My friend Jackie, her SO Jeff and daughter Madeline were heading off to visit family in Philadelphia where Jeff grew up, and they invited me to watch their house for them while they’re gone. I’d have to watch and feed the dog and cat, but I’d have access to a 60″ TV with satellite. Oh, and the fish, I’d have to feed the fish. I’d house sat for them a couple years ago and since the dog and cat survived the experience, they probably figured it would be ok to let me do it again. Worked out for them too as their other plan of either having someone come once or twice a day to let the dog out and feed them, or take the animals to friends houses wasn’t very good for the animals. Turned out it was perfect timing what with me turning up in town at just the right time without any other obligations which made it easy for me to say, “Sure, I’ll watch your house for you guys, go, have fun, don’t worry bout a thing”.
Anyway, I left the RV park on Aug. 20th, went and did my shopping, wandered around town for a few hours and headed over to Jackies. Note the yard, all brown like. They’re having a drought here like in California so the weather is really beautiful and great for everyone, but there’s not the usual rains up in the foothills of the Cascades, and so, a drought. Means they don’t water their lawn.
I park almost directly across the street. In the next picture, I’m standing right where I took the above picture, turned to the left of course. And I string 75′ or so of electrical cord over to their garage to plug in so my batteries stay charged and the refer runs. It’s only a 15 amp extension cord so when I’m there hanging out in the RV (during the times they’re home…so I don’t disturb their routine) I can use the computer on their WiFi and my TV but I have to switch the refer to gas. It’s fine living like that as long as the weather isn’t cold. Can’t use my electric heaters if it’s too cool, not enough amps available.
And here’s my living space for a week and more. There’s Teddy. Little butt head.
Yeah, quit looking so cute.
Nice big TV and fully complimented entertainment system. Even have a couple gaming systems.
This is the kitchen I helped them remodel a couple years ago. That was fun.
I dropped them off at the airport the next day. They let me borrow their car while they were gone, but I really didn’t use it much. Just one time for mid week shopping. I moved my computer into the house and watched some older NFL games on the big TV using HDMI. Slept on the couch. Used their nice kitchen to cook all my meals. Pretty much similar to what I do all week in my RV in any RV park I’m staying at. Now that I think about it, I should be getting out more. Hiking, biking. That sort of thing. Need to consider cutting myself off from the computer more often.
So Teddy, me, and the cat, had a good time just hanging out while they were gone.
On Aug. 30th Margie came over to visit and the plan was to go to Stanish’s for the best burger in the world. Damn, they are closed (only because it was too early in the day)! But, Margie knew a place just up the street a 1/4 mile, Amalfi’s. I’d never been, but she had and said it was great so Amalfi’s it is! Really nice place. It’s Italian, and I don’t care for pasta, but I did find something to eat. Excellent. We sat at the bar so had a good time watching the hustle and bustle of the staff and amused ourselves engaging in conversation with a nice young lady waiting for a to go order. She’s a runner it turns out, and had had two of those tiny bottles of wine already when I hit her bottle with my elbow and it spilled a little. So I bought her another thinking that she’d just take it home without opening it. But no, she was already a little tipsy but she downed the one I’d spilled a couple drops out of and the one I bought her. Her guard dropped a bit, she got giggly, and turned out to be fun company while we waited for our dinner. Fun. But I don’t have high hopes for her marriage from what she told us.
I don’t recall when the family got back from Philly, maybe Sept. 2nd? I drove over to the airport and picked them up, early evening as I recall. Jackie asked me to stay on a couple days so we had time to talk which I was happy to do, of course. I’d just stay out in my RV while they were at work and come inside to visit the dog and use the bathroom occasionally. I have all the comforts in my RV and the weather was warm. Plus it was free.
And all this time I didn’t notice that it was near labor day weekend. We all went out to dinner Friday night, Sept. 4th and had a much too large dinner. Gah, bloated afterwards for hours. Should have taken half of it home…but it was soooooo good.
On Sunday the 6th I headed over to the Rolling Hills RV park expecting to be able to easily find a spot (still didn’t realize it was Labor Day weekend). It was Sunday afternoon and usually RV parks empty out on Sunday afternoon as the working class has to get back home. I park in the designated ‘wait here’ spot on the roadway and walk over on the path through the trees to the office on the road opposite. When I get there, the office is closed (it’s a Sunday so not unexpected), they have a night check in and a space available whiteboard.
Hmmm, there are two cop cars blocking the road out of the place. What the hell? Then I notice there’s an evidence cube truck over there too. Checking the whiteboard I see that there’s no spaces available. I know from experience that the office staff isn’t all that competent and I’ve seen other times where they just didn’t update the board so I ask the groundskeeper who just happened by if they have spaces. He tells me he doesn’t think so on a holiday weekend (ahh, yes, now I figure it out), he goes inside and checks, and sure enough they’re booked solid. Damn. Well, hell. Cops are still blocking the roadway, so I go over and tell them I need to get my big ass RV out and could they move? They were just starting to move anyway, so no problem. I go get my RV and when I get to the scene of the crime, there’s all sorts of yellow “Do not cross police line” tape all around a park model trailer just feet from the office. This side of the park is permanent trailer parking (you know, mobile homes).
Then it hits me, Opps, I don’t have a reservation anywhere! On a holiday weekend! Damn!
OK, I’ll go check the Troutdale RV park. Packed. Big sign out in the road that they’re full up. OK, I head up to Corbette. There’s a small RV park up on the hill that I stay at sometimes. Also has a No Vacancy sign up. Poo. Not looking good. I head back down to the Troutdale Walmart. I have stayed there sometimes. Even found someone’s unsecured WiFi I could piggyback on for an hour or two last time. But it’s sooo boring when I stay there. Nothing to do anywhere nearby that I’d bother with. So I keep driving, heading the 3-4 miles back to the Stagecoach Tavern next to Rolling Hills RV park.
I head across the main drag just outside Stagecoach and park, then walk back to the Tavern. Since it’s late afternoon by now, have a beer while figuring out what to do, where to go. Seaside? Back east to Arlington? Cascade Locks? Finally, I give Jackie a call, let her know about me forgetting about the holiday weekend…which makes it virtually impossible to find a RV parking spot…and ask if I could stay at her place another couple nights. Sure! About then the TV news features the altercation that had happened, the night before it turned out, at the RV park next door. Gang bangers attempted to strong arm someone living there in the park and he’d knifed one to death and wounded another, while getting shot himself. Druggies. Anyway, I head on back to Jackie’s and plug in for two more nights. Paid her $40 this time. They were feeling the pinch after all the expenses from their East Coast trip.
That night Jackie and I got to talk about their trip and it’s funny, she’s able to go over to Philly and visit Jeff’s family and then head over to their beach house and she just loves it over there. Really would love to live there permanently. Jeff? Not so much. He grew up there too. Funny, huh?
Margie came over again on Sept. 7th and we went to McMenamins Edgefield Manor. Damn was that fun. The weather was perfect, I mean perfect. It was crowded but they also have several bars there in different buildings so it was easy to dodge the crowds, we’d get a plastic cup of beer and then wander around enjoying the weather. They have all these different buildings, paths everywhere, nice gardens, even a small putting green that you can rent putters and balls to play. Nearly every table at every bar had a wait time. The last bar we went to had a line to order but it moved fast. Then there were several picnic tables outside that weren’t too crowded so we ended up sitting there. Under a nice tree, and the shade was appreciated. Also ordered a snack. But even then they told us it would take 45 minutes to get our sandwich. Turkey wrap. Very good. So was the beer. Company was excellent too.
Next morning, Tuesday, Sept. 8th, with the holiday weekend over I felt it was a good time to just head on over to Seaside and spend some time there. I would have stayed at Rolling Hills but I knew they’ve raised their rates again and yet not improved anything there. WiFi still sucked. RV pads still broken up and tilted. Still a 100 yard walk to the bathroom. Gang banger living there too. So Seaside was where I wanted to be…
But first, I’d have to get my front tires replaced. I’d spent the morning calling tire shops and found the best price at a Les Schwab in Gresham. Turned out they’d not quoted me like everyone else had that day; tire, mounting, and balancing, but rather just the tire. Crap. Well, wasn’t going to drive clear across town to save $20 bucks so let them have at it. I had quite a bit of wear on the outer edge and figured that’s what was on the inner edges but no, on the inner edges it was worn down to the steel! Yikes! Sure glad I got that done.
After my new tires were installed, got a fill up at a nearby station with a diesel blend you can get in Portland, costs $0.10 less a gallon than plain diesel anywhere else, and off I headed to Seaside. Hmmm, the front end shaking that use to happen at 45mph had stopped. Good.
And that’s where we’ll pick up next time. Got some great pictures of the huge vintage car show they have there every year so come back for that in a while. Thanks for visiting!
I remember that RV park altercation on the news a month or so back. The park is big and getting old and has little competition, so not surprised they charge whatever they want.
It does have competition but I doubt the owner cares. I knew his niece years ago and she did his books for him once a year when his bookkeeper went on vaca and she told me he was NETTING $1 Million a month with all his properties. Twelve million a year. I just don’t think he gives a crap what anyone else is doing. And based on the lack of improvements he’s making on the RV paark, I doubt he’s all that keen on parting with even a couple $$ to do anything.
Can’t recall what the latest mandatory biodiesel content is in Oregon – it was 5%, then 10%, with one North Portland retailer selling only B20 I think. There’s a lot of concern among Beaver Coach and other owners that this is not a good thing. CAT blesses small biodiesel content, but pushing 20% not so much. Many Beaver club members fill up on either side of the Oregon line and never fuel here. But as adjoining states up the mandatory content, that becomes a useless technique. In the meantime the state loses fuel tax income from visiting RVers, who still provide wear and tear to our roads. I’m not sure we’re gaining anything with this legislation; biodiesel has less energy content and is more expensive, though only those putting on super high miles would notice a difference in mileage.
I’ve bought diesel in several places in Oregon over the last couple months and I don’t recall ANY pumps with a sticker on the pump saying it had 10% or whatever veggie oil in it. I guess you must be thinking of regular gas with 10% ethanol in it by law, not diesel which I’m not sure it’s required. But I don’t live here much anymore so I don’t know for sure. I’m happy with the product and don’t feel or see any difference between biodiesel and regular.
The new tires got rid of the shimmy… for now. Maybe you’d thrown a wheel weight and that caused it. But the uneven wear could easily have been the cause, and the wear inside and outside hints at underinflation. Higher wear inside may be toe-out, but regardless Les should have recommended an alignment. If that isn’t resolved, you’ll just be scrubbing down new tires faster than necessary. Absolute best place for getting a quality-done motor home chassis checkup is Henderson’s Line-Up in Grants Pass.
Pretty sure the shimmy was/is from the weight imbalance I have left to right. That imbalance issue is due to the poor design Fleetwood did when they put the genset on the drivers side just behind the front wheel. Also, the wear on the outer edges this time was from me believing the Les Schwab tech who told me that was the right pressure back a few years ago when I bought those tires. When I saw the excess wear, I immediately raised the pressure but the damage was done. Which caused the excess wobble, which showed up recently as the steel belts being exposed. This time, I insisted he put in the max sidewall pressure. The new tires are at 110 PSI as stated on the side wall. I’m trying to come up with a plan to balance the weight but am at a loss of what to do about it at this point in time.
Apparently they are stuck at 5%. Retailers can sell higher content than that, but the pump must be labeled in accordance. Last I’d heard they were fighting to get it to 10% and I thought they’d succeeded. But as of the last related legislative changes, in 2013, I guess it’s still at 5%. At least one outlet in Portland sells only 20%, and by city – if not State – ordinance he may also therefore sell pure diesel on site as well.
SECTION 6. ORS 646.922, as amended by section 3, chapter 752, Oregon Laws 2009, and section 3 of this 2010 Act, is amended to read:
646.922. (1) A retail dealer, nonretail dealer or wholesale dealer may not sell or offer for sale diesel fuel unless the diesel fuel contains at least two percent biodiesel by volume or other renewable diesel with at least two percent renewable component by volume.
(2) Two months after the date of the notice given under ORS 646.921 (2), a retail dealer, nonretail dealer or wholesale dealer may not sell or offer for sale diesel fuel unless the diesel fuel contains at least five percent biodiesel by volume or other renewable diesel with at least five percent renewable component by volume. Diesel fuel containing more than five percent biodiesel by volume or other renewable diesel with more than five percent renewable component by volume must be labeled as provided by the State Department of Agriculture by rule.
Also note the anniversary of the venerable Bounder:
http://rvlife.com/bounder-turns-30/
Good to know. I’m all for it. There were billions of gallons of vegi oil from restaurants just thrown around the countryside willy-nilly over the last 200 odd years so I’m happy they are legislating a use for it.