Time for Replacements

Freedom means the opportunity to be what we never thought we would be.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SABRINA.  

(I can't post a picture or make a fuss.  If I do, she'll get mad at me.)

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Nothing stays looking like new forever.  Thus, we all take a turn replacing items we already have.  That’s not really a fun thing to do.  For one thing it costs money and for another it’s certainly not like adding a new gadget to our already growing supply.

On Thursday we ordered a replacement awning fabric from Shadepro.net.  We had great service and by Tuesday it had arrived.   Of course, that was the easy part.  The much harder part is going to be the installation of that replacement fabric.

We also had to replace the coffee pot in the motorhome.  The pot had started leaking and we got a little tired of always having to clean up the leaks.  We replaced it with a single cup dispenser.  First we bought a Keurig Single Cup Machine.  However, we don’t have a lot of room on our counter so we ended up replacing it with a smaller one made by Mr. Coffee instead.  It also uses the same Keurig coffee K-cups.  I’ve been experimenting like crazy with all the flavors.

What else have we been replacing. Well, it sure seems like a lot because when we return from the long drive into town, we have our car loaded with stuff. We picked up a couple small tables, a couple folding chairs, a new bedspread, headphones and even new throw rugs.

We weren't’ finished with replacements even then.  Terry replaced his laptop with a desktop a few months ago.  Now he’s in the market to get another laptop.  He definitely wants to keep the desktop but he wants to keep it at the home base.  The laptop is for travel. So, we went looking.  In addition to local stores we finally went to NewEgg.com. That created all kinds of problems.  They didn't like my billing address and kept voiding my orders.  To keep that long story short, I'll say my credit card now has pending charges on it for three computers and we still have yet to get one actually ordered.  However, I hesitate to get back online with them and try again.  It's definitely been a zoo.

There were other items we still needed to replace.  We were on the lookout for new carry-on bags.  When we did a lot of traveling we used to have a suitcase for every occasion.   We don’t have room for that now. Our rollerboard is an 18” one which is much smaller than the 21" size actually allowed.  However, not all gate agents look at it that way. Such has been the case recently when we were required to gate check the bag. We’ve had rotten luck with lost baggage so everything of value has to come out of a checked bag regardless of whether it’s checked at the ticket agent or gate checked. Face it … we don’t trust them.  Replacing our travel bags was definitely on our list.  The new ones have the necessary wheels and the handle can be hidden so it looks just like a duffle bag and not a rollerboard.  Mission accomplished as we now have two new “personal” items!

From this ... our 18" rollerboard

To this ..  Terry got a black one just like it.

Were we done replacing items?  Nope!  We ended up with a grill cover to use as a tarp for the bikes on the back of the motorhome.  We haven't put it on yet but we hope it works.  Another item we really need to get sooner than later is a new sewer hose.  Remember the Black Tank Mess of a few days ago?  Well, after that hose split, we replaced it with the one we carry in the RV so our motorhome is without. 

We are getting ready for departure.  If we get everything done, we figure we'll be at our first stop on our trip south (Tillamook Cheese Factory) in about 2 1/2 weeks.   Of course, we have to wait for our Canadian escort to get here first.

‘Tis life on the road.