Vacation 2012 - Day 5, June 26

Day 5

     Woke up to the falling of water from the tree above us, the time being closer to eight than anything. The plan is to make it to Spokane today, that shouldn’t be a problem.

     Before we left we had to do a couple of items. We had to feed the cats, we’ve decided to switch up what they eat from just dry food to a mixture of dry and canned with the hopes that it will help with one of our cat’s digestive problems.

     We also had to put some flea killing stuff on all of our pets. They’ve had them since we left the house and we’ve been forgetting to give them the stuff. With luck the medication should stop our dogs from biting and scratching themselves so much.

     We set off at nine, again.

     We stopped around 10:30 for a bit of shopping. We got some more pet stuff, plus a bit more human food. We also got some clothes, which included swimming trunks for me and dad as we had forgotten ours at home.

     After shopping we went a little ways and stopped at a Subway for lunch. We were hoping since we were in Oregon that they would have gluten free bread, like they said all Subways in Oregon did. But just our luck, they did not. So mom was unable to get anything from Subway, but the rest of the family got something for lunch.

     We got back into the RV around 11:30, and started to eat our Lunch. We set off around ten minutes later.

     We stopped for a bathroom break a while later, but were soon on the road again.

     We pulled into Idaho, the state we are staying in.

     At around four we stopped to fill up, had a little confrontation with another driver when we had problems getting out. But that was quick and only verbal.

     We pulled right across the street to our stop. The place we will be spending the next several days at. It is in a town called Post Falls, it is near the border of Idaho and Washington. Before we could plug in we had to quickly take the van off the trailer and then we had to back into the spot we had been assigned.

     We had several problems hooking up. For one, our power cable was too short, and even with our extension it was still too short, but not by much. It was just short enough for one of the adapters we had, so we hooked into a plug in that was meant for a bit higher amperage.

     The second problem, and the main one, was our sewer hose. Even with all three of our hoses we still had a bit over twenty feet to go. Dad had to go up to the front and buy another long hose. And once he got the hose he had to fight to get some connectors onto it, but then broke the connector.

     So dad had to go back up to the front and buy a different form of a connector. This one basically connected the two hoses without any practical way to unhook them again. It took a little bit but eventually dad was able to get the piece in and then finish hooking up the sewer. And with that we became fully hooked up.

     We had a few other things to move about but the rest of the set up was uneventful.

     About two hours after we pulled in, we all jumped into the van and went off for a drive. First scouted a couple of places, finding a waterfall like area, spent a few minutes checking it out. Once done with that we went looking for food, sadly we failed. We could not find any local food place open at the time, which was nearing nine.

     We had to drive for a while before we finally decided to just go to a Denny’s, and had a good dinner there.

     After that we went straight back to the RV and went about our different business.

Day five typed up June 26, 2012, all past vacation entries this year edited same day.

Vacation 2012 - Day 4, June 25

Day 4

     Well a lovely wake up on this day. Most of us didn’t start to wake up until 8:30. From my understanding we only have fuel stops planned for the day so it should be an uneventful day.

     We had our stops without trouble. Don’t even ask me what times we stopped. I was playing a game all day.

     But those weren’t the only stops. We also had to stop for lunch real quickly. But a bit before that stop we pulled over to check on a pulled over trailer, worried that they might have a flat tire, or something else. We got lucky; they had only pulled over for a bathroom break. We didn’t stick around long before we set off again.

     We arrived out our stop for the night around 5:30 again. We are in Oregon now, and just our luck we stop for the night at a place that has no hookups, which means no power, no water, and no sewer. Normally that wouldn’t be such a bad thing, but just our luck we are also in a dead zone. All of this combined has set my sister off on a tantrum.

     She is getting upset at everything and refuses to calm down and DO something. Well, we’ll live, but you would think that listening to her.

     We should be arriving at the spot where we will be spending around five days at. We should be lucky enough to have hookups then, correction we WILL have hookups, don’t know about Internet though. I just hope we get some coverage not long after we get under way, if not I guess I’ll go right back to typing up one of my stories.

     Mom is making dinner, chicken, rice, potatoes and salad.

     After dinner we played a card game, we’ve been calling it golf. We played two games which had around nine hands. The luck of the cards was not with me, but mom appeared to have beginners luck, big time.

Day 4 typed up June 25, 2012, modified June 26, 2012

Vacation 2012 - Day 3, June 24

Day 3:

     Well I am typing this one up as we go. So far we have been on the road for about an hour.

     Was forced to get up about fifteen minutes till nine, we quickly got the RV ready to go and were on the road sometime around nine.

     At around 10 we hit a road construction and were thus slowed for a little bit. But also while going through that area of the highway we crossed the border into Nevada.

     About 50 minutes after the border crossing we got a stop planned. Exact time of stop to come…Well we are at the stop. It is nothing more than a fuel stop. It is a Costco, and the time of the stop is 10:57. I would just mark it as 11. Left around 11:08

     But sadly we got a railroad museum just five minutes after that fuel stop. Time of stop 11:15ish. The museum was alright, rather small but alright. They also had a couple of old trains in another building nearby. We also learned the museum was not yet complete and was currently being expanded.

     When we were done with the museum we went across the street for a bit of shopping. Some of the things we bought were for ourselves while other things were for our pets. With the first bit of shopping done we drove a little ways and pulled into another parking spot. Here we got something for the computers.

     When we were done with shopping we stayed in the RV and had lunch, each of us having different lunches.  We got back on the road a few minutes before 1 PM.

     We returned to California some time before 2.

     Mom and I fell asleep a bit afterwards. And then we woke up around an hour and half later, me before mom. She woke up when we stopped at a little rest stop that had an odd pump thing. I let the dogs out and walked them a bit while mom, sister and dad explored a little bit. We didn’t stay there for longer than ten minutes before we left again.

     We pulled into our stop for the night around five. Quickly got the power, sewer, water and cable all plugged in. So fare from memory this is the first spot that has WiFi, and good 3G coverage. For dinner we are eating in the RV, something of family creation, which are potatoes and hot dogs/sausages.

Day 3 typed up June 24, 2012

Vacation 2012 - Day 2 June 23

Day 2:

     On day two we all woke up at different times, me being around 8:30 and also the last to wake. I was not in a good mood when I woke up. We quickly got ready to leave, some of us had some breakfast and we left the RV Park around 9 AM.

     About fifteen minutes we stopped at our first stop. It was an old Japanese “Internment” camp. It was called Manzanar. We went into a museum and spent around an hour and maybe a half in there. After that we hopped back into the RV and drove around the place. I made it to the cemetery marker before I fell asleep.

     The next time I woke up we were pulling into a small town that had a train museum. I didn’t go, I still felt like crap at the time. The rest of the family went in thou and they said it was an alright place to miss. I however spent the time looking out the window or brushing a pet comb though my dog, for no real reason.

     When they came back we set off again, this time for an “Upside down house.” When we stopped there the family went out and looked at a museum while I took the dogs out for a walk around the parking lot. When the family came out they went next door and saw the “Upside down house.” It was then that my mother came back to the RV and took a seat right at the door of the thing allowing the pets to breathe some fresh air. I hand her back the small dog and I took our big dog for a bit more of a walk.

     In no time at all we were all ready to head out again. The next stop was a wildlife recreation area, I think. I again spent that stop in the RV while the family checked it out. But for this stop I spent the time typing.

     I did the same thing on the next stop which was just down the road, and part of the same area. That stop was a bit shorter and then we were off again.

     During one of those past stops somewhere we had to stop to get some gas, don’t ask where I was half awake at the time.

     Well after the one stop we started up a hill and spent around an hour traveling before we came to our stop for the night. It was at an RV park we had visited before and is east of Yosemite National Park. We pulled in somewhere around, I think, 5:45. And in no time at all we were given a spot, had paid, pulled in, and had sewer, water and power all plugged in.

     A bit after we all set up, we went to dinner at a little Italian place. The place was not cheap but the food and service was GREAT. I got a nice pizza, but couldn’t finish all of it. The rest of the family got some forms of different pastas and finished all their foods, as well as some deserts, but mostly my dad and his mother had those.

     With dinner done we came back to the RV and started to go about different Items. Mom and Dad fought with computers, Sister did something, and father’s mother (nana) seemed to mostly read, while I just typed up more chapters of different stories.

     And now here I am typing up what happened the last two days. I will try and keep this little item updated every day. But I am expecting a few days were I won’t be able to. And now I wait for the events of tomorrow.

All past vacation entries this year written: June 23, 2012

Vacation 2012 - Day 1 June 22

Day 1:

     Well the first day we spent most of the time ether sitting around or getting the RV ready. But at one point we all got off our butts and started to just get the RV ready.

To get said RV ready all we really had to do was load up who knows how much crap into it. And like every year it is too much crap.

     But on a different note we were able to leave around 4 o’clock, and yes that is PM and also pacific time. But we did not go all that far before we stopped to make sure all the tires on not just the RV but also the trailer that the thing tows along with it were full of air.

     That check on the tires did not prove to be very good though. For around an hour later, don’t ask me what happened between then and getting on the freeway for I was zoned out and sleeping lightly. Anyways as I was saying about an hour later the outside duelly on the passenger side had a problem.

     Now the problem wasn’t that the tire went flat, it was that the treading of the tire, the part that connects to the road, well it just came off. That is right, the treading just came off. The only thing we had to keep the air in was the mesh part of the tire. Now that was kinda cool to look at an all, but it was very dangerous.

     We had to go a ways before we were able to pull over and change tires, it was also then that we noticed the blowing of the treads caused more damage. The mud catcher that usually surround the tires, well that got destroyed. But we got to work on changing the tires. My dad worked on getting the bad tire off and I worked on getting one of the spare tires we got.

     Now the spare tire is on a little item had been made in back of the RV. It is held onto the RV were we put our sewer lines but also uses a piece of metal and a couple of screws to keep it up. It took me a bit to get the damn thing down, but once down I was able to roll it over to dad easily. But also once downed I heard a noise that comes from one of the screws popping out.

     So when I had finished rolling the tire over I went back and looked for the blasted screw. Once I found it I also saw something that did not look right. The metal part that we used to hold up the tire, it had a large gash threw half of it and the other half looked like it could break at any time.

     I immediately told my father about it and he agreed. We took the metal off and threw it into the RV; we won’t be using that part anytime soon.

     It took us around another half hour before were done with changing the tire, and near the end of that time a tow truck FINALLY stopped by. We did nothing more than tell him what was going on and that we didn’t need any help. He said alright and left.

     Now I said we stopped to change the tire about an hour after we left right? Well even if I didn’t, I just did. But anyways it took a little over 50 minutes to change that tire. So we started to move again around 5:52, I think.

     But after that, the ride was pretty quiet. I fell asleep for around two hours at one point and when I woke up we were pulling into a place I think is called Kramer Junction. We had to fuel up and get some food for dinner. Subway was what we got, but for some reason I was starting to get sick and couldn’t finish my sub, oh well.

      We spent several more hours on the road before we finally stopped for the night at some place; don’t remember where or when, I was trying to fall asleep by that point.