Sometimes it sucks to be me. Oh, the life of a hard working fulltime RVing newspaper publisher! Will the grind never end?

Yesterday I slept in until about 10 a.m., which isn’t really sleeping in for me, because that’s about the time I usually wake up. But Miss Terry wasn’t there to snuggle and cuddle up with like she usually is, so I had to just lay there all by myself and drowse off and on for a while before I finally drug myself out of bed.

And just in time, because Terry was busy making me a batch of her delicious crepes, with strawberry jam, for breakfast! I checked my e-mail, then read some of my favorite RV blogs. Greg White had finally posted something, after taking a day off; Dennis Hill was bragging, and deservedly so, about the pork butts he was smoking in Texas; my pals Joe and Marcia Jones are leaving Key West in search of new adventures; Stu and Donna McNicol’s blog had some new pictures of their puppy; and Mike McFall’s had pictures of his cat. Then I popped into Facebook to check in on all of my friends there.

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With all of that done and breakfast finished, we goofed off for several hours, and then decided to get some paddling in on Lake Hancock. We’re getting better at inflating my Sea Eagle PaddleSki 435 kayak, but Miss Terry and I both agree that we need to contact Tim at Inflatable Boats 4 Less and order one of their electric pumps to make the job even easier. Even so, in less than 10 minutes the boat was ready to go and I was paddling away from the launch.

We paddled to the south side of the lake, to check out this derelict old sailboat, which somebody apparently pulled up to shore and abandoned. At one time this was somebody’s pride and joy, and now it’s just rotting away. I wonder how it got into this sad condition.

We paddled around the lake for about 90 minutes, crossing over to the far side and back, stopping occasionally to rest and just enjoy the water.

Miss Terry has the sharpest eyes of anybody I’ve ever known. We can be rolling down the highway at 60 miles per hour, and she’ll point out antelope grazing in a meadow, or a hawk resting on a fence post.

She spotted this osprey perched high in a tree beside the lake, and paddled over to take its picture. With the things she can turn out with her cheap little Olympus point and shoot camera, I think Terry needs to move up to a digital SLR. But the pocket size camera is handy and she always has it with her. A larger camera might end up spending more time in its case, instead of being carried all of the time.

We also saw all of these turkey vultures sitting together. How many can you count?

The sun was sinking low in the sky when we came off the water, and by the time we got the boats dried off and stowed away, and got back to the motorhome, it was starting to get dark. We spent the evening watching TV and cruising the internet.

So there you have it, my hardworking day. Unlike most working folks, I don’t even get Sunday’s off! Yeah, it sucks to be me.

Bad Nick didn’t have it any easier. He worked yesterday too, posting a new Bad Nick Blog installment of the popular Dumb A$$ Report. Check it out and leave a comment.

Thought For The Day – A true friend is one who thinks you are a good egg, even if you are half-cracked.

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Yesterday we left Show Low Lake Campground and moved to the campground at the Elks lodge. Since we were only going about three miles, we didn’t bother hooking up the van to tow, Terry just drove it and followed me.

The Elks lodge has fifteen full hookup 30/50 amp gravel sites in the pine trees, which at $15 a night is a heck of a deal in this resort area. The sites are not very level, and we are once again wishing we had leveling jacks.

When we arrived, we were the only RV here, and there was a sailboat on a trailer in one other site. A couple of hours after we got settled in, a pickup with a large overhead camper arrived and parked with the boat. Shortly after that, a very nice Mountain Aire diesel pusher arrived, so now we have some neighbors.

For RVers who travel as much as we do, membership in the Elks and Moose can be a real money saver. Many lodges have dedicated RV parks like this, and even more will allow traveling members to spend the night in their parking lots. The fee, if they charge any at all, is usually very low compared to local RV parks, and the money we pay goes to help support the lodges’ community work, so everybody wins!

After being on a site with just electric for two weeks, it was time to dump our holding tanks, and then Terry started a load of laundry. With those chores out of the way, we drove a few blocks to my daughter Tiffany’s house, where son-in-law Jim threw some steaks on the grill.

Tiffany had seen a Holiday Rambler diesel pusher in a yard nearby for sale, and she took me over to check it out. It was a 1996 model, and just in looking at its outside condition, I knew it was not something we would be interested in.

The owner told me that she and her husband had purchased it five years ago, had driven it less than 2,000 miles, and it has been sitting for over two years. She said nobody had even been inside it in over a year, and I could sure tell that the minute she opened the door! It reeked with a musty, mildew smell, the furniture was faded from the sun, and the roof had obviously suffered some water damage. She said they owed “about” $36,000 to $38,000 and just wanted to get enough out of it to pay the bank off. I wanted to tell her lots of luck, but I just told her it didn’t fit our needs and we left.

It is unfortunate that there are so many people who are buried in RVs that they will never be able to sell for what they owe on them. And then there are hopeful sellers who are just unrealistic in their expectations. We have been actively shopping for a used diesel pusher, and have seen some very good deals out there. But we have also seen people asking 20 to 30 percent more for their coaches than other similar rigs are going for.

I exchanged e-mails with a gentleman who read in the blog that we were shopping, who has a five year old upscale diesel coach for sale. He and his wife fulltimed in it until she passed away last year, and he no longer travels. He paid $225,000 for it, and he wants $185,000 firm. The coach is way out of our price range, but I sent him several online ads for the same year and model coaches with asking prices of $100,000 to $125,000 so he would know why he wasn’t getting any offers. He replied that losing $8,000 a year was bad enough, and he would just keep advertising it until the right buyer comes along. It’s a nice rig, but I think he’ll own it a long, long time.

Thought For The Day – You know you’re into middle age when you realize that caution is the only thing you care to exercise.

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