RVing

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200W Short

When I went to pick up the correct solenoid in Port Lavaca, I caught the back of my short denim skirt on something in B & S’s truck that ripped a gash up a good part of the back of it. I was irked as skirts are growing harder and harder to find unless you shop at pricey online boutiques. This one was the exact length and heft that I needed for it to be wearable both in the summer with sandals and in colder weather with tights.

I’m not much of a seamstress, so I decided to try to repair the skirt using some iron-on fusible webbing and then finish off the repair with a few discrete hand stitches.

The few times that I’ve had access to 120V power lately, I just haven’t thought about the skirt. It was cool enough on the beach to be comfortable in my longer skirts. But it’s hot here and I miss having the shorter one. This afternoon, I decided to attempt a repair.

There was just one teensy problem: my iron draws 1,200W, 200W more than my inverter can handle. Gaaaaaaaaaaah.

There was my poor skirt, all trussed up and dampened (okay, soddened) and ready to go:

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Never one to give up in front of a challenge, I remembered that for most of the history of ironing, women used heavy cast iron irons.

So I fired up the stove and a couple of minutes later, well:

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It worked! The repair feels very good, but I will add a few stitches to make sure the ends are solid.

It’s true, necessity is the mother of all invention! 😀

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Good Sleeping Weather

I left all the windows and roof hatches open last night, so the rig was super comfortable to sleep. It’s actually rather cold in here this morning, but I know that won’t last long.

The kitchen hatch rattles like the dickens, so I’ll keep it shut at night from now on. It’s meant as an escape route, so it doesn’t have a cover over it. This means that one really good gust of wind could rip it of, another reason not to leave it opened while unsupervised.

I bought a pork roast when I did my grocery run yesterday, so I’m cooking it this morning before the temperatures rise. It’s starting to smell really good! That said, we’re only supposed to hit about 75 today and that sky looks suspiciously full of rain clouds. So the heat wave is probably over.

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Fridge Woes

My fridge kept kicking off yesterday, both on the AC and propane setting. On AC, I was getting the scary all lights flashing ‘you’re in deep trouble’ warning and on propane I was getting a ‘there’s a problem with the power supply’ warning.

I thought that we were getting brownouts because of everyone running their ACs, but by 11PM, the rig was sitting at a steady 120V and the fridge continued to cut out.

I turned off the converter, switched the fridge to propane, and it was muuuuuuuuch happier. It ran fine all night. I’ve got the converter back on this morning and the fridge seems to be okay on AC. It’s a cool morning, so I’m sure there are no ACs running, which supports my brownout theory.

Let’s hope that this is a one-time thing…

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Two Months of Ground Oyster Shells

WHEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fighting the dust on the beach was a losing battle. I gave up, satisfying myself with a daily cursory sweep of the broom and passing of a Swiffer cloth over surfaces.

Since I’ll be getting a shower tonight, it seemed such a shame to go to bed in a dirty rig. So as soon as the laundry was done, I set to work with the shop vac, a bucket of sudsy water, and Pledge Future.

The rig was otherwise spotless, so there was a minimum amount of moving stuff out of the way needed to vacuum and wash the rig from the ceiling down to the floors and then add the Future to make them shiny.

Soon as I finish my deliciously icy cold beer, I am heading for the shower. I don’t plan to get out of it until I look like a prune!

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Port Lavaca to Von Ormy

OMG IT’S ABOUT 100 DEGREES IN SAN ANTONIO!!!!!!!!!!!!

With that out of the way, it’s been a good day so far. I went out shortly after my last post to hook up the truck. I’m getting better at gauging the distance I need to park it from the RV, but I always manage to not be quite straight and have the passenger side at the right distance to hook up while the driver’s side is a bit short.

Once I was hooked up, I discovered I have three minor Miranda repairs to make.

The first is with the windshield wipers. The pump is working fine, but the fluid is just shooting out from under the dash. I’m hoping I’ll find the hole or bad connection in the hose easily.

The second is to check the fuses for the turn signals. I put on the four way flashers to make sure the truck blinkers were working, and nothing. I tried the turn signal, nothing. I jiggled both and eventually got the left blinker working and the four way flashers, with the right blinker coming after several more jiggle. I really hope that this is just a fuse issue!

Like when I left Campbell River, my house stairs refused to budge. All I had on hand to lubricate them was was WD-40, so I’ll make sure to get some white grease next time I’m out shopping. Or maybe I can find some of that Move-It Croft had…

First stop was gas, which was painless since I could circle around the building to get out. Even better, the pump handle had a catch that meant I could wash my windows while the gas was pumping.

It was a smooth drive into Port Lavaca, where I got propane. Another easy in and out except for the bad driveway. Surely they know someone with a grader? Propane was CHEAP, $42 to fill the on board tank!

The first part of the drive was familiar since I had to drive through Goliad (which is still under construction). Traffic got moderately heavier from Kenedy (not a typo) onward, but it was nothing too bad and most drivers were courteous.

From the 410 bypass, it was an easy drive to Von Ormy and the Hidden Valley RV Park, where I was greeted by the wonderful Teri.

Hidden Valley is the best deal in San Antonio for boondockers wanting to stay more than just a night or two since they offer dry camping for just $5 a night! I found the campground through freecampsites.net. My FHU spot tonight is costing me $30.

Even though I was 15 minutes early for check in, Teri greeted me warmly. She had a packet of information for me and spent time showing me around downtown on a map, highlighting the best places to park and where to catch public transportation. I was told by L to avoid driving into San Antonio, but with Teri’s instructions, I know I can get to cheap parking easily, so I don’t see any reason not to go in with the truck.

It is SUPER hot today, so I have the AC blasting, but it’s supposed to go right back down tomorrow. Talk about perfect planning!

I have to move around noon tomorrow. Teri showed me the two possibilities and the setup will be just fine. I’ll post pics at some point after I’ve moved.

Now, I need to start on my rather ambitious list for the day. The laundry is a trek and a half, so until that’s done (about half an hour left), I don’t want to get started on anything else. After that, the vacuum cleaner is coming out! 🙂