Out of the Loop

For some unknown reason our satellite TV receiver has been causing us problems.  Fortunately, here in sunny Texas, our RV Park gives free cable television hookups. That's great but we are a little tired of shopping networks, religious networks, Foxnews (the only station that finds it necessary to state that they deliver "real" news) etc.  There are about a half dozen stations that are almost watchable but we miss our DirecTV offerings including MSNBC (Morning Joe and Hardball), Current TV (Stephanie Miller and The War Room) and Comedy Central (Jon Stewart and Colbert).  We feel like we are barely surviving, though not yet quite "waiting to die,"  by being without these must see shows.  How can we truly live without listening to Colbert covertly mock the tea party by being a more right wing obfuscating obstructionist than they are? So corrective action was necessary.  We needed to breathe even while anchored in the heart of Texas.

We have a portable satellite (Winegard) antenna that can be placed anywhere around our trailer for best reception.  We usually place the domed antenna on one of our slide outs like this:

The antenna requires a 12 volt power source.  The power cord plugs into a receptacle which looks like a car's cigarette lighter.  Unfortunately, when we packed up in Branson, the inners of the antenna's power plug (the positive point) fell out of its power cord.  The antenna plug looks like this with the positive point being the shiny metal part at the top:

The power cord itself is proprietary to Winegard so a quick and inexpensive replacement was not easy.  On our cord the parts I need screwed into the casing  with a small spring, a glass fuse, the metal pin and a collar to hold everything together.

 On a whim I went to a local RV repair facility.  The owner sent me on to Radio Shack .  There,  I searched for a part which looked like what I needed.  I thought I could assemble a solution  by taking apart some other plug.  But of course, every plug is different.  I contemplated cutting the cord and attaching a new end to it.  But that would be only a temporary solution requiring that I purchase another cord to use for the long term.  So I went on to the Rver's friend (Walmart) and found an insert which appeared to be the right size and cost only a few bucks.  When I got it home, I realized it would not work as the threads were different.  Life looked bleak.

Before breaking down and paying whatever Winegard wanted for their power cord,  I thought that maybe I was overlooking the obvious.  Perhaps the parts did not fall out onto the ground when we packed up in Branson, but perhaps the innards fell in the truck when I packed them away.  Sometimes the obvious becomes obfuscated by jumping to complicated solutions.  Perhaps the parts were there waiting for me to put them back where they belong.

I searched the truck and sure enough the spring, the collar and the metal pin were awaiting me.  No fuse!  Ah, the Walmart part had a fuse waiting to be re-purposed.  I put everything together and voila, it worked!  We were again in the loop.  Our life again looked longer than one more long day. 

But sometimes life is not always rosy.  A few days later, the satellite again did not work.  The first thought that came to mind was there was some sort of electrical problem.  The dome did seem to work as it hummed and groaned trying to find the satellite signal.  Yet no TV.  I thought perhaps the power was cutting off to the dome as it seemed not to take the normal minute or so to find the signal.  I turned the power on and off at the breaker to restart the antenna.  It went through the motions again to find and lock onto the elusive signal.  Yet no picture.  We were back to a very limited cable selection.

This was getting serious as death by shopping networks and religious programming was becoming inevitable.  The only option was to take a serious look at the problem and sleep on it.  After 2 days shying away from the issue, I awoke with a possibility.  What if the problem was not with the antenna, but with the receiver (the "box")?  If that was indeed the case either the receiver had gone bad or needed to be reset.  I hit the reset button and the box went through all sorts of time consuming contortions only to tell me that a satellite signal could not be found.  Perhaps the dome need to be moved as some mysterious invisible shield was now preventing contact with the mother ship?  I moved the dome to the picnic table--a place with a clear view of the southwest sky.  I hit reset again and again no signal.  So maybe the problem was with the cable, the power cord, the receiver, the antenna or with the Texas sky.  Back to square one.  Only one thing to do:  sleep on it.

After a restful night's sleep, the sun rose and it dawned on me that perhaps somehow our DirecTV receiver was not being recognized by the company and, therefore, no signal.  I pulled out my Dell, got on the Internet thingy, signed into the DirecTV website, and "reauthorized" our receiver by clicking on the appropriate icon on their site.  The web said that I should wait 5 minutes before all would be well.  I waited, turned on the receiver and the television, and, voila, we could now watch the home shopping network both on the satellite AND on cable feeds! 

Back in the loop again.  What joy.

Bicycle weather

The weather here in Boerne has been pretty good. For the first few days the weather was on the windy and cool side with lows in the 20s and highs in 30s and low 40s. But for about a week now, winds have decreased and lows have moderated to the 40s and 50s and highs are in the 60s and 70s with mostly sunny skies. Mornings are usually cool enough for a jacket and the afternoons warm up nicely. It has been a welcomed change. The below zero weather up north is now only a distant memory (but not that distant).  It feels like spring here.

Trying to take advantage of the warm up by spending time outside, we went to the local tourist information center and asked about bicycle trails. We were assuming that like Wisconsin, we would be directed to abandoned rail corridors that one could pedal for miles and see the countryside at a leisurely pace. Our inquiry found the attendants confused. They weren't sure if there were bicycle trails in the area. Oh yes, they found something, but it would be sharing the highway with other vehicles or perhaps bicycling was allowed at a golf course? Not sure. Maybe we could ride on a pedestrian path? Three people were involved in attempting to answer our simple question. Finally they determined that we could ride on the "Old Number 9" trail in the city. It was a 1.4 mile gravelled path on an abandoned rail line that once served the community. We thanked them for the information and left without knowing anymore than what we had entered with.

Bicycling on most roadways (except for residential streets) is quite a challenge here. Roads are busy, traffic is fast and shoulders are rare. It is possible to ride but the risks are too high for us. Few bikers are in evidence.  The Number 9 trail is suitable for bikes but far too short to even consider. It would take less time to ride the trail than to remove the bicycles for our truck carrier. I suppose we could ride back and forth on it ten to fifteen times. What fun. We walked the trail instead. We met several other hikers and dog walkers. Nice trail but very short.

We also walked along the Cibolo Creek at River Road Park. This is a narrow, linear park just east of downtown Boerne. Parking is on the street and somewhat of a challenge. Challenging not because of the width or condition of the street, but because of the mass of geese rushing to our door begging for food.   They run  toward parked vehicles like salesmen at a used car lot. We moved the truck to a distant point away from the mass, and walked the sidewalk along the picturesque creek.

However, one needs to not only dodge waterfowl on the walkway, but also their droppings littering the path. It was a challenge but a nice part of the city nevertheless.

We are still searching for an approriate place to saddle up and do some pedalling.

On to Texas

On  January 11 we headed north to go south.  The  storms had rumbled through Texas and Oklahoma and we deemed it safe to travel to the southwest.  We left our temporary home in Hollister mid-morning and headed north to Springfield where we caught I44 west towards Tulsa.  We passed through Joplin where a tornado leveled the city in May, 2011.  Little damage was evident from the highway but for tree damage.  Two years can make a remarkable change in the landscape.

We then veered south from Big Cabin, Oklahoma, taking US69 to Sherman, Texas.  Here we decided to stop for the evening at a campground, Lazy L RV Park.  Arriving at 5:30, we found the office still open for business.  Upon registration, I remarked that the park looked very busy.  Sure enough, the manger stated that many sites are taken by construction workers toiling on a new power plant as well as a pipe line.  The construction was expected to last for several years, and, therefore, it was "good business" for them.  Standing water was evidence of recent storms which we were determined to miss. 

On Saturday morning, January 12, we hitched  up and travelled further south.  Coming from Sherman, two obstacles were in our way:  Dallas and Austin.  So we drove a short way south to McKinney and veered west to Decatur on US highway 380.  This stretch of road is four lanes, dotted with commercial developments and several stop lights.  Traffic was moderate until we reached Denton.  After which, traffic was light and stoplights were few. 

At Decatur we again headed south on US51 and I20 until we reached US281.  These roads had somewhat peculiar speed limits.  Part of the way was a two lane country road without shoulders though posted at 70 mph.  Part of the way was four lanes separated north and south only by a yellow paint line.  Again 70 mph.  On the interstate 20 with limited access and a wide grassy median, the posted limit was 65.  Logic apparently is not found in Texas traffic policies.

Highway 281 took us through "the Hill Country" as Texas likes to refer to the region that has hills.  The hills are not as prominent as those in Missouri, but Missouri does not label that area as their "hill country."  Only in Texas where egos are as large as Missouri hills.  The road did take us through Johnson City (yes, LBJ slept there) and other small towns.  The drive was scenic and traffic was light.  We ended our journey taking US 46 west to Boerne, our destination.  We arrived at the Alamo Fiesta Resort in Boerne, Texas,  about 3:30 PM and set up camp.  This is our third visit to this campground chosen because of the proximity  to Donna's sister, Judy, in San Antonio.

We initially thought we would stay here in Boerne for only two weeks.  Yet the monthly rate was cheaper than staying for two weeks.  Therefore, we opted for a month.  This area just north of San Antonio has been hit hard by drought.  Water restrictions are in effect in the area.  Other than not being able to wash our vehicle and RV, we are relatively unaffected by it. 

At least I have a good excuse not to clean the trailer!

Heading South 2013

On Wednesday, January 02, we packed the truck and headed south on I-39 leaving Deforest at 6:20 AM on a cold winter morning.  We set the cruise control and made it through light traffic around Madison early enough to avoid the morning rush.  We passed slower vehicles including  several slow moving trucks on the way toward the Illinois line.   We were in good spirits and made plans to eat breakfast at a small restaurant in Rochelle, Illinois, which we had come across on the way north prior to the holidays. 

Just past Janesville, I noticed that the vehicles we passed earlier were now passing us. Even the slow trucks passed us by.  I checked the speedometer and it was still registered at 70 where I had set it.  Donna asked why I had slowed.  I told her we had not as I had the cruise control set.  It  did seem, however, that we were going slower than normal and realized that the speedometer was not working correctly.  So we left the highway at Illinois exit 1 (South Beloit) and stopped the vehicle.  Sure enough, the speedometer read 20 MPH even though we sat at a dead stop.  Now what?

We decided to leave the highway, have breakfast at the Denny's in the Flying J truck stop at the exit and to assess our options.  I parked the truck in the lot and it still read 20 when stopped.  At about 7:30 I knew the Chevy dealer in Leeds (where we have had the truck serviced in the past) would be open.  I called John, the service writer, and explained the issue.  He stated that yes the instrument cluster needed to be changed as the speedometer was not serviceable as a single unit.  For several years I have had a related problem with the shift indicator.  It would normally be unreadable and one would need to count through the positions to get to the right gear.  I learned that when the vehicle moved backward instead of forward, I usually had it in the wrong gear.  I had taken it to a dealer then for what I though was an indicator light problem.  I was told at that time that the entire cluster would need to be replaced at a cost of $800.  I decided then that I could live with not being able to read the gear selector indicator.  But it is a little more difficult to judge one's speed especially when travelling through many small towns on the way to southern Texas with local police using radar to add to their town coffers. 

A U-turn was in order.  We headed back north and to Johnson Sales in Leeds (just north of Deforest),  John got the info off the truck and said a part could be had overnight.  We made arrangements to return on Thursday for the install.  Come Thursday, we had planned to leave directly after the part was replaced.  After about 45 minutes in the shop, we were told that the part was mis-programmed at Chicago and read kilometers instead of miles.  We were told another part was ordered and would be ready on Friday morning. As the delivery from Chicago was usually in by 10:30, I made arrangements to be there by that time so that we could high-tail it south immediately thereafter.  Friday came and we were ready to hit the road.  But the part was not on the delivery truck!  We were broke down until Monday at the earliest.

In the meantime, we found an application for our android phone to read our speed.  It seemed correct when compared with other traffic.  Our speedometer would be on the mark at times.  At other times. it was off anywhere between 5 and 25 miles per hour.  We considered leaving without having the part installed.  But we knew, however, it needed to be done sometime and we would rather have it done by somebody we knew instead of out on the road someplace.  So Monday came with great expectations.  I arrived at 10:30 and the part was waiting for me.  Thirty minutes and $380 later, I was on the road.  And I knew which gear I was in.  I picked up Donna, and we were on the road and headed south by 11:30. 

I put the truck in cruise control mode and headed once again south down I39.  Instead of breakfast plans in Rochell, Illinois, we decided to have lunch there.  We passed slow moving vehicles and neared the Illinois state line.  The vehicles we passed stayed behind us and the gear selector said we were in drive mode.  All looked good.

Unfortunately, our late start put us in St. Louis during rush hour.  Having barely surviving that in the past, we got off the highway and checked into a motel in Staunton, Illinois, which is just north-east of the city.  On Tuesday morning, we entered Missouri and travelled I-44 to Springfield and then went a half-hour south at Springfield to Hollister, Missouri.  Our travel trailer was waiting where we had parked it. 

Because of significant storms predicted in Texas and Oklahoma for several days, we set up camp at Turkey Creek in Hollister and waited for better driving weather.  Winter mode had set in at the park--it was 95% empty.  And we were 100% sure we wanted to go further south.  On Friday, January 11, we plan to head farther south to San Antonio, Texas.

Happy 2013

The end of 2012 found us leaving our rig in Hollister Missouri (Branson area) and heading north for the holidays.  Of course leaving always has issues. 

Before we left, we decided to see a show--Cats Pajamas Vocal Band.  This is a four person acapella group which found itself at the UW-Madison several years ago.  In fact two of the members are from the greater Madison area.  It was a 10:00 AM show (highly recommended) and we decided to leave immediately after the show.  So the day before we packed up and prepared to leave the rig in storage.  We wanted to winterize the water system which involves replacing all water in the plumbing system with RV antifreeze.  It usually takes a couple of gallons to fully winterize by leaving only the water heater empty and dry.  Our system has a water heater bypass valve which allows us to pressurize the system without filling the heater with antifreeze.

 Of course, since we were in somewhat of a hurry, the valve would not work properly and antifreeze flowed into the heater.  After several head scratching moments and verbal rants, the valve had its way.  As the heater holds 6 gallons, we needed to find 6 more gallons of antifreeze.Walmart came to the rescue--even on sale!  We got the rig winterized and parked in a storage area at the campground.  We finally hit the road by 2:00 PM.

Arriving in Madison, we wanted to be sure we had as much contact with family as possible.  We attended Kiley's holiday choir performance, Easton's hockey practices and saw all three kids in their holiday dance performance.  We witnessed an awe inspiring goal by number 35 on ice:

We also attended Easton's kindergarten holiday program and Donna was a volunteer "parent" escorting Easton's class to a performance of "The Nutcracker" at Madison's Overture Center.  Then, of course, was the Maier family Christmas event held at the hall in the Dane Fire Station, the Haug-Lemke Christmas bashes. 

Chezney and cousin Maggie decided to decorate the Dane Hall :

There were also gatherings for Packer and Badger football games with highly excited fans:

Another event was a tied blanket get together organized and presided over by Donna's niece, Lori.  Donna and Erik took his kids to a fabric store to pick out fleece to make their blankets.  Each child picked a patterned fleece for the top and a solid colored one for the bottom of each blanket.  After much searching through the store, each child found what they were after.  We all met at the Catholic elementary school basement where Lori had access and where large tables were available.  In addition to our instructor Lori, Donna and I, daughter-in-law Becky, grand children Kiley, Chezney and Easton, Lori and Donna's niece Lynette and nephew Mike and his daughter,  Cassie. were in attendance. 

Fleece sets for each blanket were arranged with pattern atop solid color, flaps were cut on each side and tied together. 

Two pieces of fleece were quickly joined to become one-piece blankets:

And blankets were needed while we were "up north."  In the three weeks we were there, the area received 24 inches of snow and suffered through a blizzard and below zero temperatures.

 Here is our summer home, Madison KOA:

And Kiley's snowman:

Many thanks to Dianne, Gene and Ruth for sharing a bedroom with the homeless.  Heading south January 02.