Story time
Mechel embellished the story a bit:
Making an audio book
I purchased this book, but don’t really have time to read it, so I cut the binding off with my jig saw:
I then put the loose sheets into my ScanSnap 1300 scanner. In 15 minutes I had a 250 page pdf. Using a PDF to TTS app on the Android phone, I’ve turned this physical book into an audio book. It works great!
RV show!
We went to the RV show at RCC last Sunday. Some really nice units were on display, which helps firm up our retirement fantasies.
I’ll take one of each, please.
Folding bed for Mechel
I based the design on the Moddi bed, whose photos I saw online. We did this so his room could be used by the school during the day.
It’s an IKEA bed frame with 8 IKEA table tips bolted to the bottom to give it a modern art look.
The weight is shared between the wall cables and the ladder that supports the bed when it’s down:
When it’s up, it looks like an art piece:
Surprise storm of 2011
An unusual October storm dropped a foot of heavy, wet snow on trees that had not yet dropped their leaves.
Our beautiful Magnolia might not ever be the same. Baila was devastated, as she had always imagined herself getting married under it:
A big tree came down in the rear parking lot:
We lost power on Saturday afternoon, and didn’t have it back until Wednesday evening, over 100 hours later. The Yamaha 2400iS generator we purchased last summer to run the RV’s A/C worked well for us. I had wired a transfer switch into the house years ago, so all we had to do was flip the switch and fire up the generator. We went through about 12 gallons of gas.
It was amazing how dark it was at night, and we now have a much better appreciation of what it means to have electrical service!
Hopefully this won’t happen again any time soon.
The new RV
Our trusty Trailmanor has served us well since early 2009, but the layout has its limitations:
My parents bought this unit for themselves, and for two people, it’s perfect. Mechel and Baila sleep on the converted dinette, so when they go to bed, there’s nowhere for us to sit.
Since we now have the Sorento, which can tow 5000 pounds, we decided to purchase a conventional travel trailer. We wanted a bunkhouse model, and settled on the Forest River Wildwood X-Lite 26BH:
It weighs 4300 pounds, about 1100 pounds more than the Trailmanor. Many other manufacturers produce the same floor plan, but the X-Lite is 300-500 pounds lighter, thanks to its stamped frame and other innovations:
I drove out to Lakeview, Ohio to pick up the unit over Labor Day weekend. The drive back made me really appreciate the TrailManor’s towing characteristics. This one doesn’t fold down, so it is much more affected by crosswinds and passing semis. I installed anti-sway friction bars at the dealership, and that did seem to help quite a bit.
I’ve already installed a digital thermostat, and moved the pre-charged pressure tanks over from the TrailManor. Since there’s no folding now, I didn’t use the Banjo removable connectors and a flexible hose. Instead I used PEX and hard-plumbed the tanks in under the sofa.
Here are photos of our unit:
Know anyone who wants a 2007 TrailManor 2720SD? Ours is now for sale.
We’re going up to Mongaup Pond this weekend, we’ll see how it goes!
Older and Faster
This from Jim Langley, who recently competed in the 55-59 age category at the US Masters National Championship:
“As I was cruising up one of the hills at a pretty good tempo, testing my legs a bit, I heard the distinctive rumble of the BMW motorcycles the race officials use to lead the packs. So, I moved right. Then I heard an even more familiar sound, the powerful, rhythmic breathing of a racer. Not wanting to get in the way I veered onto the shoulder, clicked out of my pedals and turned around.
There was the legend, Robert Paganini of the Pasadena Athletic Association, off the front of the 75-79 group and simply shredding the climb on his way to the coveted stars and stripes jersey. From his fine form and impressive pace you could have easily mistaken him for Bend’s resident superstar Chris Horner — he looked that good.”
Post-Irene bike ride
Most of the roads in Harriman were closed right after the storm. It’s interesting the way the road surface washed off of its base, like frosting slipping off a cake:
