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Saturday, May 15, 2010

So Long, Shopping, Suds, Saw and Smoke


It was a busy day yesterday.  The sun barely up when we got up and got going.  We took Adam to the Detroit airport.  He will be in New York, Wash DC and Toronto for a few days.  He has some important work to be doing, among which is getting some input on setting up a non-profit.  So we were at the airport at 6:30 AM.

Next we came back to the Roadrunner and had breakfast, planned the day and got with it!  First we went over to the Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi to do some shopping.  (Mostly window shopping).  I haven't been to a mall in months.  We entered the mall through Macy's

 and the first thing I noticed was iPods for sale in a vending machine:
I have never seen that before!  Simple as swiping your credit card.

Pam went over to the women's clothes section and sent me on my way to the Apple store.  I am planning on buying a refurbished 3G(s) iPhone when the new iPhones come out in June (I am guessing).  I can get an older model at Best Buy for $100 that is fully warranted and as good as new.  I also looked at the iPads.
Anyone out there bought one yet?  What do you think on the iPads?  Is it handy for an RVer?

Next we went over to Gander Mountain which is one of our favorite stores.  Pam picked up some shoes and I got a 'fire start kit'.
It is not quite the same as 'flint and steel' that I used as a Cub Scout many years ago but I wanted to see if I could get a fire going with it.  I got my idea from Rod who used one last time we were at his house.

We came back to the Roadrunner and after lunch I jumped into action washing the cars.  I found out my all-purpose water bucket was not holding the suds like usual. It has a crack and will have to be retired soon.
Yet it worked long enough for me to get the mud and dirt off both vehicles.

Next I hooked up my Skil saw to the RV and proceeded to saw up the wood I have been collecting.
Those pallets were reduced to a stack of wood in no time.

I got cleaned up and we headed over to Rod and Lisa's for the evening.  After navigating through Detroit suburbs rush hour traffic on a Friday night (ugh!), we arrived in the early evening.

We got to meet their son Greg and wife Emily.  (We saw Greg last time when he was about 4 I think).  Greg and Emily have a 6 month old, Adeline, who is as sweet as she can be.
Lisa and Rod have the 'grand parent's glow'...  And who can blame them!

Rod cooked burgers and we had a huge spread that included a fresh fruit bowl topped off by birthday ice cream cake.
Emily was celebrating and we were glad to help!

Next, Rod and I got into the business of building a fire in his backyard fire pit. I got a pile of lint from the dryer and put it together with some small twigs and brush.
Rod got the camera ready and I got my fire-starter ready.   Then two quick flicks of the wrist and fingers and wha la!  Fire!  (Notice that superb camera action from Rod)
Man ~ that was cool!  Where was this handy little invention back when I was backpacking over the mountains in the New Mexico wilderness as a teenager?  This is great!  No more wet matches for me...

We got the fire going pretty good and sat around talking way into the night.  Emily came out an joined us for a bit.
And I snapped a couple of pictures.  The wind was blowing the smoke and none of my 'timed' pictures came out.  By the time I set the '10 second delay' and got back to my seat, it captured the smoke.
It looked like we were underwater or worse....  the camera really fixated on the smoke. Never the less~ we had a good time around the fire and seeing the Hamilton's again.

It was a busy day but a fun one.  We returned to the Roadrunner late and went to bed.

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

8 comments:

  1. That is a cool little gadget to have. Thanks for the demonstration.

    Cindy and Walker

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  2. I have an iPad! We got the highest one so we could get Internet anywhere. It's very handy. I take it outside, in the car, to bed with me, and am now sitting on the couch with it so I don't wake my husband by turning on my iMac in the bedroom. I love it! It will be even handier than taking the laptop out away from our trailer. So, I sing the praises of my iPad!

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  3. Wow that fire starter is really neat.... Great idea! We haven't had internet coverage for about 2 weeks. But we will be here for a week so I'll have time to catch up. Have fun and travel safe
    Donna

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  4. iPods in a vending machine? I guess it's another way to get the product to market and keep overhead low. I read the other day that they have a vending machine for gold in a hotel in Dubai. That's one I'll never have a use for.

    What are you collecting the wood for Randy?

    --Rod

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  5. Wow! That's what I call a "full day"! You managed to squeeze a little bit of everything into it. As I already have an iTouch that fits in my shirt pocket, I doubt I'll be looking at an iPad anytime soon. My iTouch is perfect for surfing the net, reading and sending emails and for all of the handy Apple "apps". I can see it becoming very popular with RV'ers though.

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  6. (Sent from my wi-fi iPad)

    It's awesome. Joanne hasn't touched the hated laptop since she got hers. With an iPhone and an iPad, even my laptop stays on my desk at home. She gets to catch up on missed episodes of some tv show by watching live (free ) on the netflix account. I even use it in my office, as I have a all of my email accounts synched to it.
    I would have the 3G version except for the expense of another data package.
    The screen is amazing.

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  7. Looks like you had a fun day. I have a coworker "Mr gadget" who has a new IPAD and raves about the books and movies and GPS he is totally happy with it. He will be part time RVing in a Casita 17 Deluxe next month. He has a condo in Anchorage and a house on Merritt Island Florida and is 55 years old so he can retire Union style.

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  8. Ain't technology just going ahead by leaps and bounds?

    *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
    Karen and Steve
    (Our Blog) RVing: Small House... BIG Backyard
    http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com/

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