Well, here are two more entries. 11/27 & 11/29.
11-27-07
I must admit…I’m enjoying it here at Bottomless SP in Roswell. Why do I say “I must admit?” Well, I’m comfortable, I know where I am going in town, I have good cell access and I know where to find WiFi. Small things like these and the colder weather, makes one think twice about moving on for now.
Picked up a ‘new’ car radio for the camper and spare battery. This one cost me less than $5, is a digital model for a Jeep, and it all works, including the cassette player! I am also able to listen to my XM radio as well, without having to move the unit to the back! The signal transmits to the camper! The remote will not send a signal from the camper to the cab, but since I have good strong signals here for music, I set the XM receiver for talk radio. I just have to remember that before I go to sleep I have to get to the cab and turn off the XM receiver. This is a pain, but will work until I can get a second car setup for the camper and just move the receiver to the camper especially when I am stationary for several days at a stretch.
My neighbors, Carl and Buella, come from Canada every year to the US to get out of the cold winters for Carl’s health. Really a nice couple. Carl invited me over for coffee this afternoon so I enjoyed a good cup o’ joe and some banana bread! They have a very nice setup and a 52” TV with all the bells and whistles. Enjoyed good conversation and got enthused over their pictures from all over the western states. Our path will probably cross again at Oliver Lee SP at Alamogordo. They move there on 12/6 and I may move on tomorrow…but I certainly am comfortable here! Tomorrow I will have been here for a week, but I do want to get to the I-Maxx in Alamorgordo. Carl says it is unlike any I-Maxx I have ever been in…the screen goes up over your head and you practically lay on your back for the shows…he says its like planetarium seating. The shows are all related to space…can’t hardly wait to experience this place! We’ll just see what my compulsive nature does to me tomorrow morning!
I drove to Roswell again today (40 mile round trip) and piddled around getting connectors for the car radio and wired it up about mid afternoon. I also picked up a different water container at Wal-Mart that has a water valve and a lower but fatter profile. I put it on top of the battery box and strapped it in with bungie cords. I now have a pretty good setup that is easy to ready for travel. It takes me now maybe 10 minutes to ready the camper and take down the foam boards on the back windows.
11/29/07
It’s Wednesday morning and I am at Oliver Lee SP outside Alamogordo. I drove here yesterday afternoon (got the itch) from Roswell, about a 120 mile trip across the Sacramento Mts. Quite a pretty drive, an easy one without switchbacks, etc. It’s a four lane road most of the way up through Ruidoso and down to Alamogordo.
There is a twist to the electric sites that are part of the reservation system. To date, I just pull in and if there is a green ‘available’ sign on the site, I pay for the night. No problem there. The signs say ‘one night only’. So I typically pull out clearing the site completely, go mess around in town and come back after 2 pm, which is the checkout time. I have been treating the subsequent day as a ‘new’ one night only. I check the sign to see if it has been changed to red (occupied). If not occupied, I pay for another night. Well, I was told at Roswell that is not correct. If I want to spend another night, I have to either make a reservation through the reservation system (beginning the NEXT day) or I can find a non-reservation site (assuming they have any!)
I wanted confirmation that I was doing it wrong, so I emailed the state reservation system. They responded that I WAS wrong. So now I have to pay $9.95 for a reservation. If I want to extend a reservation, there is no charge. What this means is that I now lose my flexibility to travel freely. If I want to move once a week that means $40 additional costs per month. UGH!
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Moved to a non-reservation site and met two guys about my age traveling separately. Nice fellas. They’ve been on the road for 1 to 10 years. Each with a different kind of setup. One a Class C rig, the other in a converted GMC panel van.
Attempting to balance all this travel with my gas budget is a challenge as well. Since I have really overspent my discretionary budget this month with the XM radio purchase and the microwave purchase, new smaller heater, etc., I decided to limit my gas budget to cover about 1500 miles rather than 2000-2500 miles. I may actually do better than this if I stay put for several weeks. The round trip to Alamorgordo is about 40 miles, so I can probably make 25 trips to stay within the balance of my gas budget, but limiting those trips can free up some funds for a few side activities. The one most interesting to me is to see the I-Max shows at the Space Museum. Actually, I decided to try to slow down my traveling for the winter anyway, so this may all work for the best. I have quickly gotten adjusted to having electricity and now the thought of going back to propane heating and cooking is not too desirable, especially with the cooler temps, but I have been there and I can make the adjustment again.
The all feels like more stress on my brain! However, after watching morning local news from El Paso and watching the heavy traffic at 6 am I decided my little personal stress (which is completely self-imposed) is quite minor…just need to get the facts and make a decision! It’s also time I locate an AA meeting since I’ll be in the area for a prolonged period.
Now, I checked my Sprint account and my new payment for December is $103! That’s quite a jump from $66 including a $30 credit! I did add MobiTV and ebay back, but I don’t understand why the charges have jumped. Virtually all my data air time is directly through Sprint Data Vision plan so I am not sure today where these additional charges are coming from. Think I’ll lookup a Sprint office and see if there is a reasonable explanation.
The journey of a lifetime still has to work within my retirement check! Damn, why can’t I just print more money?!
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