Cold and thinking way too much.

The weather gurus are forecasting that we will reach 26 degrees tonight here in the desert.  Often we do not reach the lows that are forecast, but what has my attention, is the fact that they think it will be below freezing for 5 to 6 hours.  That requires that we take some evasive measures.

I plan to at least roll up the hoses and drain them.  If the faucets freeze here in the park, at least it won't be because we left a hose on the hydrant.  We also leave a 100 watt light bulb running in the water locker where the hoses connect to the coach.  This locker has a heat hose from the rear heater in our bedroom.  But we use electric heaters most of the time, and they limit the forced air  heaters run times.  So adding the light bulb adds some amount of heat in the underneath locker.

We don't think for a minute that the light bulb will heat the underside of the coach, but if it raises the temperature only 5 degrees, it will be enough to keep things from freezing in the few short hours that are necessary.

Today we were held in the motorhome captive by temperatures that finally reached 40 by 1 in the afternoon.  Our high was 43 by 5 PM.  We were going nuts and left the coach at 3.

We drove around over in the older part of Mesa.  We wanted to drive thru the Las Palmas park over in Mesa.  That is the manufactured housing park that is affiliated with Las Palmas Grand park that is right South of us here in Valle Del Oro.

Sandra, our blogger friend up in Ontario asked in a comment, if we are thinking of hanging up the RV keys.  The answer is not exactly.  We have wintered in the RV for the last four years, and each year we tend to stay in one place for a couple of months at a time.  Mainly because we have picked what is supposed to be the warmest spot available and parked there.

But what we find happening, is that the trailer, or motorhome begins to close in on us after about 8 to 10 weeks.   We are home owners by nature and are used to larger spaces.  We seem to be junk collectors as well, and have stuff crammed into every empty space.  We haven't learned how to be full timers.

We therefore become restless at the end of several weeks and begin to think we need bigger quarters.  These thoughts cause us to look at the park models and especially those with Arizona rooms with increased yearning.  If only we had 700 ft  instead of 350.

Also, Loyce likes to have her washer.  She keeps the one at home running every day.  She will go to the laundry here in the park at least twice a week, and more if I can't keep her busy with other activities.  This coach does have a closet that can be used for a combo machine like a Splendide.  But everyone that I have read about that owns these carps about how they are broken.  Even today Jessie and Ginger were showing the burned out heating element from theirs.

Since we can't be here to take care of a free standing house, we have become interested in the manufactured home on leased land concept.  You don't have to purchase the lot in the beginning, which saves you about 40 or 50 K up front, but at 5 K a year, after ten years the park is ahead.  But you get the common amenities and the security of a gated community.

We haven't even talked to a real estate person or selected anything we think will work, but are just studying the concept and learning about options.  The first question we have to answer is will we be happy coming back to Mesa year after year?  On the surface we say "NO" but then call up and make the reservation in August, when we can't come up with a plan that sounds better.

What we have found out is that once you own one of these places, it is extremly hard to sell on the secondary market.  That might just be the nature of the housing market here in Arizona right now.  But it is the reality of the beast right now!

See what happens when the day is too cold to do anything else that is fun?

Retired Rod

I see that Kansas City has 1 degree, as I post this tonight.  Heck we have 37, what am I complaining about???