Last Q&A Of The Year

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. When you had your RV, did you take the battery out over the winter season? And if so, was it still charged when you put it back in?
A. We fulltimed, so that was never an issue. However, when we bought our place here, we put the RV in storage with the batteries disconnected. Even so, four months later, they were dead. My suggestion is to plug a trickle charger into them if you have a place to get power for it.

Q. Forgive what is probably a dumb question, but I’m very curious. I know that they make weaving yarn from sheep’s wool, and I think alpaca too. A friend told me she made yarn from her dogs’ hair, but not sure if she was pulling my leg or not. You said the blanket Terry made is from Shetland wool. Is that from Shetland ponies?
A. Shetland wool comes from Shetland sheep, a popular breed from the Shetland Islands. And yes, people really do spin their pets’ hair to make yarn.

Q. I seem to recall that you and Terry were lifetime members of Escapees and Passport America? What happened to those memberships once you hung up the keys and stopped RVing?
A. Nothing really happened to them. We still get the Escapes magazine, and I imagine if we ever got another RV, we could use our Passport America membership.

Q. I like to listen to audiobooks when we are on the road and have listened to the eight you have out now. Will you ever be bringing any more of your books out as audiobooks?
A. I actually have twelve audiobooks out but do not expect to release any more of them. While many authors I know do very well with audiobooks, my sales have always been dismal. The time and expense to produce them do not justify the return.

Q. I have been a reader for many years, and you have told us about so many favorite places you and Terry have visited. What about places you didn’t like, or that were a disappointment, and why?
A. Though many RV snowbirds love spending the winter in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, the three or four times we visited that area, we did not like it at all. To us, it was just blah. Busy, dusty, flat, and brown landscape with not many trees. Key West, Florida, was also a disappointment. While we love the middle keys, Key West is just too crowded, too touristy, and not our style. And even though it’s an island, there are only a couple of public beaches and access to the water is limited. If you are not into bar hopping or spending money, once you see the few tourist attractions, that’s about it. We spent eight days there on a friend’s houseboat in the marina and drove back up to Marathon Key at least half of those days.

Q. You have not mentioned playing darts in a long time. I liked hearing about your informal competitions. Have you stopped that?
A. We quit playing when my back was so bad because the pain would not allow me to. Terry and I have played a few games since my RF ablations, but not many. We need to get back into that.

Q. We are staying at a campground near where my wife is undergoing cancer treatment and will be here for several months. The campground refuses to accept mail for guests, so we have to have our mail forwarding service send it general delivery to the post office, but the one we have to go to pick it up is fifteen miles away with a lot of heavy traffic. Do you have any suggestions on an easier way to get our mail?
A. First of all, we wish your wife well as she deals with her illness and recovery. If there is a UPS store or Safe Ship location near the campground, you could rent a temporary mailbox from them. Google ‘personal mailboxes near me.’ I’m sure you will find something.

And in closing, here is another of our funny signs we see in our travels and that our readers share with us.

Thought For The Day – I told my wife I wanted to be cremated. She made me an appointment for Tuesday.