitate. On our recent outing to Big Meadows campground in the Shenandoah National Park, the Rangers (now called Park Police) warned us to be careful, as there had been numerous sightings of black bears in the campground. This was exciting news to me – in over twenty years of visiting the park and campground, I had only seen... [Read more...]
Tips From A Therapist Making a Major Life Change After 50
May 30, 2012 by Diane Berry · 2 Comments
My husband and I have both been therapists for years and are making a cross country move from our home of 23 years in Wisconsin to Taos, NM. So what terrific coping skills have I developed in my work as a therapist that will make this, or any other major life change (ie. Retirement, RVing fulltime and giving up a brick and mortar home, caring full time for grandchildren, etc.) easier? There are a few ideas I can share with you: 1. First of all, just like climbing a mountain, I need to take one step at a time. Whether you are trying to come to terms with a partner retiring, or taking to the road full-time or moving to a new location, you will adjust better and more quickly if you can break the process down into steps and take one to them at a time. The first thing we needed to do was obtain a mailing address; in our town, this is via a PO Box. The first weekday of our trip out this spring, we made a trip to the post office to reserve our box. Three days later we could pick up our keys... [Read more...]
Making a Major Life Change After 50, Continued…
May 27, 2012 by Diane Berry · 2 Comments
Yes, we are finally about to embark on our cross country move from Wisconsin to Taos, NM. We recently accepted an offer on our Manitowoc home and hopefully it will close without a hitch in May 30th. But moving after 50 seems more complicated and difficult than it was at 20. Our home in Manitowoc Is it that I miss the memories of my children growing up here? Yes and no. I love all the memories of raising our children in that home, but realize they are precious memories, not the reality of what I am living now. I am ready to live in a location that gives me more of what I want to do. That place is Taos. It has a multitude of hiking, camping and other outdoor activities. Terry and I will be able to find a new hike to do every day of the week if we so desire. And we will be able to find a new singer, band or lecture to listen to or restaurant that appeals to us as often as we will be able to afford looking for them. And for those times we must stay home, we will always enjoy the KTAO Solar... [Read more...]
Making a Major Life Change After 50
May 20, 2012 by Diane Berry · 3 Comments
I moved many times in my young adult life. I moved from home to college, college to law school in Madison, WI, from Madison to a new city in Wisconsin for my first job, then back to Madison for my husband’s promotion, then to my hometown of Manitowoc, WI to raise my daughter when he wanted a divorce—all within a period of 10 years! However, since I met and married Terry in 1989, we have lived in the same house that we bought two weeks before our wedding—23 years ago. Our home in Manitowoc, WI Now, however, at the age of 53 and ¾ we are making the move to Taos, NM. We will be leaving behind everything we have known throughout our 23 years of marriage: our jobs, extended families, friends, running, biking, rollerblading and skiing routes, favorite camping destinations and the like. We are leaving. The reasons we are leaving are good ones. We “fit” in New Mexico somehow. In a town that accepts what anyone brings, we can be who we are. There is music, dancing (which is something... [Read more...]
