Where Are We Now

 Where are we now is a great question for me as I climb the trees to hang Christmas lights and garland. Part of the lights I hung when I first got here.

The day has come to begin setting up for Christmas, that meant hanging ornaments and popcorn garland. But before I started that, I took down an old bird nest.

After doing a little more trimming of small branches, it was time to hang stuff. Carol was my go-to person while hanging the ornaments and popcorn garland.

The popcorn garland was fun to make. Most of you out there may be able to see that the kernels are made from spray foam. They started out as lumps of foam, and when they hardened a little, I combined two lumps together to form a kernel. Night time will be our proving ground, determining if we need to move item around.

WE'RE BACK.

Besides preparing for the Christmas season, I did a little maintenance around the park while Carol was trying to organize the Ranch House. One of my projects was repairing an opening under one of the kitchen sinks. 

A fitting leaked for quite awhile causing damage to the shelf and drywall. After the leak was repaired, they left a hole in the wall. The mice enjoyed the free run of the area. The shelf was also repaired, by someone else. 

Before the repairs were completed we had traps under the sink... we caught one... the others learned from that lesson. One of the leaseholders had the doors open and was watching for mice, and what a spectacle he did see... the mice no longer ran along the cabinet floor, they jumped from bottle lid to bottle lid making their nightly runs.

Part of the reason that I have not been writing has to do with the committees we both have joined. I joined the Water Committee, Building and Safety Committee, and the Storage Committee. Carol on the other hand became part of the Audit Committee, Ranch House Committee, and the Lot Transfer Committee.

As part of the Water Committee I have the responsibility of metering park water usage, and conducting repairs and maintenance on the water system. My first action was to repair the door security to Well House #1, accomplished, and lookin' good. Talking with other committee members, I learned of a leak in the reverse osmosis (RO) water system, that has been leaking for ten years.

This was a fun project that no one wanted to take it on. The stand pipe was becoming a stalagmite with all the mineral build-up over the ten years. Getting to the point in the picture took some work. There was a thick layer of minerals that acted like concrete, which took a sledge hammer to break up.

A co-leaseholder and I made short work of the repair, and created a monument to the repaired leak. I have made a sign that reads "10 YEAR RO WASTE WATER LEAK MONUMENT", and plan to mount it next time I do meter readings.

Part of the water system at the park is a collection pond for waste water treatment. It appears to be a short stay resort for some of our feathered friends...

We are just a rest stop on the way to somewhere else.

Carol and some other leaseholders are having fun organizing the Ranch House and its associated storeroom. They have enjoyed throwing away items that have been around for eons, and not used. This is sometimes a point of contention with a few of the leaseholders that have been here a very long time.

When we first leased the lot, we were going to put it in the rental pool so that visitors could stay when they are in the area. After doing the improvements, we decided to remove it from the pool, and with that came making a temporary fence.

Look at the middle of the picture, you will notice some cinder blocks and fencing material. It will be moved to the front of the lot when we get to travelin' again. 

These are photos from one of my mornings during meter reading duties. Working around the ranch, pleasures can be found...

This owl is one of several that constantly visit the ranch, this is behind the Ranch House. Most nights we can hear them in the trees near our lot. We are waiting for spring to get closer, then we should see more varieties of birds coming around, and butterflies too.

Maintenance on the rig is a never ending joy to, but must be done cautiously with the wind around here. This next task isn't affected by the wind...

What you are looking at is the temperature and pressure relief valve for our water heater. The constant leaking made a mess on the outside of the trailer. It is my fault that the valve got this way. In checking our water heater anode, I failed to ensure there was an air gap in the water heater. When water heats, it expands, and ultimately forced out the valve. The fix is a simple one, just replace the valve. To ensure this doesn't happen again, I need to ensure there is the required air cap in the water heater. No, I haven't replaced the valve to date, but I do have the new valve.

We discovered this tequila while shopping at Albertson's. It is really smooth goin' down. 

We have visited the local winery about four miles down the road. The winery holds various events which we have attended, some better than others. One item I found that I like is an uncured bacon jam. I have used it on top of my steaks. Yes, they do have wines that Carol and I enjoy, so we bought a couple of bottles. As usual, I purchased their port wine, both varieties which were in limited stock. One of the ports was $75.00 for the bottle, they only had three left; I only bought one of each. The people here are nervous about spending $75.00 on a bottle of wine, especially if they can't taste it.

The last event we went to was a couple of comedians. At this event they were serving pulled pork in several forms, I ordered the pulled pork nachos, and a bottle of port (the expensive stuff). I was going to get Carol's favorite, but they were out of stock. I was kidding with bartender about my nachos being no-charge since I bought the expensive port wine... he said sure, so I had nachos-on-the-house. The comedians were so-so, too much foul language. The port I bought was part of the remaining two from the previous bottles in stock, now there is only one.

DO NOT GET TOO EXCITED ABOUT WHAT I AM ABOUT TO WRITE.

We, probably more me, have been discussing the option of a second trailer for short stay trips and traveling to regions where the roads, and park spaces are narrow, or small. A good example of small is California state parks, which can only fit rigs up to 32 feet. An example of narrow, the roads in New England.

We are looking into trailers in the range of 24 feet long. This is one of the trailers on the list, a Riverside, Retro Elite. This one has peeked our interest, and is in the range of what we want to spend. Should we get a new trailer, I will let you know, with pictures.

Later folks...