I exchanged e-mails yesterday with a couple who said that they have a very nice 1999 Newmar Mountain Aire that they absolutely love, but the coach is beginning to show its age and they were thinking about buying a new diesel pusher to replace it.

They said that after months of shopping, they have not found anything that they like as much as their Newmar. It has 85,000 miles on it, which is not much for a diesel motorhome, it runs fine, and they have maintained it very well. But the paint is faded, the interior is dated, and the carpet and furniture are getting threadbare. They asked me what I would do in their place.

I told them that if I had a rig I liked, and that I knew and trusted, I’d think very hard about investing some money and time upgrading it, instead of buying something new. If your present RV runs strong and you like it, and it just needs cosmetic improvements, you might be well advised to keep what you have and invest spending some money to make it nicer, instead of spending a lot of money for a new one.

New isn’t always better. I know several people with top of the line new or newer motorhomes who spend a good part of their time dealing with problems and trying to get repairs made, instead of enjoying traveling.  

Our dear friends Ron and Brenda Speidel present an excellent seminar at RV rallies with the title Don’t Replace, Refurnish that is always a hit with attendees. Ron and Brenda are very happy with their Winnebago Journey, so instead of buying something knew, in the last couple of years they had a full body paint job done, upgraded their window treatments, installed flat screen TVs, replaced the carpeting with wood flooring, replaced the shower, and several other upgrades. For a lot less than they would have spent on a new motorhome, they have transformed their very nice coach into a palace on wheels.

Jack and Julee Meltzer, authors of the RV Makeover Bible, have now brought their excellent reference out in e-book format, and anybody who is even thinking about trading in a good but older RV for a newer model really should read it before they go shopping. If you have an RV that needs some spiffing up, Jack and Julee have also started a new blog on RV upgrades that I’m sure will be helpful.

We know of several excellent companies that can transform a dated motorhome or fifth wheel into a showpiece for a fraction of the cost of buying a new rig, including Focal Wood Products in Nappanee, Indiana. Owner Carlyle Lehman built the custom desk units, table, and bookcase for our motorhome, and we were delighted with the quality craftsmanship, and the price. Carlyle also does custom window treatments, flat screen TV upgrades, and just about anything else you can think of.

A few miles away, Michele Henry at Phoenix Commercial Paint in Elkhart has built up quite a reputation with her beautiful full body RV paint jobs. We know RVers who have paid two and three times as much money to have their rigs painted, and the results are not as good as what Michele turns out.

Another reliable shop for upgrades is Bradd and Hall, also in Elkhart. Besides selling RV furniture by such well known manufacturers as Flexsteel, the company also offers many upgrade services.

Out in Mesa, Arizona, RV Renovators can do anything, from adding a slide room to completely refurbishing your home on wheels. We saw some of their work this past spring, and were very impressed with the quality of their work, and their dedication to customer satisfaction.

I’d feel comfortable recommending any of these companies to folks who have an RV that they want to upgrade, whether than spending a king’s ransom for a new one that may not be nearly as good as what they already have.

Thought For The Day – A walk through a lunatic asylum shows that faith does not prove anything.

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A few readers have asked lately about operating a business on the road, and more specifically, how we run our business as we travel. While there are some websites whose owners go into depth about their finances, how much they need to earn, and how they plan to earn it, I really don’t feel comfortable doing so to that extent. But I will share some thoughts on our business model and on mobile businesses in general.

Over the years, Terry and I have built a successful business on the road publishing the Gypsy Journal RV Travel Newspaper, our books and RV guides, web publishing, and speaking at RV rallies and shows. As with any small business, we had some very tight times over the years, but we hung in there, we improvised when necessary, we adapted to the changing marketplace, and we listened to what our customers told us they wanted and tried to supply it.

We operate as a sole proprietorship, which is the simplest form of business structure. Each business form, sole proprietorship, partnership, subchapter S corporation, or a full corporation has it’s advantages and disadvantages. There is no “one size fits all,” so I won’t even begin to suggest which might be right for you.

Our motorhome and van are not registered to the business. If you are financing an RV, you’ll be hard pressed to find a bank that will loan the money to purchase an RV or automobile to a new mobile business, nor will they usually allow you to register it in your business name.

We had signs on our pickup with the name of our business on them, but on the advice of a friend who is an insurance agent, when we got the van we didn’t put signs on it. If we were to do so, and then got into an accident, who knows what our insurance company would say about a claim? Might they say that we insured the vehicle for personal use, and are using it for a business, and deny a claim? My experiences with insurance companies makes me very wary of giving them any reason at all to try to weasel out of a claim. 

We use QuickBooks Pro to keep track of our income and expenses, and I have found it to be an excellent program that is easy to use and adaptable to most business structures.

Okay, that’s how we do things. It might or might not be right for you and your business.

What kind of business should you start? That depends on you, on your skills and talents, on your interests, and on how much money you have to invest to get it off the ground. We know RVers who have successful service and sales businesses, or operate online businesses as they travel. We have also seen a lot of people come and go over the years, who just couldn’t make it.

One mistake I see a lot of wannabe entrepreneurs make is to decide that since they see a lot of vendors selling waterless car wash, Chia pets, or solar lights, or XYZ widgets, they must all be making money, so they’ll sell them too. The market is saturated with a lot of products, which means that most of those vendors selling the same things are barely making a buck, if they are at all. Find new, unique, and useful products that shoppers can’t see at every other vending table and I believe you’ll have a much better chance of success.

The internet has become a big part of our income stream, and I think it offers many RVers the best opportunity to earn money with the least financial investment. Specialty blogs and websites serving a niche market can bring in revenue from display advertising, from ad networks such as Google AdSense, and through the sale of your own or affiliate products. We do all of them on our various blogs and websites and they all help our bottom line.

Recently we have seen a trend among some websites and blogs posting donation links and asking their readers to contribute. The feedback I have heard from the reading public makes me believe that this can do more harm to a website’s reputation and to the public’s perception of it, than the income they might receive. 

There is a misconception among many RVers that all you have to do is say you are in business, find a product and display it at a few RV rallies or swap meets, and you can write off all of your travels, the cost of your RV, campground fees, and anything else you spend. Unfortunately, that’s just not true. The nice folks at the tax office expect you to operate as a business and make a profit, not just play around at it.

And even if you have a viable working business, there are limits on what you can declare as legitimate expenses. I’m not an accountant, but you need to speak to one to understand what you can and cannot write off. 

Customer service, hard work, dedication, and innovation are all important to making a business work. But if there is one secret to success in any business, be it in a fixed location, or on the road, I believe that it is to give it your all, 100% of the time, no matter what happens or what obstacles you encounter.  And tomorrow, you need to get up and do it all over again. Eventually you outlive or outlast the competition.

On another topic, Bad Nick has been busy posting a new Bad Nick Blog titled And Yet They Did Nothing. Check it out and leave a comment.

Thought For The Day – Every morning I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I’m not there, I go to work.

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Except for a brief visit from my daughter Tiffany yesterday, and a break to go to dinner with Greg and Jan White, I spent most of the day at my desk working on the new issue of the Gypsy Journal.

Since I am in the process of switching production from our antiquated Adobe PageMaker computer page layout program to the current InDesign program that most of the newspaper industry uses these days, there is a learning curve that I am trying to master.

That being said, I really don’t have much to write about for today’s blog, so instead, I thought that I’d post a blog on frequently asked questions (FAQs) about the Gypsy Journal. We get some questions over and over about how we produce the paper, and why we do things the way we do. Here are some of our most often asked questions, and an explanation of the whys and wherefores of how we do what we do.

Q. How do I know when my subscription is due to expire?

A. We send out a renewal notice with your paper two issues before it is due to expire, and again with the last issue before expiration. For subscribers to our digital issue, we send an e-mail alerting them when it is time to renew. There is also a number on the top line of your address on the envelope the paper arrives in. That number is the issue your subscription expires with. The issue number is always in our masthead, at the bottom right of Page 2. For example, I am working on issue 67, so if the number on the top line of your address block is 70, you have three more issues to go before you are due to renew.

Q. What does the letter C, G or R after my expiration number mean?

A. The C is a code we use to tell us you have a courtesy subscription (usually given away as a door prize at a rally). G means you have a gift subscription. R means you are a customer that has renewed in the past. You may also see a series of letters after the expiration number. LOW means you first subscribed at Life on Wheels, OW means you came to us from the old Out West newspaper, and TLR means you were a subscriber to Two Lanes Roads before that publication shut down.

Q. Why do you use different printers and mail houses around the country, instead of just having one place you use to print and mail each issue?

A. Because we travel all of the time, and because we always print several thousand extra copies to pass out at rallies and RV parks, shipping those extra papers to wherever we may be would be both expensive, and cause travel delays that we can’t afford.

Q. Why don’t you just go to an all electronic format instead of a printed publication?

A. While we do have a digital issue available, the great majority of our readers tell us they want the printed format. I’m a dinosaur who loves the feel and smell of ink and newsprint. Besides, it’s too hard to carry your laptop computer to the bathroom.

Q. Why don’t you have very much outside advertising in the Gypsy Journal?

A. I have sold millions of dollars worth of advertising in my newspaper career, and even though I’m pretty good at it, I hate sales. I’d much rather spend my time searching out new things to write about. Also, when you have advertisers, they sometimes want to dictate what a publication can say. I’m too stubborn for that. If I think a particular product is junk, I say so. Not many companies want to spend their advertising dollars with a publication that may tell the truth about their products. If we could find an experienced, energetic salesperson, we would probably let them try to build up our ad count a bit, but we’re not trying to make a fortune, just get by, and our business model has worked so far for us.

Q. Why isn’t your telephone number included on your masthead on Page 2 so I can call you if I want to?

A. We do not have an established office; we run our business from the road. We check our e-mail several times a day, and we usually receive snail mail every week. Those are the best ways to reach us. At one time we did publish our telephone number, and it became a problem. We got calls at midnight when we were on the East coast from people on the West coast who were looking for a campground for the night and wanted recommendations. When we were on the West coast, we got calls at 6 a.m. from people on the East coast wanting to tell us about a funny sign they had seen and should include in the paper. It just became too much of a problem.

Q. Why do you have other websites, such as your Honor A Veteran or the Bad Nick Blog?

A. We have several websites, GypsyJournal.net, MotorcycleTravelOnline.com, Publishing4Profit.com, HonorAVeteran.com, and the Bad Nick Blog. I started them partly because they cover topics I am interested in and saw a need for, and partly for economic reasons. Each time someone clicks the ad links on our websites, we make a small commission. It all adds up to help us make a profit.

Q. What happened to your Today’s Hero Blog?

A. While I really enjoyed Today’s Hero, and it is still online, though I haven’t updated it in months. People just stopped sending in new nominations and I ran out of heroes to write about. I’d like to revive it someday if there is enough interest.

Q. Why is your main website GypsyJournal.net instead of .com?

A. The .com suffix was already taken when I started our Gypsy Journal website and the .net was the next best thing available.

Q. You seem to be going in a dozen different directions at once, between the paper, your rallies, speaking at RV events, and your websites. Where do you find the time for everything?

A. Everything in life takes some sacrifice, and one has to set priorities. In my case, I have given up dieting and exercise to squeeze in the extra time I need. Seriously, I’m pretty much a Type A person and I thrive on all of this. After a lifetime of publishing daily and weekly newspapers, having a deadline come around every two months is like a permanent vacation, and I need to fill the time.

Q. You do an Eastern and a Western rally every year. How about a third, floater rally, maybe in the Pacific Northwest one time, in the south another time?

A. This has come up before, and Miss Terry assures me that if I add one more event, she’ll be sitting under a palm tree on a beach somewhere when it happens. We can only stretch ourselves so far.

Q. I have all of your books. Are you going to bring out any more?

A. I have a couple written now that still need to be proofed and formatted. I hope to be able to announce them very soon. And there are several other writing projects I am also working on.

Q. What do you see in the future for the Gypsy Journal and for yourselves? Any long term plans to settle down someplace in the future?

A. Terry and I are both in agreement that we’ll continue to do just what we are doing for as long as we possibly can. We’re both in pretty good health, we’re having fun, and we’re happy. Why would we want to do anything else? As long as we can physically continue, and as long as our readers keep on wanting what we produce, we’ll be out here exploring America’s small towns and back roads, and writing about our travels.

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When I first heard about Apple’s new tablet computer, I have to admit that my first reaction was “So what? I already have a desktop computer, a laptop computer, and a netbook computer. What can the iPad do that they can’t?” Then I saw my first iPad, and my immediate reaction was “I want one!” 

As it turns out, there is not much you can do on an iPad that you can’t do with another type of computer, but there is a lot that I can do with an iPad that I don’t do on my other computers. Things like relaxing on the couch and surfing the web at the same time, or checking my e-mail while visiting the in-laws, or reading USA Today for free while waiting in the van while my wife is in the bank or grocery store.

The iPad comes in two versions, either a WiFi only version, or a 3G model (capable of accessing the internet via AT&T) which also is WiFi capable if you are near a WiFi hotspot. Both versions come with either 16, 32 or 64 gig of storage. I wanted the 64 gig 3G model, because one of my big reasons for wanting an iPad was for internet access away from our motorhome. Getting one proved to be a challenge, because every store I contacted was sold out. I finally put my name on the list to reserve one at the Apple Store in Tucson, and less than a week later it arrived.

I am no fan of AT&T, and I really wish the iPad was available on the Verizon network, but so far there is no verifiable indication that will happen anytime soon. So it is what it is. AT&T offers two different monthly pricing plans for the iPad, either 250 MB for $14.99 or $29.99 for unlimited data. You can change your plan at any time, but forget the cheaper plan. It’s a joke. I signed up for it, and in less than 24 hours I was at my limit, with no movies or music downloaded, just web surfing and checking e-mail. 

I was disappointed to discover that my iPad would not work with our Cradlepoint MBR1000 router right out of the box. So much for Apple’s “just turn it on and it works, first time, every time” reputation. I called the Apple Store, and they asked me to bring it in to see if they could figure it out. As it turns out, there is a setting on the Cradlepoint that I need to change, which the Apple tech assures me will remedy the problem. Since I switched to the unlimited plan, the conflict with my router is no big hassle, so I’ll wait and have one of my tech buddies talk me through changing the router’s settings, so I don’t mess up and lose Miss Terry’s WiFi access in the process. On AT&T, here in Apache Junction, the iPad works quickly, and I have no complaints.

UPDATE: After I originally posted this blog, my friend Greg White talked me through resetting the router, and now the iPad works fine on WiFi.

The first thing one has to understand about the iPad is that it is not a replacement to a computer, if you need all of the things a computer can do. I see it as a supplement. If I am at my desk, I may pop onto Facebook to see what’s happening, or answer an e-mail, or look around the internet, but to me, my desk is where I work, so I find myself feeling guilty if I goof off too much, and before long I’m writing a blog or a story for the next issue of the Gypsy Journal. With the iPad, I can park myself on the couch and play.

So if an iPad isn’t a computer, what is it? Well, it’s a great e-book reader, for one thing. I had an Amazon Kindle, and though I loved the concept, most of what I wanted it for were reference books. I discovered that photographs and charts look terrible, and are hard to see on a Kindle. On the iPad, they look great. I was also thrilled to learn that, besides Apple’s online book store, there is a free Kindle app, and once I downloaded it, all of the books I had purchased for my Kindle were still in my Amazon library, and I downloaded them to the iPad. Cool!

Being a career newspaper man, I am a news junkie. So I love the free USA Today app, which allows me to read my newspaper on the iPad. I can also read the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and a ton of magazines on it.

The iPad comes with a great street map, and the 3G model has a GPS chip built in. I can view maps in traditional street view, or Google satellite view, and the GPS feature allows me to find local businesses wherever I am. When I click on a business, I get the address, phone number, and other info, along with turn by turn directions.

We love music, and our iPod has thousands of songs on it. I can download those same songs to my iPad, and buy more from the iTunes Store.

For gaming, the graphics are fantastic, but I doubt that I’ll be playing games in the iPad. I have also seen movies on iPads on display at stores, and the picture is great. There is a Netflix app that allows you to download all the movies you could ever want to watch.

I could go on and on about all you can do with an iPad, but you can get most of that info online with a quick Goggle search. So instead, I’ll tell you a little about the features I like and don’t like, from a user standpoint.

First, the iPad is heavier than a Kindle, and your hands get tired pretty quickly if you are holding it like a paperback book. But if I prop it up on my chest while laying down, or on my stomach while sitting in a chair, it’s fine. (I knew I grew that stomach for something!) In the van, I prop it on the steering wheel and again, no problems.

I have heard that because the iPad doesn’t support Flash, some websites will not load right, or won’t come up at all. So far that has not been a problem, and I have been able to access and view every website I wanted to, including my own websites, the Escapees forum, Ancestry.com and many others. I can also follow links in websites with no problem

The glossy screen is also a fingerprint magnet, and in direct sunlight, the screen will give a lot of glare. There are screen protectors one can buy to remedy those problems.

I like the touch screen, and being able to make type and photos larger whenever I need to. For these old eyes, that’s a real plus. I am also very impressed with the iPad’s battery life. Apple claims 9+ hours of constant use on the 3G models, and 10 hours on the WiFi only models. I have found that to be true so far. I charged the unit up when I brought it home, and have about 40% of battery power left 36 hours later.

The speaker is so so at best, and while there is a jack for earphones, I don’t know how much I’ll use the music feature, since I can just slip my much smaller, lighter iPod into my shirt when I go for a walk.

I downloaded the free Weather Bug app, and I am very impressed with it. The graphics are excellent, and the GPS tells Weather Bug my location for up to the minute local weather info. One reader e-mailed me that they found its live weather radar very handy a few days ago when they were on the road and dodging thunderstorms and tornados in Oklahoma.

Other standard iPad features I really like are the notepad and calendar. Yes, I have both on my Blackberry, but my eyes older really need a bigger screen.  I also appreciate the fact that, unlike a laptop computer, the iPad does not get hot, no matter how long you use it.

There are other features, and thousands of apps that I am looking forward to exploring further, but based on what I have seen so far, I am even more impressed with the iPad than I was at first glance. I see it becoming my primary tool for media consumption, information access, and  web surfing. Like an American Express card, I won’t leave home without it.

So, is the iPad the newest must have gadget for every RVer? I don’t know, but it sure meets the needs of this RVer, and I’m glad I have it!

Thought For The Day – Suburbia: Where they cut down all the trees, and then name streets after them.

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I spend a lot of hours every day working at my computer, and a lot of that time is spent online, either answering e-mails from our readers, updating my blogs and websites, or researching new places we want to visit to see what kinds of stories I can find there for the Gypsy Journal.

But you know what they say about all work and no play, so occasionally I take a break from whatever I’m working at to check out interesting, fun, or even goofy websites. But why should I have all the fun? So I thought I’d share a few of them with you.

1. People of Walmart.com – I guarantee that if you spend a few minutes browsing this collection of candid photos of the denizens who hang out at your local WalMart store, you’ll be amazed, appalled, and get a chuckle or two. I also bet you’ll double check your RV’s door locks the next time you spend the night at Camp WalMart!

2. Mental Floss – Mental Floss magazine, and its sister website, bills itself as “Where Knowledge Junkies Get Their Fix.” Here you will finds all kinds of interesting trivia, from The Weird & Scary History of Winter Olympic Mascots, to People Born on the (Exact) Same Day You Were, to 9 Tasty Foods Named After People, and a lot of other information that would come in really handy if you ever land a spot as a contestant on Jeopardy or Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

3. My Parents Were Awesome – Long before they were introduced to dirty diapers and 2 a.m. feedings, our parents were hip youngsters who had the world by the tail. Contributors to this website send in photos of their parents that you’ll find interesting and even funny at times. My only concern, when looking at these photographs, is that sometimes I suspect it is our kids sending in pictures of us when we were kids!

4. Today’s Front Pages – After a career in the small town newspaper business, I’m a born newshound. I pick up newspapers wherever we are traveling just to get a feel for the community. At Today’s Front Pages you can view the current front pages of newspapers around the country.

5. Newspapers, USA And Worldwide – Just one part of the great refdesk.com website, which is a wealth of information, their links to small town and big city newspapers worldwide is another favorite site for news junkies like me.

6. Thinkexist.com – This is another one of those neat websites where you can get lost for hours. With more than 300,000 quotations by over 20,000 authors, you’ll be able to find just the right words for any occasion here.

7. Find A Grave – Whether you’re searching for your great uncle Harry’s final resting place, or the graves of the rich and famous, you’ll probably find it here. It’s a great resource for genealogists.

8.  Speedtest – Do you ever wonder how your current internet connection compares to the average for that server, or to your last location? You can check it quickly at Speedtest.

9. Snopes.com – Before you blindly forward the next wild story that shows up in your e-mail inbox, check out its validity at Snopes.com.

10. Post Secret - PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail in their secrets anonymously on a postcard. The voyeur in all of us will find it interesting.

Thought For The Day – If at first you don’t succeed, give up, there’s no use being a fool.

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