CuRVWander

  So, I've been carrying on about 'build the truck, build the truck' but I haven't really said how that gets done.  I can say with conviction, it's a process.  There are a lot of hands involved, beginning with acquiring the truck, something usually done by the upfitter as part of their custom build service.  But this time the upfitter I am working with, Classy Chassis, was caught up in all the shortages just like everybody else.  The finding and purchase of the chassis cab were left up to Cyndee and me. We chose Classy Chassis based on our previous experience with them when we built our first truck in 2006.  After sixteen years the business was still in good standing and appeared to be thriving.  The same principal people were still doing their thing and with the exception of all the shortages brought on by the pandemic they seemed to be in top form.  We all went to work on spec'ing out what had to be done and got busy. There is an order to doing ...

 My last post left off with me headed to California to retrieve the truck I just bought.  I dreaded the thought of getting on another airplane.  I had sworn off airplanes in retirement after a 35 year career that had me traveling an average of 200 nights/year.  It seems it has been long enough (ten years) that my memories were only half as bad as I thought it would be. My departure airport, Atlanta, is the busiest airport in the world.  So that place is pretty much a zoo 24/7.  It doesn't matter what day, what time or what airline you book, it's a mess.  My flight to San Diego was Spirit Airline's earliest flight out and I was required to be at the airport by 5:00 am to check in for an 8:00 am departure.  They were adamant and hounded me with multiple emails telling me to arrive early, specifically 3 hours early.  I wish they had been so conscientious about emailing that the flight had canceled during the night and that I was rebooked for the...

Cyndee being the search genius she is I take notice when she says she thinks she has something.  Despite being disappointed dozens and dozens of times when following up on a lead we thought we had, I was willing to try one more time.  While I was getting excited about the prospect of getting an HDT I was more distraught about the cost.  I was having a hard time finding a way to fund the HDT purchase without resorting to a cat food diet.  Giving an MDT one more try was welcomed. At first blush the prospect looked pretty good.  The information included in the posting showed that it met the basic specifications we had to have.  Many trucks we looked at had gotten this far, but when we called about it, only to be told they didn't really have the truck or that the truck they had was not exactly equipped as the ad showed. It was seven in the evening on a Friday our time and I expected to have to call Saturday or maybe even have to wait until Monday.  But Cyn...

 In November of 2021 I wrote a diatribe lamenting the life that our 2006 truck had dealt us.  It wasn't all bad mind you, there were plenty of good times but those memories have faded against frustrating breakdowns and bank-draining repairs that became intolerable.  For the amount we spent on the 6.0L diesel engine in repairs we could have bought Cyndee's 2018 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport two times over.  But it is not like all of that expense came out of our pocket at once.  The grand total was spread out over 16 years.  So when we looked at it on a per-year basis it just made us wince.  When we looked at it as a cumulative total we gasped. Something had to be done.  One way or another we were going to have to replace our truck.  The only problem, as I outlined in the November post, is there were pandemic induced shortages of everything and it was proving maddingly difficult to get the truck we needed.  After nearly a year of trying to get in...

I think everyone has heard of middle-age spread and understands a waistline that bulges without respect to exercise or dieting.  There is a parallel to this in living space too.  It seems that whatever space you have, you fill it in time.  I think most who have had a home, be it a mansion or one bedroom apartment, has experienced bulging closets and crammed-full drawers. Full-timers, out of necessity, are hyper-aware of using the space available in their abode on wheels.  Weight and weight distribution is important and the use of the physical space of the usually no more than 400 sq/ft are always front and center in the mind. We started our full-timing experience with all the things we thought we would need  and a few things that would be nice to have but not absolutely necessary.  We also changed our attitude to collecting memories, not things, and adopted the rule that for anything purchased/acquired, something else would have to be disposed of.  Ano...

EVERYTHING SHINY AND NEW The heart of a full-timer's life is the rig they live in.  And if one lives in a trailer, then the lifeblood is the truck that tows it.  Big Gulp has been our lifeblood since 2006 and has seen us through thick and thin.  Some of the thin would be Big Gulp itself. The day we took delivery of Big Gulp March 31, 2006 It was a proud moment when we picked up our truck from the custom up-fitter in Valparaiso, IN.  It symbolized a new beginning, a whole new way of living.  A nomadic life filled with adventures of all kinds.  And with this truck, dubbed Big Gulp for the copious amounts of fuel it consumed, our adventures began.  Small ones at first because we were both not yet retired, but vacations and long weekends helped us hone our skills for the full-time lifestyle. THE SHINE DULLS The warm glow of the possibilities before us were soon tempered somewhat when we began having mechanical failures, all associated with the Ford-built d...

 Early this spring I was asked to photograph an event that took place at Allatoona Lake dam.  The Corps of Engineers were hosting a local museum society by giving a talk on the history of the dam as well as a tour of it, both inside and out.  While on top of the dam I was trying to find a good angle to capture the ranger giving the talk as well as his audience.  I got up against an exterior wall that overlooked the Etowah River, which is what the dam discharges to, and got my shot.  But before moving to my next shot I took the opportunity to enjoy the view. Besides being a long way down, there were a lot of wildlife present in the form of birds.  What particularly caught my attention were a pair of Osprey that were building a nest.  This nest was being constructed atop a telephone pole installed by Georgia Power (just one of many they put up around the lake for nesting purposes).  A platform atop the pole to act as a base for the nest is a surplus...