JRs RV Repair in Gettysburg, PA

I had my appointment with JRs RV Repair in Gettysburg, PA yesterday. I am very pleased with him. A very nice, professional, and competent RV tech. He nicely answered all my questions and I learned from him and he showed no disdain when one problem was revealed as self-inflicted. Because I was not in an emergency situation, I got a 10am appointment at his shop just west of Gettysburg, PA, about an hour's drive from my house in MD about 2 weeks from when I called him. He said he normally does work in the shop in the morning and does his drive to fix in the afternoon.

My AC died last summer on Greeley's hottest day over 100F and I was told it had to be replaced because it is 11 years old but no one could deal with it for a month. JRs listened to it and knew the compressor was ok so it was probably the solenoid. The compressor kept trying to start, then stopped, then tried, then stopped. He explained that it had two solenoids. One does the AC startup and the second does the AC running. Up onto the roof, removed the cover, then the metal cover containing the solenoids. The start up solenoid was melted so that was the culprit. It took a bit of time and a phone call to find the right replacement because the lettering was unreadable but after some searching, he found the right one and replaced it. He also sprayed a little WD-40 to ensure good operation. We tested it and eh voila, it worked. We ran it long enough to ensure it worked and lowered the inside temperature a degree. So that saved me several hundred dollars. He said lots of ACs from the 1990s are still working so there's no need to insist on replacement just because of age.

He said poor power supply could have been why it melted and recommended using a 10 gauge power cord all the way from outlet to the van even when moochdocking at a house with a 15amp circuit. The excessive heat could well have compromised the city power and done the deed. So, I'll get another 30amp cord to make it all the way to my sister's house. I had been using a 12 gauge cord but he said that was marginal.

My second problem was my LP would not turn on. This happened about 3 years ago when I started on a trip. I just did without since I wasn't going to boondock. I suspected electrical because I thought when I turned the switch for the LP on (wired to a solenoid on the tank) and remembered it made a noise when turn on. It was silent. He couldn't find any power to the switch so that looked like the culprit. Next came much searching for where the wire went. The documentation I have failed to show anything at all about what the switch went to. He knew it had to be to a fuse. My electrical cavity is tight and the wire went behind stuff. I finally remembered the cabinetry is all put together with screws and the closet floor over half the cavity. We removed that and he saw where it went.

He found that a wire was cut into fuse #5 with a new wire put in its place. I had trouble with fuse #5 and fuse #6 and had rewired it a few years ago. What I didn't know, in large part because while the fuse block was mapped out in the manual, they only marked fuse #5 with monitor and not the LP switch. So, having failed to understand the link, I did the LP failure to myself. From the time I rewired to the time I next tried the LP was a few months, so I didn't connect the two. He quickly spliced the switch wire back in and the LP worked. Duh! So that was a self inflicted wound. But shout out to JR.

If I had known enough, I could have fixed both problems but I did not. It was well worth 2 hours of his time to get these fixed and if anyone needs a good RV tech near Gettysburg, PA, he's your guy.

That Dang Sprinter Sliding Door and Updates

It has been years since I posted here because I've been busy remodeling my house.

Sliding Door
I just got a bunch of maintenance done on my Sprinter Van. In addition to getting all the fluids changed and filters replaced, I asked them to fix my aggravating sliding door. Way back in this post, I did some surgery on my door handle. It worked for awhile, then not. Lots of spraying lube into the locks helped but I've been exiting through the driver's door most of the time. Lately, I've had to open the passenger door and reach around to push the inside slider handle to get it to open from the outside. It was just hopeless from the inside.

The technician at Sun Motors in Mechanicsburg, PA (great shop who really knows Sprinters!!) said the whole lock mechanisms were shot and needed replacing. $600 later and it opens easily. I was really tired of it. Here's what he wrote:

Removed door panel
Manually opened inside, latch not moving enough to open door
Also has cable bad and removed from retaining clip
Rear door roller has failed, dropping the door, therefore misaligned
Cleaned contact points between door and body. 
Took extra time due to cabinets in the way (2 hours)
Replaced front latch, cable and rear latch, got assistance and replaced rear door roller in track, Adjusted and checked. Opens and closes and locks ok

Labor for this was $348. All the parts were $60 for the front door latch/lock, $72 for the rear latch, and $24 for the cable. The new door roller was $99.

So hopefully the door will again be good to use and not a constant aggravation. Not sure I'm up to doing all this repair and I really don't have the time right now to try it, so I bit the bullet and paid for the experts to do it. It was in a lot worse shape than I thought. I don't think I could have fixed the door roller.

-----------
Van Maintenance
When I went to the Sprinterfests at Sun (who no longer hosts them 😢) we got great seminars on the Sprinters from their mechanics. They said that the best thing we can do for the longevity of at least my vintage Sprinter (2005) is change the fluids. With the exception of the slider door, this vehicle hasn't given me any problems at all.  I want to keep it like that. It is now just under 70,000 miles so I thought it was time to get that done. I had the serpentine belt replaced in 2014 which is another thing I just don't want to ever break on me. I have been changing the oil and filter every year myself but I didn't want to tackle changing brake fluid, coolant, or transmission myself. That cost me about $513. I also had them change the filters: fuel, air, AC cabin for $287.

They thought the tires needed rotating so I had them do that, a bit surprised that they said they were ok. They are now 8 years old. But when the tech started putting in air, cracks showed all around the sidewall. So a call and I agreed to new tires. I asked for the same Michelin Defenders I had had on them, tho they are more expensive. They make the van handle nicely and they lasted 8 years before. I was expecting to get new tires soon. So for another $1000, it has new feet. As I drove it out of the lot, it felt really good. I think that good tires are very important as really, they are the only thing between me and the road.

-------
House Problems: Propane, AC
A couple years ago, my propane would not turn on. Some questions and people say I probably need a new regulator. The last couple of years on my trips, I just did without. I've been camping in campgrounds with electric anyway because it is so hot, I need the AC on. That allows me to use the electric to heat water instead of propane. Not too bad since I was just driving to Colorado and not doing touristy things. I have an old butane burner that I used to heat water for coffee. It worked ok.

Last summer while in Colorado, on the hottest week, over 100F, my AC quit. That was a big problem because the dog and cat needed the cooling on such hot days. The dry air allowed the night temperature to drop nicely so I was still comfortable to sleep. I called all around the area and the soonest I could get any installer was a month out and soonest I could get a unit shipped was a week out. I was headed back before the week was up so I was really stuck. My sister let me put the animals in her basement bath. She is terribly allergic to them but that contained the dander for her and kept them safe. When I headed back home, I lucked out and the humidity and temperature dropped enough to camp comfortably without the AC. Everyone I talked to said that a unit that old would need replacing.

So those are 2 things that I need to get fixed. I think I have found a reliable tech to do it. I could replace the AC myself except they are really heavy. At least I'm not in an emergency situation now.

-------
Refrigerator
The Isotherm refrigerator that kept dying on me does make a very good cooler. After the warranty running out and the 2nd compressor dying, I gave up on it. I got a small Dometic compressor fridge to get me by and it has worked well enough. It is small but it stays cold. I put a bag of ice in the bottom of the Isotherm and used it for fruit and veggies that don't need reliably cold conditions on our trips.

This year, I bought a replacement Truckfridge that is really the exact same box but with a simple thermostat and no fancy electronic controls. It gets good reviews and I'm hopeful that a simple setup will be reliable like the little Dometic chest is. I'm also going to replace the wires for it in case there are hidden issues with it.

-------
That should fix all the issues and get the van back in good shape.

Update and Plans
I've nearly finished all the sprucing up and remodeling of my house and it is so much nicer now. I've spent the winter cleaning out the stuff and getting rid of the majority of stuff that has accumulated. Once I get it purged and all cleaned up, I intend to put it up for sale. There are a few things that I'll put into a storage unit but most things are not worth the fees or the cost to move. I'm not sure where I'll end up but I intend to move into the van full time and wander for an undertermined amount of time. I think this will finally be the year I do that.

That is the big push for me to get the van in good shape to last me for a while. It recently became my daily driver because my car needs a head gasket and that costs more than it is worth. I always intended to get rid of the car when I sold the house so that just comes sooner.

The van is lined with cardboard and tarps and I've taken many, many trips to the dump or recycling center, or Habitat for Humanity Restore to clear out the house. With my focus being getting the remodeling done, I've just chucked stuff into the garage or basement to get it out of the way instead of taking the time and energy to clean it out as I go. The nice thing about my van's design, is I can do that and use it to haul stuff.

Computers and Comms in 2014

I thought I would do an update on my choices and experiences for computers and connectivity on the road.  Over the last year, I've made a lot of changes in this area.

Last year I did this:

Bought a tablet in January '13
Bought an ultralight laptop computer (Sony SVP132A1CL) in June
Bought a new phone (Nexus 5), unlocked in November
Dumped Sprint and got StraightTalk prepaid cell service in December
Got a Google Voice phone number
Got a 5GB/month cell LTE hotspot on AT&T in January

The tablet was a spectacular failure as it died an ignominious death in less than 6 months.  After the warranty expired, of course. I hate that. While it was working, it was nice for web browsing and was fine for typing emails and messages.  OK for blog updates and managing my photos. Good for games, what few I do. Good for email.  Touch screen is nice. But for serious work like using spreadsheets, the Android versions are just not up to snuff. I still wanted a full computer running Windows or Linux to run serious programs. And a real keyboard and mouse. To me, it was more like a toy. Hence, I didn't replace it with another tablet.

I replaced it with an ultralight 13" laptop running a 256 SSD. Fast, fast boot. Like a tablet. Running Windows 8 with a touch screen. Less than 3 pounds. I decided to get the slightly larger screen instead of the slightly smaller overall form.  I like it.  Better since getting the Windows 8.1 updates and a program called Classic Shell that gives me the Start popup panel. And it hasn't died. The only thing I really miss is a number keypad, which I just got since my old, old one (maybe 15 years old) won't work properly with Windows 8. I get a real computer that can run all my programs fully in a very portable and light package. This fits my needs better than the tablet. I like the touchscreen, it has a long battery life, and runs cooler than older chipsets. I've never been an Apple Fangirl. I look at the specs, the closed company software, the lack of interoperability, and paying more for that, and I go back to open systems every time. Guess it is the old geek in me.

My old cell phone was dropping a lot of calls and since it was more than 2 years old, I decided to replace it. I chose the Nexus 5 shortly after it was released, unlocked, as it was about as good a phone as one could buy and at $350, a decent price. I also looked into going for a prepaid service instead of the major carrier plan. The major carriers wanted a hundred dollars more for the same phone and they would lock it and put a bunch of bloatware on it. Nah. I wondered about the larger size (a 5" screen) but it is very comfortable to use and carry.  I really like this phone after using it for 6 months. It is also a nice Kindle reader with the larger screen.  Sprint has really fallen behind with slow networks and large swaths of the country uncovered. I like the unlocked aspect too. I can take another sim card and be on that in a jiffy and there are no garbage apps or feature lockdowns you pay more for from the subsidized carriers.

After looking at the options and finding on my unlocked new Nexus phone that it got a decent signal from AT&T, I decided to try StraightTalk unlimited plan for $45/month on the AT&T network. They do T-Mobile too but their networks are too small and too tied to major cities and freeways to meet my needs. In the pre-paid world, the phone/text offerings are excellent but the data is more limited. Many limit data to 2g or 3g speeds. StraightTalk gives 2.5 GB/month of LTE data and it is nice and fast. I have to limit my use and make sure I only update programs when I find a wi-fi hotspot to use. I use a program that tracks my data usage so I can manage it.  I like to read the news and interests on a reader, check facebook, read some blogs on the phone and the larger screen makes that nice. The mobile access also is more frugal on bandwidth so it has mostly worked out well. BUT, I just got a text from them telling me that now they give 3GB/month of LTE data. That will make it even easier to fit in the budget. Yay. So far, I'm quite happy with the service. And it saves me $30 a month.

When I went to pre-paid, I also signed up for a Google Voice phone number. I really hope Google doesn't kill this.  Since I have gmail accounts, I could get a number. Not a local number, but long distance doesn't really mean what it used to with nationwide calling available to most people. It allows me to connect all my phone numbers to the Google Voice number so I have a master number. That means I don't have to be tied to the cell phone number and I can answer a phone call on my land line or cell phone as I please.  It is the way phone numbers should be - tied to a person and easily tied to devices at will.

For straight Internet connectivity, I got the LTE hotspot from AT&T. Sprint is too slow these days and Verizon is stinky (ier ? than other carriers) plus coverage is dicey at my house.  The device works well and LTE is very fast.  5 GB should be ok for my needs as I don't stream video. BUT, in February, during a storm, I had a runaway data issue doing nothing that could account for the dump (5GB inside of 2 hours). Appeals to AT&T netted nothing but denials and excuses. March worked fine and I used about 3.5 of legitimate data. I throttled the data setting on the device to no LTE, just 4G which is still mostly fast enough.  Then in April, during another storm, I got the message that I had used 3.5GB of data suddenly and it was on my account. But this time, the device itself did not ever see that data as it said it had received less than a half GB.  I skimped carefully the rest of the month and when I got the bill, it said I used .8 GB the whole month. Nice going AT&T.  Now I see why there is so much hate for AT&T.  Now, I try not to use the hotspot during storms because it looks like AT&T's computers have issues and I end up paying the price for them. So this gets a so so rating. If it was reliable and didn't cheat me half the time, I'd be a lot happier with it.

I would get broadband on cable or something but that isn't an option for where my house is located (like for half of the country) and I'm just outside a rather major metropolitan area. The broadband options aren't great in this country. And with the imminent death of net neutrality, it won't get better.

I've thought about going the Millicom route but their prices jumped a lot thanks to Verizon and the Verizon network isn't a good choice for my house location. Maybe after I get free of the house ...

LiFePO4 Batteries - First Camping Use at SprinterFest

SprinterFest Boondocking

I spent the first weekend in May boondocking at the SprinterFest on my new LiFePO4s. My batteries easily lasted the 3 days running my marine fridge and the usual few minutes of furnace in the morning, water pump, etc. The fridge ran almost constantly but I'm not sure why - it may still have issues of its own. I love having double the amp hours (AH) I had with the AGMs. I had used about 

I drove up Thursday night as I had arranged to have my serpentine belt replaced at 8am in the morning at the Sun Motor Cars shop who were also hosting the SprinterFest. It was 8 years old and I've been told that a broken one does a whole lot of expensive damage to Sprinters beyond stranding me on the road. 

One of the downsides to owning a Sprinter is that widespread competent mechanics are not available. The Sun shop has a very good reputation and a very nice Sprinter-specific facility. While I might have been able to replace the belt myself, I didn't want to risk not getting it back on right and the access is tight.  While there, I had them do an oil job too.  They very nicely let me have the dog in the waiting area where she got behave and stay calm training and lots of free pets. They have free wi-fi also which was nice.

When I got my van back, they had done a decent wash on it too, gratis. It looked great. Later at the SprinterFest, the mechanics said the one who did my work was surprised by finding the cats inside. I told the front guy there would be 2 cats in there so the mechanic wouldn't be surprised but he didn't relay the message. They told me the mechanic took a selfie with my cats. Cute.

Before I took the van to the shop, I let the dog have some exercise in a deep grassy area by the back lot. She went behind a bush and disappeared. I called and called to no avail. Getting worried, I hopped into the van and went up the road about a quarter mile where I saw some men at a big truck type facility in the parking lot. I pulled in and asked if they had seen a big yellow dog and there she was. They had grabbed her since she came running up to them to greet them and appeared on her own. Whew, but really! She hadn't gone off like that at the previous 2 Sprinterfests. One guy said he tried calling the numbers on her tag but it wasn't in service. Yikes! I forgot to change her tags when I changed cell phone numbers. He said she would have stayed with him all day if necessary. As soon as I got the van back from the shop, I drove up to the nearest PetSmart and made new tags with the new numbers along with a new tag for the cat.

After we were done, I settled into the back lot of Sun where they have us camp out for Sprinterfest. I had some volunteer work to do with my computer anyway so I completed that. No one else showed up until after 6:30pm.  A few vans arrived and one of them wasn't staying for the SprinterFest but was filled with dog crates and dogs. They have a business of transporting dogs. They built a bed way up high in the van over the crates because they wanted to maximize the number of dogs they could transport at once. A few of us went to dinner together. We have a very nice camaraderie developed over the 3 years I've come to the SprinterFests.

For the day of the SprinterFest, Saturday, I counted 38 Sprinters and there were a few people in other cars as well.

One guy that has come for the 3 that I have has an interesting saga. He's a youngish (30s) guy with tech skills. The first year, he showed up with an old T1N dual wheel cargo van with little improvement to it and was rough camping inside the tin tent. He had been having mechanical problems but had dreams of living in the van to cut costs and renting his house for income. He planned a do it himself buildout. The 2nd year, he showed up in a Sprinter box van that he planned on building out and living in. It had the advantage of square walls and quite a bit more space than the van interior and ran reliably.  This year, he was back in the old dually van with a new engine in it. He had done a lot more work on it with insulation, a killer stereo system and the electrics needed for it, a marine fridge, and a couple of cabinets.  He found the box truck was too big to navigate narrow city streets and thus wasn't going to cut it for his needs so he went back to his original plan in the cargo van. He plans on mainly city living and his personal cleanliness needs will be met with gyms. Toilet and cooking facilities will be in the van along with only interior water tanks/piping so he can use it in winter. He has rented out most of his house but wants to get out of it completely so he can charge more for rent. It is a viable plan for simple, inexpensive living as long as the cold winters here will work for him. It is a lesson in how a too big vehicle can make it harder, not easier. He's got an idea for making the bed self-leveling that will be interesting to see when done.

A few of us stayed over Saturday night for the circle-the-vans after pizza party. It was marred by showers but still fun. In the morning, we had breakfast together before heading back home Sunday afternoon. I was letting my dog run around in her favorite meet and greet mode. I got distracted for a few minutes Sunday morning and she disappeared again. When I got my phone again, there was a message that they had my dog about a mile away (glad I got the new tags!) because she had run across the road behind Sun to greet a man and he grabbed her to protect her from the road traffic. Before, she had stopped at the road considering it a forbidden barrier. Damn dog is now an adult (4 years old) but clearly, I am going to have to put her on the rope because the old no no's are not keeping her in safe bounds. Thankfully, I got her back but the training I've been doing to stop her from initiating greeting humans is not fully working and now former barriers don't work.

The LiFePO4s:

Some things are quite different with the LiFePO4s. With my 15 amp circuit at my house, it takes 2 cycles to fully charge them as my new charger shuts off after 16 hours and it needs longer than that to charge from a deficit of some 150AH out of my 200AH capacity. I haven't had it on a 30 amp circuit yet. To start charging, I have to disconnect the shore power, then connect again for the charger to start again. No float. 

The 3 days boondocking used about 160 AH but half of that was with the fridge on the manual setting which was using 5 amps. When I set it to the normal/auto, it dropped to 3 amps. The fridge froze the freezer plate on battery power because it sees the higher voltage and thinks it is on shore power.  Getting the more efficient computer version might not have been the best idea with the LiFePO4s because of this. The regular thermostat governed variety probably would have been better.

I had a trickle charger that shunted a few amps to the engine battery to top it off when I was on shore power but the higher voltage from the LiFePO4s made it think it was on shore power and sipped power from the batteries. So that is disconnected now.

My engine alternator charged them nicely while driving but just like on shore power, the BMS shut off the charging when they were full. No floating. Short driving periods resulted in some charging each time but it wasn't long enuf to fill the batteries.

My trimetric battery monitor shows the AH used after being off charging but while charging, it reverses and shows far fewer AH without me resetting it. That is, I use 150AH but when the batteries are full after a charge, it shows 4AH an hour or so after it is done. I guess it is measuring the deficit from full. I never saw that with the AGMs.

When the batteries are full, the charger gets shut off and won't start again no matter how long or how much juice is used unless it gets disconnected from shore power and then reconnected so I have to pay more attention to the charge levels when plugged in. The no float aspect means I can't just let it sit plugged in for long periods with no attention.

It will be interesting to see how these do with solar but I'm not there yet.

The Bed – Redux

Former Use:

My van has the old style benches that form a really big bed in the back like a set of legos. There are 8 cushions that fit over the benches and on top of two 3’ long particle board slabs that sit on the ledges affixed to the sides of benches. There is only me and 2 cats that sleep on the bed. The dog gets the floor on rugs. I refuse to struggle for space with a 60# dog.

I slept crosswise across the back of the van for a couple of years which worked ok but my feet can't stretch out unless I sleep catty-corner. Last year, I tried making my bed lengthwise on the passenger side with one 3’ slab in the middle section at the head of the bed. That worked reasonably well but I would like more room for my feet and legs at the end. At least they can stretch out in the full 6’ length (I'm 5'7"). I found that it was better to fold the length of memory foam topper one third down at the top to make the head a bit elevated. I have to have my head raised above my feet to let my sinuses drain because of my allergies.

One of the nuisances with this design is the 3’ particle board slabs are cheesy and heavy and awkward to store and handle. Aside from that, I really like the benches because of their versatility. I got the idea to make lighter and smaller racks to lay across the aisle for the center cushions to lay on. After putting up knotty pine wainscot in my house powder room, I had a big pile of 19” long slats leftover.

The Make:

I thought that the 20.5” span would be sufficient for them to hold my weight if there were a lot of them even tho they are only 1/4” thick. I got some 1/2” x 1.5” boards and cut them into 18” lengths. That makes the rack match the 3/4” thickness of the particle board slabs. 4 of the wainscot slats fit with a little over an inch in between them. I split a couple of them finding a screw that would go in without splitting the pine. A pan-head metal screw worked because it doesn't flare at the top. Two screws in each side of each slat secured it well. I tested the first rack and it was solid. So much lighter than the particle board! That makes my bed 42” wide. A 2’ wide bed is very cramped, especially to sleep on my side, but 42” is comfortable.

I made 2 more of the racks, then sanded them well enuf to prevent splinters and put varnish on them. They aren't going to be visible when in use, so all I need is just to protect the wood from moisture.

The next thing to solve is the rails on which the racks lie on each of the benches. Currently, they are wood rails screwed into the benches. I want to have the cushion and rack on the galley end of the bed easily removable and stowed handy so I can use that end as a desk and sitting area. I figured out that a U shaped aluminum rail would be strong enough for the weight and allow me to slide the end rack under the other racks to the back of the van. Right at hand when I need it, out of the way when I don’t. When I looked for the rail, the U shaped ones were too small for my purpose. I need it to be an inch between the bars for the racks to slide in. I settled on getting 2 L rails to form the U.

I took a metal file and filed the ends to round them so I don’t slice a finger on them. Cleaned them off and spray painted them with the copper and bronze metal paint so they would match the galley back splash and be inconspicuous, at least compared to the bright silver of the aluminum. I finished that up with a coating of varnish so they will stand up to the use of sliding the racks on them. Once dried and cured, I just drilled holes in them and using flat head screws, affixed them in the same spot as the old wood rails.

The final problem is how to support the last rack to hold the cushion. Because I built a drawer for my desk instead of the bench, I can’t have a support rail on that last 2’. I got some furring strips I have laying about and cut them long enough to fit into the end of the new rails. A 1/4” slat holds the end firmly into the slot. I then cut a leg for the galley end for a firm support and another for the other side. The slat fits well on the support rails and they are easily moved for during the day. That way, my desk area is open for daytime and the bed is a little wider for night.

Bed slats in place

Cushions in place for bed

Seat with bedding rolled back and wedge cushion for back

In Use:

I spent 3 nights with the new bed arrangement and it was very comfortable. Easy to take down the last rack and fold back the covers for a seat and easy to put back in place for night.  The extra room at the foot made for a much more comfortable sleep and the cats weren't right on top of me like they were last year. I think this one is a win.  The only thing that would be better is if the cushions had a couple inches of memory foam right in them instead of me putting a pad on top as the foam they are made of is hard. Wonder how expensive it would be to get a 4" thick half sturdy foam, half memory foam pieces to replace?

A bonus I found is that the single rack makes for a nice lap desk for my computer. The molded surface holds a pencil nicely and the computer has plenty of air circulation.  My attempt at remaking my swivel table failed miserably so I resorted to the rack as a desk. Multi-use and light weight for the win!

I get a bed always at the ready and I still have a seat and desk for daytime. I don't want the bother of having to make up my bed each night but I need to have a workspace as well. This gives me the dual purpose of the tiny space with very little bother. If I am really exhausted, I can still take a nap without the foot width-extension in place. The seat raised to the same height as the bed gives me extra storage space and it is comfortable as I fit under the overhead cabinets and my feet can rest on the drawer on the opposite side. Plus, I can put the rack on it for extra room when working in the galley.

I built an opening on the bench extension for a drawer at some point. Turned out the evil extra cat preferred to hop into that and camp out under the bench as a good hidey hole - revealed only by his tell tale red leash. With my on-going litter box issues, I decided the litter box would best be placed at the back of the aisle. During the short trip, my old girl used it (yay!!). The extra cat, Syl, used the kennel box a couple of times. Previously, my old girl used the kennel box and was afraid of getting trapped in the under bench box. Go figure.

These 2 hate each other in real life. But in the van, it is different.

Bench Top

I also built a top for the bench across from my bed to better utilize the space. Instead of taking up 4” of vertical space with the cushions that I’m not using, I used the same wainscot panel boards to make a large shelf in 2 pieces so I can access underneath half of it at a time. For this purpose, I snugged the boards together using their tongue and groves to fit them together and tied them all together with a 1/4” slat underneath and the #4 screws. I sized and positioned the slat to fit just inside the bench edges so it will hold the shelf in place. And another shelf to sit on top of the kennel I carry for the cats. Might as well. I like being able to put scraps to good use.

Across a fairly small distance, less that 2’, the ¼” thick panel boards are plenty strong. Not for sitting on, but plenty strong for the things I need to put there. The decorative shape is actually rather handy in the van as it can hold small things in place on uneven ground. The knotty pine is pretty when varnished.

On our little trip, I put a towel on the top on the kennel and it quickly became a favorite cat perch. Nothing like being up high for a cat.

Carpeting

Oh, how I hate carpeting. Carpeting is the worst idea in an RV. I guess there is some sound deadening from it but it is hard to clean and quickly gets nasty. An uncleanable surface is a bad idea, especially one that is subject to the law of gravity. My carpet had gotten quite dirty, even in the under-bench areas. I used mostly Citrusolve to clean it as that also does a decent job of deodorizing it. It looks better except for the areas that got bleached. At some point, I want to take it out and put in a cleanable surface, but that point is not now.

I got some carpet protector lengths of plastic with spikes in it to grip the carpet to line the aisle and keep it cleaner. I got 2 more 6’ lengths and lined the under-bench storage areas. It took some cutting to fit it around the wheel hubs and when I need to get to the battery boxes, I’ll have to lift it but it should keep things a bit cleaner there now.

Reinstall Refrigerator

The outside air for refrigerator ventilation I rigged up really didn't work well due to the very hot summers we have. The fridge is made to use air under 110F. I sealed up the lower vent and insulated the upper vent cavity and put a piece of  vinyl flashing around it.  I used the good aluminum duct tape to secure the insulation better and decided the refrigerator doesn't need extra insulation on the top if I'm using the inside air for ventilation. The current configuration forms a seal at the top of the refrigerator fan on the back and that brings the air under the refrigerator, up the back, thru the fan and over the compressor and out the top.

Open Cavity - I Get Busy

With the refrigerator out of the van and the cavity open, I had easy access to the electric cavity from above by taking out the cavity floor.

Cabinets

In the meantime, I decided I was tired of clocking my head on the cabinet handles that stick out and got new ones to replace them. I found some very pretty ones that are a bail type (like on furniture) that also only drop down 1”. The hard part was finding ones with the screws 3 3/4” apart as most handles are 3”. The new ones stick out just 1/2” and are quite a bit prettier than the plain C ones that came with it. I also found ring handles for the lower cabinets and drawers that go well with the handles. Then I needed to do something about the other hole. I found 1” back plates that I can screw in after I paint the head to match. After I got the new handles, I decided that I would like the bail handles on the bath door better than the smaller rings, so I ordered a few more. It changes the character of van decor, and once again, I notice how much the cabinets need to be refinished. (Bonus! I can get the refrigerator thru the aisle now without taking off the cabinet doors thanks to the non-protruding new pulls.)

LiFePO4 Batteries - First Experience

3/21/14

The batteries were left with the van sitting and not doing anything after the batteries were installed. I pulled the fuse on the CO and LP monitors because they are not working and beeping. After about 2.5 weeks, the battery monitor said they were at 12.5V and the next morning, they had shut down entirely. The Battery Management System (BMS) is supposed to do that with a bit of battery left. The volt meter showed zero volts, which it should in a shut down situation.

LiFePO4 Batteries

I decided to go ahead with replacing my very dead Group 31 AGM batteries with LiFePO4 batteries of the same size. I contacted Smartbattery.com and they were very responsive to all my questions. They weren't the very cheapest I found on the Internet but they seemed to be one of the few who have a clear business and support their product. After a couple of days, I got handed off to their distributor in North Carolina who was also very responsive to all my questions and who went the extra mile in finding the correct answer for me and my specific set up. When I ordered them, I called the guy and gave him my credit card number on a Friday afternoon. I told him I didn’t need instant service and could wait until Monday. He had a different person call me for the details and I got the call back by 4pm which was too late for them to go out that day. But they went out on Monday and I got them via UPS on the following Wednesday. Very fast delivery.

House Batteries - Going to Lithium

It is time. My two 3+ year old 100AH AGM house batteries are toast (I found a date on the sides after I pulled them out). Using the shore power and the converter/charger, they haven't got up above 11.1 volts. On the off chance that there is something wrong with the charger, I attached a regular charger and got same thing. They won't charge so they are dead. Time to replace them.  This may well be the cause of my refrigerator failure last summer (It wasn't). I can't test that out until I replace them.

LTE Runaway

Last month, I got an AT&T hotspot and was quite happy with it. I have the 5GB/$50/month thing. My house is among the many places where there is very limited Internet options. The AT&T signal is good there and most of them time I get good speed with it. In all of January, I used about 2.5GB of data. Quite good since it even included streaming a single TV program.

A few days ago, I suddenly started getting emails from AT&T that I had used 3.5GB, shortly after that, 5GB and they added a gig for +$10. I shut off my hotspot (airplane mode) at the 5.99GB mark.  I had a few web pages open but no streaming and I have ad blockers to cut that kind of data usage. My firewalls and virus scanners were up and I ran them afterwards to check my system and it was clean. It had run thru 5.5GB of data inside of 2 hours and I was not doing anything that should have eaten that kind of data. Yikes!

I called AT&T Tech support and all I got was that they registered a sudden increase in data download and too bad for me. They insisted it could not be their meters going haywire (I believe Technomadia had an episode of this with their Millicom hotspot). The only suggestion is that I turn the hotspot off when I'm not using data - something I already do.  It is clear that AT&T will do nothing about it in true Telco fashion  - their motto is it is always the consumer's fault. And they really don't care. They have zero incentive to fix such problems. To them, they just charged me an extra $10 and didn't have to provide anything for it.

What I suspect happened is that the big ice storm did something to their network and in the repairs, someone did something that triggered a false data download and I am screwed. There is just no way I could have legitimately downloaded 5.5GB of data inside of 2 hours. Even streaming wouldn't chew up that much data so fast and I don't stream.

I worked for years in computer systems and I know how easy it is to make an error and screw up networks. Especially when the shit is hitting the fan and you are scrambling to get things working again - exactly the situation after the ice storm.  Most of the weekend was dropped down to the HSPA+ network on my phone so it is clear they were having problems.

So the bottom line is, LTE is great but watch out. Caveat emptor, indeed.

Purging on

My dump run was 660 pounds of old door and trim, the vinyl and underlayment pieces for my hall and powder room and a lot of accumulated household trash. Nice to have it gone but there's a lot more.

I've been in this house for 20 years. 20 years of accumulated stuff. We really do expand our stuff to the space we have. And then some. I've been clearing out the family room, my main room that I've lived in for all that time. I cleared out the bookcase, cleaned it and moved it to a corner of the new living room. I put back about half the books but they probably should be gotten rid of.  I have a lot of gardening, field guides, and construction books but nowadays, when I want to find out about something, I google it. I learned a ton from those books. How we have changed how our minds learn. It used to be that one had to have a library or go to a library to learn about something. Not anymore.  It is mostly all on the web or can be gotten in a digital format that weighs little and takes little space.

I decided that my old stereo should go. I had a nice pair of speakers, a receiver, tape, and gasp, LP player because I still have a library of old vinyl LPs. I found the manuals for them too along with the manuals of several old and long discarded pieces. This stuff is over 20 years old! The tape player hasn't worked right in years so it can go to the recycling center - more loading up the van. The speakers are big and the receiver still works so they went to Goodwill. I haven't used the stereo in years because I now use a smaller much more modern unit.

I still have a VCR and old CRT TV. I thought I had a few Jane Austen shows on VHS tapes that I would like to copy to DVD but in the purge, I found that I had already bought them on DVD so those went to my neighbor who wanted them. In my cabinet, I had a ton of old movies that I had taped off analog TV. I have not had the VCR running in years and years now, so they all can be dumped. The picture quality won't be worth trying to copy them. I couldn't get the VCR to show on the TV anyway so they both went to the van to be taken to the recycling center.

That leaves some old cassette tapes and the LPs. Before I retired, I bought one of those all in one LP, tape record to CD machines that also has a radio in it meaning to digitize the old media to CDs. I hadn't ever started that project. But now, I will. I moved that unit into the new living room along with the cabinet and started it. It works pretty well altho using a program like Audacity to clean up the recording and convert it to MP3s is time-consuming. I got a pack of CD labels and used the on-line Avery program to make some labels for the CDs. That works well but I do have to pay attention to which tracks actually recorded on the CD. Sometimes, the machine adds extra tracks with nothing but static.

Pulling out the furniture that had been there for so many years is rather disgusting. The Asian brown marmolated stink bug invasion that started a few years ago left quite a collection of their carcases under it. I have a big computer Armour that has quite an accumulation of computer stuff. Most of that will be trashed because it is old now. I even found floppy disks and zip disks.  I don't think I have anything that can read the old floppies anymore.  I found a zip drive so I will have to see if there is anything on those disks that I've been wondering where they got to.  If my Win 7 computer can run that thing.  Funny how we went to technology after technology trying to squeeze more and more data onto portable media.  Now even CDs are old school and terabytes of data storage are cheap to get.

I have had a big old computer armour that I no longer want or use. After I cleared it out, my neighbor said she wanted it so she sent her son and husband to haul it out. Yay!! In my mind, having someone take it out was worth giving it away, even if I could have gotten a few dollars for it.

When I stripped the ugly wallpaper, I got a surprise that almost all of it came off easily. All the wall paper in the rest of house is like it was put on with super glue and is a horrible job. I  stripped the trim, and scrubbed the walls about 5 times to get the old paste off. The old carpet is pulled and the van is loaded up again for the dump. Then it is patching it all and then painting.  It is amazing how much bigger a room looks with white walls and no ugly wall paper.  Then it is onto the kitchen rehab before I lay the flooring in the back part of the house.

I kept getting stink bugs coming out of the mantel as I was stripping it. These are the invasion of the Asian ones that hit the east coat.  I finally pried it off the wall and found hundreds of them behind the mantel! Yuck.  When I put the mantel back on, it is going to get plenty of caulk to keep that from happening again!

Purging is an exercise in self control. As I go thru this stuff accumulated thru my life, I have to resist the urge to keep it because once I wanted it and used it. I keep reminding myself how long it has been sitting around unused. It is time to clean it out and pass it onto someone who will use it or just trash it.

Got a beautiful full double rainbow - horizon to horizon today! Couldn't get the whole thing in one pic. The sky was a perfect prism.

Whoa!!

This month, I got a new cell phone: the new Nexus 5 unlocked, and tried out StraightTalk  $45 for a month of unlimited talk, text, data.  It is on the AT&T network and can do the LTE data speeds. The down side is that once you use up 2.5GB of data, they throttle you to 2g speeds and you can't tether the phone or roam.  But I can get 5-6mbs upload and 2-3 mps download speeds on it at home on the HSPA network and 8-12+ when it gets the LTE signal.  Compared to the 1.3 mbs at best I could get on the Sprint network and it looks pretty good.  The talk and text works just fine too and it is a lot less expensive. I also got a Google Voice number that I connected to my land line and the new cell phone.  That way, I can change out plans and numbers and people can call the Google number and still get me.

My first cell phone was an AT&T but a few years ago, I could no longer get a signal from them at my home so I switched to Sprint.  Sprint was fine for a while but with the advent of LTE networks, they have really fallen far behind.  Add to that the missing coverage on my trips and it is goodbye to Sprint. In the meantime, AT&T has expanded and sped up their network pretty well.  Verizon wasn't a real option because I get poor coverage at my house from them.

I've had at home a wireless network that bounces the signal from spot to spot for rural places that I've been paying $55/month for 1mbs up and .5 down.  It was a more reliable signal than tethering my old Sprint phone and better than dial up.  I just discovered that they have been offering 2mbs up 1 mbs down for the last year for the same price and never let me know. So I asked and they want $189 for new equipment to up the speed. I know that the equipment I have can do 12mbs unthrottled and it is a very easy software setting to change the speed as that is what it did before the installer throttled it.  Doesn't seem like a very good deal to me.  A cable modem is not an option so I'm limited for internet even at home.

Today, I got the AT&T Unite Pro hotspot with the $50/5GB/month plan and yes, I went ahead and got the contract because I am going to keep it for that long anyway so I might as well save the $150 extra to buy it off contract. It isn't like they discount the monthly fee off contract.  It gets the LTE signal really well in my house and look at the speed! 18+ mbs! Plus it is fully mobile.  All I will have to do in the van is just put it in there and we are good to go.  The hotspot has plugs for an antenna as well so that is an option.

I think 5 gigs of data will be fine for me as I don't do gaming or stream a whole lot of stuff.  If I go over the 5 gigs, they will add a gig and charge me an extra $10.  I can go to using 7-8 gigs in a month and match what I had been paying for the phone and internet so I think this is a better deal by far. Now to cancel the old stuff.

On other computer stuff since I'm on the topic.  Last year, I bought an Android tablet but it was a failure after just a few months. It started rapidly flashing apps on and off and nothing I could find would fix it. It had a short warranty so I was stuck. I decided that I really prefer a laptop and got a Sony ultralight last summer.  I still like it really well and it still works.  Windows 8 takes some getting used to but it runs real programs like the Libre Office suite as well as a bunch of apps programs.  It is incredibly light and fast with a touch screen.  The Android wannabes on the tablet just didn't cut it for real work.

Musing on Thanksgiving as a Single Retiree

Another Thanksgiving has come and gone, this time with the stores deciding their employees had so little pull that they could force them to have no holiday and come to work for the mad acquisition fanatics to indulge their whims on a national holiday.  I'm one who gets irritated at the onslaught of the Christmas buying spree starting before Halloween. I like the Fall.  The right wing likes to claim there's some sort of war on Christmas because many people like to be pleasantly inclusive to others who happen to not be Christian (it's why we say happy holidays - so everyone will be included in a banal but friendly greeting.) But there is zero evidence that Christmas in is any sort of decline. Just look around you. You can't escape it. It is yet another aggressive attempt to force a particular segment of Christianity onto people who don't care for it while sending the clear message that we don't want your kind around here if you don't subscribe to it.  We used to say that kind of meanness was unchristian, but now it defines christian. But then that was when being christian was also defined as kind and charitable.

Funny thing is that the heavy Christmas traditions only date back to the 19th century when newspapers could shape a particularly monetary feeling about the holiday and set up a mythology that never existed before.  The whole holiday was originated as a reworking of ancient pagan winter solstice celebrations to relieve the tedium of long, cold winter nights and the beginning of longer days again. Because of the lag of solar heating of the earth, the hardest winter is ahead but the sun gradually lasts longer and longer. The Roman Saturnalia and other pagan celebrations were impossible to squash so the early Catholic church got the brilliant idea to take it over and layer the celebrations with the Christian myths.

Enough griping about the coming holiday. Being a happily single middle aged woman puts me in a little quandary about holidays. People often think I'm lonely and in need of being taken care of at these times. So frequently, being a fairly pleasant person despite being a strong introvert, I am often asked to join a friend's family. Don't get me wrong, they mean to be really nice to me and that is their only motivation, so I do appreciate the sentiment.

But when you spend a distinctly family oriented holiday at someone else's family, no matter how nice and welcoming they are, I am a third wheel and don't really belong. I have always enjoyed the holiday dinners with my own family which is quite extensive but who all live far far away, but I am and always have been a part of it. I belong and always will whether I like it or not. Fortunately, I mostly like it. But I really hate traveling during the holidays. Especially by air. The unpleasant air travel is made much worse by the huge crowds so I try to avoid it.

In addition, during my work life, the demands of the job mostly made it impossible to go to a relative's house for holidays.  I got used to not celebrating when in my early career I had to work 24/7/365 shifts.  I would volunteer to work the holidays (more pay!) so that the people with families could have them with their families.  At first, being at work helped distract from the all alone feeling but then it just didn't really matter any more the older I got.  I find that the holiday traditions really matter a lot more when you have children. My dogs and cats just don't care. And I haven't really felt lonely since I got rid of my sociopath ex-husband years ago.

This year, my neighbor, who I see frequently (our dogs are best buds and she has chickens!), invited me to Thanksgiving dinner with her husband's family about 2 hours driving time away.  I find it difficult to refuse such invitations because it is meant to be so nice. Then she started warning me about his various brothers and their less than ok behavior. I was raised with the "be pleasant and civil and no politics or religion topics at dinner" etiquette rules. So I started to have some trepidation about the event - with no possible escape hatch. I would be on their time table because of the distance.

The day came and went.  They were very nice to me and mostly pleasant enough.  I just said nothing about the politics discussion.  It is not the time to try to counter the Fox "news" people with actual facts (studies keep showing that those who watch Fox are less informed of reality than those who get no news at all).  But, really, it was a long day that got pretty boring when the inevitable football on TV started (which I find deadly dull - same thing over and over. Essentially playing dog-pile interspersed with endless committee meetings).  They were very nice to me and very welcoming but they are not very educated so I really didn't have much in common with anyone (since I am and always have been an intellectual).  I get along with my neighbor and enjoy her company despite the lack of comparable education because she is practical smart, logical, and thinks for herself, plus we have some common interests.  I have always found hours and hours of banal small talk with (even nice) strangers exhausting. 

In reality, I would have had a better day with no feast and by myself with my pets.  I guess because I'm not a needy social person and really like my own company.  It is amazing how few people can comprehend a single middle aged woman who is happy with her own life under her own control and needs no taking under a wing.  That is when I feel like I have to start making up prior engagements because I really don't want to be taken under someone's wing and incorporated into their family.  I like to choose individual people for friends and company who I like for themselves without being incorporated into their whole lives.  But I am really loathe to hurt their feelings with outright rejection of what is intended to be very, very nice to me.

It is a quandary.

To the Dump, To the Dump, Dump, Dump

Today, I lined the van with tarps and filled it to the gills with trash. I think it's been almost a year since the last time I went so there are quite a few bags of household trash. The big stuff is the old front door and trim along with the vinyl floor and underlayment from my hall and powder room. I don't pay for trash pickup. I figured out years ago that I just don't produce enough trash to make the weekly pickup fee worthwhile since I recycle as much as I can. The county picks up recyclables at the curb every 2 weeks for free. Normally, I go to the dump at least twice a year but somehow, I didn't this year.

The van is such a versatile vehicle.  I also used my compressor to blow all the water out of the van to have it ready for winter.

Last week, I completed the front rooms in my house with the stairs and railing, including all the trim and touch up. It feels really good to have it all done and looking like I had always imagined it could. Next up is a big purge. I'm starting to pack up some pictures and pots that I want to keep to get the family room cleared out so I can strip the ugly wallpaper and scrape the paint on the trim. After that, I'll go thru my stuff and give away a bunch of stuff I really don't need to have. It is a big job doing that but I will feel lighter when it is gone. And need room to work on the room. My rule is if I don't really love it or don't use it all the time, it goes.

Happy All Hallow's Een

Happy Halloween. All Hallows Eve, the half way point of Fall when traditions celebrated the onset of winter and ever shorter days. According to the Celts, it was the end of the old year and the veils between the worlds of the living and the dead were thinned so the hallows (ghosts, spirits) could walk among us.

I don't believe in anything supernatural so I have no fear of it but I do like to mark the marching of time thru the seasons. My silver maple tree suddenly turned a spectacular shade of orange/red today. It practically glows even in a thick cloud cover. We finally had a couple of killing frosts late last week so it has put on it's gaudy colors. It has been years since I've seen it put on such a show. Must be the extra wet summer we had. Tonight will bring a storm with high winds so I expect most of the leaves will be gone by tomorrow. A fleeting beauty.

I've been working hard putting down the flooring in my hall/living room/powder room/closet and it is complete! I moved my desk and some furniture into it so I can tackle the back rooms. I am in the midst of putting the flooring on the stairs and will set the newel post/railing as I do that, then the whole front part of the house downstairs will be completely done! Feels good but sheesh, it is only 1/8 of the whole job.  I do believe I met my goal of making it look like a lovely cottage.

It's Always Something ...

Ow

We got cleared for dog swimming and walks this week along with instructions to do core exercises on an air mattress and I am directed to pull my dog's tail.  The tail pull is like chiropractic for dogs and helps to align her spine and release pressure. She thinks that is a bit weird but does seems to feel better with it. So it was off to the lake yesterday to have a good swim which she really enjoyed.

Today, we took a walk on the tow path in the C&O Canal NHP that runs along the Potomac River. Only walked for an hour because we need to get back into exercise gradually. Somewhere along the path, my dog stuck her nose into something by the side of the path and suddenly jumped a foot and a half. All I saw was a very quick flash of white. Towards the end of our walk, she was less enthusiastic. We went down to the river and she swam some. I thought we had over done the exercise from her lethargy.

Later in the afternoon, I noticed she had a big swelling under her chin so I took her to the vet. The vet found two spots right under her chin and thinks she got a snake bite and it was possibly venomous. She also said that most of the snakes here do not pose a life threatening bite and she didn't have a really rapid swelling so that is a good sign.  The vet gave her a Benedryl shot and prescribed an anti inflammatory, antibiotic, and a pain killer. Good thing she is easy to pill. I think that I saw a quick flash of the snake's underside with the flash of white but it was gone fast. The dog refused to get a water bottle discarded a bit off the path after that. Maybe she has learned to be a bit more cautious now.

Her swelling has gone down quite a bit in the late evening so I think she will be all right. The cat continues to heal. I took a picture of his wound to show the vet. She said when the hole in his skin heals/scabs over, then he can go outside again and it is healing up as it should. That can't be too soon. He keeps chasing the other cat and is generally a pain in the neck.

The fool dog finally paid the price for sticking her nose into everything.  It is always something ...

UPDATE: The dog is much better in the morning. Her spirits are up, the swelling is much smaller altho there is a swelling on her chest between her front legs (the vet said that would happen). Her neck measurement is 6 cm less than it was yesterday. So it looks like it will be all right. I love my vet!

Life with Furry Invalids

It's been the better part of a week with my 2 furry invalids. The feisty cat with the nasty bite and the dog with newly diagnosed but early spondyloses. The cat has been wearing a lampshade on his head to keep him from licking and irritating the wound except when I feed him. The wound is looking like it is slowly healing - darker in color but no weeping fluid. He acts drunk with cone on. Odd jerky movement and postures, the poor thing. By Friday, he started trying to wash his face with his paw but only got the cone. He is constantly trying to get outside and do his regular hunting, lazing around outside, and cat fighting so I have to catch him every time I open the door. But he must convalesce inside. This morning, he started howling repeatedly for about an hour (my poor ears!) but finally settled into a nap on the floor upstairs. He has finally stopped going after the wound so I let him have some time without the cone to take a cat bath. Then the brat entertains himself by chasing the other other cat and brawling. He also spends a lot of time insisting on laying about my desk which I find rather inconvenient.

Syl wanting to go outside

Still sitting crooked which indicates she doesn't feel right.

My poor dog is bored out of her gourd. I looked up the spondyloses treatment and prognosis on the interwebs. It really is good to find out early. One good piece of news is that they recommend swimming as really good exercise for her so once she is cleared to resume that, we will take daily jaunts to lakes for her to swim. Meanwhile she wants to run and can't and she wants to play fetch. She's a good girl tho. We are also going to start carting training in the fall. The vet says that will be good exercise for her. It's the jumping and twisting actions that she loves that won't be good for her to do.  I got the long rope I use in the van for her to be leashed outside so she can keep tabs on the world but not go crazy dog. She's learned a new trick this week - to beg. It grew out of her waves when she got excited and lifted both paws up.

Meantime, I am cleaning up the living room of all the tools and supplies to ready it for floor laying. There is a lot of stuff in there to clear out.  Much of it is going into an upstairs bedroom for now that will function as a shop area. I am also clearing out the van so it can double as a trash hauler and to work on the pesky refrigerator again.  I'm putting all the cushions and things in the corner of a bedroom.

Chugging Along and Vet Merry Go Round

Since I got back from my trip in July, I've been working along on my main objective: fix up this house so I can sell it.  I just finished the ceiling and walls of the powder room with wainscot beadboard. I went ahead and installed the toilet paper holder and towel holder and new mirror. Now the front part of the house is finally ready to lay the flooring after I clean it all out to clear out the rooms. Pre-finished flooring is nice in that once it is laid, all that is left is the baseboards and the rooms are done. I have to install the new vanity after the floor goes in as well. My objective in the house refresh is so that when prospective buyers walk into the house, their first impression is what a cute cottage. Most houses are sold in the first 5 minutes so I am trying to make that initial impression a good one. 

One of my long standing personality traits is focus on an objective until it gets done. So rather than indulge in my wanderlust, I am in full on carpenter mode to get this house done.  When pulling out the old ratty vanity a couple weeks ago, I wrenched my back. Drat. So I was down a few days but I'm ok now. Research has shown that no matter what you do for back pain, whether a doctor, chiropractor, physical therapy, or nothing, in a week to 10 days 95% get better. So I opt for nothing and inside a week I was much better. Cheaper and less trouble that way with the same outcome.

I've been spending a lot of money at the Vet's lately. My dog, Dirona, had a couple of episodes of limping again before and during our trip. I took her in for more physical therapy - laser treatments. Her PT found she is sore in the rear and today, she found the dog is sore on her back and doesn't like her tail moved in one direction. We talked with the vet and decided on getting xrays to see what is going on. Now I've got a dopey dog because they sedate them for an xray. But it is a good thing we did because she is diagnosed with spondylosis in her lower spine. No arthritis yet and the vet said that they do see arthritis in dogs this young. At least we now have a reason for all this lameness and that lets us formulate a better therapy for her, including tail pulling. Yep, next week, I get taught how to do therapeutic tail pulling. Makes me wonder if missing a tail makes my back recovery longer. I need a tail to pull! Defective humans. ;-)

Dopey Dirona

The vet also said they rarely get to diagnose it this early. Usually it gets diagnosed when the dog is fairly crippled.  I blame her physical therapist. If she hadn't done such thorough examinations, we would never have been led to get the xray and find it out.  Good thing this dog is so easy to pill. We now have Deramax, an anti inflammatory for 10 days and Vetri-Disc, a chondroitin supplement to add to the Dasuquin. But no more muscle relaxer.

Sunday, Sylvester, the Evil Extra Cat, hopped up on my desk where I noticed he had blood and fluid on his arm. A little examination revealed a nasty bite on what would be the armpit on us. I could see two fang punctures on the top and a mess on the underside. It didn't look infected so I waited until Monday to bring him in. The vet said it looked like a bite and him pulling away for the tears on the underside. The fool cat acts like he is in no pain but it has to hurt. He presents himself to go out and hunt mice in the morning like usual. So, he got  an anti-inflammatory shot and an antibiotic shot that both last a couple of weeks. He is impossible to pill and even liquid meds get spit out. The vet thinks it is likely a cat bite. She said the only other animal with teeth that size is a raccoon but they usually do a lot more damage. No doubt, Syl probably started the fight and if he didn't he did in the past so the other cat was primed to fight. He is just awful to other cats. And impossible to keep inside.

When we got home, Syl was more angry than I have ever seen him. He walked thru the house spitting, hissing, and growling with no one near him. When I put him in a crate to chill, he continued to growl and hiss for 2 more hours. Usually, he just does a quick show of his displeasure and runs off when he's mad. By nighttime, he was back to normal and purring at me. He's been licking the wound vigorously so I got him the lampshade to wear, which he hates. I asked the vet if the meds affect mood but she said she had never heard of that.

I do not like this one bit!

Unhappy cat in jail and dopey dog

Lots of fur-kid issues lately. Nissa, my elderly female cat has been vomiting lately. I switched to just giving her a heaping teaspoon of food at once and so far, that seems to have stopped the vomiting. It means she has to be fed 3 times a day now.

The other day, before the bite, Syl showed up on my deck with a mouse in his mouth. He asked to come in but I refused. He meant business because he proceeded to chomp the mouse down in short order with no typical cat torture session. The hunting must be good because he's been refusing his morning meal and insisting on going outside.  Sunday night, Dirona was very interested under the deck and finally when I made her come out, she had 2 rabbit feet sticking out of her mouth, chomping away. Predators.