The Weather and A Trip To Daytona Beach

DeBary, FL.

50 deg. clear, NW wind @ 5 mph.

Forecast =  Today: Partly cloudy with isolated showers. Highs around 66°F. West northwest wind 7 to 25 MPH, gusting to 36 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 20%.

Tonight: Mostly clear with isolated showers. Lows around 36°F. Wind chill around 26°F. West northwest wind 13 to 20 MPH, gusting to 28 MPH. Chance of precipitation near 20%.


You may notice that the weather forecast above includes the weather for tonight. The reason for that, is that today the temperatures down here in Florida are supposed to drop like a rock!!! Plus, the winds are going to  pick up a lot!!! If the forecasters on TV are correct, the temperature will get all the way down into the 20's tonight, but I really doubt it as long as the wind blows like they're forecasting.

In any case, it's going to feel really cold tonight. Something we really haven't had much of all winter.

Oh, and by the way, tomorrow's highs are only supposed to get up into the mid 50's, with 15 to 20 mph winds!!!!

Brrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!

Friday, Jim and Linda took a few more boxes of "stuff" out of the inside of me to the house. While they were there, they hung a few more curtains in the bathrooms. They also stopped at the manager's office and filled out another paper. Nancy also gave them little credit card like things that they'll need to operate the gate at the entrance of the community. So far, they haven't needed the card because there was a problem with the gate, but now the gate is being repaired and if they go over there in the evening, they'll need the card to get in.

Yesterday, CLT took  Jim and Linda over to Daytona Beach where they went to some furniture stores to look for a new bed for the house. Since Linda was a girl, she has always wanted a "poster" bed and she's been thinking that this will probably be the last chance she'll ever have to own one. So,  ,   ,  ,  ,  they searched the stores over there and she finally found one that she likes.

I saw a picture of it in a brochure that they brought back with them, and it the post on the headboard and footboard are quite thin and very tall. In fact, I'm thinking that those posts will go almost all the way up to the ceiling in that double wide. 

Of course there had to be a little "glitch" in all of this. You see, this bed has to be ordered and will not be available for delivery until the 15th of March!!! As you know, we'll be leaving here on the 7th, so this causes a problem. Well, Jim and Linda thought about it for awhile and finally decided that by the end of the month, one way or another, they'd get back here to accept the delivery, or possibly Laura or Lindsey could come and let the delivery men into the house.

So, the delivery date was set for the 29 of March, and one way or another, someone will be there.

Today, I think Linda wants to go over to the house and get started on making those bedroom curtains, so they'll probably spend quite a bit of time over there. While she's making the curtains, Jim will probably be unpacking some of the boxes of "stuff" that they've taken over there.

Did you know that In 1968, congress (Legislation # 15951) passed a bill that changed several federal holidays, in order for them to fall on a Monday, thus creating a 3-day weekend? The act took affect 3 years later in 1971.

More Visiting, The Weather and Progressive Industries

Moncure, NC

48 deg. overcast, no wind.

Forecast = Overcast with a chance of rain in the morning, then partly cloudy. High of 73F. Winds from the NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 20%.


Sunday, Jim and Linda went to Mike and Gina's during the afternoon and early evening. The weather was not too good or they would have come out here to the RV Park to see me. You see, we've had a cold front got through the area, and it has brought rain, thunder, some wind and much cooler temperatures than we have been having.

Being that the weather was still not good yesterday morning, (cold with drizzle), Jim got on the phone and called Progressive Industries.  I don't know if you remember or not, but last winter the Electrical Management System, that Jim had to protect all my electronics from surges, low voltages and any other electrical problems quit working and he had to buy a different unit at a Camping World store when we were in Alabama.

The unit that Jim bought at that time was a Surge Guard that seemed to work fine, but he always thought that the Progressive unit was better. We were on our way to Oregon at that time though, so the old unit was stashed away in one of my basement compartments.

Well, yesterday, when Jim called Progressive Industries, which is located in Morrisville, NC, (about 25 miles North of here), and told them about the problem with the unit and explained that we were in the area. They said that he could bring the unit to the factory and they would be glad to check it out.

So, about 10:30, Jim and Linda took CLT and headed up there.

When they arrived, the unit was checked out, and guess what?  Yep!!! The unit worked!!! But, after describing how the unit was acting, (a chattering sound coming from inside of the unit), they said that they have seen that condition before, and handed Jim a reconditioned unit, in a box, that looked like brand new!!!

Now, by this time, Jim had already told them that he had bought the unit way back in 2005, and he didn't even have the sales receipt any longer. They said that it didn't matter, they were now covering all of their units with a lifetime warranty, even though the original warranty on the unit that Jim bought was only for 1 year!!

Wow!!!! What a great surprise!!!!  They are definitely one of the "Good Guys"!!!!

Now, I have to ask you, what other company can you think of, (other than maybe Fantastic Fan), that has a warranty this good and takes care of it's customers any better?  You can be assured that Jim will recommend Progressive Industries to anyone who is looking for an (EMS), Electrical Management System for their RV and tell them what a great company it is and how well they take care of their customers.  : )

Yesterday evening, Jim and Linda took CLT and headed back over to Mike's. After having another nice dinner, they visited until about 7:30, (time for the kids to start getting ready for bed), and then came back here to the park, without even seeing any more deer on the road. : )

Today, I think that Jim and Linda may go grocery shopping. The last time they went was when we were back in Rantoul, and my cabinets are starting to look a little empty. ; )  Mike has to work late and the kids have activities to go to, so Jim and Linda won't be going over there today. : (

I know this is a day late, but, Did you  know that Columbus Day first became an official state holiday in Colorado in 1906, and became a federal holiday in the United States in 1937, though people have celebrated Columbus' voyage since the colonial period?

A Comment On A Comment, A Business To Avoid and Plans

Callahan, FL.

54 deg. partly cloudy, no wind.

Forecast = Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 80s. North winds 5 to 10 mph shifting to the east in the afternoon.


I received a comment the other day from Rod and Loyce Ivers which made me stop and think about repair shops. They observed that in the last few years, Creative Coach has been a lifesaver for Jim and Linda when a repair shop was needed for their RVs.

Jim says that he has to agree that they have been there for him any time his RVs needed repairs. In fact Lester, who is now mostly in the office, has been there for Jim and Linda since they got to know him way back in 2005. He solved a problem that Myrddin had on a trip out west, that about 12 other mechanics on the trip couldn't fix. And, he found the problem in less than 1/2 hour!!

Even though Lester doesn't do much of the mechanical repairs anymore, he's there at Creative Coach, and like this time, comes out and helps if the other mechanics aren't exactly sure of what to do.

Creative Coach definitely is not the least expensive repair shop down in Florida, but Jim has complete faith in them when it comes to repairs. They will not do work that is unnecessary unless you want it done, they will take the time to explain the different repair options that you might have and will go out of their was to help figure out ways to cut the cost as much as they can.

On the other hand, they will not patch something together. It must be repaired right. They have an excellent reputation for doing quality work and will not compromise.

I know that this must sound like a commercial for Creative Coach, but it's not. There are many other fine mechanics and shops all across the country and the point I'm trying to make is that if you find one of these shops or mechanics, go back to them whenever possible.

I will be traveling about an additional 1000 miles this fall because Jim and Linda decided to go down to Florida for my repairs before going to North Carolina and Virgina to see their sons and their families. But, by doing that, the repairs have been made to me by someone they trust and they can now enjoy visiting with family instead of worrying about weather the repairs would be made properly at some shop along the way.

Oh, and one other thing. I usually don't like to "bash" a business, but this must be said.

Jim wants you to know that he does not recommend that you do business with, or have any repairs done at R & S in Mahomet Illinois where Jim and Linda bought me. In the last few months, he has found that the repairs that they were supposed to do to me before the sale were mostly "patch jobs" which were designed to make it seem like I was repaired without doing the job right. There have been many things found where they had cut corners and Jim and Linda have had to have them repaired again. They also told Jim some things that were untrue about me in order to make the sale without having to do some repairs, and there was also some deception as to what equipment I have.  

Not much happened around here yesterday. Linda did some more laundry and Jim did some more re-organizing. Then for dinner, he cooked a nice big, juicy steak out on the grill while Linda cooked some vegetables inside.

Today we're going to head farther North. I don't know just how far we'll go, but Jim called Mike the other day and told him that we should getting to their area, (Apex, NC) by Monday.

Did you know that today is "National Grouch Day"?

Rochester To Sioux Falls, SD.

Sioux Falls, SD.

79 deg, clear, no wind.

Forecast = Partly cloudy in the morning...then becoming sunny. Highs around 95. South winds 10 to 15 mph.


Wow! It sure did get warm yesterday. It got up to 91 and the humidity had to right up there too. And, the forecasters are saying that today is going to be even hotter!!!

We left the CG in Rochester at 10:05 and returned to I-90. After traveling just a short way, Jim pulled me into a gas station and filled me up with diesel. Then it was just a matter of following 90 all the way across Minnesota, into SD and to Sioux Falls.

Oh, by the way, if you're traveling in Minnesota and they haven't solved their budget problems yet, be advised that not only are the State Parks closed but all the rest areas are closed too! : (

Anyway, once we got to Sioux Falls on I-90 we turned South on I-29 for just a few miles until we came to 12th street where we turned off of the expressway and came here to the Tower Campground. 

It was 2:20 when we pulled into the park, so we had been on the road for 4 hours and 15 minutes (including my fuel stop), and traveled 229 miles.

Jim was a little concerned about coming to this CG because in years past, it didn't have a good rating at all. But, recent ratings have been much better, the park has new people running it, they've cleaned out the run down RVs and now it seems to be pretty nice.

The site I'm in is on a corner lot, I have lots of shade, full hook-ups with 50 Amp electric and cable TV. And all the RVs or park models that I can see from here appear to be in reasonably good condition with no junk setting around anywhere.

We'll be here for a week so that Jim and Linda can get their drivers licenses renewed and take care of some business. As soon as Jim gets out his camera and takes some pictures, I'll post some of them here.

Did you know that South Dakota is the home of the Dakota, Lakota and Nakota tribes, which make up the Sioux Nation?