As RVers, we all find ourselves in strange towns, wondering where the good places to eat are located. One good resource for us is Road Food, both the book and the website. We have discovered some real delights there, from the Brick Pit Barbecue in Mobile, Alabama, to Don’s Drive-In in Traverse City, Michigan, which has the best strawberry milkshakes we have ever tasted.

Yesterday, my cousin, Berni Frees, sent me a link to the Wheel of Lunch website, and just for giggles, I tried it out. Since we are in Tucson, I entered the zip code of Tra-Tel RV Park, and the first choice was one of Miss Terry’s favorite places, La Fuente Mexican Restaurant.  I gave it a second spin and it came to another place I’ve enjoyed in the past, the Bum Steer. Then I entered my daughter’s zip code in Show Low, Arizona, and it came up with El Rancho, one of our favorite Mexican restaurants in the country. Cool! I know it’s only an advertising gimmick, but what the heck, it’s fun.

Speaking of lunch, today we’re having lunch with a couple of very good friends, Jerry and Suzy LeRoy, who are driving up from their place in Benson to meet us at Mimi’s Cafe. Jerry and Suzy were not able to make it to our Yuma rally this year, so we’re looking forward to seeing them.

We’ve been having a frustrating time trying to get the recall upgrade for our Norcold refrigerator done. We got a letter from Norcold a few weeks ago, along with a number to call for a referral to a shop that could do the job. We were in Las Vegas at the time, and headed for Kingman, Arizona from there, so they gave us the name of a shop in Kingman.

We called, and the shop’s owner told us that he didn’t have the part in stock, but assured us that by the time we got to town he’d have it. As soon as we got to Kingman I called him, and was told it would be in the next day, and he’d call me as soon as it arrived. Of course, no phone call came, so I called late that the next afternoon, and got the same story. Tomorrow for sure. This went on for several days, and finally I called the day before we left town, and was assured the part would be there that afternoon, and they would call me the minute it arrived. Of course, no call came in, and it wasn’t until three days after we left Kingman that they finally called to say that it had arrived before we left, but they forgot to call us.

When we arrived in Show Low, Terry called Norcold again, and they gave us the name of a repair shop there. We called, got the same story (the part is out of stock, but I’ll call and get one right in), and we never heard from him again). Over the next four weeks, Terry called back several times, and the story never changed.

So yesterday, Terry called Norcold again, and asked if RV Renovators in Mesa, Arizona is an authorized shop to do the recall work. We have heard good things about this company, and our friends Tom and Barbara Westerfield had a lot of work done there just before our Yuma rally. Yes, RV Renovators is an authorized shop, but guess what? They don’t have the part in stock. They promised us they will get it in and be able to do the upgrade on Friday of next week. We are cautiously optimistic at this point.

Another frustration has been my search for an Apple 3G iPad. The only shops in Tucson that carry them are the Apple store and Best Buy. But nobody has one in stock, and they sell out the minute they arrive. They all have the WiFi model, but not the 3G. I guess the gadget is just too new yet, and everybody wants one. I’ll just wait until the big rush is over, and eventually I’ll locate one.

I’ve heard from several blog readers who have found them, and all are very pleased with their performance. The only negatives I have heard are about the poor service on AT&T’s 3G network. We left AT&T years ago for Verizon’s faster, more reliable service, but since the iPad only works on the AT&T system at this point, and I don’t want to invest in a secondary MiFi device to get online with Verizon when we’re away from the motorhome, it is what it is. 

Thought For The Day – Time is the best teacher; unfortunately it kills all of its students!

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I feel like I’m wading in waist deep muck. I have so much I need to get done, but it’s like every step I try to take forward takes forever to accomplish, and I keep falling further and further behind.

Part of it is that I feel like I have hit an emotional and physical wall. I can’t concentrate, my brain feels fuzzy, I’m grouchy and irritable, and I’m worn out. All I want to do is lie down and take about a 36 hour nap. I know that it’s all a delayed stress reaction to recent events, and I’ll work through it. I just needed to snivel. Okay, enough of that.

Yesterday we had a lot of running around to get done. Our first stop was at the post office in Summerdale to mail off a bunch of orders, and then we went to Camping World in Robertsdale, where I picked up a written estimate to have our rooftop automatic TV dish replaced. Among the other things that happened during the burglary was that he (or they) ripped out the control box for the rooftop dish and the Dish Network receiver, threw them on the floor and stomped on them. Since Winegard no longer makes our model of dish or supports it and no replacement parts are available, we have to get a new one.

While we were at Camping World, we picked up a folding aluminum outside step with a 1,000 pound capacity for times when the distance between the ground and the step of the Winnebago is too much for our stubby little legs.

Terry also found a small oak  footstool to put under her feet when  we’re traveling to make it more comfortable for her. The top raises to give access to a small storage area for items like remote controls and such, Just what I need, one more place to lose my remote control!

We then had to run over to Daphne, on Mobile Bay, to pick up some items at Sam’s Club, and while we were in the area, we stopped at the Bass Pro Shop at Spanish Fort. Terry wants a pair of fuzzy moccasin style slippers from Minnetonka or TeePee for Christmas, and I was hoping we could find some there, but they didn’t have what she wanted.   

We also went to an Office Depot to make copies of paperwork for the insurance company and faxed that to them. If you have ever wanted to be a crook for a living but are to afraid of going to jail, I think you should just open an insurance company. It’s like a license to steal. We have paid thousands of dollars in premiums over the years and never had a claim, but now that we need them, we are getting one runaround after another. One person tells you one thing and the next person contradicts the first one, things one tells us are covered the next one says are not, and “total replacement coverage” and “disappearing deductibles” are all bull$&@! when it comes time to pay off.

By the time we got all of that done, it was after 4 p.m. and we were getting hungry. I had spotted a Chinese buffet in a shopping center across the street from the Office Depot, and asked the clerk who sent our faxes if it was any good. She said she didn’t like Chinese, so couldn’t tell me, but one of her co-workers spoke up and said it was her family’s favorite Chinese restaurant, and that her sister drove all the way to Daphne from the far west side of Mobile to go there at least twice a month, so that was good enough for me. We adjourned to the Grand Buffet for dinner, and while I wouldn’t put it up in my Top 5 list of Chinese buffets, it was pretty darned good.

Back at the campground, I answered some e-mails that came in during the day, fiddled with the satellite and Dish receiver hoping against hope I could get them to work, and finally gave up in frustration. I know a lot of folks say that they don’t care much for TV, but I do. There are a few regular programs we watch regularly, and I am a news hound so I miss the daily news broadcasts and a lot of good documentaries on A&E, the History Channel, and such. Tomorrow I may drag out my old tripod dish and see if I can get any kind of a signal off that.

Of course, nothing stops Bad Nick. He has a new blog post titled Welcome Home, Sisters. Check it out and leave a comment.

Thought For The Day – There is great need for a sarcasm font.

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