Today we’re going to try again to get our motorhome’s two piece windshield replaced. We had an appointment for last Friday but it was cancelled at the last minute, so hopefully we can get it done. Both sides have big cracks in them and I really want to get them done before we head south in a couple of weeks. Hopefully we’ll be in and out in a couple of hours, no more than four if they run into any difficulties. Terry used to run a commercial glass shop and back in the day I know she could have made child’s play out of the job.
Taking your house to the shop is always one of the hassles of the fulltime RV lifestyle. Hopefully we can just stay inside the RV while they do the work. At least we don’t have any pets. That can be a hassle if you’re having something done and need to spend any time in a repair shop’s waiting room. Especially if somebody else is there with their pets, too. We’ve been in a couple of situations like that where dogs got into snarling matches.
Speaking of RV repairs and pets in RVs, I got an e-mail the other day from a woman who was complaining that an RV rental company was ripping her off. She said she and her husband want to RV fulltime, so they took the advice of several people and decided to rent a Class C motorhome for a two week trip and see what they thought of it.
She said that their dog had never been in a car or RV before and reacted very badly, whining and howling much of the time they were on the road. And when left it alone, it barked and howled. It also messed on the floor and chewed up the armrest on one of the seats. She said when they returned from their trip, the rental company charged $900 to her credit card for cleaning and repairs and the time RV was not available for rent. “How can they do that? That should be considered normal wear and tear,” she wrote.
How is it fair? Why would you think it’s fair for your animal to damage something and for the business to have to foot the bill for the repairs and loss of income while it is in the shop? Normal wear and tear does not include damage from negligence or from your kids or animals.
Congratulations Cathie Laurent, winner of our drawing for an audiobook of Castle Cay by Lee Hanson! We had 114 entries this time around. Stay tuned, a new contest starts soon!
My buddy George Wier has two great books you should check out. Errant Knight is the story of Shelby Knight, a cop who turned in his badge and put his gun under glass after a fatal shooting he was involved in, and what he does when trouble comes calling. George’s other new book, Sentinel In Elysium . deals with a double murder in a small Texas town and the investigation that follows. I’m a big fan of George’s work, and if you try one of his books I think you will become a fan, too.
Thought For The Day – I hate those people who knock on your door and say you have to be saved or you’ll burn. Stupid firemen.
Nick Russell
World-Famous, New York Times Best Selling Author, and All-Around Nice Guy!
Our last pet died before we sold our home and took off in the RV. We have thought, from time to time, about getting a dog from a shelter. We enjoy other folks pets and always travel with treats (I am the Treat Fairy) and have great fun having “play dates” with pooches who belong to friends. They just come over to our place and hang out for a while if their owners need to take care of something or go out of town. There are several reasons why we have not adopted. We like to go out and explore, and often think we will be gone for 4 or 5 hours. Well … 8 hours later, we are still interested in what we are looking at or have found something else to see. NOT fair to a pet to wait that long, and we are too selfish to want to give up our freedom to roam. I can’t tell you how many times I have put notes on the doors of rigs where the owners have gone and the pooch is whining and crying and barking ceaselessly. The owners might think that the dog only begins barking when it hears them return … or the dog has exhausted itself and is quiet by the time they get there. They have no clue as to the suffering that the dog and the neighbors endure in their absence. We will wait to adopt. Not fair to the dog.
That’s why we don’t have a pet, Carol, as much as we love animals. Like you, we are gone a lot exploring and playing tourist and it is not fair to the animal or to us.
Nick, your comment about what your reader who had the dog that didn’t like to travel is spot on. While it was a shame that she had to learn this lesson the hard and expensive way, it’s better to know what to expect now rather than after she and her husband get a rig and move into it. We tried the same thing with our cat before we hit the road full time, and found out that she didn’t appreciate being in a moving vehicle by making as much noise as if she was in heat, and by making messes on just about all upholstered surfaces. We had to make the decision to give her to friends just prior to leaving, and it was a very hard choice for me. But she’s a lot happier now living in a house that doesn’t move, and we’re happier not having to hear her, and clean up after her. I wish the lady the best in her future, and the choices she has to make.
Wow, never knew you were such an animal hater. I’m disappointed. There are so many animals needing loving homes and it is selfish not to help them. Think I’ll do my reading somewhere else from now on.
Jerry: why don’t you just adopt two more pets that Nick/Terry are passing up. You sound like a stick & brick kind of guy with a backyard.
Oh yeah, go read some more absorbing & fascinating daily news.