Cats in an RV

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Déjà Vu Between Nanaimo and the Chasm

Being very tired, I decided to go to bed early in Nanaimo, so I hit the sack around 9:30. I also figured that it would be a cold and noisy night and that the longer opportunity I had for shut eye, the better. Well, the joke was on me. The Nanaimo Walmart was super quiet, much more so than Croft’s driveway! I slept soundly until about quarter to four, rolled over, and slept until 6:30.

I got up at 6:45 and went off in search of coffee (no propane, so couldn’t make my own!). The Walmart opens late, at 8, so that McDonalds wasn’t a possibility. I was going to cave and go to Timmy’s when I saw the familiar green and white of a Starbucks. There, they didn’t have the dark roast I favour so they made me an Americano for the same price. I love when that happens!

The streets were fairly quiet when I set out around 7:30 and it was an easy drive to the ferry terminal. Most of it was downhill, so I practised gearing down and did quite well. It had cost me $193.65 to cross in October and $214 today. Insane! I could tell they disbelieved my claim of 50′, but I had my receipt from October and was ready to show it, however I was processed without any undue fussing.

It was a short wait, maybe a half hour, at the very most, to board. There were a couple of sharp turns, but also plenty of manoeuvring room. I applied the parking brakes, hugged the kitties, and headed up to the passenger decks.

I hadn’t brought any magazines this time, so I treated myself to a copy of Woman’s World onboard, mostly for the crossword and recipes. We had a smooth sailing with mostly clear weather, but boy was it windy! I made the mistake of going on deck without putting on my coat first and it just about blew out to sea!

Disembarking was equally easy and I found myself on the east-bound Transcanada. I took a moment to say good-bye to the Pacific Ocean since my life on the road has thus far been working out as planned. If the trend continues, I will not see the Pacific again for several years. But salty water still beacons in 2010, when I will dip my foot in the Arctic Ocean!

When I came to the Island in the fall, one of my reasons for choosing the Sea to Sky highway was to avoid having to cross the whole of the GVR. I debated crossing back to the Mainland from Duke Point, but that would have put me in the bowels of Tsawwassen and I wasn’t convinced that navigating through Delta and New West was going to be any easier than sailing down the congested Transcanada through Vancouver. I decided to take the most direct route, armed with my knowledge of the route and the exits that would, hopefully, remind me when to bear left.

Getting through Vancouver turned out to be easy. Sure, there were a lot of cars and everyone merging on the highway expected me to slam on my brakes for them, but I was calm, remembering that this was nowhere near as bad as was crossing Montreal with only Miranda!

I had to stop at the Ikea in Coquitlam and Google Maps made this seem like an easy thing to do, just a blip off and on the highway. Ha ha ha ha. The Ikea does not seem to have any overheight parking whatsoever. I turned into an open area of parking and could not see any place to park, much less turn around, so I kept going down the main laneway. It led me to three choices: turn left to a covered structure much shorter than Miranda, unhook and back up out of there, or go the wrong way straight down an entrance that would take me back to Lougheed highway. I picked that option and got a lot of honks even though I was not blocking traffic and was in a position to make a turn into the right direction of traffic once all the cars passed.

Back in the mad rush of traffic, I decided to try parking near Rack Attack, remembering from last year that there was street parking there. Well, there was a police auction yet again and one side of the road is now blocked to parking. I circled right around the Ikea and decided to take my chance at the Canadian Tire nearly a kilometre away. There, I found a place to park with an easy exit, so I locked up and schlepped to the Ikea.

There, I was reminded that I hate shopping at Ikea nearly as much as I hate shopping at Canadian Tire. I had a clear shopping list and it still took almost an hour to find the right floor and section, then get some help to locate the items in question. I wasn’t even remotely tempted to shop for myself by the time I had my friend’s stuff!

Mission accomplished, I slung the heavy bag over my back and marched back to the rig. The things I do for my friends! 😀

The feeling of déjà vu was very strong as I headed back out onto Lougheed highway to catch the exit for the Transcanada. I remembered from last year that I had to be in the left lane and ready for some very tight turns, so it was smooth sailing out of Coquitlam and an easy drive to Chilliwack.

I also remembered from last year that the Husky at the corner of Vedder and Luckakuk is super convenient for gas and propane, so that was my next stop. I goofed and went to the cardlock propane tank, but was able to circle back to the correct one within the parking lot. From there, I just had to move up about five feet and over two to gas up. The propane cost $40 and I put in almost a 100L of fuel at 105.9 (same as on the Island, gah).

I thought of getting groceries in Chilliwack, but when I saw how hard it was going to be to get out of the Husky I changed my mind. I just had to do a right hand turn, but the traffic was solid. Every time it cleared after a green light another wave of cars would pull up from the previous light. I needed all three lanes of traffic to stop and let me in so I could do my turn, but everyone was too selfish to do that. I sat there for about twenty minutes, not willing to risk an accident and force myself into traffic, when a red Jeep cherokee stopped and waved me through. I started the turn, as sharply as I could, but I really did need all three lanes. I was blocking the first and part of the second as I turned and two cars in the second and third lanes just whizzed by me honking instead of taking two seconds out of their day to let me through. Soon as they were through I hit the gas and was able to complete my turn, finding myself in the wrong lane for the onramp back onto the highway. Thankfully, I was able to get over once I’d cleared the intersection and was finally on my way!

Once I hit Hope and turned onto the Gold Rush Trail, I was able to assess how I feel about being back on the road. I was relaxed and happy. Ikea notwithstanding, none of the day had required white knuckled driving and Miranda was practically purring.

The kilometres ate themselves up as I pushed north, marveling at the changing landscapes. I pulled over a few times to stretch my legs and admire the view, but drove determinedly to the Chasm. I had been tempted to stop to do some work, guessing correctly that I wouldn’t be able to at the Chasm, but decided that I’d just take Saturday off and catch up at Les’ Sunday and Monday.

One of the reasons I gassed up in Chilliwack was that I did not want to have to do so in Cache Creek. I’ve stopped there twice for gas and have had three accidents almost immediately after. I never thought I was superstitious until now!

I would have liked to arrive at the Chasm with beer and a treat for dinner, but it wasn’t looking up for that, so I was delighted to find a small food store at a Shell gas station next to a liquour store in Clinton, just a few kilometres from the Chasm turnoff. I was able to park on the street right in front. Awesome!

While small, the grocery selection was thorough and prices were competitive. I picked up a cucumber, red pepper, package of fancy sausages, sour cream, and sun dried tomato tortillas to make wraps. The liquor store didn’t have cold beer, so I put my six pack in the freezer. Having spent most of Friday with the fridge on battery power, everything was still frozen and there wasn’t much catchup to do once I turned it over to propane. The fridge had warmed just enough to make defrosting it easy.

It was nearing if not past six when I turned off to the Chasm and drove the seven bumpy kilometres to the turnoff. It was in great shape, albeit as unlevel as ever. I put the passenger side up on two sets of levelers; it wasn’t quite enough but okay for one night.

Like last year, it started to snow the second I got settled and began to prepare dinner, then the sky cleared. I made sure the fridge was working and tried the water heater, but it’s definitely toast, so getting the part for it will be a top priority once I get settled in Dawson.

I really hadn’t expected to have internet at the Chasm, so I wasn’t disappointed that I didn’t. I settled down to write this entry, had a wash, put on my new jammies, and curled up in my recliner with a good book.

Being back on the road is awesome. What a difference a year makes.

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first glimpse of Vancouver!

first glimpse of Vancouver!

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turnoff just north of Hope

turnoff just north of Hope

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entering Ashcroft--back to desert after a winter in the rain forest!

entering Ashcroft–back to desert after a winter in the rain forest!

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I'm just south of Cache Creek here

I’m just south of Cache Creek here

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A New Desk and a Place to Sit

My desk was fine while I was only doing a little work from home, but its lack of ergonomics was starting to get to me. I also learned that the importance of drawers should not be underestimated. So, I started to troll Craigslist for a desk. It had to fit under the window within the bumpout, be reasonably lightweight, have at least three drawers, be cheap, and be attractive enough to not drive me nuts until I got around the refinishing it.

Yesterday, I found it. Perfect doesn’t begin to describe it. It looks like it was a Glendale option for the back room, it so matches the style of the rig!

Don’t mind the rat’s nest of wires, I have a plan for dealing with them. 🙂

I believe this was originally meant to be a child’s desk, judging from the low height of the keyboard tray, which I won’t be using. It was priced at $45, but my offer of $30 was accepted.

I have, for now, put the little bookcase next to the desk, but I’m not sure if it will stay there. I would love to leave it there with the printer on top, but I don’t know yet if I’ll be able to secure the printer. It is so heavy that it has never once moved from its perch on a piece of non-skid material at the end of the bed, but it would be just my luck to have it fall now.

The seller is downsizing to a smaller house and had a lot of things for sale. Something told me to go dig through her garage where I found this:

(I just noticed Neelix scoping out his new sleeping spot, LOL!)

It’s exactly what I was looking for! The chair is of high quality–solid metal joints and covered with genuine leather, but the fabric frame is falling apart and the whole thing looks hideous and worn. I convinced the seller to let me have it for $15, calculating that a can of spray paint and new cloth-backed vinyl would cost me less than $50 (I already have some foam that would be perfect for the padding). I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it pretty or not, but it will be a good project and not too expensive of an experiment. I would probably paint the metal frame dark brown and then recover the chair in blue vinyl.

(Neelix has given the chair his seal of approval!)

Here is photographic proof of why hatchbacks rock:

I got the desk, chair, and stool in the car and still managed to close all the doors. The seller suggested I come back for the chair, but I know that when you get a good deal you should run with it. Someone else could have come by after me and countered with more money.

I have lots of work to do in the study and the new desk is going to help immensely. I will have to secure it first using a few brackets screwed into the wall; all the drawers will need is a simple stick down through the pulls. I have to decide how I’m going to manage my wires and peripherals so that I don’t have to put everything away when I’m stopped and that will most likely involve moving the very badly located plug. I’ve been given instructions on how to do so, but playing with electricity always makes me nervous. 🙂

When I planned the renos for this winter, I would never have thought that I would pull out of Campbell River with all the furnishings and goodies I wanted, so I guess some things are just meant to be!

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Comfort, Closure, and Cutting Corners

Comfort

Any sunny spot will do for a cat!

Closure

I was at my wit’s end trying to figure out how I was going to get my cabinets to latch shut. My overhead cabinets don’t have any catches, so they couldn’t serve as inspiration. I checked the dressing room and kitchen cabinets and, lo and behold, I found a discrepancy. One of the original closures broke and was replaced by something else. I knew this something else would have to work for my new cabinets, too. So, off I went to Home Depot with a picture and I actually found the same thing!

Super cheap, too, less than a buck fifty each!

I installed them in all my new cabinets except the over fridge one. The side of the cabinet isn’t thick enough for one of these, so I’ll have to add a spacer. *sighs*

Here’s how they look in that cabinet over the drawer.

(Yes, there is something in there now, pillows. They won’t be staying there long; I just want space to manoeuvre in the study.)

I will get around to putting the pulls on one day; I’m just nervous about making holes in my pretty doors. 🙂

Cutting Corners

I bought an 8′ long section of trim so that I could make some practice cuts and get an idea of how much it would cost to do the whole rig.

My dad used to love cutting trim, it was like a puzzle for him. The first time I attempted to cut the stuff I was on the phone for ages with him getting tips. We thought the same way and he could verbally explain things to me better than I could understand with a diagram. I wish dad could have been available for a consult today!

I decided to do the bit around the sink to the kitchen-side cabinet edge. First step, make sure the gap between the wall and the floor isn’t more than three quarters of an inch, the width of the trim:

Okay, slight problem. From the edge of the vertical trim to the flooring is three quarters of an inch, but from the wall to the flooring is a full inch.

A couple of minutes later:

yay for scraps!

I then tried to take measurements and got super daunted. I decided to start from the opposite end of the project, where I would have a flat edge.

A half hour and three feet of trim later I got this far:

Fourteen and seven eights inches of trim in, eighty billion to go. At this rate, trim is going to cost me several thousand dollars and take a couple of years to install. 😀

I’m only jesting. One of dad’s tricks was to cut four scraps of pieces with the four cuts I would need and to use that to line up the saw and trim. It’s an excellent tip that works. I just had a lot of wastage and lack of progress since I had to learn a new saw. I’ll continue with the trim next weekend.

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Dishwasher Counter Progress… For REAL!

It was too wet, yet again, to work outside today, but, at least, it was warm enough to do so in the workshop. Mr. Neelix wasn’t going to let me get any work done unless I got him cat food RIGHT AWAY (even though his bowl was still full) so off I went to check out the spoils at Windsor Plywood and Home Depot. Unfortunately, I came home empty-handed. So, I decided to use what I had on hand, even if it was planned for another project.

Since I couldn’t work outside, using the table saw to cut my panels was out of the question. It’s just too tight inside the workshop to do so. I have three scars on my wrists to remind me of what power tools can do to you when you are working in ideal circumstances and warn against trying to ‘make do’. I therefore pulled out my trusty friend:

We have done A LOT of work together! Sure, cuts with a jigsaw aren’t as razor straight as you can get with a table saw, but I wasn’t risking any limbs, so it was worth it.

Two more panels cut, I did a mockup on the base to make sure the dimensions were okay:

Which brings me to an epiphany I had in the middle of the night. It’s no wonder I’m exhausted all the time, my brain never shuts off! The thought was related to the space behind the drawer:

I was just going to write it off as wasted space, but realised in the middle of the night that I could make that space accessible from the side of the kitchen and use it for storing oversized cutting boards and the like. Nice solution, but I’m not sure it was worth waking up for at 4 in the morning!

And this is where I paused for lunch:

I’m out of angle brackets, so I need to take apart some valances. That done, I will install the final two panels; a shelf that will go over the drawer and the one that will be against the wall.

Before I bring the unit into the rig and install it, I will need to pretty up the base with some trim.

Once the unit is installed, leveled, and pretty, I’ll work on doors.

It sure feels good to have something done today!

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A Functional Entrance

The floors aren’t done, but the end is in site. 🙂 I have to finish the other half of the front room and the stairwell, then fill in a few gaps with scraps. I’m not done for today, far from it, but I wanted to show off my new functional entrance. Functional being defined by a place to hang a coat and purse as well as stow away shoes. I was rather sick of draping a coat over an armchair, putting the purse on the seat of the chair, and then putting my shoes away under it!

doesn't that half of the room seem huge now?!

doesn’t that half of the room seem huge now?!

I have two of these hooks. They have followed me all of my adult life and I'm pleased to have found a place for at least one in Miranda.

I have two of these hooks. They have followed me all of my adult life and I’m pleased to have found a place for at least one in Miranda.

This self-indulgent idea comes from either Real Simple magazine or Martha Stewart. Imagine that I have enough carrying capacity to haul around a tub filled with rocks!

This self-indulgent idea comes from either Real Simple magazine or Martha Stewart. Imagine that I have enough carrying capacity to haul around a tub filled with rocks!

Starting to look like a home! (Click on the picture to see my footwear on the pan. :) )

Starting to look like a home! (Click on the picture to see my footwear on the pan. 🙂 )

I have always wanted to incorporate a bit of the sea into my decor and have finally done so. The pan of stones comes from the beach across the road here. Of course if I ever run out of carrying capacity that pan will be the first thing to go, but for now I’m going to enjoy it. I’ve had that solution in my ideas folders for a long, long time. It’s pretty, cheap, and efficient. Well, at least I think so. Since this is my home, my opinion is the only one that matters. 😀

One of the things I’ve been looking for and am glad I won’t need is a coat rack. I didn’t think I had a secure place into which to screw the hook, but the doorjamb is made from solid wood and more than wide enough for me to be able to screw into it.

The only thing left to do is to find a long, narrow basket to affix to the top of the pantry to hold keys and other small items, but this is low priority. I am considering the entrance DONE. YAY!