Back from service...

I gotta give them credit.

I was told their UPS shipments "usually come in between 10:00 and 10:30.  So, you can imagine my disappointment when I hadn't heard from the dealer by mid-afternoon.  I called them... "UPS hasn't shown up yet - the tracking says it is on the truck for delivery."

Yeah, I've been there.

We drove to the dealer, expecting to hear that UPS had arrived... it hadn't.  At 4:00, still no sign of the brown truck.  4:30, more of the same.  I could see the service department was winding down.  As 5:00 approached, I went to the service writer to "call it a day."  While I was visiting with her, a guy from their parts department came running up - "Here it is!"  I never saw the brown truck.

I asked, "Do you want me to bring it back tomorrow, since it is so late?"

To her credit, she said, "We know you are staying in it, let's get you back in it yet today."  She had two guys stay late to get the old switchout, re-do the wiring, and install the new switch.

I really appreciate the extra effort, even though the delay was not due to them.  We tested it before we left - yep, it is switching.  Just like it is supposed to.

Sincere thanks to LaMesa RV for following through!

Question and answer time...

We were helpers in our daughter's class today.

Well, we didn't do much as far as advancing education; but, her class exceeded the goal Steph set for them on their food drive.  Their reward: a pizza party.  Steph paid for the pizzas, we picked them up.  We also supplied chips, cupcakes, and juice drinks.

The kids always seem excited when they have "company," especially so when it is family.  One of them asked Steph if they could ask us questions about her when she was growing up.  She said, "Absolutely!"

I looked at her and quietly said, "Do we tell the truth or do we make you sound like an angel?"

Steph said, "Tell the truth... but keep it school appropriate."

I like to make her sweat, thinking there might be a "slip."  The kids asked, we answered.  It was pretty entertaining for all of us.  And the kids were very nice about getting the party and "lunch with the teacher."

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Before picking up the pizzas, we dropped the RV off at the dealership.  The part is supposed to show up this morning... we haven't heard, yet, if that is the case.  I am hoping it goes the way they said it would.

In the meantime, the owner of the lot we are on (all these lots are privately owned) brought in an electrician this morning to do a thorough check-out of the power pedestal... everything checked out fine.  That doesn't ease my concerns.

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I just learned that friends of ours, John and Kathy Huggins, are going through a tough time.  Kathy had to have emergency surgery and they will be dealing with some major life changes... foremost, ending their lifestyle as full-time RVers.  Some of you may remember my writing about doing some editing for two of their books, and telling about their weekly podcast "Living The RV Dream."

If you haven't already, check out their podcasts and their website:

http://www.livingthervdream.com/

We send out our sincere wishes for the best possible outcome for Kathy, and our thoughts are with the both of them.

We are presented with life lessons every day.  Plan for your dreams, but go out there and live them.  John and Kathy were doing exactly that - and sharing their RV experiences with their listeners... every week.  Great dedication to the lifestyle and each other.

The pitter patter of little feet...

Four feet.

No, not us.  Steph and Dan have been anxiously awaiting their new arrival...

Welcome to the family, Tasha.  She is a Russian Siberian Forest Cat.  Beautiful markings.  She was recently spayed, and a sibling pulled her stitch out... thus, the cone.  She is fresh from the breeder, her first night in her new home.

A long-hair.  Here's a look without the cone...

Looks to me like she is going to be a big girl (typical of the breed). 

Joan got to hold her for a bit...

More details about the RV...

I have gotten messages on Facebook and direct e-mails, so I think I need to explain some things.

Yes, the electrical problem with the new RV is upsetting and disappointing, but stuff happens.  I would not be surprised if the problem came from the electric pedestal at the park we are in... and it is a very nice park.

At this point, we have no issue with LaMesa (the dealership where we bought this RV) and their outlet in Phoenix.  This area is inundated with RVs right now - the usual snowbirds who are here for the warmth and the popular spring training baseball games that just started.  The Good Sam Rally just finished, bringing an additional 5,000+ RVs into the area.  We could see how busy the service folks were at LaMesa, and we are pleased that they did their best to work us in to diagnose the problem.

The motorhome did NOT catch on fire, but the automatic transfer switch burned and kicked out a fair amount of smoke... from a compartment on the outside of the coach.  No smoke smell or residue inside.

I understand that each dealership cannot stock every part for every RV they sell.  The Winnebago service guy I spoke with seemed to think they should have this in stock, but they are having the switch overnighted.  Well, sorta - it is supposed to be in Thursday morning.

Every new RV or boat we have bought has had some kind of shake-down items.  Our list on this Winnebago is pretty short, considering all the systems this unit has.  While we are, of course, hoping for thousands of trouble-free miles, we know stuff will come up.

I think we handled this the best way possible, by getting as much information and support on our side as soon as possible.  We didn't take "we can't get you in for two weeks."  If this had to happen, we are fortunate we are in an area where the dealership we bought from has an outlet.  I can assure you that if we had just gone into any ol' RV dealer, we would have gone to the bottom of the priority line.

Also fortunate that we have a support system here with our daughter and son-in-law.

Thanks for the concern.

Where there's smoke there's... Wait! What? There's SMOKE???

We were enjoying our morning - Joan was drinking coffee, I had just finished some hot chocolate, when the power went out.

OK, that's not so unusual at RV parks, but this is a pretty upscale place.  First thing to do: check our circuit breakers, even though we weren't overloading anything.  Nope, they're fine.  Outside to the power pedestal to see if there is power there.  Yep, the little indicator light on our adapter is glowing.  I got out the Winnebago book to see if it could shed any light on the situation.

Not so much.

Joan went out to check the inverter GFCI... and saw that there was smoke coming out of the compartment where our shorepower cord is attached.  Yeah, that is not a good thing.  She unplugged the coach from the power pedestal and the smoke dissipated.

We tried the inverter - it turns on, but doesn't power the receptacles.  Fired up the generator - the 120 power inside came on.  Well, we have something to go with for diagnosing the problem.

I called the dealer in Tucson where we bought this... they put me on hold for a very long time.  The service receptionist finally came back and said they would have to have our service writer call us back.

I called one of the Phoenix dealers from this same company... a very nice young lady told me they were "booked up solid for the next two weeks for service appointments."  I explained the difference between "the surround sound isn't working and there is smoke coming out of my new coach."  She said she would talk to the manager and call me back.

I called the Winnebago factory.  Talked to a nice service tech named Jake who talked with me about what we had discovered... and apologized for the fact that we were having an issue with a new motorhome.  He said that everything we did led him to believe it is a "fried automatic transfer switch."  Makes sense - it is the only thing inside that compartment besides the 30 amp cord.

While talking with Jake, the young lady from the Phoenix dealer called back and said, "We'll try to work you in, but you have to understand how busy we are... and we may not even be able to look at it until late today... and then we may not be able to fix it... and we are so busy."

I asked the Winnebago tech if he got all that - he agreed that going there was the best plan.  So, we unhooked all the utilities and headed on down the road.  Well, after putting away everything from living in the coach... and that is a bunch.

So, here we sit in the driveway to the Service Department...

Been here almost an hour; the young lady I spoke with on the phone said we could wait with the coach or in their customer lounge.  No one has been by to talk to us, yet.  More as the situation unfolds...

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 The service manager came by, told us he'd try to get someone on it after lunch, so we decided to head out as well.  Little Izzy got to spend time at Steph and Dan's place while we went out for lunch.  When he did call us, he said, "That is an upgrade transfer switch, and we don't have one like it in stock... and, it is fried."

Back at the dealership, he showed us the box that used to be the transfer switch - yep, it is fried.  He is unsure if any of our appliances are affected; if so, that is a sure sign that there was some kind of a major surge on the line.  I understand he is trying to determine if the problem is a faulty switch (covered by warranty) or due to something outside the RV.

It will be Thursday before they can get a new switch from Winnebago.  Decision: leave the coach with them or put it back on the RV site.  I felt there was less chance someone might mess with it or whack into it in the RV park - we'll bring it back on Thursday.

We let the RV resort know that there is likely an issue with that power pedestal.  Running the generator, we have power; can't run that in the park, but we were able to test all the appliances and entertainment stuff - it all checked out.  Can't plug in until the switch is replaced.  So, we are temporarily (and our friends Bob and Mary Ann used to put it) "semi-affluently homeless."

Pretty sure Steph and Dan will take us in.  ;-)

Rain day...

There were some sprinkles yesterday.

Not enough to even settle the dust; just enough to completely spot up the RV and the truck (and they were both looking shiny).

Overnight, though, we had a steady, gentle rain.  As long as it isn't something that goes on for weeks, I enjoy the sound of a gentle rain.  Something relaxing about that on the roof of the RV or a boat.  Maybe it's the fact that I know I don't have to go out in it?

A high today of only 60º and a 100% chance of rain.  I think I'll get a nap in this afternoon.  :-)

The new motorhome has a sunroof...

Yes, it opens - lets a nice bit of fresh air in.  It has two shades: one is a screen, the other is a black-out, completely blocking the light.  Today, the sunroof is the "rain drop indicator"... really gentle.

I wasn't so sure of this thing in the RV, but Joan really liked the idea.  Now that we have lived with it for a while, I have to agree, it is a nice feature.  :-)

My wife woke up with Trace Adkins this morning..

Well, with his voice.

The desert air finally got to me... Vegas throat.  Lungs, too.  Joan asked me to play guitar and sing for her this morning.  What came out was about an octave lower than normal.  OK, maybe more Leon Redbone than Trace Adkins.  Sure wasn't my normal tenor... more like a bassoon.

We spent the afternoon with the kids yesterday.  They had recorded August: Osage County.  Well, wasn't that depressing.  Julia Roberts, for goodness sake... "Hey, Julia, remember Pretty Woman?"  Yeah, that was more my style.

We are heading for the kids' place again today.  Joan will cook again.  Hopefully, there won't be any crappy, Debbie-Downer movies.  While waiting to go south, Joan has started on our taxes...

Easy formula: How much did you make?  Send it in.  ;-)