North Salt Lake, UT 84054
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RV LIFE:
When we first began our full time RV adventure, we remembered other Fulltimers' advice about this is not a vacation, this is a lifestyle. So don't try to rush to see everything, take your time.
So, our idea of taking our time was to stay a week, instead of just 3 or 4 days. That would also save us gas expense and usually there is a break with a weekly rate at RV parks.
We quickly realized, one week is not long enough in one area (if we like it). We are a laid back couple. Scott is usually not out of bed before 10am. I am up at 6:30am, but am not ready to go out and do things until about 11 am - 12 noon.
For example, I got up at 7am today. Walked the dogs for 40 minutes. Made a cup of coffee, scanned by emails, sent out a couple. Now the time consumer! I have discovered Facebook games! Ugh! You know I have too much time, when I can spend an hour or two and "just one more" on these games. On the other hand, I still remember my working days, when I wouldn't waste my precious time on these games. Retirement is wonderful!
So now I'm on my 2nd cup of coffee, and still playing games. No wonder my blog has been neglected!
It's now 8:30am and I'm updating this blog waiting for my 3rd cup of coffee to brew and my bread to toast. Now, I'll sit outside at this nice, clean plastic round picnic table with lovely green, green, plush grass and have my breakfast and read. That will be at least 1 to 1.5 hours.
So, you can see how easily the days fly by. It takes a couple of days to acclimate ourselves to the new RV park and town. Research where good restaurants are, grocery stores, vet, etc. We tend to stay at home on the weekends. NJ has really biased us against weekenders or "Bennys" at the shore.
So, if we stay a week, say we arrive on Tuesday. Wednesday is looking for grocery store, settling in, checking out trails with the dogs. Thursday, we may try dinner, Friday we may try breakfast. No way we can go out to dinner after having a huge breakfast. Then it's the weekend. So now we only have Monday left. If there's any sightseeing, or more restaurants, we only have 1 day. Proof, that a week is too short.
So, 10 days minimum to 2 weeks is our preference. Of course, if we hate the place 1 week could be too long. We tend to make reservations about 5 days ahead for a week. If we like the park and area, we will ask for another week. We have never been told no.
Cleaning: Of course, the bad thing about 2 weeks, is we do settle in. Meaning, the RV gets cluttered, the outside gets cluttered, etc. The day before moving day is usually my clean up the RV day.
Toilet is usually cleaned after tank is dumped.
Bird cage cleaned upon arrival at new park. Our African Gray Parrot, is in a travel cage, so the cage is empty and can be cleaned thoroughly.
Vacuuming is done either day before, morning of, or before complete set up on arrival.
Sinks are scoured day of travel, while storing kitchen and bathroom items.
Dusting & mold is done while vacuuming on a cool day. It's a real pain to have to move everything to dust and clean the mold that builds up. Not only do the shelves, have to be dusted, but the computers need to get the dust off the fan area and the screens, etc. The mold is something new RV'rs should take note of. I was surprised to find this, as in our Stick & Brick home, this was not a problem. Mold builds up around the trim of the windows, sometimes on the walls behind furniture, and in our case, in our closet at the head of the 5th wheel. (See photo on March 5, 2012 Post)
Outside cleaning: On a cool day is when I will clean a section of the outside of our RV. Wipe down with water, wipe dry, and then lightly rub PROTECT ALL on it. I just do a section at a time while listening to a book on tape. Do this for an hour every few days and before you know it, the whole rig is clean & ready to start all over again. Well, at least up to about the 10' mark is cleaned. After that, I can't reach any higher and Scott hasn't gotten around to doing the top part.
Roof: This is Scott's job. I haven't gotten to the roof myself yet. Scott is slowly overcoming his fear of being on the roof. It's important to keep the roof in good condition. We don't want any leaks!
Maintenance: This is where we are lacking. I do have a spreadsheet that I've put together and all from other RV sites, but have I looked at it yet? We've been full timing 10 months! I think I need to stop relaxing so much and take a look at that maintenance schedule. Our slides squeak now when going in & out. I remember the RV dealer stating the importance of keeping the slides seals lubricated with silicone spray. Have we done this? Noooo! Time flies.
So when we stay 2 weeks, I need to clean in between...sometimes.
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RESTAURANT REVIEWS:
We vacationed in Oahu a dozen years back. We loved the "plate" meals. So seeing this restaurant advertising a "plate" menu, we were excited.
GARLIC CHICKEN: This was very tasty. Nuggets of chicken with a batter deep fried. Some "bite" to it. It reminded me of General Tso's chicken without the sauce. I would order this again.
TERIYAKI PORK: Flavorful but tough.
PULLED PORK: Bland
KALBI SHORT RIBS: The flavor was very good. They had a rub or marinade that gave great flavor. But again, this meat was tough, with a lot of gristle.
STEAMED RICE: Gloppy bland, but I think that is how it is supposed to be.
MACARONI SALAD: OK, but too much mayo for my taste.
Overall, my husband would return for the Garlic Chicken, but I would not bother.
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Not as good as Panera Bread, but I would definitely return.
3 CHEESE CAULIFLOWER SOUP: Thick and delicious. Came with 2 slices of your choice of bread.
TURKEY CRANBERRY CROISSANT SANDWICH: Ok, would have liked to have thinner & more slices of turkey.
REUBEN PANNINI ON RUSTIC RYE: Great. I'd like a little more pastrami & kraut, but great bread, toasted nicely and delicious.
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Being from NJ, we have only heard of In N Out from the celebrity raves.
The building was very clean, but just looked like a "fast food joint". There were at least 10 cars waiting at the drive in at 12:45pm.
We opted to go inside. We HAD to check this place out because of all the hype.
I like the simple menu. When I go to other fast food burger joints, the menu has gotten so large, & the menu board is so confusing.
Oh my gosh! I will now be craving their cheeseburgers!
Difficult to say exactly why though. There is very little meat in this sandwich. Just a thin slab of ground beef amid the pile of other ingredients. I probably would have enjoyed this sandwich just as much without the beef.
The roll was fresh, and nicely toasted, with a crispiness along the edges. Thick pile of fresh, crispy lettuce, a beautiful slice of tomato, a generous slice of sweet onion. I think there may be mayo or some kind of sauce on the burger also.
The combo makes a delicious, refreshing sandwich.
The fries were slightly above average. They did seem fresh, not frozen, but I wouldn't waste the calories on the fries. I'll opt for a milkshake in lieu of fries next time.
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Breakfast
A lot of reviews state "better than Denny's". It's been a while since I've been to Denny's so I'll have to visit again.
Large, clean restaurant, very similar looking to a Perkins Pancake House,
Coffee was good enough for me to drink black. Very generous with the coffee. Kept returning to refill.
LUMBERJACK BREAKFAST: 3 eggs, 3 hotcakes, hashbrowns, ham, bacon & sausage. Very good meal. Although hotcakes aren't the best I had (a little heavier than I like), they were very good. Ham was delicious, bacon & sausage, both good.
PIONEER: Hash browns are covered with finely shredded cheddar cheese, sauteed onions, sausage and mushrooms. Would have preferred fresh mushrooms, but was still delicious. All this topped with 2 eggs. What a combo. Absolutely delicious! Opted for hot cake instead of toast. We would return if we were here longer.
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BOOK REVIEW:
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Explained how the middle class is being screwed by government and corporations. Corporations are becoming so powerful, they are influencing the gov't to believe that they can run things better than gov't. Problem is corporations are out for PROFIT and more money for the executives. Corporations don't care about the average Joe trying to make a living in the US.
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AUDIO BOOK REVIEW:
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Good narration by Anna Fields. Her men's voices are a little "silly", but she does a great toddler!
This story catches your interest quickly. Bobby, the sniper sort of gets me aggravated, with his stupid decisions.
But then, once I realize it's difficult to decide who's the good guys and who's the bad, I was excited to read/listen on to find out.
This story catches your interest quickly. Bobby, the sniper sort of gets me aggravated, with his stupid decisions.
But then, once I realize it's difficult to decide who's the good guys and who's the bad, I was excited to read/listen on to find out.
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