Spring and Summer 2023 page 48

24 Feb…I’m back in Florida with friends and family…the drive back and forth across the country is starting to get a bit old…probably gonna be a while before I do it again…my beautiful niece Alyx is so excited…she’s starting her Karate training on Monday…the Dojo she’ll be attending is very reputable and the staff appears to be well trained in the martial arts…I studied a couple of forms of the arts years ago ( karate and Brazillian Capoeira)…I look forward to seeing her advance mentally and physically with the disciplines.

1 March…Alyx started her martial arts training this week…I studied years ago and so happy she wants to participate…looking forward to her developing mentally and physically with the discipline involved with the lifestyle.

11 April…it’s been a while since I updated…life has been good here in Florida while I visited friends and family…this morning when I got up I discovered my small Dometic Fridge had taken a dump…it’s the second Dometic fridge that has quit on me…too costly and too much hassle to go through all the hoops to get it repaired…so I threw it in the dumpster and ordered another Engle fridge/freezer…it’s the Engel MT27 Top Opening 12/24V DC – 110/120V AC Fridge-Freezer…I have the larger version that I’ve been using for a fridge…I’ll use the new one for a freezer to keep my stock of butter pecan ice cream nice a cozy. Engle has the reputation of making the most reliable and long lasting products in the world…I should be set for the rest of my traveling life…hope so…those things are expensive 🙂

Planning on heading to the western North Carolina mountains this coming Monday…can’t wait…been a long time it seems…got the trailer loaded with my beautiful Honda 300 Rally…will be seeing friends and doing lots of riding on some of the best roads in the USA.

Alyx, my beautiful and very above average niece has a birthday this weekend…party at the local skating rink and lots of cupcakes! I love her so much…such a joy.

I talked to a person who has a truck that’s paid for and gets 20 mpg…he said he was gonna buy a hybrid electric car that will get at least 40 mpg and get rid of his gas guzzling truck ….the cost for the new car…$40,000…hmmmm…this is what I told him.

If you have a vehicle that’s paid for and gets 20 mpg and drive 12,000 miles a year you will spend $2400 a year on gas at $4 a gallon.

If you buy a hybrid EV for $40,000 and drive the same 12,000 miles a year  it will take you 16.6 years to break even ($40,000 divided by $2400 savings a year)

In that time you will have to replace the battery pack at around $14,000 at least once.

He still didn’t understand the logic…a prime example of how people have been brainwashed…geez.

17 April…after an uneventful drive (isn’t that the best kind) up to Maggie Valley in the mountains of western North Carolina today I’m parked at my friend Rob’s motel downtown…temp is a balmy 52 degrees and not a cloud in the sky…plan on being in the area for about a month or so. Gonna do lots of riding and napping…will help Rob tomorrow with some remodeling of a couple of rooms at the motel to earn my little patch of grass to park on…I’ve tried to pay him what he normally charges folks to park up on the property but he always refuses so I volunteer my time and what little expertise I have to make things good.

20 April…one of the folks following my blog sent me a link to some VERY affordable portable fridges…here’s a link….https://camcooutdoors.com/collections/portable-refrigerators

21 April…moved to a nice spot in front of Rob’s home here at the motel…nice clean gravel and I can sit in the van with the side door open and watch the traffic go by….lots of traffic this weekend as the Southeastern Mini Truck National gathering is across the street at the fairgrounds…all kinds of lowered small trucks with loud blasting thumping bass going up and down the street…can’t wait for the event to get over…Sunday will be nice and peaceful…hope I survive this mess.

Getting some nice rides in on the little Honda…the thing is brilliant here on the mountain roads.

One of my favorite places…trust General Store…love the rocking chairs on the porch

Rode up to Max Patch on some gravel roads with my buddy Patrick…he took a photo of me…I can’t believe how cool I look 🙂

Every night….

10 May…another gift this morning…beautiful blue skies, 52F, and not a bit of wind…I never take any new day for granted…each is a gift and I cherish the time to enjoy it…just got back from my morning walk…a mile each time to get the legs and vitamins flowing after my usual oatmeal with maple syrup and cinnamon breakfast…it’s been a great 3 weeks or so here in Maggie Valley…helping around the motel…keeping the arms and legs moving…sore many times but good…riding the backroads when the weather is nice…windshield replaced in the van…again…another rock rom the road…Safelite in Asheville did a nice job.

I say a prayer for my mom and two sisters several times a day…the details I’ll keep to myself…and a special prayer for my niece Alyx…to keep her comfortable…to keep her healthy…and to keep her safe from the perils of this world…I miss her smile when I travel…her laughter…she’s living in another town away from where I parkup when I’m in Florida…when I’m there I don’t see her much…but that’s ok…she’s growing up and I expected she’d be wanting to spend time with new friends and interest…I’m told she’s doing well in school and enjoying her Karate Dojo.

Heading over to Conway SC on Monday to get a nice bug screen installed on the sliding door of the van…I’ll be able to keep the door open and the bugs out when the weather is nice…it’s a custom item made by The Bug Wall folks…they will install it for free if you stop by their business. I can be role up from the bottom and secured with the clips at the top or removed entirely…so looking forward to boondocking out west with no bugs flying in and landing in my coffee.

Here’s a photo from their website

The campground at Mt Pisgah opens on the 27th…can’t wait to spend a week or so there…so clean so quiet…and only $10 a night cause I’m old and decrepit.

17 May…had the windshield on the van replaced a few days ago at Safelite in Asheville…next day it was leaking during a rain storm…they got me back in and replaced the windshield again…the said the found a small gap in the sealing bead and it should be all good now…no rain yet so we will see.

The drive over to Conway SC near Myrtle Beach was uneventful…stayed in the parking lot of The Bug Wall business and had my new bug screen installed the next morning…loving the thing…magnetic closure works perfectly…I can roll up the screen or remove it entirely if I want…don’t know why I waited to long to get one…really nice leaving the side door open and not have any bugs fly in and land on my bagel.

I’m planning on staying here at the motel in Maggie until the 27th…then it’s up to the Mount Pisgah Campground for a few days before I head back to Florida for a bit…my niece is out of school for the summer on the 2nd of June…if I’m not back in town to play by then she said I’m in for a butt whooping…..

18 may…. Another beautiful morning here in Maggie Valley… up around 4:30 AM…had a great cuppa coffee….headed out for a walk through town right at sunrise.…temperature’s really crisp around 55°…not a cloud in the sky… so nice with the bug screen…especially in the mornings… I can open the side door all the way, drink my coffee, watch the little bit of traffic go back-and-forth, and not have a single bug flying in to bother me.

I’ll be 71 in a couple of weeks…still feel good…I think not drinking sodas and staying away from sugar and processed foods (mostly) is helping…I always try to get a couple of walks in each day combined with a bit of bicycling to keep the legs moving…all good so far.

I love being mobil and living in my tiny home on wheels more and more each day…I feel for those living day to day struggling to pay for “stuff” they don’t really need…I’ve said in the past a person doesn’t need a lot of money to live…most of what they spend is just for showing off…or playing with things for a short time before being told they need something bigger and better even though there’s nothing wrong or worn out with the stuff they have now.

I wear shoes till they start making my feet sore from wear before I replace them…I dress simply and practically…a couple of jeans, a couple of cotton cargo pants, and a stack of gray or black T shirts and I’m all set…I do have a nice collard shirt in case I need to dress up…happens about once every 20 years.

4 July…Happy 4th of July! Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying life…like me.

Florida is hot and humid as usual this time of year…got the van parked in the shade at my sister’s casa…the Dometic A/C unit runs most of the day every day and is doing a superb job of keeping me and the tiny house cool.

Starting to further refine my travel set up as another trip to Alaska is coming up next spring…I’ve used a large 19 inch propane fire ring for a few trips now…it’s bulky and hard to pack…so…I bought a replacement…it’s an Ignik FireCan Portable Propane Fire Pit with Hose and Adjustable Regulator…really compact and will do everything the big one did and more…also got a nice stainless steel grill to set on top of the thing to cook steaks and stuff in my cast iron skillet…can’t wait to use it 🙂

I have a small 5 pound LP bottle I use for my Complux hot water heater I use for nice warm showers when I’m camping off grid…I have it mounted on one of the rear doors…I swing the door open get wet…and soapy. I have a second water pump that feed the unit from the main fresh water tank in the van…I use about 4 gallons for a nice shower.

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