'13/#3 When Life Gives You Lemons.....

We are glad to be back in Florida with family and friends but it has not been smooth sailing. Since we returned to our "home base" here in Largo there have been a few bumps. First our reserved site in Vacation Village was occupied. When we spoke to the office we were basically told "too bad". This park has been going down hill for years and this year is the worst. We decided to find a new "home" despite being so close to family and having so many friends in this park. Once setting up on another site we did our usual check of the rig after having traveled for a distance. We found that our 5th wheel hitch had broken and came to the conclusion that we had driven across the state with a broken hitch. Thoughts of what could have happened makes me shudder not to mention the cost of repairing or replacing the hitch was an expense we didn't need. This past week we had a couple of cold nights and mornings and the furnace decided it was time to stop working. Another expense we didn't need. So what to do with all these issues popping up?

Well first we called a friend who has experience as an RV tech. He gave me some suggestions about the furnace and it turned out to be something minor. While talking to him he mentioned that the park he was staying at needed some help and had a number of vacancies. Since we were interested he got us an interview with the manager and there is now an opportunity for work and discounted camping just a little farther from where we are now.We will soon have a new address in FL. Our youngest had been working for an on-line RV supplier and told me about our hitch manufacturer's warranty policy. He encouraged me to call and I am glad I did. Reese Manufacturing was awesome! I told them my problem, sent them a few pictures, and a new hitch is on the way to me.... NO CHARGE! Reese will have my business whenever I can send it their way.

The point of all this is that things are starting to look up for us. Broken things are getting fixed, we will be saving money on rent, and we will be in a park that actually cares about their customers. We are looking forward to all the changes and feel good about the future. Yes we will be a little farther away from everyone but 30 minutes travel is not really that far considering we were considering we looking at a campground in Ocala at least 2 hours away.

We will be busy getting ready to move this next week so I probably wont be blogging until after our move. So this may good bye for the last time from our home in Largo FL because.....

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary

'13/#2 Still Here For Now

We have been in Largo FL for a little over 2 weeks now and I thought I should blog about something. We are back in the same park we have been coming to for the 6+ years and you would think that they would appreciate customer loyalty but that is not the case. Before we left last year we attended their annual renewal party to lock in our site for the next winter season. We kept in contact during the summer and were assured that our reservation was in order and they were looking forward to our return. HA! Upon our return we found our site occupied and when we went to the office about it their response was "too bad". We were moved to another site that did not completely suit our needs and are now looking for another park to stay in.

I always say that our plans are written in jello and our plans for next summer have fallen in to that category. We have decided to stay in FL for about a year for personal reasons and will not be on the road for about a year or two. Therefore we are looking for a park that cares about the customer since it will be a park that we call home for some time.

This week is the annual Tamp RV Super Show and we attend very year when possible. In it's 20 year history I think we have missed it twice. We go to look for gadgets and gizmos that will make the RV lifestyle easier, check out work camper opportunities, find new destinations to explore, and of course drool over all the shiny new RVs. This year we are also looking at all the RV parks in our area to find a long term home.

 Wednesday was senior day and all us old farts got a $1.00 discount. The weather was ideal for criss-crossing the fairgrounds. We picked up a lot of info to do some research and even spent a little money on stuff we actually needed. This year we stayed away from all the gadgets that just happened to catch our eye. This year we were somewhat disappointed by the RVs on display. The RVs were very pretty and it is always fun to look at the latest and best RVs but after all was said and done we couldn't find an RV that we would buy even if we were in the market and had all the money in the world. More so than usual we found that the designers were looking at flash instead of function.

We will be going back and meet up with some friends. The RV show always gives a second day pass with all paid admissions. The show is so big that it takes two days to see it all. So I will call it a day on the blog from our home here in Largo FL because....

Home is where we park it,
Frank & Mary

'13/#1 Out With The Old, In With The New

2012 is over and and I hope everyone had a good year. With 2013 in front of us may it be an even better year. If you have been following the blog you know 2012 has been quite an adventure. We have seen many wonders across the country and met some of the most wonderful people. We have more friends than ever in more places around the country. It gives us reasons to travel even more.

This year is starting with our return to Florida, and family and friends. We are looking forward to spending time with them and in familiar surroundings. We will be involved in the activities in the RV park and plan on spending time with our children and grandchildren. I think they are what we missed the most in our travels. Most of all we are looking forward to relaxing. We will probably look for some part time jobs in the future to keep bust and feather our nest for future travels.

For now I would just like to say we are glad to be home in Pinellas County because not only is home where we park it home is also where the heart is  and that is with family and friends.

Fran & Mary