Monday.

Got up early. AC repair guy was supposed to show up at 8:00 am.  A storm hit early and thunder woke up. So, there it is 5:30 AM and eventually got back to sleep, but at 7:30 it was time to boogie.

Got my coffee, got over there before 8 and ... nothing. Dude didn't show up but eventually called.  He didn't show because of the storm, however, he didn't bother to tell me he wasn't showing. Not the end of the world but I could have stayed in bed much longer.  I was up half the night itching all over again. Benadryl works - a  little - but my entire feet are just giant itching machines.  

Keeping my hands off of them, yes, but it doesn't stop the almost agony of intense need to itch the life out of them and get some relief.  

I'm so tired right now.  It's like, I may just go back to sleep for a while.  

Anyway, the guy finally showed up and gave me the news I figured it would be: it isn't putting out cold enough air and isn't drawing enough amperage. It's old, worn out and there's no fixing this thing.  It wasn't shocking or even surprising, I figured this is what i would be told.  He also said they had the cover on backwards.  Great.  It means that there wasn't enough air getting to the thing where it needed it and probably over heated it many times over.

He did say the thing was probably 20 plus years old.  

He quoted me a price much higher than I expected.  Rock, meet hard place.  What am I going to do? Not fix it and be stuck with a unit I can't rent out?  He had a replacement unit on his truck, said he could get a new one on there in no time.  So, that's what I did.  It's going to be a situation where I'm going to check everything out, get fixed whatever else needs fixing and get the thing rented out. If there is no water heater in there - we both came to the conclusion the propane version of one had been removed - I will rent it with the idea that there is a shower with hot water in the bathroom.  Just means I'll rent it cheaper than I want.  

I actually think at this point my idea of selling it on payments to someone is a better idea.  I don't want the headache of continual problems with this thing, tho admittedly the AC was the big ticket item.  The electrical outlets work, it only really needs (as far as I know) the new carpet installed, a couch (cheap) and a deep cleaning. I haven't hooked up water to it yet, that will be the next dive into the deep unknown.

However, if it has water leaks, I can fix those myself.  I can install a watered down version of a water heater as well.  Just a lower wattage version of an inline that is installed at each outlet you want hot water in. I don't know how much they cost and right now, I don't have to have hot water in there since it's in shed. It would definitely be nice, tho.  I also need to make sure the oven and stove top work - they are propane fired. A person renting or buying it would have to refill the tank themselves.  

Well, the thing is nice and cool in there now and the unit isn't staying on all the time so it's not drawing a lot of power.  I'll either be back over there later today after I get a nap or tomorrow morning. Hoping this itching will start to subside so I can get some sleep.  

Meanwhile, the tent lady supposedly has a job and is working.  I'll just go to the tobacco junction and find out, I can smoke a nice cigar.  The other low income people left quite a while back - like late last month and I haven't seen them.  Their trailer is there but they aren't.

Well, that's been updated.  They drove their old pickup to New Jersey for whatever reason I have no clue and informed me today their truck broke down.  Mind you, they were supposed to pay the lot rent 12 days ago.  They haven't been there, the window ac unit is blasting away, I was getting irritated.  She says they are stranded in NJ, but, that trailer is their only home.

People's decisions to do certain things often times bewilders me.  If you are poor and broke, why are you driving clear to New Jersey? That's 1,400 miles from here.  She said she could have her brother come tow it out of there. Well, honey, you've been sucking down electricity all this time - I thought but did not say to her.  I did say well, your ac is on and it's running up the electric bill.  You can leave the trailer there if you pay it up.

She claimed her brother would come and pay up.  It's a full month's rent owed at this point and that's back payment. I dunno, but their lack of good decision making isn't my problem. Me paying the bills and trying to make a profit is.  But yes, if they can't come up with the money I want that thing out of there.  I'm not trying to be heartless but they've  had ample time - more than I gave the tent people - to pay up. She claimed she had the money on the 28th when it was due but they left town for Oklahoma where they're from. 

No, they didn't move the trailer out of my park.  

Enough. I need to get over there and start painting that shed and now I'll have to find someone to figure out what's wrong with the riding mower. It runs perfectly fine, the PTO works great but the thing refuses to go into gear.  Yes, I took things apart to see if I could find the problem. The drive belt is on. The key in the wheel is not busted.  The linkage is good the tranny. The only thing I could see left is the transmission itself.  I read that the system can get air into it and needs purged. I tried to follow instructions how to purge it, but I'm not sure I was doing it correctly.  I've exhausted the limits of my knowledge, I'm not taking a transmission apart.  

I still have the push mower and I did start trying to cut everything down, but everything is wet and not behaving. I'll have to wait until the rains pass and everything dries up.  I've got plenty to do without all of that, it's just that the rains have pushed weeds up everywhere and I want them all cut down.  There's too much to spray week killer on it. I have to have a nice, dense layer of grass.  So that's next.  Grass. After the shed is painted I'll get with the grass and then if I can get that done I'll get with finding a new trucking job.  

It is what it is.  I've succumbed to the reality that I will be sitting in a driver's seat of a truck and running long days. Unless something drastic - drastically good that is - happens and soon to change that, I have no choice.  I'm running out of money and I have a lot of debt.  If I could fill the park up then I wouldn't be in quite the bind I'm in now.   I could take guesses why I can't fill the park up - time of year, not much transient work going on right now, the lack of grass is a turn off, who knows.  But it only makes sense to have the park looking as good as possible.  

Frankly, I need cash inflow to deal with a lot of stuff I can't deal with right now.  I want a dozer out there to plow up the entire front portion of the property, smooth it out and get something other than giant weeds growing there. That may just have to wait until winter, tho.  Blade it and spread rye grass seed everywhere.  

Okay, I said enough several paragraphs up, lol. Time to get a little sleep and see if I can get some energy going.  

 Went over there, started digging out holes, loosening up the soil around them.  The boy was helping and doing a good job, actually.  First load of dirt consumed by one, single hole, back with the trailer to one of the dirt piles, loaded a good amount on the rear of the trailer and back to the first and then second hole. 

Well, pothole to be more specific, fixing the driveway was on the top priority list. I don't know how many we did, I just know that we had to take a break after a good long while doing it. It was hot outside.  The boy actually was begging for a break in the AC in the shed, so I figured I best let him cool off for a few. 

Back to work and more dirt and all but one of the potholes is done. The only reason I missed one is exactly that: I missed it. It was time to leave after 3 hours, take the boy home, there was a birthday party at a friend's house for  5 year old.  It was an outdoor thing replete with water balloons and a swimming pool. I didn't get into the pool but I did throw some balloons. 

During the time out in the heat over there, my underarms broke out in a grotesque looking rash and also another area which shall remain nameless.  It got worse and worse.  I mean, very uncomfortable.  I have no idea what set it off, but coming home and into AC helped it subside a bit.  I may end up having to take a Benadryl if this itchiness doesn't subside, there is too much of it. 

I'll have to go back over those potholes with more dirt after people drive over them for a few days. Rest assured I'm not working tomorrow, Monday I'll work just not sure what I will be doing.  I'm getting pretty uneasy about the appearance of the park with no grass, actually, dead grass.  It may be a reason why I'm not getting anyone in there. All I know is, it needs to be rectified.  

I just lost another long term as of last night.  I knew about this, he was supposed to stay a year but as with another, the power company said no, we changed our plans, it will be next year before we will restart the project.  I'm getting a few - very few - inquiries about long term.  I don't know if summertime is just going to be a slow season or what. I just know that I am in line with what other parks are charging in the area.  

The lack of grass is very unappealing.  That's all I know.  And there are weeds that have grown up everywhere with all of the recent rains.  It is possible I will get out there tomorrow and do some mowing, actually.  

Monday, 8:00 am, the man is showing up to look at the AC on the motor coach.  I have no idea what that will turn into, but my guess is that I will need a new AC unit for it.  

I'm going to divert my attention to tilling the ground, I think.  Since I have to be out there early AM anyway, I might as well get with it while it's not miserably hot.  Get 3 or 4 hours in before the humid/hellish heat hits.  That's enough time to get 2 and maybe part of a 3rd lot done. It's grueling, hard work keeping that machine in place while it's churning up the ground.  I really wish I could have just found a tractor with an attachment to rent instead.  

With the park slowly emptying out, it will rush my return to work back sooner than expected or wanted. I'm going to really have to work my butt off to get that ground ready for sod. Even more work installing the sod and even more after that watering it until it is established.  Not really looking forward to all of that work out in this heat, it's going to be a thing to get up early.  

Seriously itching here, I'm really tempted to take that benadryl. It's just that it will make me extremely sleepy, it's only 5:00 pm.  

That's it for now.  Gotta do something about this itching. 

 Lol. These people showed up for an overnight stay, they reserved it in advance and had already paid up. I was there when they showed up.  Well, is everything ok? Yes, I replied, y'all are paid up, there aren't any more coming in tonight, you can pick whichever lot you want that's empty.  That apparently threw them for a loop.  I'll assign a lot if the place is full.  I also asked if they needed to use the shower facility or anything? Oh, no, we'll take showers in our trailer. Okee dokee.  

So what are they doing? My phone was blowing up with notifications from the camera.  They are all in there taking showers.  Plus there are 4 ladies in there shooting the breeze.  One of them is doing laundry, I guess the others just want to chit chat? I've never seen so many people in that shed.  

My sign is ready.  But, I need another one that says "Office". Everyone is always asking where the office is?  I don't have an office, but if it's going to make people more comfortable...I've thought about putting a small desk and a chair in there.  Nothing fancy and definitely nothing new.  Cheap, thanks.  Plenty of room for one now that I've cleaned everything up and moved 2/3rd's of the stuff out of there.  

I've got so much to do at the property and so little time to get it done....I really need a helping hand. If I could find someone to actually work.  Side hustle, lots of physical labor but I tend to pay well enough to motivate people. Yet, that doesn't seem to work.  

Well, the oldest boy wants to work tomorrow. Fine.  If parents say he can, we will endeavor to fix the driveway.  I'm glad I got that shed cleaned up today, but that driveway is high priority.  Kept getting shuffled off for other things and then I got sick.  After I get the shed painted and the driveway fixed, it's off to the tilling machine. For days and days, I am guessing.  It's beats your arms up and you can really only do it for 20-30 minutes at a time before you have to stop.  

I will only do the amount of area on any give lot that a pallet full of sod will cover. So,, 40X10.  No, 50X10, I forgot, this guy claims his pallets will cover 500 square feet.  Other distributors say 400.  

Oh, and the tent lady. She was all excited today. Came in the shed to tell me her wonderful news: I got a job!  Well yayyy!  That's great! Congrats! She will be working at the local Tobacco Junction, the most popular tobacco store in this town and the other town where the main store is at.  It's an easy job. Their store in our town is a shed like mine about the same size.  In fact, I think it's exactly the same size.

They get a pretty constant stream of vehicles lined up at their drive thru. Their other store is a huge place with 2 walk-in humidors and a cigar lounge that is available only if you have a membership with them. Anyway, this should pull them out of this tent camping stuff and I feel like I had some small part in helping them.

Oh, forgot to mention.  This happens all the time, people come in, hook up and then...their water heater doesn't work.  They ask if I have a shower? Used to say no. Now I can say yes.  However, it's just a 40 gallon heater, if people are taking long showers, the people after them are not likely going to have a hot shower.  Of course, it's warm outside but you still want a bit of warm in a shower. At least I do unless I'm burning up and I got into the shower so I could cool off.  

 It was an amazing mess.  James had been sanding the walls all over the place and the dust was on everything. It got into the AC as well and the coils are dirty.  I used a vacuum cleaner and got as much out as I could, but it's going to need better than that. 

Anyway. It was near 7 hours to clean that place up.  I had to pick up every single thing, dust or vacuum it off, wipe off, then to the next thing.  Hauled all the left over scrap pieces of drywall to the dumpster.  Got everything where I wanted it and then started scrubbing the floor - by hand. It was far too dirty for the mop to do anything.  I was using a 5 gallon back with water and pine sol, a scrub sponge, a roll of paper towels, a scraper and the vacuum. There was puddles of mud and also some dropping where spray insulation had dropped off the ceiling.

It was painstaking work, but there was no way to start painting in there before cleaning everything up.  I was done around 4:45 this afternoon, I had had enough. Hadn't eaten anything all day long, was hungry, needed to shower and get this grime off of me and take the boys to a church party.  

Oh, I did take several short breaks today.  Phone ringing off the hook, but nothing about people coming to stay at the park.  One call was from a recruiter. Pretty strange.  He asked me if I could access my email while we were on the phone? Yes.  He sent me an application via email, told me to fill it out, send it in and then we can talk.  He wouldn't answer any of my questions. Reading the thing, it said they figure that you are serious after you fill out an application. 

Well excuse me, but I'm not going to all of that trouble without having a few, key questions answered first, thank you and dismissed them. High paying job, likely out on the road for weeks at a time, something they don't tell you in their description.  At most, I will stay out a week at a time. If you can't/won't get me home that often, we aren't a good fit.  

Then there was another one. It's based in Shreveport. Hazmat tanker, lowest tier pay is around 95k per year.  But they list it as OTR, no questioning that, just no dialogue about how often you get home.  

Yet another one. This one is local. I've seen their trucks, they are usually 6 wheelers. They also pay quite well at up to 2 grand per week.  Home every night, it's usually delivering fuels to earth moving equipment, trains, mining operation equipment.  I will be applying there once I get to that point.  They have had ongoing ads for years, they are nationwide but they advertise for local work.  I might also apply at the propane delivery places around here.  It's probably part time work, but who knows.  I need health insurance as well or I really don't want anything to do with it unless the pay is high . 

Yes, I want to try and cash in on hazmat tanker work before going into the other stuff.  Dry vans are a total rat race and really don't like it much. I won't do refers, they are always too noisy.  There is a steel place 2 miles from here hiring, but one of the reviews says it's low pay.  Pilot, Gemini (Love's) and other fuel haulers are all hiring.  But are they training?  Fuel hauling would be local.  Pilot texted me back today asking me where I live? I told them - it's in their map area they have posted - but I heard nothing back.  

Of course, not hearing back right away from a national chain company doesn't really mean anything.  If you haven't figured it out, I'm preparing myself to go back to regular work.  I wouldn't necessarily call what I did today being lazy.  It just doesn't produce a regular paycheck.  Finances are starting to get low, I might have a few people coming in but who knows and I have several empty lots.  It isn't adding up to enough to live off of.  I have bills, like everyone else, responsibilities, like everyone else and I refuse to go bankrupt.

I also abhor this debt relief nonsense now that I found out what it's all about.  You screw the bank, basically. They get back half of what you owe.  Yes, I know, banks are evil, etc etc etc blah.  I'm not a student loan defaulter type person, I'd rather pay back my debts if at all possible. 

Well, I can see how I should just bypass mid afternoons and work mornings and evenings after just having gone and got the boys and then went over to the property to measure for a curtain.  It's low 80's right now versus heat index of over 100 in the middle of the day.  Get more done without burning up.  I dunno if I'll do that, but I have 12 more lots to till.  And then retill. And then rake.  And then lay sod. And then water endlessly.

Oh, the boys. Well, the church had their final summer fun night.  2-1/2 hours of fun. It was pizza, arts, playtime and then?  The church had made a huge piles of white foam that turned out to be shaving cream for the kids to play in. We were wondering why they wanted everyone to bring towels. How much money did they spend on it? I don't know and I have little concern about it.  The church never asks for money.  They have to have rich donors who give them as much as they need, because they are never in want for anything.  The other nice thing is there is always a cop there.  Not likely to be a church shooting at that place with an armed officer sitting out there monitoring everything.  

Well, I'ma get offa here. Look at some more jobs.  I think it was getting that medical card yesterday, it motivated me to get with it.  

The decision was made.  I was to go get this DOT Physical/medical cert. over with - yesterday that is.  

It's funny when you're doing your own for no company they really don't require that much.  In fact, it was laughable.  Eye chart - 20-20 tho I could have read the line below the 20-20 line, blood pressure in acceptable range on the first try, a urine sample.  Not for drugs or alcohol, either.  After the assistant was done, the actual doctor came in, made chit-chat, laughing hilariously about the neighbor calling the police on us doing fireworks - the police never showed up.  

I mean, she was giggling endlessly on that one.  Tickled her feathers apparently.  She listened to my heart for 15 seconds and that was it.  No knee hitting test, no test where they check your strength, there was all kinds of stuff that a company-imposed/required physical didn't include.  Whatever, I don't need all of that stuff, my reflexes are perfectly fine, I have a little arthritis but nothing that stops me from safely performing the duties of a trucker. 

I left there and went straight to the Texas DOT DL office. No waiting, I handed her the documents and my license, she input it into their system, walaah. I'm good for another 2 years, I won't lose my CDL and all is well in the world.  It certainly wasn't time to just let it go.  And I would have been very hesitant to go through all the rigarmoroo I would have had to go through to get the license back.  

_______________

That was yesterday.  After that I went to Walmart for paint supplies, the sign shop to order a sign for the side of the amenities shed - people are confused about that shed and wonder what's in it,  over to Super 1 for a nice, cooked rotisserie chicken (only $6.99 for several meals worth of food) and then home. There was to be no work as I decided it was too soon.

I'm not sure I will work today either. If my head clears up, sure, if not? I am definitely not working with my head swimming around like this.  I'm not looking for excuses not to work, I really want to get out there and get back to getting some of this stuff done.  

So, I am thinking to go over there and get what I can, done. When energy leaves, leave as well, go home and just vegetate.  And nothing terrible energy consuming.  I've tried to find a way to bypass tilling all of that soil for sod and I can't find it. Every site says to till the soil 4 to 6 inches deep even for sod.  And raking it.  

Enough. Time to get with it.

 There's a reason I haven't been posting.

I went to bed many nights ago - the night of the last post actually - and instantly was overcome with cold chills.  Like turning on a light switch, it came out of nowhere and persisted half the night.  No fever, but getting up the next morning feeling horrid.  The next night, hot sweats.  One extreme to the other, back to cold chills, then sweating, etc.  Headaches, certain body aches, things that would accompany a flu but there was never a fever.  

Fever or no fever, the effect was the same: feeling like hell.  Today is the first day that I can say I am feeling a little better.  When I say a little, that's exactly what I mean. 4 plus days into this.  I have painting to do.  I have no idea what happened to all the painting supplies this house used to have, but they have apparently and completely disappeared.  I very much do not want to go start from scratch buying everything you need to buy to paint drywall.  I guess I have no choice.  

I would have had to buy some stuff, yes, but everything?  No and no.  Does it cost that much? Well considering how much I've already spent, saving every last penny available to save is important at least ot me if no one else.  

Anyway, I haven't heard back from the RV repair guy.  No rush.  I have zero energy. Fixing that would simply mean having to install carpeting and testing other systems in the unit.  I don't think I'm going to have a big problem renting the thing out once it's ready.   At least, not if I'm renting it out at the right price.  I think $600 per month - after some thought - is about right. That's the regular lot rent plus a couple hundred towards paying back the unit.  

Anyway, that's just out of my thought processes right now. In fact, what I'm really thinking about doing is going to the healthcare express and dealing with this DOT certification I need done and done very soon. My previous employer used to make me wait until the last week leading up to the deadline as well.  I would have already gone but for being sick.  

Do I feel like going? I don't feel like doing anything, honestly.  But, life goes on and so do the bills.  If I do that, I might as well go to Lowe's afterwards and buy the minimum amount of stuff I'll need to paint that shed.  And after that - probably nothing.  

Just flushed $1,200 down the SWEPCO drain.  Power company. That one bites.  It's the biggest payment of any kind that I have besides a mortgage payment that is equally as high.  But as I noted earlier this year, once we get through summer, that bill will come down substantially. Not a little, a lot.  

I had a call yesterday.  A lady saw my ad and asked me questions - questions that are distinctly answered in the ad. How much, etc etc etc.  I answered all of her questions and then some and then she ended the conversation: Well I've found much cheaper parks elsewhere blah blah blah.  What did she think I was going to do, start begging her to come to my park?  Instantly lower my price?  Well, okay then, I'll bring my price down! 

No.  The electric bills are too high, I'm not eating it.  They can go find their dump.  Whatever place it is, it isn't a decent place for I check the at least semi-decent parks on a regular basis for their pricing and mine is either right in line with theirs or lower.  People may not care what kind of park they live in, fine. But it was pretty obvious they were hinting at me offering a lower price.  

It didn't even phase me. I instantly went to "well thanks for calling!".  Nonsense.  She knew what I am charging.  You get a lot of newbies into RV'ing and they have no clue what they are talking about. They think they know because they did 10 seconds of Google searching, found some clip notes and decided they are experts.  I didn't treat her with disdain on the phone, but after all of that? She could have just ended the call when she "found out" the price which I am 99% sure she already knew.  

There's nothing else for now.  I am going to push my butt out of the chair and go get this DOT physical over with.  

 So waiting paid off. I mean, they don't have anywhere else to go, they manage to get money, obviously, so having a place to stay is probably high on their priority list. What happened was, the sister called me. I don't know her and I have never spoken with her, they must have given her my number.  She had a credit card.  Great!  So, she paid up the next 9 days and said they have cash to give me.  I ran her card, got the money going to my account, sent her a verification email, all is well. Well, I still need to collect the cash, I haven't been over there today.  

James, however, is over there finishing up the drywall. It's finally almost done.  I have no idea what the bill is going to be, I think he's spent between 60 and 70 hours in there.  I really didn't know it was going to take that long.  No idea what the bill is going to be for all of that....

I've got another guy that's called me twice now.  He at least sounds like he's coming. He is currently in Georgia but is heading here on work assignment.  He asked lots of questions the first call and we chit-chatted.  He called again early this morning (Sunday) saying he forgot to ask if I have a shower and laundry room? Why yes, yes I do!  He said he would be heading my way in the next week, he didn't know an exact date.  

I've got my $300 special on one of my ads, but I'm fixing to update everything.  I also spaced out boosting one of Facebook posts, I'll be doing that tonight as well. I need more people in there, plain and simple. I've been a bit busy going through personal stuff today, throwing a bunch of stuff out and only keeping a small portion of it.

It's all my old trucking stuff that I just put into a pile and left.  It's like, ok, I might be going back out on the road or something, I need to get this stuff sorted.  I found a pair of boots that I had forgotten about. It's a $200 pair of Irish Setter Red Wings that I barely used, only at a few certain plants and that infrequently. They are in perfect condition.  I still have an older pair that are still in good condition, I won't be switching to those any time soon. And then, I have a brand new pair that were never used.  This was the benefit of working for previous company. Once a year, you got $125 for steel toed boots. 

We had company over with a bunch of kids all playing front with water balloons, one of the ladies asked if I was going to go back to trucking? Not sure what prompted that, but I replied that I am not sure, but probably unless business picks up. Even if business does pick up, it may be that I have no choice to be able to pay down some debt.  I'll have to make up my mind next month, that's a year away from trucking (haven't missed AT ALL) and after that, some companies won't hire you for not having had driven in a long time. 

I guess it makes sense, but I could easily get into a truck right now, hook it up to a trailer, do the pre-trip and drive right on down the highway without any hesitation.  I've done it too long.  It's second nature to me, picking up where I left off wouldn't be a big deal at all. 

I will probably start blitzing trucking companies that I think I might want to work for next month.  With the shed almost done - and just needing to paint it after James is done - and really not decided on grass - I feel like I would better serve myself getting the debt down, get the credit score back up and start preparing to add amenities that will bring people in. Or hopefully they will, anyway.  

Anyway, I think this week I will go get the recertification and get that sent into Texas DOT.  Make sure they have it and input it into their system. I can't be getting disqualified over something as petty as a medical card, I've never failed it.  It's like $75. Money well spent. ? I think? lol

There will be no report on the ac unit on the RV until the man comes and diagnoses it.  Bracing myself for - not so great news, lol.  

I'm still planning on getting my @$$ up early tomorrow morning if I get any sleep tonight. Those some 50 bug bites still itchy, but it gets far worse when I'm laying in bed and trying to sleep.  This is about hooking up the trailer, going to one of the dirt piles, loading up ample dirt - by shovel of course - and fixing pot holes.  If I don't get up early, I may still go do it in the extreme heat, it really needs to get done.  

Oh, and the local gossip. Some dude decided to try to avoid police and was on highway 59 going 130 mph for quite a ways before he crashed into whatever and that was the end of it. Allegedly, he was going that fast through town.  I can only imagine they must have shut down the road to avoid accidents.  

Anyway, not a particularly lazy Sunday, but we did go to church. I opted out of going out to eat, just trying to save money. We have plenty of food to prepare at home.  

It's bed time.  

 So my hopes were dashed. The 50 amp connector I saw was only a 50 to 30 amp reducer.  In other words, if you go some place that doesn't have 30 amp but does have 50 amp, you can plug it in to the pedestal and then plug your regular plug into the connector.  

That was not what I hoped for, of course. Especially seeing that the unit uses more wattage than 30 amp supplies.  Maybe the chart I was looking at is wrong.  Something is wrong, lol. But normally, when there is only one AC unit, it's 30 amp.  2 ac's automatically means 50 amp plus usually means a lot of appliance in the thing. 

Anyway, the repairman isn't available until next week, he's off for the holiday.  I have no choice but to wait. I'm not going to jump the gun and just go buy an ac unit that is expensive when there is at least the possibility that the unit can be repaired.  I am guessing at this point, it probably can't be repaired, it's probably something wrong with the compressor and I am screwed.

The lady was given an ultimatum today. They aren't working, they are using my facilities, it's not free to me, it's not free to them. Pay up today.  She said she has a plasma appointment later today and then she'll have the money. We'll see. Otherwise, I'll be right on top of them at their tent site telling them to pack up and leave.  I've had enough, they could have done something, but the original agreement was to pay money.  I only threw the work scenario in after they mentioned it. Sure, I could use some help.....

So, this benadryl I took last night is really kicking my butt today. I don't recall it doing that to me in the past, but it's been a couple years since I took it last.  I was going to get up early today and fix some potholes while it's "cool" and/or continue on with tilling.  I want to do 4 lots and give it a whirl.  It's going to be time intensive with 3 waterings a day.  Yea, the only thing I got done is confronting the lady and finding a 50 amp cord.  

And that's it. Tomorrow is Sunday, I will go to church, not go to work.  

 The drought of getting any new overnight reservations or people moving in long term continues on.  And I have more leaving soon.  One guy paid up an entire month but asked if I could pro-rate for when he leaves. These companies that bring in out-of-state workers seem to be notorious for leaving these employees hanging.  They tell them they are going to move them somewhere else "soon" but give date for that to happen.  

I put on one of my ads a move-in special with $100 off the first month's rent for any new long-term coming in.  We'll see if that does any good. The other parks aren't giving that kind of incentive, that I can see on their ads anyway. I think it's time to do a facebook boost ad again. I haven't done one in a while. The last 2 I did had some inquiries and maybe one person came in because of them, so I stopped doing them for a while.

But, they are cheap ads and if it even gets 1 trailer to move in, it's worth it.  

So here I am writing this and some guy calls and we get into a very long conversation.  But, he's moving back to my area and he wants a spot sometime within the next week.  I mean, if you could give a predictability percentage to people's intention to actually come as they say they are, I'd be in the high 80 percentile range.  

I don't think I'd give anyone in the 90's, just doesn't work that way. But, even if he does show up, I have 4 more lots available and more going to become vacant.  This guy didn't even care about the $100 off, he just wants a quiet place to stay. Yes, that's here.  

Anyway, we went to a fireworks show last night at a place called Bear Creek Smokehouse.  It's a local tourist trap type of thing, it brings people in from far and wide but also local.  Well, I was chatting for a few hours with some folks I know, but I was also getting bitten by some kind of bugs that I couldn't identify for I felt them biting but I could see them. 

Yeah, well last night in the middle of the night that all took over. I woke up out of a dead sleep itching all over my legs, feet chest, everywhere.  It was horrible.  I couldn't sleep worth a dead Petunia's rotten petals.  I got up, fished a Benadryl out of my travel bag and took one.  That stuff sent me to sleep within about 30 minutes, maybe 40.  The itching all but went away.  

Fast forward to this morning and waking up.  Wow.  I couldn't fully awaken and I was groggy, like I had been drinking the night before or something.  I dragged myself out of bed, got some coffee and discussed it with James. He said "You're going to be messed up for 2 days at least". Huh? He explained if you don't take Benadryl like once a month or something, it will do a number on you for days. 

Great.  You know, whatever the aftermath, the itching went away and I needed relief and I will take it again tonight if I need to.  I'm not big on taking pills, but I'll take the damned things if they offer relief.  

I can't just sit here all day, I've got to force myself to get up and go over there and do something.  And anyway, the kids are coming home today and with them, the grandpa and grandma. Grandma is jealous of me because of my relationship with the kids, grandpa has reasons that he doesn't like me that I won't go into here.  It's nothing I've done, at all, but the threat I apparently pose to his wife.  There is no threat and nothing has or will happened/happen.  

I don't want to be here when they get here is the point.  They allegedly aren't staying long and I hope they don't.   If they do, I may have to figure something else out.  

I need the rv tech to get over there and diagnose the ac.  I don't have his number, it's on cards that are at the shed.  I don't know if he works weekends or not, but if he does I need him to come over. I just want a diagnosis. Can it be fixed or trash it and put in a new one?  I'm not going to go out and spend $700 or more for a new one without getting someone to check the existing one out and tell me if it's good or not. 

The one in the trailer has heating as well as cooling, I'm really thinking now that it may be that I need to have 50 amp service to run that thing.  There is a 50 amp plus in it as well as a 30 amp.  I was using 30 amp for 2 reasons.  1, because that's what the dude was using when I showed up, 2 because I didn't know there was a 50 amp plug in there until I started opening doors.  It's going to be easy to figure out if 50 amp will do the trick. Move that beast to one of my lots and plug the 50 amp cord in.  

Turn the AC on an see what happens.  If it works, I'll install a 50 amp outlet behind the shed. If it doesn't work, back to the "please, mr. repairman, come over and look at this" drawing board.  That's what I will do today.  At least eliminate that option off the table. The reason I think it might be power is because it has that built in heater.  I doubt a heater will work off of 30 amp service.  Heaters drink the juice.  

Yes, I'm guessing that's it. I looked up 30 amp vs 50 amp and then looked up that particular ac unit. It uses 1599 running watts, which means even more on start up and 30 amp provides maximum 3,600 watts. It's got to be the problem? I don't know, but I'll find out! That would be great if it was just that. Just wire in a 50 amp service to the shed and bam, it's done. Or, ask guests if the thing looks too old to be in the regular portion of the park?  The exterior is still in great shape. Could use a little buffing but I don't think it's bad looking. But that's me.  I'll ask the ladies in the park.  They'll probably say it looks horrible lmao, if they do I'll move it back behind the shed and that's where it will stay.  

Thankfully I turned the AC unit off yesterday.  I sort of thought, well, if it's a power issue and not enough wattage, I might be damaging the unit trying to run it off less than needed power.  It might answer why some of the lights in the thing don't work, either.  RV's don't use 240 volts on 50 amp. It's all 110 volt wired that way in the rig itself.  So, it's all about the wattage, not the amps.  

Well, anyway, I think I might be getting myself into an answer phase here instead of a "gee, what do I do now?" phase. It would be delicious if this was the problem.  No new AC unit, just figure out what to charge for lot rent since you know 50 amp service uses more electricity.  

Trying not to get my hopes up too high here, but if it saves me the cost of a service call, diagnosis fee and a brand new AC unit, you can bet your lucky - well anyway, it would be wonderful.  

Keto - going ok.  I was tempted last night being at that place and all of those delicious, carb laden foods but I resisted.  Next week I'll be going in to get CDL medical recertified, was just trying to get my weight back down before going in there.  Going to step it up today and the rest of the days left before I go.  

Well, the check arrived yesterday for the 3 trailers and another one just paid.  So 4 payments received, have to look at my book but I think there are 2 more due today. My book saves me.  I write down when a person arrived, paid and how long they paid for.  I can't remember all of that. I just know I need the money to come in so I can pay myself.  I've got enough in there right now to cover bills.  

Going to sit down and go through ALL of my recurring payments and figure out what I have to have just to cover everything.  

Well, I'm forcing myself out of here, regardless of how I feel. 

G'day

 A few things.

The circuit breaker tripped again on the rv after I turned the ac on - it had been on maybe 25 minutes before it clicked off.  I let it cool down a while and then flipped it back on. AC came on, but then the compressor kicked out. This time, instead of flipping the circuit breaker, it just left the fan on with no compressor. 

Yes, I got up on the roof, removed the cover and cleaned it out. There were wasp nests in it and a large accumulation of dirt on top of the compressor. But after cleaning that all out, there was still no change in the compressor status. I called a guy that's been coming in the park fixing people's RV's. He asked if it was 30 or 50 amp service?  I have it on 30 amp.  Well, if there's an electric water heat in there, that will cause that compressor to not work.  

Well, I don't know what's in there for a water heater, I haven't found it yet.  I flipped off the other circuit breakers but no change.  The compressor still not working properly.  I asked if he could come over and diagnose it, see if it's something repairable or does the entire unit have to be replaced? It turns out he was coming to the park today anyone. One of the guests has an AC that is also not working.  

After that I went and discussed this situation with the dude at the tent.  I guess he just sits out there all day long under trees and - bakes.   I had pretty much come to the conclusion they don't want to work, the alternatives are to pay or leave.  Pay, apparently, she allegedly was going to pay me this morning....I'll find out about that when she returns later on.  Apparently she is selling plasma for income.  Whatever floats your boat.

Onto the debt relief company.  45 minute conversation.  It's not really the greatest thing in the world after listening to the entire spiel - but it's not the end of the world either.  They go through all the options til they get to the one they like to do. Debt consolidation, which I don't qualify for, credit counseling, bankruptcy and finally their deal.

Their deal is that you stop making payments to the creditors - credit cards - and they take over.  Reduce your payment by half and they deal with the threat calls from the creditors.  You make the monthly payment into an account, when enough money is in there, they make an offer to one or more of the creditors, typically half of what you owe and they either accept it or deny it.  Your credit score takes a nose dive for awhile but allegedly after a year or so it comes back up and more than when you started.  

I had to ask how they keep the creditors from breathing down my throat?  "We've been doing this since 2002, we have dealt with every creditor on your file and we will handle the calls". 

I dunno.  Sounds a bit sketchy to me.  Plus, good luck ever getting a credit card again.  Certainly not with any of those companies.  The other solution? Just go back to work for a couple of years, pay the debt down at least a grand a beyond the minimum payments, pay down one card at a time.  One card down? There goes over $200 per months payment.  

One thing that call did do was shock me to death. I had no idea I was paying that much money in credit card payments every month.  Not going to go into specifics here, but it's very high.  The thing is, if I do go their route, will I still have to go back to work anyway? If the answer is yes, then there is no sense in doing this. Couple park income with employer income, pay a ridiculous amount of money per month to get the card debt to start disappearing and I could have it done relatively quickly. 

I dunno yet. I'm going to think about it.  Perhaps I could keep one of the cards off of that situation and at least have one credit card available.  One that isn't racked up too high and still has significant amount of credit available in case of emergency.  BTW, this is also including 2 loans on there.  As I say, I'll have to think about it. The guy said he would call back next week. Yes, please do, I'll hopefully have made a decision by then. 

But first? I'm going to research this company and see what others have to say about it.  Is it a scam or is it legit?  

That's it  It's already 3:00 pm. 95 degrees with a heat index of 107. Getting into my SUV after being over there for several hours it was the same feeling as getting into a hot car in Arizona.  I can't leave windows down, those wasps will fly in and try to make a home somewhere.  The shed is nice and cool anyway. 

That's all for now.  I'm going back over there and see if I can find the water heater. I know it's not a propane heater because previous owners filled the exhaust hole in with bondo type substance.  

 I'm going to get on the roof of the thing and check out the AC unit - after I find out whether the circuit breaker has tripped inside the RV.  I didn't check it because it was hot in there and I had had enough of the heat.  It could be dirty coils that are overheating the thing and causing it to shut down.  Overloading the circuit, in other words.  It was working for quite a while. Might as well try the things I know to do before calling out service repair people.  I'm trying to keep the expenditure on this to a minimum.  Get the ac working and I can probably figure out what's going on with the lights.  

Those are the 2 known issues.  The rest is minor cosmetics and needing a deep cleaning and airing out.  I really don't think beyond the AC that it's going to take much to make this thing livable.  

____________

Guess I should have done my homework a little better on planting grass. Turns out I should have started summer grass many months ago.  March would have been optimal.  Now? Is not so optimal, not the correct time of year to be trying to plant it.  At least from everything I'm reading from the pro's.  I don't know that that's going to stop me from at least trying to grow some grass on a few spots and see what happens, but I was correct that preparing the soil is absolutely necessary.

Including tilling the soil.  I'm back on the seeding thing because I talked with the tenting man yesterday and he seemed to agree to doing the work.  I mean, if these people don't either start working or paying, they are leaving.  

Just another hot day in East Texas, I will be all over that RV today looking for the circuit breaker panels.  There should be one for interior 12 volt and another for the regular outlets. I dunno,I'm just going to take my drill in there and plug it into outlets and see if there is power.  If there is, at least the thing is powered up and possibly the AC is a localized problem, not an entire RV problem.  

Who knows.  I will just get busy trying to save money paying someone to come find the problem for me, but if it turns out to be the AC unit itself, I can do limited actions to try and fix it. After that? I either just install window AC units or pay a pro to come out and find out what's wrong.  The pro may very well come back and say it needs a new roof unit -which is where I would go buy a 12,000 BTU unit, pull the 8,000 one out of the shed, install that in the RV and put the 12,000 in the shed.  

I've pretty much decided that I will take either option.  Sell it on payments or rent it, whichever comes first.  I need my money back out of it.  

I think James is going over there today as well to continue work on the mudding. Not sure about that, that coming from Taylor yesterday. Typically, James works a 4 day work week.  

I'm not going to spend a lot of time with this entry, it's time to get out there and get on the roof of that rv before it gets blazing hot.  It will be hot anyway, but by mid afternoon, it gets ridiculous.  I was burning up yesterday, I'm sure I'll be burning up today.  Life in hot country.  Heat index values expected up to 112 today.  

I mean, I guess expect this for the rest of summer? This is what is causing me to scratch my head about planting seed. Some of the sites say you need to water new seed up to 4 times a day!  Besides a LOT of watering, that is going to jack my water bill up pretty good.  

I got irritated yesterday - sorry, I'm just human - after seeing that lady in there for hours yesterday and texted her. Sorry, I can't have you taking over my shed for hours out of every day. It drives others away from doing their laundry.  She didn't complain, said she understood and left.  I don't know how many times or how many different ways I have to say it to her.  I can see an hour in there charging stuff.  Maybe twice a day, once in the day light and once at night.  But to spend the entire afternoon in there?

People simply don't want to contend with her - or anyone really - when going in there to do laundry.  She still contends the dog was just trying to find her when the other guest found the dog in the bathroom with the door closed.  Do dogs open and shut doors? Better question: can a dog input a 4 digit code on a small keypad, then open the door, shut it then go to the bathroom, open that door and shut it as well?

Hypothetical question?  Obviously it cannot.  I didn't take her to task on that explanation, it was obviously a fabrication (lie) and she could have just been up front about it. It annoys me even more when people won't just tell the truth about something simple. Plain and simple: I do not want the dog in the shed, AT ALL and CERTAINLY not being left alone in the bathroom. Especially a dog that growls at people.  Screw that.  I've been pretty on top of this situation with them.  We'll see if they ever come into line with my wishes.  It won't be much longer, tho, if they don't do any work and they don't pay, they will leave. I'm giving it til Saturday, which is tomorrow and also marks a week that they have been there.

Speaking of Saturday, the little monsters are coming home.  I actually had a lady take me to task for calling them little monsters a while back. It was a joke, ma'am. She didn't care, she wanted to tell me about myself. No thank you!  Have a nice day! C'ya! Okay, the kids are coming home, does that make y'all happier?  I've thoroughly enjoyed the time away from them.  It was getting pretty tense in this house with the power off for 7 days and everyone crammed into bedrooms.  And generally it's summer time so the kids get bored and start asking the adults what to do?  I'm bored. 

Find something to do. Toys, play outside, watch tv.  

I've been looking for those elusive snakes every single day, a couple of times a day.  I don't know where they're hiding but it's a good hiding spot.  I monitor the pond every day as well.  I tell Addler to "go find the snakes!".  He just gives me a look, lmao.  When we had the water snakes in the back yard a few years ago, he didn't bother them even when they were laying out in the open right there for everyone to see.  

Well enough. Time to go heat up, sweat profusely and try to figure some things out.

G'day

 Well that was .... interesting.

Got to the guy's place, Taylor took me over there, couldn't find the keys. He had parked it off his property on the side of the street.  No worries there, it's all country and country roads, not much traffic.

After locating the keys, it fired right up, albeit running rough. Took off hoping it would make the 20 mile trip and get this over with.  Well, first off, the brakes were working but not all that great.  I'm guessing a master cylinder leak from the way it was acting. 

But, they worked enough to stop it, just had to make sure you had plenty of room before any stop signs.  

Then, the roughness got worse. Sounds like a bad exhaust manifold gasket.  Unlike new vehicles, I'm pretty good with determining what's wrong with old stuff.  It probably had bad fuel in it as well.  

Any little hill? And I mean even the slightest upgrade?  It would start bogging down.  Like, bad. 30 mph on a 55 mph, 2-lane highway.  Fortunately, no traffic besides Taylor was behind us.  The situation got worse and worse, tho, to the point I was lightly feathering the gas pedal to try and get it to keep going.  My thoughts turned towards: Gee, I hope I won't have to be calling a tow truck out here.  

I dunno, but i was committed, there was no turning around. Some cars car up to us on that 2 lane highway but not until we were near the end of the road. They were stuck maybe a mile and a half and then it spread out to 4 lanes.  No one flipped me off or honked so I guess we were all good there, lmao.

Originally going to take it home, I decided against that.  Every time I had to stop the thing wanted to die.  Way too many turns and lights to go home, I just drove it straight to the property, parked it behind the shed and left for home.  

I think whichever route I take - selling it or renting it - it's going to get parked behind the shed.  I'll just need to run a water line closer than what the nearest one is. Not a huge deal, dig out where it's buried and there is a valve underground, add a short stick of pipe, a T, 2 sticks out of the T, cap off one end and run a 90 up above ground and get a spigot on it.  I'm going to try to situate it tomorrow, I'm done for today, that adventure took it out of me, I was quite apprehensive about it breaking down and having to deal with the aftermath.

It does, however, handle quite well.  And the power steering works quite well on it too.  I certainly wouldn't take it on a road trip without fixing the power and braking issues, obviously, but driving it wasn't bad.  

The only other thing that = got me = was the steps.  I pushed and shoved on them and I couldn't get them to go in.  I had no idea that these were/are automatic steps. When I opened the door at the park to get out, the steps came out by themselves.  I don't know what triggered them to go in? Perhaps the ignition? 

I feel like I want to try renting it first after I make sure everything works and the thing is cleaned out.  It needs aired out badly.  A musty smell in there from being closed up all the time, it needs a good dose of fresh air and maybe some air fresheners in it.  I'll have to measure the area for the couch area and see how long of a couch I can put in there.  

That was my excitement for the day.  I will reposition it tomorrow, hook up the electricity and start trying to turn things on.  The AC came on, need to run it and see if it's going to blow ice cold or just cool.  Just cool?  I can either have a pro come look at it or, with those old ones, you can just pump freon in it through fittings they used to put on the things. Put a can in it and see if it gets colder. If it does, then just run the ac for a few days and see if it holds.  

As for the rest of the day? Well, I was going to talk to the tent guy but Taylor had to go home - I wasn't going to try to make her wait anyway.  She's going with a friend to the movies this afternoon.  I actually might go back over there and hook it up to electric today. I know the ac comes on and the refrigerator and freezer works.  

I just needed to sit here in my room for a bit and recompose. It was extremely hot in that thing, I don't know if the coach ac works and I was too busy trying to keep it running to find out.  But even if it did work, I wouldn't have turned it on anyway for as bad as the thing was running.  It would just drag it down even more.  Plus I couldn't get a temporary tag for it - I tried.  And I was just afraid I was going to have to go through an  afternoon long ordeal trying to get it to the park.  

It kind of messed with my head a bit. But, whew! It's over with, I've got it there, I don't have to worry about it now.  Yeah, I think I will go back over there. I'd take Addler but it's way too hot to be going for a walk. 

__________________

She is occupying the shed again. This time over 2 hours.  I went to meet the brother. He's in his 60's from his appearance.  The tent wasn't actually in direct sunlight, it just appeared that way from the angle I was at the other day.  There's a breeze blowing today so with the breeze and start sweating it's tolerable. Not optimal, but a person can deal with it if they have to.

Except her, apparently.  So, now I'm going to have to get even more blunt.  I spoke to the brother that we are going to have to discuss this situation because she is driving away people who want to do laundry. It doesn't take that long to charge batteries.  If after what I said to him doesn't do anything, then it's just going to be face to face either stop hanging out in there or you can just find another place to go to.  

The AC. I plugged in the RV, the ac came on, I felt cool air coming out, figured I'd leave it on and come back later. 
Which is what I did, probably spoke with the brother for 45 minutes - yes out in the heat. Came back, the ac was off. Blown circuit breaker? Not on the shed.  It was still on.  So, either the AC is bad and needs repaired or replaced or who knows what.  I am going to have a service guy come out and take a look.  If it needs replaced, that will be a bummer. If it can be repaired, that would be ok.  Those things aren't cheap and it wasn't part of this plan.  I was looking at everything. Carpet and a couch.  Figure out why some of the 12 volt lights aren't coming on.  The refrigerator works, the toilet works, there isn't much to it to have to work. I didn't try out the stove, I don't know if it has propane in the bottle and I was boiling hot by that point.  

Plus it's getting late in the day.  Which reminds me, I forgot to bring the card home of the guy that is mobile RV repair. He fixes/replaces ac units.  He really fixes anything if it's fixable.  I don't know what he charges for a service call or hourly but a few people in the park have had him out, well 3 now that I think of it.  

Whatever the case, I'm going to get AC in there one way or the other. I could always put a large window unit in. People do it all the time, one of my guests has 2 of them on his rig.  Again, not optimal but it will cool an RV down nicely if you get a big enough one and can place it where it can blow throughout the rv.  The other guy has one in the rear window and in the front side window.  They run all day long.  I don't know how much that is costing me in electricity, but it's probably jacking that bill up nicely. 

They aren't as efficient as the newer roof mounted AC's.  

They have a huge tent out there.  They have their own beds in it but they are not sleeping in separate tents.  That must get a little - strange.  I mean, it's getting down into the mid 70's at night, that's not terrible. Not great, but not terrible. 

 The guy was refreshingly honest.  This is what's wrong with it. The Motorcoach that is.  Minor stuff. I think the AC might have issues but if that's it, I'm good.  The thing is pumping out cool air but not supercool air. Now, is it that the thing just needs to run for awhile after not being used? Or is there something wrong with it? Well, I'll find out when I get to the park, plug the RV in and fire up the AC and just leave it run.  The compressor is working - it was 100 degrees and there was cool air coming out so at least that's a good sign.  Those older units usually have fittings to pump in freon.  

I mean, I inspected that thing pretty good.  The bedroom, the shower, the toilet room, it's old school cooking with a propane gas stove and stove top - oh well! I used to like cooking like that but it also means having to refill propane tanks periodically. Pretty sure the water heater is also propane. That can actually be upgraded to electric inline version, but why would I want to do that?  Uh, well, to keep people from complaining.  One thing to cook with propane, it won't use that much, but to keep a water heater going? I've been there and done that.  

These are all things I need to ensure are in working condition and I reveal that upfront/ Yup, it's propane cooking and water heating.  If you don't want to have the water heater on all the time, you can use the shower in the amenities shed. I don't remember how much propane it uses to keep a small tank hot all the time. I think I was using hot water pretty frugally - referring back decades ago when using a travel trailer.  Same thing here, different layout.  

________________

Started that yesterday.  Thursday morning. 

Trying to get  a temporary tag to move the thing 20 miles.  Texas online system won't even acknoledge the VIN number on the title.  I may just drive it bac without one and make sure someone is following me. It's almost all 2 lane highway and the unit does, indeed, have a license plate on it. Just not current.  I get it to the park I'm not driving it anywhere else.  

I've put up on my business Google and Facebook account about the fact that I will be having one available to either rent or sell on payments.  I've had one person interested so far, she wants to see pictures. Fair enough, but I'll be taking my own pics instead of using the ones on the ad.  

Anyway, I was going to pay for a ride over there this morning, folks here are busy, but I had second thoughts. I really want someone to follow me back in case something goes wrong with it. The man said he drove it from another place to his house and it was a bit of a distance so at least I have some confidence that it will make the trip - but still.  I don't think the lady driving me for pay over there would want to do that or if I asked her to, she would probably ask for more money.  I'm thinking maybe wait until James gets home from work and have him follow me home. If something happens, there are at least some tools available to try and fix it. This thing has a 454 in it, I believe, carbureted.  This is stuff before computers were installed to run vehicles or just around that time.  

This is something I have some expertise in, actually, I used to work on vehicles all the time until computers took over everything and I just flat gave up on it.  

Well, the couch is missing out of it. The guy says he has it but it would need a covering put over it, it's not in great condition.  I think I need that couch, it was made specifically for that unit.  Maybe get it reupholstered if it doesn't cost thousands of dollars. Otherwise, find something used on Marketplace and stick it in there.  It kind of needs a couch/sitting area.  It also appears to be missing a small, fold-out table. Nothing I'm going to replace. You can buy small tables cheap, if someone wants one in there they can do that themselves.  

Dang. The guy has "a" couch but not the original one that came out of it.  Probably trashed the original owners must have chucked it.  I am finding jacknife couches for reasonable prices on Facebook marketplace, I'll just have to go with one of those. Or a regular sleeper couch, the foldout style.  

The only thing is used couches are difficult to buy on the internet. The pics never really show cosmetic issues with them, you have to go see them in person. Another deal where I wouldn't want to drive too far to see one considering that possibility that a pic online isn't really showing what it looks like in person. 

Well whatever. I'll deal with that after I get the thing parked on a lot.  I am looking and there are some available in my town. Needs to be a sleeper bed in case more than one person want it, ie: a mother with child or small family.  

Ok this thing is diverting my attention away from issues that need to be dealt wtih.  Namely, these tent campers.  I told them to NOT have their dog in the shed at all anymore.  So what did the guy do? Left the dog in the bathroom with the door shut.  Someone went in, found the dog and returned it to the dude, the lady was off property.  I contacted her about it, she tried to tell me the dog was not in the shed but was with her brother. Uhh, no, I have a video of it, lady getting the dog out of the  bathroom.  She tried to get around it but with video proof, I don't have to have any other evidence.  

These people.  The dude just now texted me back after I tried to contact him yesterday about getting some work done. They are not staying their for free.  I already told her that if they aren't going to work, they need to pay the rent retroactively.  She directed me to the brother.  Like, why should I have to go chasing these people down?  The tent? It's not under the trees, they put it out in direct sunlight!

I clearly don't think like these people. With as hot as it is, one would think that putting the tent under shade would be the way to go.  Perhaps they don't stay inside the tent during the day and use the shaded area for - existing - during the hot parts of the day.

I have been getting more and more direct with them as each incident occurs. At this point, it's follow my rules or get out of my park. It's really that simple.  She isn't hanging out in the shed for hours on end now. She's in there an hour charging a large batter to run a fun at the site and recharge their phones.  They have some money because she has a car and drives it every day.  They have phones, those aren't free for monthly service, well I guess the government gives out phones.  Probably disability or something like that.  

I'm going to keep on her about finding a job as well. I don't want them sitting back there endlessly with no hope in sight to do anything about their situation. She can go find a job, there's PLENTY of them in town.  She has an address to use - my park - she has a phone and she has access to a shower and laundry.  She has transportation, there really isn't anything else.  Life sucks sometimes, I've been in poverty, I know what it's like.  It's not fun.  You take the steps you need to take to get yourself out of poverty.  It's why I"m considering going back to trucking. I'm not going to sit around forever wondering if I'll have enough money to pay bills and live my life.

Screw that. I'd rather work a regular job and have a reliable income.  

The dude finally texted back something beyond gibberish.  He said ok, but I thought it was the trails you wanted done? No, that isn't priority, I need the lots plowed up. I have a machine.  He replied "cool".  LMAO. Ok then.  I just need to go over there and get into their personal space and discuss this whole situation.  I am a person that tries to help people, but I have parameters and rules for such things. Reasonable rules, nothing dictatorial.  It's why I set them out to her before they ever moved in.  She ignored them and then I had to get direct with her.  I wish for their sake it was fall, the temps would come down. Instead, we have 3 months of hellish heat in our way.  

If the guy does enough work, I can slip him a little - not a lot - extra cash.  If he doesn't do anything, they're gone.  She won't even lift a finger to help keep the damn shed clean, but the brother might - might - have a different mindset.  

Ok, Taylor is on her way home. I presume she means that she can take me to the coach. I hope so, I'd like to get this over with.  

G'day

 I stayed up way too late last night.  Like, why did I even do that? Oh, because I got in so late.  Well, I have a lead on a motorcoach - older one - they had listed at $4,500 I offered $2,800 and they are debating it.  I'm sure they want to wait to see if anyone else contacts them with a higher offer.  

They are only 20 miles away if that.  He said he'd ask his wife. There's one other one in there that a guy did about a 75% rebuild of the inside of the trailer.  It's not bad looking. It needs more stuff in it but for the price, it might be worth it.  He want's $1,500 and he's had it up for quite a while.  I asked him if that was his bottom dollar?  Maybe, do you want to come look at it? Sure. 

That one is in Shreveport, a bit further away but not ridiculous like yesterday. I texted those people yesterday telling them they should be more honest about their ad. They had told me it was in great condition and was worth more than they were asking for it. In a pig's eye. That thing is worthless.  They texted me back in the middle of the night telling me to F off and other niceties. These people are you classic example of trailer trash.  I didn't call them that in the text.

It's not that they live in a trailer that makes them trailer trash. It's the whole mentality.  Junk laying everywhere around both properties.  Their mobiles falling apart. Even if they are poor, they could reattach skirting and possibly find a can of paint somewhere and fix the roof instead of draping a tarp over it.  AS soon as I saw the house and then the trailer, I knew I had driven up there in vain.  Well, live and learn. 

If a trailer or coach is close enough by, I don't need a lot of pictures, I do want some.  The rest can just be inspected in person.  I'm good at saying no thank you, turning around, getting into my vehicle and leaving.  

Well we agreed on a price so now I just wait until he gets home from work.  The tent camper just went into the shed yet again.  I feel for them, it's hot outside.  I would think living in such conditions would motivate a person to do whatever it takes to get out of that predicament.  It would me, I'd gladly drive a truck all over the place than be without a place  to live - or living in a tent.  But I still don't want her in there all day long. Her presence drives away people wanting to use the machines and I can't have that. There are plenty of places she can go to in town to cool off that don't cost anything and she does have a car.  

Got sidetracked. I have notifications on whenever someone is driving by or is in the shed.  I want to see who it is and what they are doing in there. We still have tools in there that I think I may just move to the small shed outside and put a lock on it.  

Anyway, this guy went into detail about the coach.  Said he was on the roof cleaning it up and using a hose and that noting leaked inside of it. He also said the floors do not have any soft spots.  In fact, he just said the only real things wrong with it are that some of the clearance light don'ts work and the generator apparently doesn't work. I don't care about either of those issues.  It doesn't need a generator and lights can be fixed.  But driving it back to the park in daylight I don't need lights either.

He said he wanted to be upfront about the things wrong with it.  Finally, at least in appearance, an honest person.  Again, the little town it's located in is only 17 miles away after looking on GPS.  I hate to sit here and say that I'm just going to buy it after all of what has happened at previous places, so I won't lmao.  But if it is in as good condition that this dude is saying it is in, I'm driving it home today.  It has some sort of floor covering that previous owners put down in it, he said. 

Yes, you could see it in the pic.  Looks kind of weird.  Maybe just install some carpeting.  

Well I don't want to get too involved with talking about that until after I go see it and potentially drive it home.  Well, not home but over to the RV park.  

Okay, she's taking a shower. I know that because there is a microphone on the camera and you can hear it. I'm not a peeping Tom, but I can see taking a nice, cool shower. It's going to be a very hot day again today and all the rest of this week and - summer.  I need to get over there today and discuss the work situation with her brother.  She dumped it off on me to go find him. This is just one thing that irritates me.  I shouldn't have to go chasing these people down, they should be contacting me up front.  

Whatever.  If she's still in there when I get over there I'm going to gently remind her that I said at the beginning of this that I didn't want y'all camping out in there. At least she is keeping the dog out of there now.  Apparently she's putting him in the doggy park and yes, there are some trees for shade.  She spent 5 hours in there yesterday but it was doing laundry.  I think she just dragged it out so she wouldn't have to leave. She did not bring her batteries in so I am assuming she is going to drag it out even further for even more hours to do that. People not doing what they agreed to do and me having to foce the issue. 

It's aggravating and I probably should have thought this out better.  Like, don't do this again.  If someone is coming in to tent camp for a few days, great.  There is a family that is coming to our town for 4 days that wants to tent camp next month. Crazy.  It's so hot.  I can deal with 4 days and just monitor the situation.  

As it stands, I've got yet another guest leaving. He was told they are sending him somewhere else in the next few weeks but they won't give him an exact date.  My park is slowly emptying out and I don't have anyone coming to take up another space.  It's frustrating.  I don't know what else I can do beyond what I've already done to get more people in there.  I put up another Facebook post and took down 2 others with different wording. I think I'll put up another Facebook post with a different picture and remove that one as well. 

And update the Google business statement.  But beyond that, I have no clue.  There aren't any other amenities in the foreseeable future without the finances to be able to do it.  I really wish I could get a pool loan. No guarantees, but putting that up as an amenity in the park would very likely fill the park up. And at slightly higher rates to cover the cost of maintaining it. I don't know, I haven't tried to get any loans in a while because I have too much debt and it counts against me.  It counts against me too much.  America has a debt crisis with credit cards going right now, lenders probably are looking at any given individual's credit report and seeing how much is on there.  I am not late on any payments, but it's pretty high amount.  That is the biggest thing that would help me right now, if I could get a debt consolidation loan, put all of it on there and have a lower monthly payment than what I am paying now for all of it.  

I might try again.

As for now?  I need to eat something and then get over to the property. 

G'day

 Well. Lots of driving today, been a long time.  

I went up to Arkansas with the hopes of snagging a nice trailer.  Umm....I got the idea this wasn't going to turn out too well.  The address was a very old, trashy, singlewide mobile home.  The house was falling apart at the seams and there was junk laying all over the place.  They had already informed me the trailer wasn't there but close by.

So, they loaded the entire family up in a mini van - there was a host of them I can tell ya - I followed them up the road about 500 feet to an ever worse situation.  The lady comes running out of the car: Don't get out, the dogs will bite you!  Little scraggly things, albeit a lot of them, I wasn't concerned.  The mobile home on this land was in even worse shape than the first place. 

There were 3 junky looking trailers out there, surely none of these are it? I thought.  I think back now with the pics they posted and what I saw in front of my eyes. They had carefully taken angled shots to conceal the shittiness of this trailer.  It was disgusting just looking at it from the outside.  I decided I would force myself to walk inside the thing since I had driven so far. 

It was far worse disgusting inside. The pics they had taken - I'm looking back now - were high up. The ceiling, the cabinets on the wall. The ceiling looked good - the portion of it they showed.  It was sooo bad in there. You step inside the damn thing and put your foot down on a raised hump, the toilet 20 feet away - lifted up!  Wait, what?  The remnants of furniture was gross.  I did a quick inspection, but it was obvious before I even entered the relic that I wasn't going to give them anything for it. 

If anything, they would pay me to haul that pile of useless junk out of there. 

What a waste of time! Not exactly.

You see, there has been this thing in me. It has been nagging at me.  If I have to go back to trucking, can I even deal with it?  How am I going to handle driving all day long? You know, if you' read this blog before I got out of trucking even if temporarily, that I now despise that occupation. There's FAR more to it than just driving, but even the driving part had become loathsome.  

It was actually a nice drive. Close to 300 miles round trip, up there over to Shreveport and then back to the house. It's actually this reason that I wanted to go on this trip, honestly.  I had no idea if the pics would equate into a trailer that is as nice as what they showed.  I did care, yes, but I learned something about me in my current state of mind. 

I will despise going back to trucking, but yes, I can deal with it. It was helpful.  

I wasn't particularly happy that these people had misrepresented this trailer. They had it listed at $3,500, I deem it worth $0.  You would spend that much money fixing it.  You would literally have to gut the entire thing, put in new flooring, bathroom, furniture - it isn't worth fixing, it's a pile of s***. 

I can tell you 2 things about any future trips to see trailers. 1: they will show me pictures of the entire thing from floor to ceiling on the inside.  If they won't, I will move on. 2: I won't drive more than 50, maybe 60 miles to see anything listed.  

Down to Shreveport, I wanted to see the inside of this trailer.  This dude showed me the receipts, the bill of sale and the title.  He paid a lot of money for that thing. Amazing he knew he had just let it go and didn't really care. It served it's purpose at the time and saved him money on hotels. I guess. 

It's a 2016 trailer, the cabinetry in it is beautiful, still in great condition. However.  The bedroom ceiling has a leak, the flooring is soft the entire walk through the trailer from the entrance door to the rear of the bedroom. It is likely just a leak around a roof vent, that appears to be where it comes in.  The roof damage - at least visibly - isn't that bad.  But the entire floor would have to be replaced. 

The refrigerator doesn't work - beautiful wood work on the doors - but who cares if the damn thing doesn't work?  The AC unit doesn't work either.  Blows hot air. Well, at least it blows! LMAO

He came down to 2 grand, he'd have to come down another $500.  He definitely won't sell it for $3,500.  He likely won't sell it for 2 grand, but who knows. He has had only 2 people show up and they didn't want it. I get that - walk in the thing and your feet start sinking.  But the cabinetry! Beautiful! The sink and counters are also in great condition. It would be worth fixing if I could get him to come down another $500. I could fix the roof myself, I'd ask James to replace the flooring and I'd look at the ac unit. Sometimes you can figure out what is wrong with it without paying a pro  I've done it. 

The refrigerator? That same pro would have to look at that, I have limited knowledge of refrigerators.  

Whatever. I'll contact him tomorrow. Unless he comes down on the price, I won't take it.  Someone could spend 3 grand on it and come out with a trailer they could resell for 10k or more. I don't have the time or the resources for it and I have to draw a line.  If I can pay people to fix it and I do minimal work, then fine, I'll take it.  k

Otherwise, I'll just keep looking. 

,Well, got home late. Stopped for dinner after leaving Shreveport. Nothing fancy or expensive but I was hungry for I hadn't eaten since this morning.  It's almost 10:00 pm.  I'll ask the dude if he'll drop his price even more, if he will I'll go get it and park it behind the shed.  If not, well, I have other things to do.

Yes, the tent lady finally texted me back. Today, this afternoon actually, long after I texted her. She said she'd put the dog in the dog park and tell her brother to stop parking in front of the shed.  She told me to talk to her brother and gave his number. No thank you, I want to talk to him in person.  Well, he's "always there".  She's a nice lady, don't get me wrong, but there are a lot of nice people that will trample over the top of you and take you for everything they can get. That isn't going to happen here and I do believe she got that message today. 

I will hopefully be able to go meet with him and give him an agenda of things to do that start - immediately.  Screw the walking trails, get with that tiller machine and start churning up the soil.  Let's plant grass, you can do the work!  I'll find out how motivated they are. She certainly doesn't seem to be, maybe the brother is different.  

The family is leaving sometime next month to go to Missouri. The Florida trip was cancelled so they decided to go visit a different grandma.  I didn't actually know this until tonight being asked to deal with their dog and cats.  Yea, I don't mind. I'll have the place to myself.  It could get a bit strange being in a house that is normally loaded with all kinds of noises, but yes.  

That's the thing about driving trucks. It starts to get lonely.  You start craving human interaction - whatever you can find.  I don't mean sexual stuff, but even communicating with odd people becomes something better than nothing. Phones, texting, email are ok but don't replace the in-person interaction.  

No idea about tomorrow until I hear back from this guy about the trailer. Except - I wasn't even over at the property today.  I'll be over in the morning and checking out their tent site. Do they even have a tent?  Are they trashing the place or do they keep clean? Is this dude really willing to work? What kind of attitude does he have? It'll be an adventure, lol.

Enough. Getting late. 

 Tuesday

Another trailer popped up on the Marketplace which is quite clearly in excellent condition. Listed price: $3,500.  They immediately went down to $2,700.  I agreed to buy the thing for $2,700, however...

It's 112 miles away and it was already 7:00 pm.  I can't come right now, without stating that little fact but I can come tomorrow morning.  Well I have to work, she replies, are you here in ****ville?  No, I'm a little bit away from you but I really want that trailer.  I get off at 3:30 tomorrow afternoon.

Now, did they sell it between the time I spoke with them and now?  No idea.  I will be trying to contact her soon.....just messaged her.  Not going to let the day escape and have her change her mind with someone else.  She confirmed the time but said she would give the address after she gets of work.  That makes it a bit sketchy.  You know other people will be contacting here. She might tell them there is a pending offer, they might offer more, she might take it even tho she has promised it to me.

I think I will drive up to Linden and be ready to move up north by the time she gets off.  There is a meat distributor in Linden that sells all kinds of meats at excellent prices, I've been wanting to go up there anyway. If it turns out to be a dud - them selling me the trailer that is - I can at least justify it with going somewhere I already wanted to go which is right on the way up to where the trailer is.

I will not, however, drive all the way up to the location without her confirming her address first.  Her not giving it to me now could mean a lot of things. Perhaps she's afraid I'll go and try to steal it or something.  Perhaps she wants to ensure someone is there with her before a stranger comes to their house. Or, perhaps, she is holding off to see if she can get a better price. That thing had just popped on there and I immediately contacted her. 

These trailers that are in good condition for a great price move fast.  One minute they're on there, the next, poof, it's gone "SOLD" on the post.  

Been feeling sluggish in the mornings.  Maybe because I got fat all over again, lol.  I stayed off the diet far longer than I was going to and a lot of fat piled right back on.  I'm going heavy duty into Keto right now to get some of it off. I need to get my medical card renewed before July 12th and I don't want my weight to be anywhere near the obesity level.  

The federal government has reached it's tentacles well into truck driver's lives, a thing I don't want to go into right now, just to say they basically dictate when you drive, when you pee, when you stop.  And they dictate your health and if it's not good enough in their estimation, you lose your CDL.  It is converted back to a regular driver license.  

They even know that I am not driving now.  It was in the verbiage on the letters they have sent me telling me to get it renewed or lose the privilege.  Maybe people new to the industry can deal with all of this, they haven't been in the game. I've been in the game when they gave out chauffeur's licenses that simply gave you permission to drive a truck even if you didn't know how to drive one.  The driving test wasn't any different for those tests, the written exam had more questions. CDL's came along and eventually, over the years, the Federal Government has become truck driver dictators.  There is no exaggeration there and there is no other way to adequately put it.  

Now, will I go back to trucking? At some point I think I will have no choice.  If I do get back into it and at least find a semi-decent company, I will probably stay in it for quite a while. Get debt down, get a pool built on the property, etc.  At least the shed will be done.  

Speaking of the shed.....

These people......

I don't know if they don't like to listen or if they have comprehension problems, but I'm already at the verge of telling them to leave.  Try to help people and what happens... These people are parking their car directly in front of the shed, in front of the door.  I told her yesterday to please stop doing that and she agreed. Last night? They were out there parked the same way.  I also told them before they moved in that they weren't going to be making the shed their home.  How many hours did they spend in there yesterday? Over 5.  Further, they were either to pay $5 per day - I was giving it cheap to help them out - or do work. 

They opted for work, yet haven't lifted a finger.  In fact, she was sitting in the shed yesterday, half blocking the door, using my electricity to charge 2 phones and a battery and had turned the ac down to 72. I turned it back up from afar.  Her dog got up and started growling at me when I walked.  

Ok. I was annoyed enough by their behavior that I just sent them a text.  In a nice way, it was shape up or ship out.  No speeding, no hanging out at the shed, pay for your stay, keep the dog out of the shed, etc.  

 I woke up this morning not feeling all the great.  Weird sleep patterns.  

The man with the trailer contacted me - I went over there after taking the money out of the bank and looked at that thing and left. It's pretty easy to take flattering pics of these trailers and make them appear as something they aren't.  

I just left there instead of bartering with him, I had already bartered but I didn't expect it to be in the condition it is in.  I offered him $1,500 for it, that's about what it's worth. There will be repairs needed.  

Hasn't really been any new ones coming on there in the last few days that are in my price range.  I have cash in my pocket now and might keep it there a few days, see if I can jump on something that might come up.  If not I'll dump it back into the accounts I got it out of. 

I wasn't in the greatest mood. Getting notifications, that tent lady had come into the shed with her dog.  She went straight to the AC unit nd turned it down to 72 degrees.  I went to my app and turned it back up to 78.  She plopped herself down in the chair right at the door and partially blocking it, facing the door and her dog plopped itself down in the middle of the shed.  

I was still heading back from Shreveport and I decided to stop and have a meal before going over there. I wasn't in the mood to talk to her - or anyone else for that matter.  But, she was there when I got there and her car was parked right in front of the shed.  So, I asked her to not park there anymore, there is already a place to the side of the shed where people park.

Oh, forgot about the dog. It got up and started growling at me when I walked in there. I wasn't particularly afraid of it but that is not what I want RV'ers to be exposed to when they walk through the door. A dog growling and a lady sitting there facing a person.  I was in too bad of a mood to address her about all of that and the fact that they are neither paying me to stay there OR doing some work as originally agreed upon. I will deal with her tomorrow if I see her.  I'm not going to do it through text messages and such, I want a face to face event that hopefully will stay civil but at the same time, I'm going to lay out what she said when she came in there and what is actually happening.

I don't want her in that shed for literally hours at a time.  She was in there 2 hours, that's way beyond anything I imagined.  If they want an amicable solution and stick around, they can start paying me or start working immediately on the property and they can keep their time in the shed limited and NO dog.  I can even install an outlet on the rear of the shed for them to use to charge their devices.  

I did ask her about whether she was looking for a job.  She said something about finding places that are hiring. I rattled off a dozen names right off the bat. "Well, I put in applications online but I never hear back from anyone".  Did she think I am stupid?  If you really want a job somewhere, you put in your application online and then you go visit the place, find a manager and tell them you put in an application and that you are really interested in working there. You do your homework about the place and get some kind of basic knowledge of what they do and discuss it with the manager. 

She then said she had spoken to the manager of a gas station that is about a mile and a half away.  Ok. After that I didn't have much to say to here, she was in my way, I was trying to clean up the shed, she apparently doesn't get clues either. I hate to have to get blunt with her but this situation isn't going to fester with me. I will deal with it civilly but I WILL deal with it.  She finally did get a clue after some point in time, got her devices, her car battery, her dog and left.  It was a bit unbelievable, really.  

Lol, now someone else has turned the AC down in there, but only to 76. I'm interested in keeping it slightly cool in there when there is no one in there, but if they are doing laundry and actually have a valid reason, I have no problem with them turning it down.  I just don't think they'll remember to turn it back up, that's basically why I got remote access to it.  They leave, it's going back up to 78 or even 80.  

I have 5 empty lots and no leads for people coming in. We're near the end of the month so that's a bit disconcerting. Regardless, paying high electric bills for that shed is not a part of my plan, especially when income is limited.  

I need to find some kind of advertising ploy to get people to consider my park versus those that are right next to the Interstate.  My prices are low, I have done enough looking around at what everyone is charging currently.  I still only have 4 Google reviews, that's not helpful either. 

I think I am going to read other's ads and maybe get some clue about what I can do to get people to my place.  I have that in my ads, but I do think that I am too wordy  I am going to create an ad that is not overly wordy but makes the pertinent points. 

Enough of that.  There is plenty of work to do at the property and that is why I offered those people free stay in exchange for work.  Pull weeds, rake dirt, clear the trails, something. 

It's so hot out and it's going to hit above 100 degrees at least 2 days this week. I can only imagine what the "feels like" temp will be. It's muggy and nasty out there.  

Anyway, I'm going to just keep checking every hour at least for new trailers. If something good comes on there at a good price? They go quickly.  I'm trying to create business by offering something to live in.  A slum lord, however, is not my idea of running a business like this and so, it has to be decent both inside and out. Doesn't have to be perfect, but it needs to look good enough that it doesn't catch people's eyes by being too dilapidated.  

What else is going on....kids are still gone and won't be back until Saturday. I'm more than enjoying them being gone. They could stay out another week and I would be great with that. Love those kids but I also love the peace and quiet.  

That's about it for this one.