RVing

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Seattle RV Show and Meeting a Friend

It was exactly 22 months today that I first went to Seattle. That might not seem like so long ago, but, just think. Back then, I’d only been RVing a little over six months. I’d never had a bad accident with the rig, never been to the Yukon, never toured Vancouver Island. I was still very much at the beginning of my RVing life.

I went to Seattle to attend the Seattle RV Show, and that wound up coinciding with a trip north by reader Joan, with whom I’ve been corresponding for months about decor issues. So, we finally had a chance to meet! She had a little gift for Miranda that I will show off soon as I get my darn library chair recovered! Thanks!

The drive to Seattle this morning was blustery, but uneventful. I’m glad I arrived early since major rain was in the forecast for later in the day, so I was able to head back in daylight. I can do rain or night driving; both is a bit too much for me if I want to get home with my sanity intact.

Even with a stop for breakfast, I got to Seattle in two hours flat at 9:45. I’d bought my tickets online to get a free parking pass, so I wandered around the general vicinity of Qwest Event Centre to find the ‘north parking lot.’ I knew I was going in the right direction when I encountered very slow traffic. I just followed the column straight into the parking lot! I didn’t get parked till almost 10:30. That was a long time riding the clutch!

The show was surprisingly disappointing! There were a lot of rigs, but many were duplicates and most were towables. I think I counted a half dozen Jayco Greyhawks! There were also no vendors to speak of; what was there was mostly not RV related. I think it was  probably a good place to shop for a rig, I saw some great deals, but it wasn’t such a great place to go out and see what new RV-related products are out.

I did find a few rigs that I actually liked in terms of layout and appearance, but I don’t know about the quality. There was a Coachman model that had beautiful rustic flooring and solid wood cabinetry like Miranda. It was the first rig I’ve ever entered where I wouldn’t change anything about the factory decor! I had a chance to tour a Born Free, which is one of the top class C manufacturers. Very disappointing. I liked the knotty pine cabinetry, but that was it. The whole thing felt shoddy and was missing finishing touches. I found one A, a Winnebago I think, that I really liked. It had bunkbeds in a slide out across from the bathroom and a full bedroom in the back. Rip out the beds, put in a custom office in an armoire, and I’d be very happy!

But I am thinking of down, not up, sizing, so I spent more time looking at the truck campers. I saw some models with slides and dry baths that I really liked and could see myself in at some point down the road.

So, the show was barely worth the drive down, but the company more than made up for it. I’m hoping to make it to Joan’s neck of the woods next month and am therefore grateful that I had a chance to meet her and some of her friends.

I left Seattle around 1:30. I hadn’t thought to bring my camera and the weather wasn’t conducive to wanting to hang around and do tourism. Getting out of town was fun since I got caught in traffic going up James street. This picture illustrates what I mean by fun:

Even though I am an expert at driving with a standard transmission, I’m shocked I managed to crawl up that hill without stalling once, especially since my clutch leg was shaking by the time I cleared the top. Seattle, Montreal, and San Francisco are three cities in which I would not own a manual transmission car!

Rain started to pour around Marysville, so I pulled into the Applebee’s for a late lunch. The service was appalling, but the food was awesome, and I have a full meal left for tonight, so my $12 went far! The restaurant was surprisingly busy for mid-afternoon and I was told I’d have to wait for a table since the only free space was in the bar area. I said that’d be fine. To which the server responded “Sorry, you need to be at least 21 to sit there.” HOW YOUNG DO I LOOK PEOPLE?! I actually had to pull out ID to be able to sit in the ‘bar area’ to order a pasta lunch!

The rain didn’t let up the rest of the drive and now it’s not only coming down in sheets, there are huge gusts rocking the rig back and forth. I’m glad I got with daylight to spare. Now, a beer and a chance to review some of the information I picked up at the show!

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Something I Miss

There’s a hobby I used to spend a lot of time on back in my fixed life that I really miss on the road: doing jigsaw puzzles. I tried doing some on the dinette, but the cats were allowed on the table to get to the loft, so that didn’t work out.

This week, I took some measurements and went to Walmart to look for puzzles that would fit on my new kitchen counter. Found a box with three small puzzles (100, 300, and 500 pieces) that would work, and by an artist I love (Thomas Kincaid). I spent this rainy, icky afternoon working on them and just started the bigger one:

Imagine, no renos to do, no deadlines to meet, and a newly configured rig just itching to be broken in. I love my home.

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Beer Buying Adventure

Washington is such a civilized state. Like in Quebec, you can buy beer at the grocery or convenience store! And it’s super cheap, too, as low as a dollar a beer for some brands! I went out to get some fresh seafood for dinner tonight and was lured into the ‘beer cave’ (which appears to be Washington parlance).

Mesmerized by the selection and low prices, I barely took notice of someone entering the beer cave hot on my heels. It was a store employee.

“Miss! You need to be 21 to be in here!”

“I’m well over 21!” (I’ll be 32 next month!)

“Let me see some ID, please.” I pulled out my driver’s license and she squinted at it. “This won’t work; I need government issued ID.”

“It’s my Yukon, um Canadian, driver’s license.” (No one here seems to know what the Yukon is. I’ve been describing it as ‘between BC and Alaska’ (‘There’s something between BC and Alaska?’).)

“That’s a driver’s license?!” The Yukon license is a piece of cardboard with your information typewritten on it and a Polaroid of you glued to it, with the whole thing laminated. I could understand the reaction.

“Yes. That’s what five bucks a year will get you!”

Must have been a good answer since she just shook her head and left me to choose my beer in peace. I ended up going with a locally brewed pale ale.

Must have made quite an impression since I wasn’t carded a second time at the cash.

BTW, you can buy a salmon fillet and five prawns for $4 in Washington. I won’t even get into the price of produce!

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On a Distant Shore

I have a standing contract with a UK company. I triple verified that because this contract was set up in Canada and is with a non-US client, it’s okay for me to continue with it during my stay in the States. It’s not steady income. Some days I make nothing, other days I cover rent for the day. I usually check out the task list first thing in the morning, while I have my coffee, and work at it steadily until I either run out of work or need to get started on more pressing projects.

I’ve been on an early schedule since I left Osoyoos last Monday, something that is likely going to keep up so long as it’s sunny out. So, I was in the office at 8 this morning and was able to put in two hours of work before running out of tasks.

Due for a break, I headed down the hill to the beach and discovered a little café that’s open in the winter! Most of the other business are shut tight, so this gem was a sight to behold! The owner and I had a good gab about the weather while he prepared me a mocha (a real treat since otherwise I never have sugary coffee drinks). I wouldn’t want to get in the habit of going there for a mid-morning coffee every day ($$$), but a few times a week when it’s so nice out will be great. They also make sandwiches and sell ice cream, so the café offers me a place that’s super close by to duck to when I need to get out of the rig. If I have to drive to go somewhere, I’m more likely to stay shut in when I’m in the groove of my day.

Standing on the beach, looking at White Rock in the distance, I had to laugh, remembering standing on its beach and looking out towards what I now know is Birch Bay, Washington. You really never know where your life is going to take you. And now that I realise just how close I am to the Canadian border, having seen it, I can understand better the US customs officials’ bewilderment that I wasn’t go very far into their country!

White Rock, BC, in the distance

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Engine Update

Several people came up to me during the RV show to ask me what my experience has been with the Ford V-10 engine, including two who asked me if I’d ever come down a steep grade in low gear, had the check engine light go on, and found myself stalling while idling, with the engine going back to normal behaviour after sitting for a bit…

Um. Yes.

I was told that the light would eventually go off on its own after the truck had run ‘normally’ for a while, and it has, but to be prepared for it coming back on periodically with mechanics not being able to find a real problem to solve.

So it seems that what happened on the Ice Fields Parkway is ‘normal’ for a Ford V-10?!

More normality like that and I’ll return to my former opinion that Ford means ‘Found on road, dead’!!!