Florida gardeners webpage

It has been ages since I've posted any entries on this blog . . . I've been busy reorganizing my life, taking care of a nasty computer virus that took me over a month to conquer and way too much to go into again as everything has been covered in my other blogs . . .

My latest project is updating my personal website, DonitaWorld.com, which is mainly devoted to gardening and soap operas . . . much more coming soon.

In the meantime . . . I have updated my Florida gardening webpage . . . click here to go there.

Have all of my Florida gardening buddies thawed out by now?

My paradise is a bit crispy, but better than I expected. We were supposed to get down to the 20's in Tampa, but it didn't happen in my area. This Florida girl is still bundled up in many layers of clothing as my bones have not thawed out sufficiently :) I absolutely HATE cold weather . . .

With the economy as it is and my internet endeavors taking a huge financial hit, my unsuccessful attempts at joining the real world with a "real job" haven't worked out . . . well, I'm looking at all areas of my life that need cutting back.

One of them is food that I can grow myself and I intend on at least clearing out a section of my paradise and devote it to growing tomatoes, peppers and herbs to start off with . . . even if I have to grow them in containers . . . that works better for me anyway!

I've begun a series on my food blog, Gina's Italian Kitchen, on saving money on groceries, including recipes for cheap meals. There have been times in my life where I have gone through some serious financial struggles, I know how to adapt and still eat well.

You can really save money when you grow your own herbs and veggies . . . especially from seed . . . I'll start a series on growing your own food.

Day 4 Sat. 2/7/09 RV Travels

The Big Texan, Amarillo, TX Buried Cars, Conway, TX

Cross & Church(?), Groom, TX

Ooops, Water Tower, Britten, Tx

When we pulled into the RV park in Santa Rosa, NM it was almost dark so we couldn't see what was around us. About 10PM we found out. The back of the lot was against the railroad tracks where the long freight trains go through every few hours. But since we were tired we slept through any that went past during the night.

The day was typical SW - Huge blue sky, no clouds - just beautiful. (Most of NM has over 300 days of sunshine a year and it is highly unusual to have more that 2 days in a row without the sun.)

As we were approaching Amarillo, TX we saw a wind turbine farm that we suspected provided some power to the city. There had to have been nearly 100 of those very tall, wind turbines. Pretty amazing. The temperature as we went through Amarillo it was 77 degrees!

Last June on our way to Houston we stopped in Amarillo. When we got to the motel our room key had an ad for free limo service to the Big Texan. This is the steakhouse that serves a 72 oz. steak and anyone who can eat it all in 1 hour gets it for free. The limo was a white stretch car with 6 doors and the huge long horned steer horns on the hood. The big tall cowboy driver got out and opened the doors for us.

The meal was great - NO we didn't try the 72 ouncer and after shopping in the gift shop, the limo took us back to the Comfort Inn. Our table was next to the elevated table where the challengers eat. There was a pail next to the table in case they would barf and if they do, the bet is off.

Back to the present - We stopped for lunch along side of the road at an exit to Conway, TX and there were 5 different cars buried with their noses in the ground including a VW bug and a small pick up truck. They had all been spray painted with graffiti - we couldn't tell if it was intentional or not.

Then off on the eastern horizon was this humongous cross made from pipe. The nearest town was Groom, TX. I think it might have been on the grounds of a church but the building was all boarded up like it was being renovated.

From the NM border to the OK border the panhandle of TX is 180 miles across. We did pass the processing plant for Bar J foods (cold cuts; hot dogs etc - I think).

Our goal for the day was Oklahoma City and a WalMart parking lot. Part reason for having the RV is not to pay to stay someplace over night. Even tho' the RV park in Santa Rosa, NM was only $22.00 it was still $22.00!

Lots of folks (including truckers) stay at WalMarts. With their security and other RVers and semi's it is really safe. It was already dark when a I spied a WalMart in El Reno, OK just 20 miles west of OKC. We pulled in there and asked inside at the customer service if it was OK to stay there. The answer was a very polite 'of course'!

We did some shopping, restocked the Pepsi and BEER (much to Gene's delight), came back and ate the tamales, our family gave us before we left NM and settled in for the night.

Miles traveled - 404

Average MPG = 7

We did some calculations and figure by the time we bought gas, stayed at the motels we like (Comfort Inns - average price $60.00); ate lunch and supper with a tip we are at break even and perhaps even saving some $$ too not having to buy snacks and cold drinks &/or coffee everytime we stop.

Day 3 Friday 2/6/09 RV Travels

Top Photo - Manzano Mts, east of Los Lunas/Belen, NM - what we looked at every day we lived there.

2nd photo - Catholic Church, Peralta, NM north of Los Lunas and south of the Isleta Indian Reservation.

After visiting some with Daniel's FIL, Bennie, and then saying our goodbyes, to everyone, we headed to Gene's cousin Nellie and husband Frank's house. Before we left tho', they gave us bag of homemade tamales, which will be supper on Sat. night.

We haven't seen them in over a year and there was so much to catch up on. They made a trip to NY last fall and then went on a cruise to New England. It was their 1st trip to NY and both had wanted to see the Statue of Liberty and the US Constitution their whole lives. Having been raised there and then just being there again for 3 1/2 years, there was lots to talk about.

After lunch we had to say more goodbyes and on our way out of town stopped by to see Gene's granddaughter at work. By then it was 3:00 ish. We knew we wouldn't get far but had to make a go of getting on our way.

We went back north to Albuquerque to catch I-40 east and got as far as Santa Rosa, NM. That is still about 75 miles from the Texas border and towns are far and few between. Even tho' we hadn't driven very far we decided to stop for the night so I could chat during Danna Crawford's (Powersellingmom.com) radio show. But all the chatters went to bed before us so we could have gone further.

We parked in the La Loma RV park with all the hookups but since it was dark, we only used their electricity. Gene had not connected the other stuff before so we were fine the way we were. The analog TV antenna works just fine.

Now I gotta say, NM is the 6th largest state in the county and you can go for 50 miles without an exit off the interstate. With such a huge windshield the sky is sooooo big!

I made and froze spaghetti sauce before we left, so we had pasta with sauce, salad and Indian Bread. This is bread made by the Native Americans and baked in an horno = a hand made, beehive shaped, clay oven, built outside and heated with a wood fire). Oh man such a treat.

I wrote the blog and collapsed into bed, while Gene stayed up and watched TV for awhile. Alarm is set for 8AM!!

Day 2 RV Travels 2/5/09

Us in the field with the slide out out.

After a great nights sleep we worked some more in getting settled in. Gene's son and wife brought us breakfast/lunch of homemade breakfast burritos wrapped in homemade tortillas. Very yummy - Gene was in 7th heaven eating the food he grew up with.

After we ate it was time to get to busy filling the fresh water tank and hooking up the Direct TV receiver. After several tries Daniel (son) went up onto the roof and see why the satellite dish was not turning. There was no way to check it before we left and Gene was definitely not climbing up there for any reason.

It is stuck so we will have to get it fixed. More than one person has recommended we get a tripod with the dish on it that stands on the ground. We thought it was duplicating what we already have and wanted to try it first. When we get to Florida we will contact Direct TV and have them help us get all set up.

In the meantime we have a very good analog antenna and it will work just fine until we get the other squared away.

DIL - Eileen - and I went grocery shopping and went home to fix dinner. Frito pies with red chile and beans and hot dogs. And a great dessert - vanilla wafers. instant banana cream pudding and bananas layered in a dish. Chilled and just scooped out. No real recipe. Eileen is an excellent cook.

The meat for the chile and beans was venison. The family are big hunters and have a freezers full of antelope, elk and deer. Even Eileen's 9 year old nephew shot both an antelope and deer this past hunting season.

We spent the evening visiting with the family including Genes daughter and grandson and Eileen's mother. We came out to the RV and the gals went crazy looking at and choosing the woven Peruvian earrings we have listed on eBay. They have a friend who is going though chemo and wanted some of our scarves, which are just the right size to cover her head. They took Pink Ribbon scarves in 3 different background colors and a pair of pink ribbon shoelaces.

We went to bed undecided which way we were going to continue east. Back up to Albuquerque and then east on I-40 or south on I-25 to Las Cruces NM where it turns into I-10. The decision was left for the morning when we could really see the 5 day weather reports.

RV Adventure Day 1 2/4/09

Pictures are in reverse - the bottom one I took first
Top - Sunset just east of Santa Fe looking at the Jemez Mts. (where Los Alamos is).

Middle - The back (east) side of the Sangre de Cristo (Blood of Christ) Mts. outside of Santa Fe.

Bottom - Welcome to NM sign!!!

After little set back on Tues. we were able to get loaded and pulled away from our home in Colorado Springs, CO at 10AM.

The back up camera quit working over the week end and needed to be replaced. Pikes Peak Traveland originally told us we would have to wait a day or 2 for it to be delivered to them (not a stock item). After playing bad cop (Gene) and good cop (me) lo and behold they found one in the 'back'. Why does everything have to be a battle? They fixed it and we had the rig back at 5PM.

We loaded all the listed eBay items and worked until we were exhausted and decided to finish in the morning, which had us leaving later that we had wanted.

The first real challenge of the trip was going over Raton Pass at the border of NM and Colorado. The crest is about 10,000 feet and the climb is approx. 3 miles long. For the most part our max speed was 35 until the last 1/2 mile. We could see the crest but kept slowing down to about 24 MPH.

At one point a semi pulled up to the drivers window in the left lane but at the same spot he too lost speed and we pulled away from him. Good thing we decided not to fill the fresh water tank with water. It is a 100 gallon tank and would have added a lot of weight. After several more small hills (!), we got to Gene's sons In Laws home about 7:30.

The trip is usually boring - nothing to see except prairie. Having lived here for so many years I am complacent over the real beauty of the wide open spaces. It is just raw land with a border of 11,000 + foot mountains that are snowcapped, just the way God made them.

Usually we see hundreds of prong horned antelope grazing but this trip we only saw about 20. Gene's son said that when they drove from NM to us in CO, a few weeks ago they saw at least 500 of the antelope in herds of 40 or more. They are easy to see. While they are grazing their heads are down but they have a broad white stripe on their sides, so they can be seen from quite a distance.

We also saw llamas ( a very popular animal that people are keeping, in the last few years) and cutey prairie dogs standing on the sides of their hills as a look out. Not a favorite of ranchers because their livestock can step in a prairie dog hole and break a leg.

At one point Gene was tired so we pulled into a rest area, I boiled some water and made him coffee in the French Press and a cup of tea for me. Just that one little thing seemed like such a luxary - a hot drink when and where we wanted, made our way and not some 5 hour old coffee from a convience store. LOL

When we got to Belen, Gene's son met us to lead us to the house. Because there are no street lights it is very dark and we didn't want to miss the turn. His in Laws live at the end of the street on 5 acres, so we are parked in the middle of their pasture. Gene's daughter and her son and daughter were here as was Gene's 96 year old mom (97 in March). We had called and told the to go ahead and eat since we were going to be so late, but our supper of stuffed homemade sopapillas was waiting.

After eating and son (Daniel) and Gene took his mom home, we came out to the RV so everyone could see it. While we were enjoying a bottle of wine, they leveled the rig so it would not move when we walked in it. After struggling with that for 10 minutes, they found out - (by reading the manual) that the emergency brake needs to be on.

Then they put the slide out, out and we just visited some more. When it was time for bed we collapsed and went to sleep immediately. Since it was so dark, the sky was full of stars and it was so quiet, only the occassional train whistle in the distance. I love that - knowing the trains are running - makes me feel all is well. Sorta a weird sense of security!!

Trivia question - Why is the train whistle 2 long 1 short and 1 long? Answer - That is morse code for the letter V. It started in England when officials wanted to alert the towns that the Queen was onboard so V for Queen Victoria!!!

Our plan was to leave today (Thursday) and really start the adventure totally on our own. But we need to get the water in, figure out the TV and finish putting stuff away. I also want to take a shower in here for the 1st time too so we know everything is working OK before we really hit the road.

The shuttle launch was postponed a week so we have alittle more leaway in when we get to Florida. And since we will have a late start tomorrow we may not keep to the original plan of where we are stopping. But then this is a working vacation, so we will sorta take it easy too.

We now know we really can't plan on more that 5 - 6 hours driving or 350 - 400 miles a day. Of course tomorrow will be downhill all the way to the NM - TX border (for the most part - there are some more hills but none as bad as Raton Pass). We will be back at sea level after a few hundred miles into Texas. And we also loose an hour tomorrow because we will cross into Central Time.

Facts - Travel time - 9 hours with 1 hour lunch stop and 2 rest area stops.
Miles - 415
Average MPG - 10.5.

Things in general to consider when buying an RV

Before even shopping for a vehicle there are things to be considered. Will the unit be used for just living or will you be living in it for weeks at a time? Do you want to tow a car too? How big do you want it or will you be comfortable driving? How many people will sleep in it?

Towing a car - There are 2 ways to tow the car. A full trailer is one you drive onto and all 4 tires are off the ground. They are typically 16' ish long which adds that many more feet to the RV. A dolly is just 2 wheels on a hitch that the front tires rest on. The back tires are on the road and will rotate and add miles to the odometer. They are a lot shorter.

We have learned this the hard way. Our car is all wheel drive and can not be towed so it would have to go onto a trailer. With a 34' long Bounder by Fleetwood and a 16' trailer we would be 50' long no matter where we went. For our 1st venture with the RV we decided that was too long and that we should use the dolly. Trouble with that was we needed to get another car, to tow. lol

So knowing what you want to use it for and if you will be towing a car to get around in, is the 2nd decision to make after it is decided you want to try the RV life. We opted for a larger one because we will continue our eBay business (http://stores.ebay.com/Herbs-Crafts-Gifts) on the road and need the storage.

Beds - Typically there is a bedroom. Class C also has the bunk up and over the drivers seat. The Class A has a 2 benches on either side of the table that break down into a bunk. Depending on size, the couch pulls out to a full bed too.

Shower - There is the shower in the tub like at home or the whole bathroom becomes the shower with the drain in the floor. We do not have any experience with either so have no opinion. Ours is in the tub.

Refrigerator / Freezer - Size is important if you are going to be out for several days at a time. Newer ones have ice makers.

Stove / Oven - I am reading that a lot of folks use little BBQ grills rather than using the stove. The oven looks small too and another preference they talk about is using a toaster oven. We found an Oster 6 slice toaster oven / convection oven for less than $75.00. I love the idea of it all being in one and once we are plugged in, the electricity to use it will not put time on the generator. (Besides who wants to clean a tiny little, dark oven?!)

TV - With the changes coming from analog TV a lot of folks are using a satellite dish. We have Direct TV because we have been told they are more user friendly. All we have to do is take the DVR receiver from the house, plug it in and adjust the dish based on the zip code where we are.

These are some of the basic options but many, many to consider like full awning to make a patio- like area, awnings on the outside over the little windows; window blinds; fans (can they stay open while traveling?); air conditioning - do they both run at the same time?; water filter; clean water tank size; water filter unit?; lights in the compartments where the clean outs are?; outside faucet to rinse off from the beach or to clean all those fish that are going to be caught?; and so many, many more.

Make a list of what is important to have and what would be nice to have and then go shopping. We had no clue but were very lucky to find the one we did. Thank you Dick @ Pikes Peak Travel Center in Colorado Springs, CO.

Buying the RV

We love to travel and have done some camping in a camper on a pickup over 15 years ago. Since then all our travel has been in the luxury of motel/hotel rooms.

In 2003 we took a 35 day, 7000 trip from NY down the east coast across the south to Las Vegas, to Colorado and north through South Dakota, Chicago and back to NY. That was so fantastic that we want to do it again, but would rather be more self contained and not have to stay at motels.

As we get older we wonder what our health will be in the future, so this winter we started talking about getting the RV in earnest.

We decided that right then (Dec. 2008) was the exact time to get it. Our rationale was that the prices were down because the dealers were over stocked and gas prices were starting to drop, so more people would be shopping after the holidays.

So what kind to get? Used for sure because new ones are so expensive, and like a car loose, value the minute is is driven off the lot.

**5th wheel - no because we do not have a pickup and we wanted to be self contained and pull the car.
**Class C - that is the one with a van like front and a bunk over the drivers and passengers seats. It is the 1st one we looked at, but unfortunately it did not have alot of storage space.
** Class B - Is like a big bus and we had no interst in that.
**Class A - That is the kind that are all over. Tall and all different lengths. We started thinking a 25' one would be just perfect since it would be small enough to drive around a city and we wouldn't have to pull a car.

After telling the salesman that we intended to not only travel, but wanted to continue selling on eBay and to also set up at flea markets; different state fairs or local street fairs / shows whereever we went. That meant we would need alot of storage.

He showed us a 34' unit that has storage all around the bottom, called a basement. So we made the decision that it would suit our needs and allow us a comfortable home on the road but also give us all the room we needed for storage.

There are 2 kinds of ways to transport the car, a dolly that the front tires rest on and the back tires are on the road or a full trailer that all four tires rest on. The full trailer is less wear and tear on the vehicle but also makes it another 16' longer. We opted for the dolly and an older car that can carry some of the bulkier tables and tent for the shows.

Next was where to park it? Our driveway is 4' too short and we could not park it on the street or in our yard because of restrictive convenants. We were lucky to find an RV park and storage facility not to far from our home, for a resasonable monthly rent.

When we left the sales yard, they gave us a several hour long, thorough, walk though explaining everything to us. The one thing they suggested was for us to video tape that walk through so we would have the info with us on any trip, we would take.

There are so many people who have RV-ed or are RV-ing and want to help. Another friend will give us another walk throught before we leave for the 1st time.

Next planning the trip and supplying the RV.