Short Renovation Montage

Pause the video to get a closer look. My slow connection speed has limited me to this, for now. ;) Enjoy!

Beginning Another Phase, Again

     Well, fair reader, we are back in Sonora, as you have likely guessed. We are busying ourselves with clerical work, doing necessary things like denying grand jury summons, and sifting through the labyrinthine maze that is health insurance. Even so, the Sunrader is, once again, up on blocks, rendering it at least passingly level.
     We will be here for 4-ish weeks, doing the last modifications to our beasty. In that time, I would like to be posting the occasional update, but my track record makes me less than hopeful. Thus, I will leave you with this promise: I will post again when the almond wonder is complete. Therefore, any post before then will be a bonus. ;)

These are a few of my favorite pictures, featuring my family:

The road is long, which brings us home
But it is good to pause the roam
Resplendent journey, yet to end
Gives tales to tell to you, my friend
And when we leave again to zoom
We will, at last, have a bathroom

:-D

Sunrader Surgery

     Well, fair reader, this post has been a long time in coming, there is no denying. Let me give you the low down:

1.  The sunrader is up and running at, roughly, 90% complete. It is fully usable, but without a bathroom. ;)
2.  Being 90%, as my dad would say, we have 90% to go; meaning: the finishing touches could, hopefully not, take much longer than expected.
3. That said: we are in Texas! More specifically, I am sitting in a mechanics, while the big rader of suns sits with its stomach wide open. In mechanical terms? The fuel pump gasket was leaking. It was an adventure getting the right part, but that is too long and laborious, a tale, for now. :P

     Enough with the numbers... After this sojourn, we will take it to get its tires replaced. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, the almond colored wonder is getting new feet! (That makes it sound kinda morbid, but I couldn’t think of any analogy that worked better.) Funny note, on that, the tires currently in place… yeah, they’re 1991’s. :-O I have had several mechanics/tire technicians tell me I must be lying about the year, then stand in stunned silence after reading it for themselves. Supposedly, it is quite unheard of for tires to last 23 years… who knew?

     As a side note, on the color, I’ve seen a lot of almonds in my day, and the outside is way darker than our RV… maybe, the color chooses to reference the inside? But if that is how we judge color, wouldn’t all apples be the same color? Also, people’s “skin” color would always be red… just a thought.

     Moving on!

     Morgan and I have been staying with family in the Waco area, and our puppies have been soooo good!

     Naga is becoming more socialized, every day. He hardly ever savages anyone, any more. ;) (More truthfully, he is more comfortable with more people, more quickly. He comes 96% of the time, when I call, 3.99% he is actively responding to the call of nature, and he comes as soon as he is finished. Also, he doesn't savage people, just thought I'd put that out there.)

     Calcifer is still wonderfully obedient and as cute as ever. He is officially not a puppy anymore, as his second birthday passed a few weeks back, but he has decided not to let labels hamper his play, and continues to terrorize….*cough* *cough*… play with any dog he can. :P

     I am transitioning back into “find editing work” mode, and will, hopefully, be filling my time in that regard, soon. In that vein, if any of you have any editing needs… :-D

     Morgan has added knitting(hats, scarves, hard drive cases, protective covers, etc.), roman shade creation, propane system installation, and Dutch oven, stove top baking to her long list of skills and talents.

     After we spend a few more days with family in the Waco/Dallas area, we plan on taking a slow journey back towards Sonora, CA, seeing the sites and field testing our RV along the way. When we reach that destination, we will finish off the beast, and hit the road once more, going wherever God leads us, and the road takes us.

     Until our next update, hopefully in the very near future, may God guide your path and keep you in His loving arms.

Of Days Gone by and the Oddities of Life

     Well, to begin, the astute reader will notice that this is, in fact, much later than a day after my last post. There are a long list of reasons, most of them unimportant, and, frankly, not worth your time. So, onward!

    The summer is slipping away, and we are in the sixth week of our "quick" remodel. To be fair, we have had little time to actually work on the motor home. Between family events, seeing friends, and my work, we have been laughably inconsistent in our attempts to get work done. That said, we are buckling down and, hopefully, finishing strong.

     As it has been so long, again, I will settle for a highlights blog:
     Calcifer has learned to swim, and will swim with anyone and everyone who lets him, as well as most people who don't. Naga likes the water, but prefers to stand calmly on the steps, in the shallow end of Morgan's parent's pool.
    Morgan is now 23, and she enjoyed a quiet birthday with me. The birthday celebration with her family actually took place before her birthday, as her dad's side got together to celebrate all June birthdays at once.
    I, Josh, am in the third week of slightly exhausting negotiations with an author for me to ghostwrite/co-author a book that I would love to work on. Sadly, miscommunications and slow responses have delayed the actual start of the job... this one thing has filled roughly 50% of my time at various points, and, needless to say, I am ready for it to be nailed down.
    On the RV, we have found the internal lights that we like, and decided what new tanks we want to add. Of all things, we will be using ikea drawers set in custom aluminum cabinets that I will be building. I must admit that I am a little nervous, having never worked with aluminum before, but Morgan's dad, Tom, has assured me that it isn't much different than working with other metals, or wood, and that he can help me make the adjustment, so that will be pretty cool.
    We've had checks lost in the mail, insurance overcharges, security deposit stress (from our last house), and many other things that I would never have imagined could happen, but, what can you do? Life is funny, and quirky, and God is good. I just hope that less insanity reigns in the coming days and that this calm is herald of what is to come, instead of the deep breath before the plunge.
     Til I write again, be it tomorrow or next year, I pray that God's hand in your life is evident and astounding, and may His grace overflow upon you each morning.

A New Post, and the Beginning of a New Beginning for our RV

     Well, after over a month of no updates, there is simply to much to detail. Suffice it to say: We have moved out of our Sacramento house, with 218 man hrs, not including driving, and packed most of our worldly possessions into my parent's basement. We spent over a week there, sorting through the last of our stuff and packing it away nicely, so they didn't have their house taken over.

     Now, we have been staying with Morgan's parents, while we planned the RV remodel, and figured out our next steps.

     So, what makes today different? What makes it worthy of the first post in over a month? Well, first, I finally decided that it was overdue, and, second, we officially began the remodel! We have had our first "demo" day.

From water damage

to wasp nests,

and from old carpets...on the ceiling

to weathering gone bad, after 30 years,

we have seen some funny things, and done a lot of work. :)

     But, tomorrow is a new day, and we still have much to do. Wish us luck, and pray that we aren't forgetting something major. ;)
     As a point of order, these updates will be coming much more frequently, from here on out, hopefully almost daily, like the test trip. They will, however, be shorter and tighter in their composition, ideally keeping you entertained and informed, while taking but a moment or two of your day. :-D
     Here's to a wonderful summer, for all; may the old things in your life find new value under your tender ministrations.