Hello, I'm Back!

Hey everybody! Did you miss me? I am afraid that I have been hibernating for the winter, stopped progress on the camper, and neglected my faithful readers. I don’t want you to think that I have been lying on the couch all day though. My momentum slowed after I hit my fall camper rally deadline and then I ran into some necessary home repairs.

We have a sixty-year-old house with the original cast iron pipes. Well, let’s call them what they really were, long, rusty tubes that became Swiss cheese at a really inopportune moment. Is there an opportune moment to have plumbing problems? Long story short, there were some not-so-fun times under the house where I gained a healthy respect for plumbers, what they do, and what they charge. On the bright side, I figure I saved us at least a grand, maybe two and that buys a lot of Shasta parts.

Once I finished that project, I think I actually did lie on the couch for a while. Since things have warmed up a bit, I have been working on a drainage system for our gutters, that I can tie into rain barrels for our vegetable garden, and a sprinkler system for the new sod I put in the front yard last fall. I still have a couple house projects left; I am going to do my own home efficiency audit, add some more insulation to the attic, install an attic fan and seal up a few energy leaks throughout the house. I still need to clean out the garage and then I can get going on the Shasta again.

Back to the Shasta, I need to work on the wings, install my new jack, build a new dining table, overhaul the door, get an awning made by Marti, and work on my hidden a/c project. There are a few other odds and ends that I will remember when I get going again. We got some cool decorations over the holidays, some light strings, flamingos, and we also found a very cool vintage metal cooler and water jug on a thrift store expedition for our mid-century Etsy store, called Suddenly Lucky, that I think I will keep instead of selling. I will snap some pics of the loot soon.

We are planning on running up to Kansas in May for Kamp Kansas. I think it will be a family affair, my folks just bought a ‘64 Aristocrat Loliner, my aunt got a ‘69 (I think) Road Runner last fall, and my other aunt has her ‘72 Shasta compact. So I have a new tentative goal for finishing up a few more things. It helps keep me motivated. In the meantime, I hope to get out for a weekend in the camper in the next few weeks.

So to wrap this up, I am truly sorry to those of you who kept coming back only to say, “Aaaarrrrgh, still just pics of a VIN?!” I will keep my updates more frequent in the future, as I try and get this labor of love finished. (Ahem, they never really get finished, do they?) Anyway, thank you for being faithful. Drop me a line and tell me whose blogs you have been reading while I have been lazy, so I can take a peek.

Until next time dear readers, shasta la vista...