Day: May 15, 2012

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Thanks, Verizon!

WOW. US telecom companies are not as evil as their Canadian counterparts!

Because of all the insurance matters, I was going to go over my 450-minute voice plan. My friend told me to call Verizon and ask to be moved to the next tier so that I wouldn’t get a huge overage bill. I couldn’t imagine Verizon agreeing to that, but I called them anyway.

I explained to the gal that my usage this month was exceptional because of the accident, bla, bla, and asked if it would be possible to be moved to the next tier, 900 minutes, for this period and then brought back down to the 450-minute tier next month.

“Gee, your billing cycle ends in five days. I can’t imagine you using up 450 minutes in that amount of time! How about I just add 200 complimentary minutes to your account and leave your plan as-is?”

They can do that here?!

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Reply to Comments About the New Toad & the Border Crossing

Croft said in a comment today:

Good to see you back on the road and I hope all the financial stuff works out smoothly! BTW, how long do you have to replace the car and are you going to start looking right away? I hate car shopping as I am a poor negotiator. I still think you should consider Internet shopping in the USA, at least to get a comparison of prices.

I have to check with the insurance company if there is a deadline for asking for reimbursement on the GST. If not, then I can take all the time I want.

I am not going to be looking in the US. I know what’s involved in importing and the money I might save won’t be worth the hoops I’ll have to go through.

I have pretty much decided on what I want, but need to finetune the research as to truck weight, gas mileage, ability to tow, bed length, etc. Since I have decided to go with a compact pickup, it makes sense to shop where there is a truck market. So I have decided to fly back to Alberta at some point this summer to buy my new toad!

Going back to Alberta will actually cut down on expenses and hoops. If I were to buy and plate in Quebec, I would have to pay PST and the registration would be almost $300 more than it would be in Alberta. When I got back to Alberta, I would have to pay for an out of province inspection. All those costs would add up to a lot more than the cost of a one-way plane ticket and the fuel to drive back to Quebec.

By buying the toad in Alberta, I’ll be able to leave Quebec in the fall with two correctly registered and insured vehicles. Plus, I know I can rely on Jody and Gary’s expertise in helping me make a good decision.

As for negotiating, I did really well one my last two brand new cars and Miranda, so I’m confident I can get a decent deal.

He also had this to say about the border crossing (with Norma (not Croft’s Norma) also wondering about this):

They may say nothing at the border (most likely) or they may ask where the car is if it shows up on their screen. They also sometimes ask if you had “repairs or modifications” done. Either way, only answer what is asked.

I put the total loss claim papers on my iPad to show at the border if the question comes up.

As for the repairs/modification question, it’s only as it pertains to work that could create secret compartments for stashing drugs. They don’t care if you get your brakes done but let them know if you had a safe welded to the frame! This is almost verbatim from the customs idiot who interrogated me last spring.

I have decided not to think too hard about the border crossing except for the fact that I have way too much beer on board! I’m off to attempt to make a dent in it!

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Petersburg VA to St Clair PA

Miranda was packed by 8:00 this morning. I handed the key to the lady in the office in case the mechanic was ready to work on her before I got back from returning the rental car. I got to Enterprise at about 8:20 at the same time as the guy who was going to drive me back to WS Campbell. Everything was fine with the rental and the insurance is picking up the full tab! I got back to the shop at 8:30 and Miranda was still outside. I took back the key and got her into the garage then went to the office to settle up the bill.

My adjuster at Aviva continues to impress me. She told me that the axle repairs alone would be $5,600. Um, no. That was for everything. The axle repairs came in at just under $3,000, so with the towing bill the invoice was $3202 and change, which was actually less than they would have thought because they didn’t need to replace all the parts they thought they needed to replace. I signed off on the repairs and faxed the invoice and credit card receipt to Aviva.

There was a truck blocking the pull-thru exit of the garage, so I had to back out. I always take it as a compliment when I am left to my own devices to do such manoeuvring. 🙂 It was an easy out, though, as I had a big empty space to back into and get pointed in the correct direction.

Before we leave WS Campbell, here’s the view I had from my desk the last two weeks:

It’s 5KM to the I-95/South Crater Road junction and there is a Shell just before the turnoff. It would have been a bit tight with the toad, but it was easy access with just Miranda. I had a quarter tank of gas and I was staring at the cheapest fuel prices on this trip ($3.49/gallon), so I had the pump pre-authorized for $125 and that filled the tank to the brim.

Now, I’m going to give more detail about my route than I usually do because there has been some discussion about it in the comments.

Just a few miles north of where I got on I-95, at 9:20, I took I-295 to by-pass Richmond and got back on I-95 north of the city. I grinned as I passed Ashland, awed that the last time I took this route, I drove straight from there to Gatineau in a day!

Traffic got thicker and thicker the further north I drove. I was happy to exit to route 17N just past Fredericksburg. I knew that the next bit wasn’t going to be easy as I would have to drive through a shopping district with lots of traffic lights, but it was better than going through DC. I followed the signs for route 17N to I-66 west.

My GPS continues to make me wonder who programs routes for it. I was heading for a destination just off of I-81 and right up to the I-81/I-66 junction, it was adamant that I drive through downtown Washington to get there! Whomever comes up with a GPS that automatically routes around cities is going to get my business for life.

I’d been too nervous to have breakfast before leaving (but not so nervous that I didn’t take the time to have coffee!) and the knots in my stomach had gotten pretty tight along route 17. But I began to feel better when I hit I-66 and I planned a lunch stop just before I-81, where there is a Walmart and a bunch of restaurants, so it was pretty convenient in an RV. I think it would a been a bit tougher of a parking lot with the toad, but with Miranda alone it was fine. I went to Applebee’s, of course. 🙂

It was almost 1:30 when I was done with lunch and I had three more hours of driving to do. I was getting tired and starting to jump every time a vehicle passed me, causing Miranda to shift in the lane. Had I left a couple of hours later, I would have stopped for the night in Chambersburg, but that option was a Cracker Barrel and 3:00 was way too early to stop there. I decided that I could handle another couple of hours and made a point to stop at the two rest areas I passed.

The day’s calamity struck at the first one: I could not get my key into the lock for the house door! So I need to troubleshoot the deadbolt when I get to MTL. *sighs with tongue firmly in cheek* It is a huge hassle to get into the house from the cab. I can get the door unlocked from inside, but cannot relock it from outside.

It was going on 5:00 when I got to the exit for St. Clair. The Walmart is about 6 miles from I-81, further than I usually like to go from my route, but I was hoping to get a few things that were on my shopping list for this trip and which I held off getting until I knew how things would end up with the insurance claims.

The last bit of the driving day was brutal as the 6 miles turned out to be straight down a twisty 6% grade. I was really glad to find a scenic Walmart that was happy to have me overnight.

Today’s drive took me from Virginia, back to West Virginia, up through Maryland:

and into Pennsylvania:

At Walmart, I picked up a frozen pizza for dinner and a bunch of bags of shredded cheese in anticipation of returning to a country where cheese is a luxury (snark, snark). I also got a slow cooker! I’ve been wanting one for ages and did some online shopping looking at reviews for little ones. The Rival brand didn’t look like much on the shelf, but I’d read reviews that said they make decent appliances. So when I found a four-quart model for less than $10, I snapped it up! Right next to it was an adorable six-cup rice cooker for $13. My beloved rice cooker is much too big for my needs and sticks badly. I can store both my new appliances in the space the old rice cooker took.

The next part of the day wasn’t much fun and I was pretty cranky by the end of it. I had a bag of used cat litter by the front door waiting for me to find a garbage can and a certain black cat decided to do her claws on it! I spent what felt like ages sweeping the mess and then disinfecting the floor. But my day wasn’t over.

I’m out of propane on the on board tank and haven’t had any luck finding some today. My fridge and freezer are full, so I had to haul the auxiliary tank outside, find my pigtail, and get everything hooked up so I can keep the fridge on tonight. Someone needs to create a propane fill directory! The two places I found today only deal in bottles; they don’t fill truck/RV tanks.

For tomorrow, I’m listening to everyone who told me to avoid the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre uphill climb at all cost. So I’m taking I-80 to I-87 and am going to research the toll to see if I need to have cash (I’m completely out but there’s an ATM in the Walmart). The only remotely decent place to overnight between here and my mother’s is the casino in Saratoga Springs. From there, it’ll be about three hours, plus the border crossing, to arrive for lunchtimeish on Thursday.

 

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Getting Pretty Giddy About Departure

I barely slept a wink last night, but I feel really good this morning and excited about getting back on the road! I’ll be heading out shortly to return the rental car while the mechanics do their final check.

Two weeks at a repair shop hasn’t been the most fun I’ve ever had, but at least it was scenic. There was a lot of noise from the interstate, but it’s been steady enough to not be annoying. I notice the chirping birds a lot more. My cats have loved this location because of the amount of wildlife that crosses the meadow adjacent to the property.

I have adjusted my goal for today from Chambursburg PA to Hazleton PA. It’s a few hours further away, but will mean a shorter day tomorrow. I’ve identified a couple of Walmarts and Cracker Barrels between those two cities and will pull over whenever I’m tired. Reader Lynn gave me a heads up about the road between Scranton and Wilkes-Barre, so I will probably get off I-81 tomorrow and use I-80 to get to I-87. But I need to look at that route more closely, so I’ll worry about that night. Today’s route is going to be fine and I cannot wait to get back out there!