We Bought, We Sold And We Moved

We had a very busy weekend.  It started out on Friday when Mom saw a car that looked like it would work for us.  Actually, she found it Thursday night after she learned that the new car salesman was not going to honor the price that he offered them for a car.  It was the second time that week that he had messed up.  On Friday, she looked at the car again and found that they had lowered the price by a $1,000.  Mom texted Dad and asked if they could look at it Friday night and if they liked it, they could be all ready with a certified check on Saturday.  They test drove it and really liked it.  They decided to buy it.  The deal almost fell through when the salesman added what he called a mandatory charge.  It was for $995 and he said they would fix any door dings that we got.  Dad told him we didn't want that.  He said we didn't have a choice. The supervisor came over and the folks thought he was going to try and pressure them into taking it, but he didn't.  He said he would remove it.  That was good because Dad was not going to pay for it.  The folks were really surprised when they were told they could write a personal check and take the car home with them.  It is a 2014 Ford Focus.  It only has 22,000 miles and it is Ford Certified.  That means that Ford has checked it over and now they get another year of warranty on it.  They also get six free oil changes. The oil changes just come with buying a car from them. The folks had checked out CarFax and knew the history of the car.  It was leased and never had any issues.

Dad's new car.

This is probably the cleanest it will ever be.

On Saturday, Mom decided to call the scooter salesman back and ask him if he still wanted Buddy.  He wasn't thrilled with a Buddy 50 because he said they are the hardest to sell because they don't go very fast.  Mom had sent him pictures a few weeks ago so he could see the condition, but he never responded.  Mom was going to sell it on her own but really didn't want to deal with people.  She had read that she shouldn't let anyone test drive it in case they wrecked it. She didn't want to be sued if they were injured.  So, she decided to take a little less money for him so that she could be done with it.  She was sad to sell him, but she said she wouldn't be riding him since she now has the Jeep to drive.  The folks loaded him up and took him to the dealer.  She was surprised when the dealer offered them $50 for the carrier that they used to get Buddy there.  It works fine, but it is getting rusty.  It made selling Buddy to him a better deal.  The guy sent Mom an email later that day thanking you for her business and told her he would find Buddy a good home.  BOL!

On Sunday, we moved to a different site here in the park.  The site we were in was pretty pricey and we had only planned on staying here two months because of that.  Mom asked the manager if there were any other sites we could move into that were a lower price.  She said they had a site that they had just reduced the price on and we would fit.  It is another pull through.  We are away from the propane tank and have a decent view of the lake. Mom really likes. There is currently not anyone next to us.  I am a bit confused as to why we moved and I keep going back to our site and wishing I was there.

The new robot vacuum arrived today.  Mom did a short test drive with it.  It is not loud, but I don't think I am going to like it.  The battery is charging now and it will be ready to go tomorrow.  It is supposed to clean while we are on our morning walk.  It better leave me alone.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Needs To Rest After Such A Busy Weekend

Car Shopping And A Trip To Galveston

We are going to be a two car family again!  Mom says it will be so strange to have a car of her own again.  She got Buddy four years ago so that she would be able to get out while Dad was at work.  We stayed at several places where she couldn't ride Buddy though.  The place we are at now is one of those places.  There is a McDonald's just down the street that she would like to visit but the wind here is crazy!  Even if it wasn't windy, she has not found a decent route for Buddy to go shopping.  We are located right at the highway and the route that she thought would work has a closed road.  We will have a new car soon enough and then Buddy will be sold.  Mom will get the Jeep, which now has over 200,000 miles on it.  She is not complaining about that. I am just saying that our Jeep has been good to us and Mom and I both really like it.  Dad will get the newer car because it will get better gas mileage and he needs a car more than Mom does.

The folks went car shopping on Saturday.  They are going to buy a Ford Focus because it is a car that can be towed with four wheels down like the Jeep.  Dad rented one last month and he liked it.  They test drove one on Saturday and they really liked it, but the car dealer wouldn't budge on the price.  Dad has seen some others with less miles for less money, so they passed on that one.

They found another restaurant that they really liked.  It is called Jax Burger and Fries.  They both had the Fried Pickle Burger and shared an order of garlic fries.  The burger was spicier than they expected. It had jalapeno ranch sauce on it.  Mom said the garlic fries were fantastic. They have butter and tons of garlic on them.  Mom said they will definitely eat there again.

On Sunday, the folks drove to Galveston for lunch.  On the way, they stopped at an RV park that Dad wanted to see.  Mom said it would be wonderful to live there.  It is right on the bay.  The site that she wants has a private pier.  Dad would love to fish there. The sunsets are spectacular.  The rent is a little less than here, but they do charge $20 a month for laundry and it doesn't matter if you use their machines and there is a $15 a month charge for EMS because they are on an island.  It is about an hour drive for Dad.   It would be really nice and Dad said maybe we would move there in the fall.

We would park the motor home so that this is our view out of the windshield.

This is where our chairs would go.

Dad said these are the flowers he saw in Hawaii.  They are at the RV resort.

 The folks ate lunch at The Spot in Galveston.  It was packed and there was not any room to sit outside.

Dad had a seafood plate.

Fried pickles

Mom's dried out burger and fries.  She brought me a few fries. I liked them.

 The drove along the beachfront.

Mom said it was nice to see the beach again.  It made her happy.  She has been pretty lonely the last few weeks.  There is no one here to talk to and she can't get out on Buddy.  This week, she has been busy trying to earn money by doing surveys.  She has her eye on a robotic vacuum.  She used to have a Roomba which she really liked but it was always breaking down.  We think maybe our house was too big for it.  It worked great in the old motor home.  Mom said it was so nice to turn it on and leave and come back to a clean RV.  The vacuum she has her eye on now will probably work well in our little home.  She doesn't think I will like it, so she plans on turning it on when we go for our morning walk.  We will let you know when we get it.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Sleeping Through The Night Again

Our First Weekend In Houston

I had a good and bad weekend.  I went to Petsmart.  I love Petsmart.  However, I forgot they had vets there.  I had to get my rabies vaccine.  I was about to expire.  Expiring sounds like a bad thing.  They weighed me.  I weigh the same as I did five years ago.  They still said I was overweight.  My vet always said I was fine, but yes, I could loose a few pounds. She gave me some medicine for my corn.  Mom doesn't think it will work, but she bought it anyway.  They gave me a Benadryl shot since the last time I had a shot, I had a reaction that scared Mom.  I didn't have any type of reaction this time.  I also had a blood test so I could get my Heartguard refilled.  It was an exhausting morning.  We stopped at What-A-Burger on the way home.  I got a few fries since I was a good boy.  I know, not good for my figure, but if you had someone do things to you that I did, you would get a fry too.

Here I am resting after my vet visit.

 Mom really misses having a yard and garden.  She bought a lantana this weekend.  She used to have them at home.  Hers got really large because she brought them inside in the winter and put a heat lamp on them.  We are wondering if she will be able to keep it in the winter here if she covers it if it gets really cold.

She noticed a lot more tropical plants for sale here than at other places.

Lantana

 Saturday night, we walked to the lake and Dad fished.

I watched.

 

Happy boy!

There is a fire pit, but we didn't use it.

The folks ate dinner at Gringo's.  It is a Mexican place here.  Mom said it was really good.

Dad's meal was fajitas and shrimp wrapped in bacon.

Burrito with rice.  Mom said the rice was really good.

Dad fixed our ceiling fan on Sunday.  One of the blade brackets had broken.  Mom tried to find a replacement, but couldn't get any help on that from anyone connected to our RV.  They ended up finding something that worked at Home Depot.

A few of the RVs have left that blocked our view to the lake.  We can kind of see it now.  We would move into a lake site, but our rig is too large.  We would be sticking out into the street by about five feet.

This site is wet because kids had used chalk on the pad and management cleaned it up for the next person.

Mom is washing my bed today.  I am not happy.

We like this park, but not much goes on.  Most people who stay here are men and they leave for work at 5:30 a.m.  It is pretty quiet.

Our weather has been good.  The humidity is high today.  You can tell by Mom's hair.  BOL!  She bought a flat iron to tame it on bad days.  It is usually windy.  We have been able to put our awning out a few times, but it normally doesn't make it all day because it gets too windy for it.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Waiting For His Bed To Get Washed and Dried

Gifts

Many of the hotels that Dad worked at gave him gifts when he left.  Dad worked at the Ritz Carlton in Dallas a few times and they always included Mom in the gifts.  This time, they gave both Mom and Dad spa robes. They are very, very nice! 

Mom's robe is a pretty peach. The color is not showing up well here.

Dad's is black.

 They also gave Mom a cookbook signed by Chef Dean Fearing.  He has a restaurant at the hotel.  As you can imagine, Mom was thrilled getting a cookbook and it is the Texas Food Bible!  Is that appropriate or what?

Dean Fearing's autograph.

Dad also received a very nice coffee cup.

In Other News

It is a muggy day here.  Today is our first rain.  Storms could occur tonight.  Mom was reading about past tornadoes that have occurred here.  It sounds like they are smaller and don't occur all that often.  There have been no fatalities since 1950. (The report was from 1950 to present.)  So, that is reassuring. They do not have storm sirens in this county.   The storms in Dallas were bad. We are really hoping that it is not like that here.  We have been here in the past and never had an issue.  There is the hurricane concern, of course.

Our washing machine seems to like it here.  It is running like it should.  Mom thinks it could be because it is completely level here.  We hope it continues.

There is not a greyhound here as we were told.  The person at the reservation center told us there was a greyhound.  She must have been confused with another property. There are only a few dogs here that we have seen.  I am okay with that.

Instant Pot

Mom fixed Honey Bourbon Chicken last night.  She also fixed rice and then fried it in another skillet since the chicken was in the Instant Pot.  Egg rolls were fixed in the air fryer.  Dad thought the Honey Bourbon Chicken was good.  Mom thought it had a bit too much honey.  

Tonight, she is fixing loaded mac and cheese in the Instant Pot, meatloaf in the air fryer and asparagus in the skillet.  

Joey,

The Greyhound Who Really Enjoys 3 a.m. Walks.  Mom No So Much

Problems Yesterday

New Doctor

We ran into a few problems yesterday.  Mom started out the day trying to find a new doctor for her and Dad.  She pulled up their insurance website and started calling doctors.  She found out that even though the website says they were accepting new patients, they were not.  She was finally able to find one nearby.  She was hoping for someone with Saturday hours, but that may be a thing of the past.  She found one who said they did on their website, but when she called, she was told the website was wrong.  She now has to get their medical records transferred, but she needs to get a confirmation from the insurance company that the change is okay.

No Electric

The second problem of the day lasted much longer and bothered me.  Our electric went off.  Mom found out it was just us.  Our 50 amp breaker kept tripping outside.  It was the campgrounds' issue and not ours.  She told the office and they called an electrician.  We later heard that he was not sure if he was coming.  We were told we could move or try using 30 amp service.  Mom couldn't find the cord that converts to 30 amp.  Dad didn't respond to her texts and she didn't want to call him since it was his first day of work.  It got too hot to stay inside.  It was 90 inside, so we sat outside.  I didn't want to sit outside even though it was shady and we had a nice breeze.  I cried and cried.  Finally, the electrician showed up at 4:30.  He was a rude guy.  He wasn't happy about coming by and barely spoke to Mom except to tell her that the breaker was just turned off.  Mom told him that it had tripped four times.  He left and we didn't know if he had fixed it, but we discovered that he had taken it apart.  We figured he was just getting a new part.  He came back and then left without saying a word to us.  It was fixed.  Don't you think he could have said it was fixed?  I guess if we were the ones paying for the service he would have been nicer.  The electric issue lasted 7 hours.  Luckily, it wasn't a hot day like today. We could have turned on the generator, but we didn't want to do that unless it was a true emergency.  If it happened on a hot day, we definitely would go that route though.

Dinner

Mom went all out with dinner last night.  She was rushing since we didn't have our electric back on until 5:10. She fixed black beans in the Instant Pot. She also made fajitas and Mexican rice.  It is quite the chore fixing that much when only one appliance can be used at a time.  The fajitas turned out great.  The beans were good, but not worth the time.  Mom will used canned beans next time.  She used dry beans and after they were cooked, she fried them with onions and garlic.  The rice was made in the microwave.

Lake

We spoke with the office lady this morning.  Mom asked if I was allowed to walk around the office area.  There are rocking chairs and a fire pit there.  She said, "Of course."  Mom said she didn't know since the signs said that pets are now allowed around the lake. She said that I am not allowed to touch the water.  We are excited because now we can sit out by the lake.  We didn't think that was allowed.  We then walked around the lake.  The only bad part is that we had to climb over some rocks.  We don't know if that will be a daily occurrence.

This place is very well maintained.  They are cutting grass today.  It doesn't even look like it needs it!

The view of the office from the other side of the lake.

BBQ area

Neighbors

Our neighbors have a son who is probably in his 20's.  He is in a wheelchair.  They do not have a ramp for him. He comes down the steps in his wheelchair. 😟 It is rather scary to see it.  We think he needs a ramp.

Dad's New Job

Dad started his new job yesterday. His drive is about 20 minutes.  He is used to an hour. 

New Blog Design

If you read our blog on a computer, you probably noticed we changed our design.  What do you think?  We thought a change was needed since we are no longer traveling. 

Joey,

The Greyhound Who Hopes Today Is More Peaceful Than Yesterday

A New Chapter Begins

We made our way from Dallas to Houston on Saturday.  We were lucky and did not hit any rain.  We did have high winds and bugs.

Here we are packed up and ready to start our new life.

First stop was at the inspection station.  

 We decided to stop at a rest area for lunch.  The screws fell out of a window shade, so Dad made the repair there.  We were glad that was the only repair that was necessary on our trip.

This guy was at a rest area.

Another view at the rest area

Our rig, Jeep and Buddy at the rest area.

The camper was abandoned.  The wind was opening and closing the door.

We knew we were close to Houston when we hit traffic.  There was an accident, but we experienced several slow downs going through Houston.  That is normal.

 When we arrived at our new place, we had to go through the entrance gates.  The office lady told Dad that she was impressed with his driving and that not everyone makes it through without hitting the pedestal.  Hmmm.... why wouldn't a new RV park design it better so that RVs can get in without getting damaged?  It really is a tight turn, but we made it.

Let me remind you what our old RV park was like.

Our new place is much nicer, but there are a few sites that need to be cleaned up, but it is nothing like the old place. No dryers and dishwashers.  One guy has a hot tub.

That is us on the corner.  We are next to the propane filling station.  Yes, that is our view.  However, the site is close to the dumpster and the office.  We can see the lake from our RV.  

No dogs are allowed at the lake.  Grrrr!

I like it!

We have to enter a code to get into the dog walk.  That is because it is not off leash and it leaves the park.  It would be better if it was fenced.

The dog walk.  Oh, there is Mom's shadow.  BOL!

This is our site.  We love that it is concrete.  We just wish we had a bigger area to sit.  We thought about asking to having the picnic table removed, but we are not staying here that long.

Our neighbor has snakes.  We think there are five adults living here.  They are very friendly.

The lake fountain at night.

We like our new place.  It is close to Dad's work.  It is close to shopping.  We will not be staying here for long though.  It is too expensive.  They offered us half off the first month, so that made it okay for a month or two.  There are a lot of other places to try.  We just wanted to start off near Dad's work.

We are parked in a site where we get the morning sun through the windshield.  That is a good thing.  Afternoon sun through the windshield means that we have to have the shades closed because it gets  hot even with the shade that we put on the outside of the windshield.  It actually got hot this morning, so we have our night shade down until the sun moves to the side of the RV.  Mom had the awning out, but it sensed the wind was too high, so it came in.  Oh well.  We are just trying to keep the RV as cool as possible.

The weather has been surprising nice here.  Yesterday was beautiful.  The rest of the week is supposed to be nice except a rainy, possible stormy day on Wednesday.  We know the nice temperatures are not going to last long, so we are going to enjoy them while we can.

Mom says it is hard for her to comprehend that we are going to be living in one area for an indefinite amount of time. There is no rush to try out restaurants or to see things.  It is a strange feeling and will probably take us a while to realize this is home now.

I like it here.  I got really nervous the last few days at the old place and really didn't want to go outside.  Mom was getting worried about me, but I am fine now that we are in a new location.  I had two really bad charley horses Saturday and Sunday.  Mom said it was because I stood for a good part of our trip and I am getting too old for that.  I have been okay so far today.

Joey,
The Greyhound Who Is Happy In His New Location