Roadrunner Financials - August 2010

Roadrunner Recap
We spent some of the month in Canada before returning to the States and making our way down to Texas to help Kelly move back to Virginia Along the way we also stopped in Red Bay AL to get some items fixed.

Our campgrounds during the month included:

• Talon Lake Canada
• Wright-Patterson AFB FamCamp (Dayton, OH)
• Arkadelphia Campground, AR
• Dallas TX (Plantation Place RV Park)
• Red Bay (Allegro Campground Service Center)

We wanted to be in Sarnia, Ontario for Brad and Christine's Wedding the middle of August and had some time to go to Lake Talon to see Jeff and Tiffany.  After the wedding, we drove to Dallas, TX to help Kelly pack up for her move back to Virginia.

Good News Areas We Are Under Budget
The only areas we were under budget were in RV Maintenance and Eating out.

Biggest Expenses
We put a lot of miles on the RV and used a lot diesel which accounted for $700 and a major area of overages. Another large item was remodeling done by Chris Berry to upgrade the bedroom TV cabinet.

Large One Time Cost Items
Our largest 1 Time Cost item was the purchase of a new TV for the bedroom.  We got rid of our old deep backed TV and had Chris Berry remodel the TV area into a cabinet with doors for more storage.

Monthly Average
At over almost $1900 over budget it was not a good month expense wise.  Despite that we are only $550 over budget.  Good thing we take the long view -- the yearly and monthly averages.

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles.

Basement and Ohio Cousins

Yesterday it was a beautiful day here at the campground and I was inspired to clean out the basement.  I don't know what caused that but I thought I'd better get on it while I had the 'feeling'.

In our almost 11 months of full-timing I had never taken everything out of the bottom storage area.  But yesterday that is what I did.

I didn't find any surprises, but confirmed where a few things were and I was able to condense items and seemingly add some space. The biggest thing I was able to do was to take a vacuum to the whole area and give it a good cleaning.  

Another item I cleaned out was the Blue Boy - our small black tank on wheels.  I figured it never hurts to flush those out even though we haven't used it in months.

Before I finished, neighbors Vince and Jerry stopped by and we talked for a little while.

I was in no rush and was able to get the basement done shortly after noon.

A little after that second cousin Britten came over for a sandwich.  He is the youngest soon of cousin Ron.  Ron and his wife Ginger live just outside of Cincinnati.  More about then later.

Britten is a fairly recent civilian employee over at Wright-Patterson AFB and is a weapons procurement specialist.  We had never met, although he and I are FB friends.   :)  I gave him a quick tour of the coach and we sat down for lunch outside since it was such a beautiful day.  (Pam was taking the picture).

He loves his job and it loves him.  He is a doing very well and is moving up the ranks quickly.  He is a very bright and nice guy and we greatly enjoyed having the chance to meet him.

Next we called his parents and confirmed out earlier dinner time at their place.  They live in a nice neighborhood and have a beautiful large home.

And they have a wonderful back yard complete with a large (really large) pond and a swimming pool up on top of the 2/3 of an acre.  So we spend a good amount of time conversing on their back patio enjoying the beautiful evening.

We had not seen them since they came to see us in Fairfax, VA many years ago.  They are both retired and enjoy gourmet cooking and wine tasting.  Ginger also has a loom and it has seen some action over the years.

We enjoyed a great time with the meal and the getting to know them some more.  Ron was a principal scientist with Procter and Gamble and retired about 3 years ago.  During his career, they had a stint with P&G in Italy and have a fondness for the culture and that county.

We talked about those times and other things as we enjoyed a wonderful dinner of shrimp, asparagus, fancy rice along with a couple of types of wine.  We topped it off with Ginger's famous Key Lime Pie for dessert which was outstanding.

And then got a group shot before we left.

It was fun seeing them and they are great hosts!

We got home about 9:30 PM and stayed up a little bit before we went to bed.  Pam checked out the baseball games and I  updated security patches on my work laptop.  I also got to chat on FB with favorite daughter Kelly.  Today we leave WPAFB for Algonac State Park and will be in favorite son Adam's neck of the woods.

Hope you are having a wonderful week!  Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Gym and Judy

Yesterday was another beautiful day at Wright-Patterson AFB.  Pam cleaned and I went over to the base gym and had a good workout.

I spent some time on the elliptical machine and ran a couple of miles, then went over to the bicycle machines.  These things are amazing.  I logged on and picked my route and was off on a five mile bike ride.

The video is like a game and I moved the hand grips to increase or decrease my gears and picked up the right and left levers (handlebars) to adjust my direction and  stay on course.  It makes working out a lot of fun.  I also like the stats that are generated:  heart rate, speed, distance etc.

Next we came back to the Roadrunner.  I did some online work while Pam cleaned the coach and did the laundry.  In mid-afternoon, we left for Cincinnati (actually nearby Milford) and dinner at our friend Judy's house.  It was an easy 90 minute drive.

She has a lovely home on a huge lot and we enjoyed some good conversation on her beautiful enclosed back porch.  We met Judy on our first NOMADS project in Pontiac, Illinois last July.   Then we were fortunate enough to meet up with her again in Tucson.

She is home in Milford before she heads out to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado for a volunteer position for the summer.  Judy is a retired school teacher and does a lot of volunteering and has taken on a few other interests.

One of her new hobbies is weaving and she showed us her loom and some of her recent projects:  scarves, curtains, and placemats.  They are very nice and she is getting very good at it.

After some late afternoon munchies ("poo poos" as they say in Hawaii) on her fantastic back porch, we had a great dinner of a pot roast and baked potatoes.  We crossed over the line with the key lime pie and strawberries for desert but it was good!

It is more than fun being able to see friends and we are grateful for the freedom this RV full-time lifestyle offers!

Thanks for viewing the Roadrunner Chronicles!

We have one big day left before we head out for a campground north of Detroit...

Masterful Phil and a Nice Day at WPAFB

The highlight of the day for me yesterday was watching the Masters Golf Tournament and seeing Phil Mickelson win his third green jacket.  He hit some amazing shots.

I remember watching the tournament years ago and seeing one of my favorites then - Greg Norman - explaining why he 'went for it' and lost again... He would say, 'You live by the sword and die by the sword'.  In this era, Phil goes for it...

Phil said something similar, "A great shot is going for it and getting it done", while "a smart shot is not having the guts to go for it".  He has lost a few major in the past due to some errant and ill-advised attempts, but yesterday it was pure, nail biting, joy for me to see him come through and win it like a champion.

How about you?  Do you have a favorite?

On another note, I want to say 'Thanks' and 'Welcome' to two new Followers:

Heidi Warner 

Chris

Appreciate you joining with the Roadrunner Chronicles and look forward to hearing from you!

Yesterday was more good weather here in Fairborn, Ohio at Wright-Patterson AFB.  Pam and I started out by hearing a great message at the Roadrunner Chapel.  (I call it that when we download a sermon and listen to it here in the Roadrunner.)  We oftentimes do that instead of finding a local church when we are away from family and friends in a new town.

Then we went over to find the closest base gym (Dodge Gym) and found the nearby golf course and golf proshop.  

After that we found the commissary and did some grocery shopping.  

When we returned, we went for a good walk out here on this end of the base.  It was a beautiful day to do that and we liked getting some exercise.  

When we got back, I took some pictures of the FamCamp campground and sites.  

It is a nice, fairly good size campground with well-maintained campsites.  I liked the fact that there is a few more feet between sites than what we are usually used to.  (It helps when it is less than 50% full and not yet into the camping season.)

Then it was back to the coach to watch the Masters.  Great stuff!

After that, we had dinner and still had time to walk over to Bass Lake and see some guys fishing.  

The lake has boat docks and rentals when the season opens.  It looks like it is still too early for that.

After some baseball, we went to bed early and are looking forward to a good week.

Thanks for joining us on the Roadrunner Chronicles!

Seeing New Friends and Old Friends

We met Roadrunner Chronicles' readers Bob and Terry at Bob Evan's restaurant for breakfast.  That was a fun way to start the day.  Bob was reading our blog and realized we were close by and asked if we could meet.  They are planning on full-timing the next 3-4 years and wanted to hear more about our experience.

Bob works for Beta LaserMike as a sales manager for the Americas.  Terry is a successful realtor with Irongate Realtors, Inc.


Turns out they are already quite experienced RVers and they have a GMC motorhome.  I didn't know too much about GMC motorhomes before yesterday, but I think we may have seen some in Quartzsite in January.  They have GMC clubs rallies where they all gather and Bob is heading up the next one in this area.  You can google 'GMC 1970s motorhome' for more information.


We chatted for a long time and thoroughly enjoyed meeting them.  We should have taken the hint when the manager came back to see us for the third time and asked if how we were doing...  When we got there at 8:00 AM it was busy but not crowded.  By 10:00 AM, the waiting line was out the door!

We sure our time together and hearing of their RV adventures over the years.  Hopefully we will meet up with them again sometime soon!


Next, Pam and I explored WPAFB.  What a BIG base-- and I think it has a bazillion gates.  All of which are closed on the weekend except for a few.  We found the one for the US Air Force Museum.  I had been here once before in the 1980's.  It has expanded dramatically and rivals the Washington DC Air and Space Museum.  It is fantastic.  


Right near the parking lot there is a very well put nicely done memorial park.

We just planned to find the Air Force Museum and go another time, but decided to run in for a minute.  ---About an hour later...we saw a few displays and put the rest of the museum on the schedule for Monday.


One display right near the beginning is a tribute to Bob Hope.

He sure made an impact with the troops.  


We also found the base fitness center and came back to the Roadrunner for lunch and a siesta.   We watched some of the Masters golf tournament and were not disappointed.  Phil made back to back eagles!  And there was more great golf.  As you may know, I am a huge Phil fan (he also went to Arizona State...).  Talk about exciting golf!


 Later I got on FB and found out Diane was going to be on base.  She went to the gym and then came by to see us which was a real treat.  We know her from Hawaii in the 1980's along with Rod and Lisa, Jon and Barbara, Joel and Roxanne, Brent and Betty and a bunch of other folks.


Well- we had a wonderful visit and talked and talked and talked.  It was a great time catching up and hearing all about her five kids and how everyone is doing.  

We talked here into staying for dinner and pretty soon it was time to say 'good night'.  She lives here in Fairborn and we're going to be keeping in touch I'm sure.


Talk about a fun day!  We started out meeting new friends Bob and Terry and ended up getting reacquainted with Diane whom we hadn't seen since 1986!  


Thanks for viewing the Roadrunner Chronicles!  Let us know you are out there and become a 'Follower' and / or leave a 'Comment'---we love those!  Have a great Sunday!

Washed the car on Friday...

We are here in the FamCamp at Wright-Patterson AFB in Fairborn Ohio.  We slept pretty good in our first night here.  I like the fact the campground is on the far side of the base away from everything.

After breakfast, I started on the expenses for the month of March.  I  worked on them on and off most of the day.  I try to save every receipt we have during the month.  I put them in my wallet and then leave them in a stack on our credenza.

Then once a month I got through the receipts and add our expenses to our spreadsheet for that month.
After that, I go through our online credit card bill statements and see if I missed anything.

It is a fairly basic approach to tracking expenses but it works for us.  Some folks use Quicken or some other  software package, but this one works fine for us. I try to nail it down for every time we spent a cent but sometimes a couple of bucks here or there doesn't make it to the spreadsheet.

Do you track expenses?  What do you use?

A typical example is washing the car.  We spent $2.00 in quarters and I have no receipt, so if I don't remember to mark it down, I will forget it.  Another example is washing the laundry.  I usually estimate those but it is still $10-$15 a month for washers and driers.

Many folks have their own washer and dryer in their motor home.  How about you?  Do you use laundromats or do you have a washer / dryer?

While I was doing that Pam went to the commissary on base and loaded up on groceries for our bare cupboards.  It has been a while since she has done that.  When she returned I was taking a break from my 'bookkeeping' and emptying tanks.  I attached a hose to the sprayer for the black tank and it was leaking so I worked on that and got it fixed.

Next, we had lunch and then went to wash the Honda CRV.  It was REALLY dirty from towing it behind the Roadrunner in the rain yesterday.

We found a car wash in town and cleaned up the car, then went and explored the area.  Wright-Patterson AFB is a BIG base.  We are on one side and they have three main areas from what I can tell.  The base fitness center and Air Force Museum are over on the other side.  Now that we know where they are we can use it.  We need to --- it has been too long since we have worked out.

We also found the general area of where the Bob Evans Restaurant is and will meet some folks there this morning.  They are new blog readers and have some RV full-timing questions.  They found our blog and got in touch and we look forward to meeting them.

The second day of the Masters finally got underway and I was glued to it for the entire coverage.  I was glad to see Phil move up the leader board and stay around the top.  It would make my day to see him do well today and win the whole thing.  It is also fun to see some of the older guys do well -- Tom Watson and Fred Couples.

That was about it for us on Friday and we thank you for viewing the Roadrunner Chronicles.

Arrived at Fairborn, Ohio (Wright-Patterson AFB FamCamp)

Pam and I left Maynardville, TN yesterday about 7:30 AM.  I was up fairly early (about 6:00 AM) but I wanted to let Pam sleep some more.  Seems as if we don't get a great night of sleep sometimes the night before he hit the road again...

We wanted to hitch up and be ready to leave after Michelle brought Noah over to Joan's house.  Sure enough about 7:10 they arrived.  After hugs and a few words of goodbye we were on our way.

Maynardville, TN is down the road from Halls which is little community of businesses and shopping.  And it has the nearest Wal-Mart.  We drive to Halls all the time when we are in Maynardville.  This morning it was a traffic jam and we had never seen one at Halls!  No problem, we were not in any rush so we eventually made it through there and connected with I-75 and headed north.

The weather man was right -- we were in for some rain.

It wasn't too bad and I enjoy driving on I-75 more than I did on I-10 through Mississippi and Louisiana.  It was not as busy.  After a couple of hours I pulled over and Pam drove.  That was great!  (And I am getting pretty good at making sandwiches for lunch.)

Right before Cincinnati, it was my turn to drive again and Pam snapped some pictures as we entered into Ohio.

It wasn't long before we reached our designated stopping point--Dayton (actually Fairborn, Ohio) and Wright-Patterson AFB.

We found the gate and wound around the runway to the FamCamp.

It looks like a nice campground with full hookups and paved pads.  There is also plenty of space between sites.   The weather is a bit cool and the campground is about 25% full.  I think we are going to enjoy this for a few days.  It is also on Bass Lake so we will probably check that out.

It was a pretty quick setup but not without issues.  I remind myself not to get too familiar with things or careless because that is when problems can jump up and bite you.  I got bit yesterday.  Seems as is 'someone' had left the grey tank lever open so when I removed the cap on the tanks I had residue pouring on the ground before I could shut it... yech...

As in most cases when I think 'someone' else did something---it almost invariably is ME!  So I was upset with me and not enjoying cleaning up that mess.  But it only took a few minutes.  I had to unhook the hose and pull out the grey hose and spray everything down and wash it away.  I keep spray bottles of diluted PineSol and bleach just to put the final touches on those episodes.

It was still mid afternoon and were able to catch most of the Masters.  I am glad Tiger Woods is back and hopefully he will get his personal life squared away.  My guess is that it will take years-- but he appears to be headed in the right direction.  Getting his golf game in shape seems to be fairly easy by comparison and he quickly proved he can pick up where he left off 20 weeks ago.  I am hoping for the best for him.  I hate to see another sports hero crash and burn...

My favorite is Phil Mickelson and he had a good day.  I also like Sergio Garcia, Mike Weir, current British Open Champion Stewart Cink---as you may surmise I am a big fan of the sport.  It can be a very cruel sport though and it is hard on some of those guys.  You wish they all could do well.  I am also a David Duval fan and he has had his personal demons to conquer.

Pam got into the cleaning mode and did (as she put them) some 'pink' jobs in the bathroom and kitchen.  Then we had spaghetti and salad for dinner which was great.

We get questions asking what we think about this lifestyle after 10 months.  We love it!  It provides a sense of adventure and we look forward to seeing more friends and family all the time.  It gives us flexibility (freedom) we have never known.  For example, we are making our way up to the Detroit area to be near Adam.  We miss Kelly but got to be with her last week.  We like those options.

We have no idea where we want to 'retire' but for now and the foreseeable future this lifestyle is fun.  Some ask if our crowded quarters are a problem.   So far it is not crowded.  It can be when we have our kids staying with us but that is temporary and not an issue.

That is all for today~thanks for viewing the Roadrunner Chronicles!