Shopping Cart Cover for Auggie

Today I finished my little sewing project, a doggy shopping cart cover.  We shop a lot at Walmart and find that no one minds if we bring Auggie. But I don't feel comfortable having him sit in the seat where people set their fruits and vegetables (I know, I am very considerate) so I decided to make a shopping cart cover.  There are a lot of free tutorials online for human ones but in the end I just came up with something myself. I had a piece of faux suede fabric with "sheepskin" on the back.  It was a remnant, about 60" wide by 30" long.  I wanted about 45" square, so I cut it to 45" wide, then pieced the part I cut off to the top and bottom.

Because the pieced top and bottom were not wide enough I trimmed it to make an octogon shape.  Now it is about 45" x 45".

Next I took about 2 1/2 yards of 3/8" braided elastic and, using a zigzag stitch on my sewing machine, I stretched the elastic as I sewed it along the edge, thus making the gathers.  This fabric does not fray so no need to finish the raw edges.

OK, you are going to have to use a little imagination here, because I have not tried it on a cart yet.  But I am sure it will fit.  Here is what it looks like when it is finished. Basically looks like a big blob.

The elastic edges will go all around the back, sides, and front of the cart seat.  Note that there are no leg holes like a cover for a baby to use. This made it super simple. Bob thinks it looks way too big but I think it will work just fine.

I am sure that other shoppers will be impressed with my thoughtfulness when I bring Auggie to Walmart, and Auggie will be much more comfortable.

Today we were invited to a WOW party, which stands for Welcome to Our World, thrown by the staff of the Good Life RV Resort.  It was a very nice party for the new people in the park, and most of us had come in on the same day a week ago.  They served a selection of wine, beer, and soda as well as fried shrimp, crudites, fruit cup and cookies.  We all got to know the others at each table, and everyone introduced themselves to the group. It was very nice.

We leave tomorrow, and I think we are going to the RV repair place.  Bob will call them tomorrow and double check.  If not, we will be finding somewhere else to stay and will probably be on our way west.  Stay tuned!

Water Distiller and Back to the Future

Bob and I ran errands this morning, getting things done before our move on Thursday.  It looks like we will be headed for the RV repair place after all.  They have a 50 amp hookup we will tie into and we know we can manage without water or sewer hookups for a week.

I also started a sewing project, which I will talk more about tomorrow.

We have really been enjoying Good Life RV Resort, despite our shaky introduction to the place.  The other residents are very friendly and the pools and hot tubs are amazing--we have been enjoying them daily.  I have to revise my original opinion and say that we may come back here in the future, at least for a time.  We are not ready to buy in to any place but this is a nice spot to visit, that's for sure.

We have been watching "Back to the Future" and have seen the first two movies.  Interestingly, Part II starts off in the future and is dated October 21, 2015. In that year everyone expected we would have flying cars and clothing that dries itself when wet.  And hovercraft skate boards, too!  How come the real 2015 is not as cool as that?

A few weeks ago we made a purchase that we have been using daily since we got it. It's a Megahome Distiller that distills a gallon of water at a time. Being on the road means being hooked up to water sources that vary in quality.  And some of the local water we have come across tastes terrible! So now we distill our own and it tastes great.  It takes about 6 hours to distill a gallon, so we run it at night. Much better than a Brita filter and easier than buying iffy-quality spring water from the store.

I've heard that some people set it up outside to avoid heating the coach--we may try that if we can find a good sheltered spot to keep it.

Mesa Swap Meet

What we call a "flea market" in the New Jersey area is called a "swap meet" here in Arizona.  And Mesa has one of the largest ones in the state.  So of course we had to visit it!

The Mesa Market Place Swap Meet is located about 20 minutes from our campground, and is open from Friday through Sunday. My family and friends in NJ will know what I am talking about when I say that it looks like the inside portion of Columbus Flea Market in Columbus, NJ.  Except that the Mesa one goes on and on--it is really big. You can get anything here, and prices are pretty good. I picked up a magnetic bracelet, which is used by us old people for arthritis pain.  People in the campground swear by them so I thought I would give one a try.  I get a bit of stiffness in my knees at times.

This morning I joined in the 9:00 am water aerobics class, which was fun.  I'm not sure if it is aerobic, but it involved a lot of stretching which felt good.  The water is nice and warm and the women were friendly.  It was a nice time.

We saw a fellow riding his bike with a cat in his front basket today. Bob and I talked about getting a second basket, to put on his bike for K.C., but with his seizure issues quickly discarded that idea. We don't want to trigger a seizure in our little kitty!

This morning I extended our stay here for another three days. Then, we have been assured, the parts will be in for the motorhome and we can move to the repair shop for the work.  They have 50 amp hookups so we can run our AC and stay there for the weekend. I am sure we will miss our pool and dog park, but it is only temporary until the work is done.  We should be back on the road early next week.

My phone is not sending photos so I have used internet images today. Hopefully I can get that fixed tomorrow!  Apologies...

Auggie Doggie

We aren't really sure how old our dog, Auggie, is. We've had him for 6 1/2 years and our vet guessed he was between 2 and 4 years of age when we got him. So we think he's about 10, and he has always acted much younger. Even now people who meet him ask if he's a puppy, as Auggie trots around the dog park like he owns the place. 

But I guess he is starting to show his age. Yesterday in the wee hours of the morning I rolled over, then heard a THUMP as he fell off the end of the bed. He was very stiff when he came out of the bedroom, raising his left rear leg as he walked. Even the line of his back was curved, and we could tell he was in pain going up and down the steps of the motorhome.  All he wanted to do was sit in my lap and snuggle.

Bob and I discussed taking him to a vet for an x-ray. But by the time we had showered and dressed Auggie seemed a little better, and he continued to improve as the day progressed. By afternoon he was playing with the other dogs in the park like nothing was wrong. He even showed no pain when I picked him up and put him in his bike basket for a spin around the park. 

Whew! It's scary to have your pet experience injury, especially so far from his regular veterinarian. 

Even though he seems so young we do see changes. His eyes don't look as clear and its a little harder for him to hop up onto the bed than it used to be. 

KC the cat is just biding his time. I know his goal in life is to outlive the dog and reign as supreme pet once again!

A New Band

I have been just itching to weave something, so today I pulled out my Gilmore Inkle Lap Loom. This fun little loom weaves bands up to 3 1/2" wide.

I learned to weave bands on my grandmother's inkle loom that I inherited after Gram passed.  My grandfather had built it for Gram out of wood from their land (they owned a dairy farm and a lumber mill) and it has always had a special place in my studio.  I remember all the bags and belts Gram made with it--I must have gotten my weaving skills from her! When we got ready to go on the road I realized that the loom was a little too big to store in the motorhome, so I passed it to my daughter in law, Bernie. This summer I will show her how to use it.

The Inkle Lap Loom is no longer being made by Gilmore, and has been replaced by their Wave Looms.  I know that the Wave is a very popular model but I wouldn't trade my Lap Loom for anything.  I actually got the last one made, because I called up Mr. Gilmore and he sent out the only one he had left after it was discontinued.

Here is what the loom looks like, with dimensions:

And here is my band I am weaving.  It will become a new collar and leash for Auggie.

I have woven this band before--it is one of my favorites.  I adapted it from an article in Handwoven Magazine (March/April 2002, page 74) by eliminating some of the repeats and using Maysville Carpet Warp instead of 5/2 perle cotton.  It makes a perfect size for a small dog collar, about 3/4" wide.

Not So Smooth Move

Monday was a bit of a nail-biter for us. I reported yesterday that we were able to use a free three day coupon that we were given at the Good Sam Rally for our stay in Mesa. So after we made the reservation we finished pulling everything together and headed out through the rain to Good Life RV Resort. It was only an hour drive, so we figured it would be an easy day.  Hmmm....

When we arrived we just barely got into the entrance drive because there were rigs lined up to get checked in. So we waited. And waited. The line slowly moved forward about every twenty minutes. What was going on that took this place twenty minutes to check-in each RV? A typical check-in takes five minutes.

After an hour and a half of this we were finally one rig from the front, but now I saw people from RVs that were behind us in line walking past us to enter the office. I decided to go in, too, and was astonished to see that the woman at the desk actually take five minutes to read the entire week's activities from the calendar out loud to the couple in front of me. What a time waster when people are waiting to get settled! We were interrupted by phone calls she had to take, people who walked in and needed to speak with her right away, and a lot of tapping on the computer. There were actually 3 or 4 people manning the check-in window, and clearly that wasn't enough help.

I waited patiently until I asked in what order rigs were being parked, and was told they would be parked in order of registration. And people had jumped the line from behind us? No. No. That would not do. At that, I said, "Listen, I have been in line outside for two hours now, and if someone who arrived after us is parked before us I will be very upset. Our rig is now at the front of the line and I want to be parked next."  I don't think that was unreasonable.  The woman at the desk backtracked and said she would fix it so that we were taken to our spot right away.

We were led to a site by a parking detail person who helped us park and told us when to stop backing up. The site was a little short for us, with the back of our motorhome literally within inches of touching the sliding glass doors of the casita behind our space.  Not surprisingly we soon had a knock on our door from the owner of the property behind us with a complaint that he couldn't get to his grill or his chairs. We were sympathetic--I wouldn't have wanted to look out my sliding glass to see nothing but the giant rear end of a motorhome either!  So we called the parking guy back to help us get as far forward as we could be without being in the road. With his help we were able to pull forward about two feet.

The sites here are quite tight!

But, we were able to get four additional days at the Escapees discount rate of 50% off, so combined with the 3 free days it is a reasonably priced week, about $14.42/night. Our neighbor has stopped grumbling. And the rain has stopped. So I'm sure our stay will be fine. Will we come here again, though? Hmmmm let's see.... Inefficient and inadequate staff with poor policies, tiny sites.... Probably we won't be back. I think we can do better next year. Unfortunately for this park, they probably gave out hundreds of three day passes and how many of those pass-users will decline to return?  I could deal with a tight fit, but that procedure to get into the park is a deal breaker.

Security Duty

One of the best things about going to an RV show or rally is the ability to pick up items you can't find elsewhere, plus free things and bargains. People who know me well know how much I love a bargain! We had a list of things we wanted to get this week: a 6" tire stem for the inside dually tire, water filters, a table for the grill, an Air Force One braking system, a vent cover, and a zip-off sun screen for our awning. We decided to wait on the $1400 braking system, but found the rest here at the Rally for excellent prices. We had been searching for the long tire stem since November but we found one this week. And with our two $25 Camping World certificates we only paid a total of $17 for both the vent cover and the table. Yay! The sun screen will be great in the warm weather, blocking 95% of UV rays. All in all, a most satisfying fulfillment of our shopping list.

Saturday and Sunday Bob and I worked Security, guarding one of the gates to the Raceway. It was pretty easy work. People came to our gate looking to come in to the a Rally for a day; we sent them to the Day Pass Gate just down the road. Other folks had "hang tags" on their rear view mirror that told
us they had paid for the Rally, so we waved them through. We saw a lot of RVs leaving early, as rain was predicted for both days and a foot of snow was supposed to fall up in the Flagstaff area, north of us. We had a few sprinkles Saturday, and it looked threatening on Sunday morning, but most of our shift time was cloudy and pleasant.  It wasn't until the evening both days that we saw much rain.

Sunday afternoon Bob and I decided to stay with Auggie, who has been very stressed with being left alone so much. 

By Monday morning, we were scrambling a bit to find a place to stay for the next few days. We were able to use a three day free pass from the Rally to stay in a park in Mesa, AZ, so here we are for a short stay. I knew it would work out!