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My families Great American Adventure

Wulaw Horn

By Wulaw Horn
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Wulaw Horn
Wulaw Horn

Welp, I got some bad news today that is going to put a bullet in the head of this whole thing- repair bill came back at $37k and timeline to fix came back at 3 plus months.  it looks like the insura

Wulaw Horn
Wulaw Horn

Today was a travel day. Garner state park to Big Bend.  when you travel shit flies around if it’s not locked down tight. I put my money in an envelope, $578.86 in the microwave because fuck it- we’v

Wulaw Horn
Wulaw Horn

Houston, but yeah- the consensus over under seems to be 2-3 months.  Me to wife- how much was the bill at Walmart her- $400.  Me- what the fuck- you had like 9 bags of groceries is all

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SHOOTER12

SHOOTER12 8883

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11 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Houston, but yeah- the consensus over under seems to be 2-3 months. 

Me to wife- how much was the bill at Walmart

her- $400. 

Me- what the fuck- you had like 9 bags of groceries is all

her- I don’t know that’s just what it was o have the receipt

me- checking receipt- how many blankets did you buy?

her- just 2

me- well it says here you bought 6. Also- did you buy 4 of this item and 3 of that item?

her- no- I can’t believe they charged me for all that stuff I didn’t buy 

me- do you, at any point (trailing off and mumbling incoherently because I know the futility of it all) but what I was going to ask was- have any rough approximation of the value of stuff you put in the shopping cart,  but recognized that’s just silly to expect that. 

Next Sunday we will go grocery shopping as a family- that’s on me. So, shopping at 8:00 am or whatever, put groceries up, go to church, go out to eat (decided on one meal out in every place that gives a flavor of the indiginous to the area specialty for the kids- that’s part of culture and America after all) and then check in at 2:00. 

All that said/ I showed the boy around the RV and we talked about how it worked- I saw him do tricks on his bike- we went swimming together me and the 3 kids, we all pitched in to set up camp and then we read together. 

None of that shit was happening at home. 

My 9 year old got a dandelion for

me and told me to make a wish/ I did and then blew it out. She asked me what I wished for. I told her that I will be a good daddy to her, full of patience and that I will share a love of country and sense of adventure with them on this trip- and we will grow closer and stronger as a family.

today I saw some stuff that makes me think this can all happen, and some stuff that makes me wonder how long we will make it. 

 

Please tell me she didn't use the "self checkout".

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Landomatic

Landomatic 3813

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11 hours ago, CooterBrown said:

Church, Walmart, and eating out. Can we start a betting line on how many days until they get the ‘rona?

Pretty sure his wife already got it.  She was in the Walmart for 4 hours.

11 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Only 1 day a week. The other 6 we are essentially all by ourselves. 

So, in two weeks you'll have been around large crowds 6 times.  That's more than I've done it in 3 months.  Not judging, but I thought the whole point of this trip and its timing was due to the corona?  In all seriousness, please tell me you're at least factoring that in when selecting where to stop?

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Wulaw Horn

Wulaw Horn 19565

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41 minutes ago, Landomatic said:

Pretty sure his wife already got it.  She was in the Walmart for 4 hours.

So, in two weeks you'll have been around large crowds 6 times.  That's more than I've done it in 3 months.  Not judging, but I thought the whole point of this trip and its timing was due to the corona?  In all seriousness, please tell me you're at least factoring that in when selecting where to stop?

The point was to avoid the havoc corona was going to cause in the school systems and making life suck, not to avoid trying to get it. 

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SHOOTER12

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9 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

So, we set up a couple more dates 

after Gettysburg we camp 70 miles outside NYC by Fdr’s house and West Point, and the week after that I’m Boston/cape cod. 

Excited for those. Hopefully some stuff will be open. 

I want to take this opportunity to thank you and your family for going on this adventure and posting about it here.  With all the garbage and crap going on that's being posted about, this thread is, in places a good old dose comical Americana at it's best.  Much needed in todays chaotic, hate filled, insane society.

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Mrs Whiggins

Mrs Whiggins 13050

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12 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

So, we set up a couple more dates 

after Gettysburg we camp 70 miles outside NYC by Fdr’s house and West Point, and the week after that I’m Boston/cape cod. 

Excited for those. Hopefully some stuff will be open. 

I hope things will be open, too. Sounds like a good itinerary.

I second @dingleberryswitzer comments regarding keeping up with math, especially for your oldest. Heading into fourth and fifth grade, a very solid foundation sets the stage. for what comes next. Regardless of whether a child doesn't believe they are good at math/interested in math), we incorporated math into daily life with the children. Think of all the math you're using or can be using on this trip (if one chooses to ignore the technical devices) that are the skills upper elementary students need as they head into and beyond learning about percentages and fractions, rudimentary geometry, and measurements. Adding mileage, subtracting mileage. Large columns of numbers to reach the Walmart subtotal. Estimating (good plan to teach rounding in the Walmart), division, Quick subtraction to figure out how much clearance the RV will have before that tunnel/bridge, and on and on. Starting with pencil and paper, but then being able to 'math' in one's head is best realized through daily repetition.

It sounds incredibly didactic, but it doesn't have to be if it is simply a part of your routine day. I am grateful that my husband did this with our children and I did as well. They learned how to use an atlas and a map because we didn't have smart phones until way after everybody else. It was fun and the conversations became hilarious as we added to our memory bank.

Looking forward to your next update.

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Wulaw Horn

Wulaw Horn 19565

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Also, I dumped the tank for the first time ever today and backed into my spot by myself for the first time without the rv guy helping. 

Progress. Starting to feel like I’m getting this down. 

Talked a bunch of business the last two days without booking a deal. Nothing to do with distance just not happening yet. Will celebrate greatly the first time I book a deal from the road. 

Got all my calls and intentional outbound stuff done early so just went for a nature hike with the family. Now going to see Ozark Jesus and the treehouse made of glass church. 

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horn4life

horn4life 3834

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This thread is a bit close to home but only for recreational purpose, and I had been considering trailer purchase prior to Covid.  IF you want to buy a clean used RV in two years there are going to be a SHITLOAD of newer units for sale. The depreciation is pretty extreme, and the demand has gone through the roof.  Look at Camping world CWH:symbol to see what the demand is doing to their stock.

We wanted a trailer that was big enough for the wife and I, to go hang on the beach comfortably, but not so large as to not be able to park in national parks.  I wanted to pay cash and I got one hell of a deal for $15K.  Got all the extra goodies I would have easily spent another $1500 on, and the prior owners were about as anal as you can get, on the lists, maintenance, and outfitting.  For us it was the rod holder over the bed that was "the sign!" Just like a full bottle of Jack Daniels in the otherwise empty pantry was a sign when we bought our current home. 😉

If I had younger kids I might make the same choice as WuLaw, except perhaps with more reservations research in an increasingly tightening marketplace for those.  I would also be looking at potential upgrades like solar to actually be able to camp at cheaper sites without hook ups, that I would think would have greater availability. I also might look into Buying two 1 year National Park passes for the RV and Truck.  

The main thing to remember in my opinion is shit happens (especially at the dump station) and you have to roll with the punches. 

Hope it ends up truly being the adventure of a lifetime!

 

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Wulaw Horn

Wulaw Horn 19565

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3 hours ago, BevoSwag said:

Do you have time in the D.C. area to visit Shenandoah National Park?  I read you might miss the Smokies on this trip but this could be a possible compromise?

Probably. We have 8 or 9 days at the sisters in laws house in West Virginia reasonable close to DC. That might be cool to do. 

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utee94

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22 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Broke in the “stabin’ cabin” as someone referred to it up stream. Didn’t wake the kids up but no way I’m getting daytime sex for a year I would bet. 

Send them on long journeys to procure firewood.  60% of the time, it works every time.

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utee94

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9 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

How old were yours when that started?  Asking for myself, errrrr a friend. 

They're currently 10 and 12, but we'd send them out when they were 6 and 8.  They've been camping since they were infants though, so they've been well trained in  all the rules of the campground and outdoors, as well as strong stranger danger reinforcement, etc.

 

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orangecat92

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Wow.  Am so impressed at your thought process. From an educator point of view, I cannot thank you enough for exposing the kids to all of America this way.   Your idea of having the kids write a journal is the bomb!  There is a website-can't think of it now-that will "publish" kids books.  They provide the special high-quality paper, etc.  Makes a cool gift for grandparents, etc. 

When you get serious about having the kids work on academics,  I suggest the following:

1.  IXL.com. for math.  IXL is an incredible website that has different levels of math, from PK all of the way to high school.  I used it to tutor 5th graders who had failed the 4th grade STAAR a couple of years ago. 

2. Lexia.com is also wonderful for language arts.  Lexia is designed for kids who have dyslexia, but at the charter school I taught in Dallas, we put all of our kids on lexia and it was outstanding.  I always challenged my 4th graders to complete the 5th grade level of Lexia, reason being that was less kids I would have to be concerned about passing the writing STAAR test.  

One hour a day of IXL and one hour a day of Lexia and you may wonder what the kids have been doing in school.   

 

 

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Wulaw Horn

Wulaw Horn 19565

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So, today after dinner (wife made steak on a griddle- wasn’t worthy of a picture in GM steakhouse but was tasty enough for

me, the boy and I spent 2.5 hours trying to take off the automatic steps that are frozen in the out position. 

Laying on our backs, showing him how tools work, and utterly failing to get them off. As a last ditch effort we started hammering the sons of botched trying to break them off. No such luck. End of the day, turned on the key and they folded in exactly like it looks at the factory (after I gave them a kick with my knee) both in and out. Motor is groaning. No idea how or why our destruction worked but oh well, won’t be driving down the road with my steps out tomorrow now (hopefully anyway) which is always a yutz move. Those fuckers are sturdy. No idea how they made them that indestructible. I think I’d need a sledge hammer to break the stairs out at the joints. 

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conVINCEd

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15 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

So, today after dinner (wife made steak on a griddle- wasn’t worthy of a picture in GM steakhouse but was tasty enough for

me, the boy and I spent 2.5 hours trying to take off the automatic steps that are frozen in the out position. 

Laying on our backs, showing him how tools work, and utterly failing to get them off. As a last ditch effort we started hammering the sons of botched trying to break them off. No such luck. End of the day, turned on the key and they folded in exactly like it looks at the factory (after I gave them a kick with my knee) both in and out. Motor is groaning. No idea how or why our destruction worked but oh well, won’t be driving down the road with my steps out tomorrow now (hopefully anyway) which is always a yutz move. Those fuckers are sturdy. No idea how they made them that indestructible. I think I’d need a sledge hammer to break the stairs out at the joints. 

I forget, did you end up buying new or used?

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conVINCEd

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1 minute ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Used. 2017 with 12k miles on it. Steps worked fine there and fine for the first 150 times the door opened and closed but then stopped working right on the first night. 

It would be funnier if it was new.  Seriously, hope you guys have a great adventure.

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utee94

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5 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Used. 2017 with 12k miles on it. Steps worked fine there and fine for the first 150 times the door opened and closed but then stopped working right on the first night. 

"It's only just begun."

 

But, as you already discovered, you'll be fine anyway.  Have a sense of humor, laugh about it, and deliver mule-kicks when necessary.

 

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Wulaw Horn

Wulaw Horn 19565

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3 minutes ago, utee94 said:

"It's only just begun."

 

But, as you already discovered, you'll be fine anyway.  Have a sense of humor, laugh about it, and deliver mule-kicks when necessary.

 

I tried that and it didn’t work. Seriously can’t believe I couldn’t break those bastards. Dicked around with the boy for 2 hours showing him tools and how stuff works so not a total loss. 

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RPM

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4 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

I tried that and it didn’t work. Seriously can’t believe I couldn’t break those bastards. Dicked around with the boy for 2 hours showing him tools and how stuff works so not a total loss. 

The way most steps work is a simple servo connected to the steps by a pin and cotter. If they are stuck out, remove the pin and use a tarp strap to hold them in the up position. If they are stuck up, remove the pin and they will naturally fall down. If you drove around with them down you may have bent them and they'll need straightened or they will jam. You can also remove the pin and test the servo to make sure it's working.

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RPM

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21 hours ago, Wulaw Horn said:

I couldn’t get at the some of the bolts, and the screws stripped trying to take them off (mania screwdriver). Whatever it is I fucked it up but good. But they kinda work so win? Probably caused myself a long term headache and more money down the road

Don't feel bad, this is a fairly common problem. You can solve it by buying a $10 stool at Walmart. I've used them on long term stays because they're more stable. Tell them it's what the railroads used. You know... history.

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Brew

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1 hour ago, RPM said:

Don't feel bad, this is a fairly common problem. You can solve it by buying a $10 stool at Walmart. I've used them on long term stays because they're more stable. Tell them it's what the railroads used. You know... history.

Wulaw should probably make the trip in to buy it, there is no telling what his wife would come out with. Practically speaking, the stool sounds like a much better long term solution than automatic stairs with little kids and 500 trips in and out the door during the day.

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RPM

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3 minutes ago, Brew said:

Practically speaking, the stool sounds like a much better long term solution than automatic stairs with little kids and 500 trips in and out the door during the day.

They really are. Auto fold steps are nice for travelling, but once you're parked you want a good stable step. 

 

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Wulaw Horn

Wulaw Horn 19565

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So, next problem up is wake up today and the AC is leaking into the RV. From everything I’m reading sounds like a clogged drain pipe. 

Im sending the wife up to investigate it as I don’t want to get on top of the RV because I’m kind of worried about being too fat and falling through the roof and this fix sounds pretty simple. 

Whats the weight limit on the roof of an rv?  I’m a couple biscuits shy of 300, so I’m not like the grotesque rascal rider at Walmart with no ankles or elbows that needs to buy two seats on an airplane, but I’m also a big enough fella that weight limits and stuff can be an issue. Safe for me to fuck around up there or nah?

Also kids ripping up the floor. At this rate, this thing is going to fall apart inside of 3 months. 

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bschoolprof

bschoolprof 6340

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8 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

So, next problem up is wake up today and the AC is leaking into the RV. From everything I’m reading sounds like a clogged drain pipe. 

Im sending the wife up to investigate it as I don’t want to get on top of the RV because I’m kind of worried about being too fat and falling through the roof and this fix sounds pretty simple. 

Whats the weight limit on the roof of an rv?  I’m a couple biscuits shy of 300, so I’m not like the grotesque rascal rider at Walmart with no ankles or elbows that needs to buy two seats on an airplane, but I’m also a big enough fella that weight limits and stuff can be an issue. Safe for me to fuck around up there or nah?

Also kids ripping up the floor. At this rate, this thing is going to fall apart inside of 3 months. 

I have nothing to add other than this post is full of gold.  

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