My You’ve Come A Long Ways In 73 Years

I’m posting a little early (7 Days) for my 73rd Birthday on October 2nd as we will be at Canton where we don’t have Wifi Service.  Happy Birthday Weldon!  
Yes, it’s that time again and October First Monday is traditionally one of our best shows. They say in the four days you can expect to see over 150,000 to 200,000 people gather in this small town for the first fall show.

The crowd is so large that it takes hours to get into the parking lot and longer to leave the grounds for home. Once in you don’t drive anywhere as it will take an hour or so to travel just one mile. You plan your meals in your RV as all the restaurants in town will be wall to wall with people. The RV parking spots will fill up before Thursday. We also get a lot of snowbirds or Winter Texans stopping off for the show on their way to South Texas for the winter. The lines for the rest rooms are always long, especially the Ladies. Usually sales for the Fall months more than make up for slower sales in the winter and summer months. Lets hope it’s that way this fall. With the 5000+ vendors the slice of the pie is getting smaller. Also we learned last month that Henry Lewis did indeed purchase the Arbors.This now makes him the largest leaser for the Canton First Monday booths. The Arbors are considered by most to be the main stream of all the pavilions.

I’ve spent most of this week doing odds an ends around the MH like cleaned and re-greased my tow bars on the Blue Ox, the usual pre-check for traveling and using The Solution to wash the lower third of the MH. My BatteryMinder is doing exactly what it’s suppose to do that is keeping the batteries charged and  goes into the float-maintenance  mode once they are up to the proper volts. Also when I first connected to my chassis batteries the BatteryMinder showed their was some sulphation build up but that  now seems to have been corrected by the BM. Here’s looking at ya!

Until next time….MtnAire Travlers.

Getting Ready For First Monday At Canton

Sandy and I were up this morning at 5:45 am so we could get an early start to Longview for our grocery shopping for her Mom and us before we leave for Canton in the morning. We were off before 7am and you would not believe the traffic on Hwy 259 to Longview. We want do this again. Motorist going to and from work, school zones and school buses.
I haven’t run into this since my working days in Austin TX where I drove to work from Austin to San Marcos TX. This was about 68 miles round trip mostly on I35 south. That has been so long ago I just about forgot how I loved to drive this route and watch the sunrise and sunsets in the Hill Country to and from the job. I drove this route for 28 years and it became routine for me where the driving no longer bothered me. Every now and then the Interstate would shut down due to a major accident and it would take me sometimes two hours to get to or from the job. Now that really bothered me particularly if it was in the morning to the job. I usually like getting in early to handle some things before my day got started. I was the Sales Service/Customer Service person for my company and spent most of my time on the phone. That’s why I don’t like taking phone calls here at the MH.

We did our normal routine while in Longview Office Depot for copies, Book Store for used books, and Wally World for groceries. On our way home Sandy said “ Could we please drive back to Gladewater to the antique store to see if they still have those cute little red bowls I saw there last Saturday and didn’t get”. So, without hesitation I turned the Jeep around and headed to Gladewater. Yes, they still had those cute little red bowls and she purchased them this time. It turned out good for her as I keep telling her those who hesitate end up short and disappointed. Why are women like this???
While there we drove by the Antique Capital RV Park and toured the facility. All sites are concrete pads, full hook-up, mostly pull through. The park has been open for only a year and the grass was still trying to fill in. Their rates $25 one night, $67 three nights and $110 for a week. The only negative thing we saw was the roads in the park where gravel but with all the rain we’ve had they were not in that bad of shape.

This is what I did after we got back to the MH unloaded the groceries and got the MH ready for travel tomorrow.

Until next time….MtnAire Travlers.

Pandas and Windows Live Writer

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Sandy thought these baby Pandas were just to cute not to share. They obviously are from China and were involved in the earthquake they had not to long ago. The best we understand is none were injured. The one in the upper right hand corner she says is saying “I  love you” ; the bottom right hand corner saying “Stop in the name of love” and the left side is just to precious she says.

I wish to thank Al with http://thebayfieldbunch.com/ for posting all the tricks he has learned with using Windows Live Writer. Also thanks to Rick with http://rickpaulettervjournal.blogspot.com/ for his input. These two friends from Canada are just to smart when it comes to these computer software programs. Thanks again guys and keep them coming. I too had a problem adding the Picasa plug-in. Al when you figure it out please post your findings.

WE drove over to Mt. Pleasant today to go to the bank. We use Bank of America and Mt Pleasant is the only close town (25 miles) that has a BOA. While there we eat our usual breakfast at Whataburger and just had to drop in on Walmart. I believe if Walmart  went away Sandy would just have a breakdown. In fact when I die I want her to spread my ashes throughout Walmart and that way I know she will visit me often.

When we got back I proceeded to mow and weed eat the three acres here were we base. This is my mowing gear…. the mask was added as Sandy did not want me to get the smeller dirty. 

It took about three and one-half hours to do this job as the grass was sooo tall after our eight days of rain. Her brother hopes to get back to cutting the highway right-a-ways again but looking a weather radar we are in for some stormy weather tonight. If it does hit like they say it’s going to then probably no mowing this week

Until next time….MtnAire Travlers.

A Day Trip

After eight consecutive days of rain we decided to get out yesterday afternoon and made a day trip to Gladewater, TX.  This historic town in Northeast Texas today is known for it's antique shops. At one time they said over 275 shops. Like everything else  with our slower economy I do not believe they have quite that many today. The town was established in 1872 when The Texas & Pacific Railroad told St. Clair residents there would be only one mail stop at that would be at Gladewater. “Black Gold” brought quick change to the area when the first oil gusher blew in 1931. Overnight the town boomed from 500 to 10,000 as people who had lost their jobs to the Great Depression came seeking work.
Gladewater was the hub of production and refining and the East Texas field soon accounted for more than 10 percent of the world’s oil. In 1938 Gladewater was called the western gateway to the Great East Texas Oil Field, the largest in the world, with 25,000 wells.

We also discovered they had a fairly new RV park that opened not to long ago. It’s called Antique Capital RV Park.

They feature:
112 Level Concrete Pads
30/50 amp sites
Full Hook-ups
l Direct TV
Laundry Room
Dog Run
Tiled Bathrooms
Catch & Release Fishing Pond
3500 sq ft Activity Center

 

Here are two photos of a flooded field after all the rain we had last week where the Big and Little Cypress Creeks became one and flooded a lot of low lying areas.

Until next time….MtnAire Travlers.

Wireless Hands-Free Voice Controlled Headset

Sandy purchased the Blue Ant Q1 Bluetooth headset voice controlled for hands-free operation of her Iphone 3G. You wouldn't believe the number of times I've asked "What did you say" when actually she was on her Iphone. I hear her say "voice command call speed dial one "etc and wonder just what she's doing. Boy, something else to get use to hearing. I might add though ever since Sandy purchased her Iphone 3G she has really become a computer geek. She has even joined Facebook and does a lot of web surfing where before you couldn't get her to even touch the keyboards of my laptop. hmmm I wonder if that might be because I'm not a good teacher nor have the patience to help her learn. I suspect that may be the main reasons. So, she decided to just teach herself.

I am writing this post on the new post editor of Blogger and the first thing I've noticed is it does not have spell check. Believe me I need this feature mainly due to my poor typing skills and never wining ant spelling bee contest. It is just about a must have feature foe me so I guess I need to stay with Live Writer.

Just looked out our window and would you believe its raining here again. Our seventh day in a row we've had the wet stuff. Here is the current radar for this area and yes the system is now moving back west like they forecasted. We are located in the upper right hand corner of the map just Northwest of Shreveport.

              

Sandy is really disappointed due to the fact she may not work at all this week. In talking with her brother they may not get to work until the later part of next week.... bummer. Her brother James came over and advised when they do get to mow again they would have to blow and go. So, maybe she might get in 12/6 in the coming days??? Do I sound like I'm glad she might have to put in these hours. No, but the extra monies will sure help us pay some more bills off.

Went to VA Shreveport this am for follow up visit rained on us all the way there and back. Dr Marla Moore said the nose looked just like they expected it to and she removed about three stitches. Said the others will dissolve by themselves. Wants to see me again in about a month.
Even though it rained on us most of the day it was nice to get out as we both had cabin fever or should I say RV fever.

Until next time...MtnAire Travlers.

BatteryMinder #12248 and A Still Swollen Nose

My family has asked that I post a photo of my recent nose surgery. As you can see the swelling is still  there but the bruising is about gone. You barley can see the stitches on each nostril.
The rain for now has moved out  from Northeast Texas but the weatherman says it will turn back again to the west. In driving into Longview this morning you certainly could see evidence of the rain we’ve had for the past five days. Both the Big and Little Cypress creeks were way out of their banks and you could see standing water in all the fields. In fact the level of the creeks were the highest we have seen in the nine years we’ve been coming to this area.

I purchased this battery minder from VDC Electronics for my chassis batteries. According to the information I can leave it connected to these batteries 24/7 and it will maintain there charge without burning them up.

Here are the specifications:

BatteryMINDer® Model 12248
DETAILED SPECIFICATIONS - VDC Model No. 12248
14.1V / 14.4V / 14.6V---2/4/8A MCU controlled H.F. Battery Charger
Electrical Parameters
Input Voltage: 90-140 Vac
Input Frequency: 50/60 Hz
Unloaded input current: 80 mAac
Input Current consumption at 120Vac input, output 13V 8A loading (UL1236) Approx: 2Aac

Features

• Safely charges 70% - 200% faster than any/all known conventional constant voltage chargers. Guaranteed 100% full charge to ALL TYPE / SIZE / BRAND 12-Volt batteries, without ever overcharging them.
• Maximizes cycle life and performance of all three (3) types* of lead-acid storage batteries, regardless of size / type / brand.
• Push button selectable type and charge rates for all size / type / brands of 12- Volt batteries, including flooded (filler caps), sealed Absorb Glass Mat (AGM), Gel, Interstate, Exide & Optima branded “spiral-cell” constructed “dry” batteries.
• 3 Stage (constant current bulk- constant voltage absorption-pulse width modulated float) ensures 100% full charge capacity of all battery types.
• Full Time random sweep desulfation**.Desulphates faster and more effectively than any known charger or stand-alone desulfator-conditioner.
• Spark-proof, short circuit, reverse polarity and over-temperature protected.
• Automatically detects defective batteries and rejects them.
• Polarity reversal-Error indicator.
• Auto-reset thermal breaker (protects both battery and charger under abnormal conditions such as a shorted cell and /or excessively high ambient temperatures)
• Manual override for maintenance- desulfation only long term storage mode.
• Rejects a damaged or open cell (shorted) battery.
• Watertight enclosure with conformal-coated protected circuitry.
• Extremely light weight (2 lbs.) – compact size- 5.5” x 5.5” x 2.25”.
• Portable or OnBoard mountable.
• Built-in battery condition indicators: detect and display charge level modes, charge retention and existence of sulfation.
• Automatic temperature compensation w/ optional battery temperature sensor. Sensor can be used to detect and adjust charger’s output voltage depending on temperature, extending battery life and performance by more than 100%***.
• 1 year 100% Money back Guarantee plus 5 year “no hassle” warranty.

We, the manufacturer, also guarantee model 12248 will significantly increase your battery’s life well beyond any known battery charger currently on the market. If for any reason you do not find this to be true we will, up to one year after date of purchase, refund 100% of your money, including any taxes or shipping costs ****.

* Flooded (filler caps), maintenance-free sealed AGM and Gel.
** U.S. Patented
*** When compared to non “at the battery” temperature compensated chargers or ambient sensing types

Until next time….MtnAire Travlers.

8 in 8 and 4 Out of Last 4

We’ve had rain now for the last four days of which one day we had 8” of rain in 8 hours. Boy, are we soaked and it would be nice to see some of this head down to the Austin-San Antonio area. Don’t get me wrong we are appreciative of what the good Lord provides but when you step out of the MH and bog down in your own yard that’s just to much. Also this effects Sandy’s job as the TDOT will not allow them to cut if the ground is soggy. They do not like to see tractor tracks on the right a ways of their highways.

Today will be the fifth consecutive day  we’ve had rain and the weather man is calling for more rain rest of the week. Went to town Saturday in the rain and you would not believe the number of spin outs, rear-enders, and crazy drivers we witnessed. The Farmers Almanac has predicted a wetter winter for this area. Maybe this is the beginning since Fall is right around the bend.

The healing process on my nose surgery is coming along fine. Some of the swelling, drainage and soreness has gone. I have my follow-up visit this Thursday, November 17th. The stitches are self dissolving so I shouldn’t have to have them removed.

We take Sandy’s Mom to her heart doctor today to have her pacemaker checked out. I don’t look forward to the drive in the rain again but you can’t let a little wetness stop you. You only hope those NASCAR drivers in town slow down and don’t involve you when they crash. Sandy should also be able to drive me to VA Shreveport for my follow-up visit. I don’t see quite as well due to a non-successful retina surgery on my right eye three years ago.

  With this rainy weather we are having it sure makes life boring. I can’t get out and clean the MH or mow the grass. Life is sill good though.

 

 

Until next time…. MtnAire Travlers.

September 09, 2001

Today we observe the 8th anniversary of 9/11 the day this world as we knew it changed forever. We were ruthlessly attack by a  group we call terrorists. Not since Pearl Harbor has this country lost so many life's due to a cowardly attack by a group that wants to take away the thing we cherish the most “Our Freedom”.  

I can remember this day so vividly. We were setting in the restaurant at the Flying J in Shreveport on our way to a truck alignment place to have our tires on the Dutch Star DP rotated, balanced and front end aligned.  When the waitress told this that a plane had crashed into one of the World Trade towers we first thought she was kidding.Then complete silence spread through the restaurant and everyone gathered around the TV. We were horrified at what we saw then tears started flowing and you could hear someone praying. Needless to say we did not get a lot done on that day. Lets not forget all the life's that have been sacrificed to protect our freedom. The men and women of our armed forces give so much of themselves as well as their families. May God continue to bless each and everyone of them.

I had my nose surgery at last yesterday. Doctor David Ludlow was the surgeon who did a bilobed flap nasal reconstruction on both nostrils. Took about three hours. Everything went well and the basal cell on the right was cancerous which after three tissue cells samples later the pathologist advised there were no more cancer cells found. Praise the Lord! I’m a little sore today and while I’m not that nice looking guy anyway, you really ought to see me now. A Carl Maudlin nose, stitches on both sides, black and blue burses around the cheeks and swollen eyes. I heard every conversation in the “OR” as well as a rock and roll radio station. I might add the staff, doctors, nurses, and everyone at Overton Brooks VA Hospital were just great. They made sure your visit with them would be the best they could put forward.

Until next time….MtnAire Travlers.

Surgery Update And More

I received a call Tuesday from VA advising me of a new surgery date September 19 at 2:15pm. I quickly told them this was the same time they had scheduled my third surgery and had to cancel because of the window they had to start and finish the procedure. The person on the other end then said how about September 10th at 6am. I advised that would be great and to mark me down for that time. Sandy received a call while I was at Canton First Monday on Wednesday and they advised they had a cancellation on Thursday morning and could I come then. She advised them that wouldn’t work as I was taking the large aspirin and she understood you had to be off that of 7 to 10 days before any surgery. The person said “yes, that's right so we will keep the September 10th date”. So bar any last minute changes I hope the fourth time will be a charm and I can get this behind me. Will update results later.

I had an interesting Canton First Monday weekend. I ran the booth Thursday Sept 3rd thru Saturday noon Sept 6th by myself. Now just imagine me a guy selling a ladies accessory the “Chameleon purse insert”. Well let me tell you I didn’t do that bad of a job. The ladies listen to my sales pitch on out great this was for them and how it would really make their hubbies happy as they would not have to wait so long when they changed purses. The month was like any prior Labor Day Canton weekend as far as crowd. I might add the first few days we had a cool front come in first of the week and it really made things nice until Sunday when it turned hot again.
Sandy would normally arrive at Canton Friday night after work but this was an exception as her Great Niece from Arkansas had come down to Longview to meet family. And what a cutie she is.
Meet Caris Schutz.

Sandy took her Mom over to her sisters house Saturday morning to meet and visit with Caris, her Mom and Dad. She left about 10 am for Canton and took over my job around noon. I was glad to retire as I had missed my afternoon naps and her excellent cooking. Yes, she out sold me in the day and a half she worked the booth.

We left Canton Sunday evening for Lone Star and arrived about 8:30 pm in the dark. This refreshed my view point on traveling after dark and trying to set the coach up in the dark. Will do a better Job the next time of getting out a little earlier. Normally we would wait and come back to base Monday morning but since Sandy has a real job now we have to leave Sunday evening.

September 11th is this Friday, I like every American will remember this date as long as I live. We live in difficult times and are fighting untraditional wars to keep our freedom, I want to personally thank every service woman and man that is serving this country and may God be at their sides, comfort them at all times and bring each home safely to their loved ones.

I recently read Rollie &  Gina’s http://ginathurston.blogspot.com/2009/09/thomas-in-his-dress-blues.html journal where their son Thomas recently graduated from the US Marine boot camp. I know they are very proud of him. We too are proud of him as he serves this great Nation of ours.   I hope they don’t mind me posting his photo on our journal. He’s such a fine good looking Marine and we will add him to our prayer list.

 

What is that Bugs Bunny saying…..”Well that’s all folks”.

Until next time….MtnAire Travlers.