Only one night at Caballo . . .
Even though the crew and I aren’t finished exploring Caballo Lake, we should get back up to Elephant Butte State Park to get some necessary things done. So we break camp around noon and drive the short distance north. I drive off the interstate at Truth or Consequences. Walmart is right by the exit and I need to get the three things I can’t live without: drinking water, food, and toilet paper.
The crew stays in the Perfect Tow Vehicle while I shop.
They’re probably howling their brains out. At least that’s what they’re doing when I walk away and when I return. I don’t know how long it’s going to take for Bridget and Spike to learn that howling doesn’t help and I always come back. Geez. I suppose they think it’s the howling that brings me back.
We’re all set up in Quail Run Campground.
It’s the same campground, only different site, as when we were here before. I lay down the patio mat, my camp chair, and the dog pen right away. There’s a lot of sand in this campground. I love how the mat keeps the sand out of the Casita, a lot of it anyway.
Why did we come back to Elephant Butte, Land of the Stalking Coyote?
Well, there’s the appointment with Chip for the heater installation on Thursday. Also we needed groceries very badly. Tomorrow I absolutely have to do laundry. This cannot be postponed any longer. It’s hard to stay downwind of everyone I meet, what with New Mexico’s changeable winds! I also need to pick up some more things from Walmart that I didn’t have time to get today, knowing the crew was throwing a canine fit in the PTV.
One thing I need is super glue to fix what I broke.
I tried to remove the plastic cover from the outside light next to the door in order to pull the bulb so I’d know what kind to get. The bulb blew out about a week ago. The plastic cover was so brittle it broke in my hand with just a little pressure. Fortunately it’s a straight, clean break. I’m hoping I can super glue it and replace it without it snapping again.
I also want to get another spout for my kitchen sink.
I don’t know why Casita puts in such a low spout. It’s annoying. When the sink cover is over the sink, you can’t put a bowl or pot under the spout. I hope Walmart has a good one. Chip said he would put it on for me. I could probably do it myself, unless it involves teflon tape. I learned a long time ago that I will never successfully perform the teflon tape thing. It always leaks. I believe in trying new challenges, but I also believe in knowing your limitations. Teflon tape is one of mine.
I also need to mail the heater cover back.
Remember the cover that’s supposed to be white, but arrived black? I’ll run that into the post office on the way to Walmart and the laundry.
To make fulltiming work there are times when you have to go to town to get stuff done.
Camping in the boonies or even in a campground away from services is no fun if you run out of drinking water, food, or toilet paper . . . and your clothes smell!
rvsue
Sometimes a gal just has to do what a gal has to do! I agree those three items are essential.
Let me turn you on to something Andy Baird told me about:
http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202352423/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053
A small outside solar light you can glue, screw, or velcro above your doorknob or anywhere you want soft yellow light. It uses rechargeable AA batteries and after a day’s sun they shine all night. Great for finding the right key in the dark. Or that coyote lurking under the step. Or even picking out your own Casita from the rafts of wannabes in the campground. Cheap and useful.
Bob
Hello, Bob!
I’m wondering. Do I always want a light on? Thanks for the link. I’ll have to think about that one.
Bear in mind it is only on at night. It is a soft yellow led, focused down. You can see it from a distance, but it’s not shining out into other sites.
If you replace your incandescent bulbs with LED bulbs you will get much longer life and use a lot less power. They are a bit expensive but you will save power which is important with your soon to be solar system. A LED gives off about five times as many lumens per watt of power than does an incandescent.. Walmart probably has them and Amazon has a good variety.
http://tinyurl.com/3zv5u44
Mick
Hi, Mick . . .
Now that I’ve lived in my trailer for a few months I’m aware of what lights are the most important… the one over the sink, the one over where I read in bed, and the one by the door.
I think the next points I redeem at Amazon might be for LEDs.
BTW thanks for reminding me of tinyurl. I couldn’t remember the name!
Sue, I replaced my low kitchen sink faucet last Sept with one like the one from Larry & Debbie Gamble’s Little House Customs . Go down about 1/4 of the page to the “Utopia Rise Faucet”. The whole faucet/handles didn’t have to be replaced, just the faucet. I have the Phoenix. Just a suggestion and you might want to bookmark the page in case there might be other items you might want. Larry & Debbie own a Casita and he spends a lot of time working on others’ Casitas. He helped me with my Fantastic Fan and fixed my faucet for me.
http://www.littlehousecustoms.com/store Opps, website didn’t print, Will try again. If it doesn’t do a Google for Little House Customs.
Hi, Emily!
I couldn’t find a high rise spout in the hardward stores or Walmart in T or C. I’ll go and ahead and order it.
Thanks for the link.
I too had issues with Teflon tape, switched to teflon paste. It works better than tape if you have to take things apart and put them back together. LOVE your blog, it’s my morning treat with my coffee. Zeke
http://www.amazon.com/William-Harvey-023020-48-Paste-Teflon/dp/B000BQQOVW/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1320242164&sr=8-8
Hi, Zeke!
Welcome to my blog! Glad you consider it a treat!
Sue,
For the faucet mod, I’d highly recommend what Emily suggests and buy a hi-rise spout from Larry G. It’s a 60 second change – unscrew the factory one, screw on the new one. The knurled connector nut is right at the base of the spout.
Also, if you want to with Mick’s suggestion to switch to LED lights, LEDTrailerLights.com (http://www.ledtrailerlights.com/rv/casita.htm) has a special just for Casita owners. It’s been discussed a lot on the CasitaForum. We do a lot of boondocking and get along great using our 80W solar panel and LEDs. We spent 10 days ‘off grid’ in CO this past summer.
One more thing, Larry at LittleHouseCustoms also has replacement lens for the porch light. :>)
I was wondering if he had the lens . .. . super!!
Hi, Dave . .
I really want to take advantage of your suggestion and others made here by other readers. The problem is the shipping address. Elephant Butte P.O. allowed me one shipment (which I’ve used). T or C will probably cut me off, too. Once I designate a general delivery I end up hanging around waiting for the shipment. Not a huge problem in the scheme of things, but I have to plan my mail-order purchases carefully and try to group them.
Thanks for the link. I just checked it out. I want those lights!!!
Colorado can be expensive. Nice to be able to boondock there . . .
Dog howling suggestion.
If you get talking to somebody in a store that the dogs don’t know, ask them if they would walk by the PTV ( with you inside the store ) to see if they really do howl all the time or just when they see you.
It might put your mind at rest if you know they are not doing it all the time. 🙂
Bill Kelleher
The best way to get a high spout is to order one from http://www.littlehousecustoms.com. That Larry Gamble. His prices are fair and you know you’ll get the right one. You can install it yourself easily
It looks like that’s what I’ll do!
Dave’s link has very good prices. A place I have used in the past was almost double for the same bulb.
Good to know!
Hey Sue – Bud Russman (http://www.arizonarvguy.com/) gave me this link for solar: http://www.flexenergydelsol.com/
It looks like it might be a good fit for your rig, because it seems flexible. You might want to check it out. I’m definitely going to do more research, and maybe that will be my solar choice when I get to Arizona.
I also have LED lights on my shopping list. You have some good links here in your comments, which I’ve saved. Thanks! 🙂
Katie used to be a big barker. At first I put her bed in the kitchen area and blocked it off, so she would know that was the only part of the rig she had to guard. It seemed to work, so we progressed to leaving her free in the rig, but I close all the window coverings and leave on the TV or a radio. This has worked for us. I know it’s a huge worry, because you have to be able to leave them, but you don’t want to bother neighbors. I hope you work it out. (The last resort, which I would have taken if necessary, would have been mild sedatives from a vet.)
When we lived in my condo, I had a neighbor complain and a dog trainer suggested the steps above, which worked in the condo, too. 🙂
Thanks for the anti-howling ideas and the link. I’m going to see if time will lesson their barking. It’s still relatively new for them to be left in the PTV while I shop. When I lived in a house, I always left them at home and there weren’t any close neighbors.
Hello, Darrell,
I LOVE the Site to Store option at Walmart! What a great idea. I used it back in Georgia and it was so easy. Unfortunately some of the things I want are Casita items that I’ll have to order through the companies recommended by other commenters.
Nice of you to mention it though. Now I just have to figure out where I’m going to be in the coming weeks in case I want to order something from Walmart.