December 4 - 23, 2012 "Welcome Back Winter Texans"

The time since we arrived at Ranchero Village has flown by, even quicker than usual by meeting dozens of new people in the new park and getting acclimated to the way things are done here by the long-time Winter Texans who have flocked here for years. We have made some amazingly wonderful new friends and reunited with friends from past years here in Weslaco.

CC and I are both on a quest to shed a few pounds, so we have been eating more responsibly and preparing more meals versus going out to eat and not knowing exactly how the food is prepared. One thing is for certain here in the RGV, if the tortilla chips taste good, they have been fried in lard! It’s especially hard for CC to resist, considering chips and salsa are one of her primary food groups; but I must admit, she is doing quite well at resisting the temptation. Another helpful activity in our quest is Happy Hour; everyday at 4 pm. Helpful because here at this new park, food and snacks are omitted, unlike past years; eliminating that aspect HAS to help, right?

On December 7, the Welcome Back Winter Texan Appreciation Day was held in Nuevo Progreso, MX, a mere 6 miles south of us. When they advertised free food, drinks and gifts, we were “all in”. To begin the day, we met a group of friends from last year for breakfast at Rene’s Bakery in NP around 8 am, and from there it was on to El Disco for one of Tony’s famous margaritas. It’s 5 o’clock somewhere, right? From there, we ventured outside and strolled along the sidewalk and watched the parade, various street performers, and the beer girls. It’s a tough life.

Until next time, take care and stay well………………..

December 3, 2012 - "Back in the RGV"

It’s been a month since our last post, and suffices it to say, it has felt like longer. With that said, it reminds me of advice given to me by my parents, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all”. So now on to the positives………….

We finally left McClains RV in OKC, not because everything was fixed, but the contrary. It seemed everything they fixed involved further, additional “mysteriously costly” repairs. So after three weeks of that, we moved to Childress, TX, to visit CC’s daughter, Letta, and her family.

CC had a great time hugging on her new great grandbaby, Haley. Luckily for CC, Mary stayed close by over the weekend, as that little girl is most definitely a mama’s girl. Pictured below are four generations, from left to right, CC, Haley and her mom, Mary, and Letta.

GGCC and Haley; see any resemblance?

We called MCD in McKinney, TX, to make an appointment to get the shades repaired, and the soonest they could get us in was Monday, Nov. 19. OK, we’ll just extend a week here and CC can get in a few more hugs because the next time she will she Haley, most likely after she begins walking. The week flew by, as it usually does when visiting family and friends, and had a fantastic time.

The following Monday morning we drove the 250 miles to McKinney, and arrived at MCD shortly after noon. They backed us in to one of their 12 RV sites, and told us they would get us in ASAP. Tuesday at 8 am, they knocked on the door, and proceeded to repair the damaged cab shade. While the two techs were in the rig, they checked ALL of the MCD shades and adjusted the tension and stops, so now they are all working like new. We departed MCD shortly after 11 am, only 23 hours after we arrived; now THAT is what I call customer service. We cannot say anything bad about MCD. If you are thinking about replacing your old pleated day/night shades, MCD is the best. Granted they are not cheap, but quality made in the USA; we like that!

Finally, all the needed repairs complete, and Murphy behind us, we move southward to the Rio Grande Valley (RGV), about 3 weeks behind our preliminary schedule. After overnight stops in Santos and San Antonio, we arrived at our winter home at Ranchero Village in Weslaco, TX shortly after noon on Thanksgiving. We located the manager and he opened the south gate and escorted us to our site; actual grass without sand burrs and large concrete pads, something unfamiliar to us in past winters here in the RGV.

Friday morning we did the usual WDYWTDT, and you guessed it, CC opted for going to Nuevo Progreso, MX for shopping, margaritas and lunch. It was like old home week, as we met up with old friends from past years at Pancho’s in El Disco I. Do we look like we’re having fun?

That’s it, that’s all for now. Until next time, take care and stay well………….

October 8 - 27, 2012 "Still in Oklahoma City"

Shortly after arriving in OKC, I decided to make an appointment to get the non-working items on the rig repaired. Not wanting to duplicate the problems we had at Steve Casey’s in Denver, this time I researched and found McClain’s to be one of Winebago / Itasca’s top dealers. When I called, they told me the earliest they could fit me in would be October 22; almost 3 weeks away. Well, if that’s the best they can do, let’s do it. We had planned to be here for 2 – 3 weeks, so a little longer wasn't a big deal.

After getting her mom’s phone / cable / internet bundled, and getting her new computer set up, CC has been busy doing mother / daughter “things”, of which I’m not sure I want to know the details. In addition, we have both been busy seeing old friends over dinners, at happy hours, and football games; we are, after all in the heart of football country. CC’s daughter, Letta, came for “a girls weekend out”, while Rick and I went fishing and stayed in his Lake Hudson “cabin”; now my wallet is lighter and the freezer is full of fish. You do the math.

Monday, October 22, came before we knew it. Upon arrival at McClain’s I was told they didn’t make appointments; it was first come, first served. Say what? I was not a happy camper, and it probably came through in my subsequent conversation with Julie, the customer service rep at McClain’s. She asked what our problems were and I said I went over that with the person that made the appointment, to which she repeated, “We don’t take appointments”. I took a deep breath and started in on my litany; the Kingdome satellite system is not locking onto the satellite, the electric element in our Aqua-Hot is not working, the Dometic ice maker is not making ice and we have a broken support bracket on our front windshield MCD motorized shades. She said, “OK, I’ll try and work you in today”. With that exchange behind us, we proceeded to the customer lounge.

By 4 pm, CC was getting mildly irritated, and went to speak with Julie and soothe any wounds I may have inflicted earlier. A few minutes later CC returned and said they were trying to get to our list but they were very busy due to an RV Show in OKC the previous weekend. Julie did offer to let us “wait” in our rig, versus sitting in their lounge, and just as we were headed out the door, the service technician, Lloyd, said he was ready for our rig. OK, it’s 4:30, how much can they get done by closing at 6 pm? That would be nada. They backed the rig out of the shop, and parked it in one of their complimentary sites with full hook ups adjacent to the service building.

Tuesday morning we were in the shop by 9 am, and Lloyd diagnosed the Dometic problem, stating we needed a complete new ice maker. He tried to troubleshoot the Aqua-Hot, but could find nothing wrong. He acknowledged that there was indeed a problem with the King-Dome, as it would lock on and a few minutes later lose the satellite. By 6 pm, they backed us out of service, and back into our temporary “home site”. Julie then informed us Lloyd would not be in on Wednesday, due to a previously scheduled doctor’s appointment, and the fact she would like him to continue with our rig since he was their most experienced tech. What was I to say? OK seemed the proper response; not exactly what I wanted to say. As CC reminded me later, you catch more bees with honey, than you do with vinegar.

Thursday morning at 9 am, the rig was again in the shop. Lloyd spent the day trouble shooting and on the phone with King Dome, trying to get that issue resolved. Around 3 pm he informed us that our extended warranty required the system had to be returned to the King Dome factory for repair or replacement, which would take 2 – 3 weeks. What the hell? Now I’m thinking IF the person I spoke with from McClain’s, when we arrived in OKC had told me to bring the rig in then, we would be back in business by now. I was not a happy camper. I was equally miffed at our extended warranty. While I tried to regain my composure, Lloyd was busy troubleshooting our Aqua-Hot issue. By 6 pm we were once again in our “home site”.

Friday morning, 9 am, the rig was moved back into service. Around 10 am, Julie approached us in the customer service lounge and informed us that our extended warranty would not pay for shipping the King-Dome back to the factory, which was $160. By now, I’m REALLY not happy. “Let’s go call them”, I said. Julie put me on the phone with Lou from our extended warrant provider, and I tried to calmly and carefully explain the situation to him. When he finally asked what I wanted to do, I bit my tongue, and asked if it would be possible to get an allowance on a new satellite system, so as not to detain us in OKC an additional 3 weeks. When he said yes, I almost fell over, and when he offered $900 I couldn't believe my ears.

CC and I researched our options, knowing we definitely did not want another King-Dome, and finally decided we really didn't need “in motion” but for sure wanted the automatic satellite locator feature. The Winegard Mini-Max was our choice, and luckily for us, had one in stock, and installed by the end of the day. Finally…….something is getting fixed. Lloyd also diagnosed the Aqua-Hot problem to be a bad 110 volt, 14 gauge wire running from the circuit breaker to the Aqua-Hot. We’re waiting to hear back from Winebago on whether or not they will cover the cost of that repair.

So, here we sit, waiting on the ice maker from Dometic and a bracket for the front MCD motorized shades. Originally, Julie “predicted” they would be here November 5. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it gets here this week, as both CC and I are getting a case of hitch-itch. The staff here at McClain’s has been fantastic since our initial meeting Monday morning. CC says they are just tired of seeing our ugly mugs; I say, “Pass me the honey”.

 Until next time, take care and stay well………………..

October 1 - 7, 2012 "Oklahoma City Area"

Part of our ritual when leaving Colorado is keeping one eye on the weather. When they predict snow, we leave one day before, which is what we did last year. Since it worked well then, we followed the same protocol this year, and the weather followed suit. We pressed on to Oklahoma City with an overnight boondocking in Hays, KS at Wally World. As we turned south off of I-70 onto I-135, the strong winds from the north pushed us to Wichita in record time, and ultimately arrived at our destination in Oklahoma City by 4 pm. 

 CC has been busy helping her mom “streamline” her communication network, and setting up her new computer. By bundling with Cox, she was able to shave about $70 per month from her expenses, AND move up to digital TV and a 15 Mbps connection to the internet, as she had been on dial-up since the discovery of dirt; they still have dial-up?

We have an appointment to have a few items repaired at McClains RV on October 22, and hopefully they will complete the repairs in one day, provided they don’t need to order parts. What repairs? The ice maker is not making ice, the King-Dome satellite system is not connecting to any satellite, and the electric element is not heating the Aqua-Hot, so we must run the diesel burner for heat and hot water. All these are minor non-essential items, but we like to stay on top of things, and not let the list get too long.

We also hope to catch up with long-time friends while we are in the area, and fully understand sometimes “life” takes priority over visiting with a couple of homeless gypsies. So, there you have our comings and goings for the immediate future. Thanks for taking time to check in on us and until next time, take care and stay well…………….