Monday Q&A

I’m back with more questions from blog readers about RVing, what’s happening in our lives since we hung up the keys, and all kinds of other things. While I try to answer all questions individually, I also share some here occasionally.

Q. Our motorhome broke down in a suburb of Detroit and we called our roadside service. It took them over five hours to get somebody to tow us to a diesel repair shop. Is this common, or do we need to be looking for another roadside service company?”
A. That is not uncommon at all. You have to keep in mind that not every tow truck can come to the rescue of a full-size motorhome. It takes a specialized rig to tow something that big. When we were broken down, our wait times ranged from as little as an hour to over 12 hours. And I really don’t think any company is better than others. They all do good sometimes, and they all seem to drop the ball now and then.

Q. Please, please tell me your new historical novel will be out soon, Nick. I am drooling, waiting for it. Do you have a release date yet?
A. It is with the last proofreader now. Once she is finished and I make her corrections, it has to be formatted and then uploaded to Amazon. I am shooting for sometime toward the end of the week, or maybe the weekend, if all goes as planned.

Q. We sold the house we lived in for over 20 years to become fulltime RVers. We are back in the old hometown and drove by it yesterday, and we are just sick with what they have done to it. It was white with blue trim, and they painted it some kind of light green. The rose bushes I planted along the front and sides and spent hundreds of hours nurturing are all gone, as are the fruit trees we had on one side. Those are just some of the changes. I know it’s not ours anymore, but I want to knock on the door and tell them they ruined it. My sister tells me that we made the choice to sell it and travel, and I know she is right. But we are still upset. Is this a normal reaction, or are we being weird?
A. I once had a friend who was a very successful real estate broker. He never wanted home sellers and prospective buyers to meet because he said more than one deal fell apart when the buyers were describing the changes they planned to make, and the sellers became upset. Did the check clear the bank? If so, it’s theirs to do with what they want.

Q. My husband wants to buy an inflatable boat or inflatable kayak or something like that to take in the RV, and I seem to recall that you have had some, but I can’t remember the name of models. Can you remind me, please?
A. I have a Sea Eagle 435 PaddleSki, and Terry has a Sea Eagle 385 Fastrack. They are rugged and stable and an excellent choice for anybody traveling in an RV or living in a house because they are the size of a duffle bag when deflated. Even though we now have three hardshell kayaks, we still have our Sea Eagles and would never part with them.

Q. We have two large dogs, one is a mastiff/Dane mix and the other is a Heinz 57, and each of them weigh over 100 pounds. They are big goofy kids, but they do bark and intimidate people because they want love and attention from everybody they see. We tried to go to a couple of campgrounds last summer that would not allow us to come with the dogs. Now we’re talking about going fulltime, and we’re wondering if it’s going to be an issue for us. What are your thoughts?”
A. The hundred-plus pound dogs that you refer to as big rowdy kids can terrify people who don’t know them, and understandably so. When your dog comes running at them, they don’t know if it wants attention or dinner. I’m a dog lover, and I’ve always liked big dogs, but I also understand where people are coming from when they are cautious about animals that size. I would strongly suggest you look into training those animals, keeping them on leashes, and understanding that some campgrounds may not welcome you to be there due to insurance restrictions and/or customer protection. It comes with the territory when you own a large dog.

And finally, here’s a chuckle to start your day from the collection of funny signs we see in our travels and that our readers share with us.

Congratulations David C Schumaker, winner of our drawing for an audiobook of undone, the first book in my friend Jason Deas’ Burt Bigelow mystery series. We had 42 entries this time around. Stay tuned, a new contest starts soon.

Thought For The Day – My housekeeping style is best described as, “There appears to have been a struggle.”