Finally got the 50AMP & 30 AMP hookups installed. I worked a little each day til I got my strength back. Bronchitis really kicks my butt. Still need to do the sewer hookup.

One of the neighbors was standing alongside the MH and noticed a propane smell. I turned off the switch from the side of the MH but it still smelled. I was going to take it in to be checked out but Jared said he would crawl under and check it with a soap spray. Turned out it was the valve itself so turning it off did not do any good. We turned off the propane at the tank which is in the middle of the frame and removed the valve. Took it apart and thought it might have been the "O" ring that was leaking. I started cleaning up the valve and noticed a crack in the nut. Ah--there's the leak. Did a net search and finally found one from the manufacturer for $50 including shipping. Having the propane turned off for a few days didn't inconvenience us very much. Only uses for propane are: frig, when no electric is available; Water heater, also when no electric is available; stove top (microwave still worked which is Kay's favorite cooking tool) & furnace, which we didn't need in May. Since we didn't have the sewer hookups yet we took our showers in the house so the electric element on the WH worked fine to keep us in hot water for the other hot water needs.

The fuel leak we first experienced last summer turned out to be the lift pump. This pumps diesel to the injection pump. They say that the leak is caused by the new ULSD (Ultra Low Sulpher Diesel) which made the older gasket material deteriorate. Got a new pump locally for $205 and I spent an afternoon installing it. It wasn't in the easiest place to reach that's why it took so long. While under there I noticed quite a bit of oil around the rubber hose that returns the oil from the turbo back into the pan. The turbo uses the oil for cooling. It's a special material and it was $25 for a 3" section of hose. This was easy to reach and didn't take long to replace. I did some followup checks on both of these items during the next 2 months and no new leaks.........yet.

The starter had been acting up for the last couple of months. Sometimes I had to turn the key a few times to get it to catch. I had checked all the electrical connections and cleaned them but it still did it. So I removed the starter and took it to a local shop that specializes in starter repair ($206). He did find a couple of 'flat spots' that would have caused the problems. I took pics of the starter and drew a diagram for the wiring to help me when re installing. With my memory I didn't trust myself to remember the wire connections. The starter was actually easier to remove/reinstall than any I had done on cars over the years. Very easy to reach, 3 bolts and undo the wires.

One morning I got up, used the toilet and when flushing the return spring broke. The local RV place had one in stock ($43) and I replaced the bad one.

Same morning the GFCI receptacle by the sink quit working properly. It kept kicking off. Checking all the wiring I figured it had just gone bad so I replaced it. new one hasn't kicked off yet.

The hard drive started going out on my laptop. I had never replaced one in a laptop and wasn't sure how to 'ghost' the drive to reinstall on the new drive. I took it to a local place and they did a decent job but had it longer than they estimated. I missed my puter!! And when I got it back I had to relearn some stuff. My memory again--that's why I am on the puter each evening--repetition keeps me from forgetting some procedures. New HD (160Gig) & labor came to $206.

I put the main awning out and one of the spring clips had broke. Back to the RV place again for parts. It's a good thing I can do a lot of the repairs myself!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This has been an expensive month. Just imagine how much all this would have cost if I paid to get it all done. How come all prices are increasing, especially diesel and campgrounds but our retirement hasn't gone up at all? Something wrong with this picture.

Kay got another speeding ticket--second one since we have been on the road. Both of them have been when she was driving her dad's car. One in Effingham, Il and the other in Savannah. Not sure of the significance of both of them being in her dad's car.

I was reading the RV.NET forum and a lady (Malia) was parked at the KOA in Richmond Hill, Ga and was having problems with her water supply. We were only 5 miles away so I offered to stop by and look at it. Between postings to coordinate the visit it started working again. I had been reading her website (http://www.maliasrv.com/) and we decided to meet anyway. Kay & I headed over the evening before we were to leave for SC. Had a nice, but short, visit.

We spent some time at the FT. McAllister Marina where Jared has his boat parked. Took a boat ride with Jared, Julia, Ryan, Clara and myself. Jared threw out his net that he uses for catching bait fish. He got a few and his son Ryan was excited seeing and holding the fish. They have a unique boat launch here. Not a ramp--you drive under a lift, they lift the boat off the trailer and move it out towards the water and then let it down into the water. Interesting watching it work.

AND---the BIG news---Julia is pregnant again.

Just before we headed to SC, Kay got bronchitis, then I got it again. I feel mine came from the Fl/Ga fires that were so bad at that time. Quite a few days were smoky even though it was a far distance away.

We got to Rock Hill, SC (Ebenezer County Park) and was setting up & when I extended the slide awning it tore along the seams. Every time we park and extend the slide this awning is out and exposed to the elements. The threads just rotted. Will fix that next place we sit for awhile. Next day the rear air conditioner quit. I got up on the roof, checked it out and the compressor was bad. Next day, one of us (me!) sat their fat butt on the toilet and the floor sagged. Back a few years ago we had a leak that took me months to find. When I did it was in the wall between the bath & kitchen. The plywood floor finally rotted away. It is still usable so that is another 'later' fix. Maybe we should quit coming to Rock Hill--last year the cooling unit on the frig gave out and when we were leaving the area, the turbo quit.

Anyway we got to visit with Sherry & Robin a few times. Kay & Sherry took a one day trip to the Cherokee, NC Harrah's Casino. Long drive (4 hrs each way) and they didn't win anything but they had a good time.

We went to Spartanburg, SC to get the rear AC replaced at Camping World. This is something I could have done myself EXCEPT for getting it on the roof & the old one off the roof. When that was finished we backtracked to Gaffney for our annual chassis service & have the radiator steam cleaned. They just opened a new facility dedicated to maintenance/service. The old place was at the factory. The new one is about 4 miles from the factory and is very nice. 6 bays for service. Campground on site with water, electric & a dump station.

The drive to Illinois was uneventful. We stopped at the riverboat in Metropolis--I slept and Kay went to the casino.

Next AM we went to Eldorado to spend 10 days in the Harrisburg area. During setup the satellite dish wasn't working properly. A few calls to DISH and following their troubleshooting procedures they decided our receiver pooped out. They would send us a new one and we were to ship back the old one. About 1 hr later the receiver started working properly. We didn't call them back and when the new receiver arrived I installed it. No sense taking a chance on it crapping out again.

Within a couple of days the NEW a/c starting freezing up. AND it was very hot! The fan was very noisy also. Kay made some calls and Dometic & they said that is to be expected in very hot humid weather. BS!!!! The old one never did that and the front A/C doesn't do it either. They finally decided to send us to a local dealer to check it out. We made an appt for the day we were leaving. Meanwhile we had to run it on high fan constantly to keep it from freezing. Still would freeze but not as often.

We visited with Richard & Kathy, Bill & Betty, Dave & Toni & their granddaughter, Shai. Dave & Toni had just built a new house along the Ohio River. Views from their deck are awesome. Went to the ELKS to eat/drink a few days and of course visit with my fellow ELKS and their wives. It is always good to see them.

Then it was time to head to Lake of the Ozarks to visit with Bob & Donna. On the way we stopped at the dealer to have the A/C checked out. He could find nothing wrong with it. ???????? Continued on to Mo.

I finally got some pic of Paynes Creek State Park (where we volunteer for the winter) after the hurricanes a couple of years ago. The pic of the canoe by the bridge is awesome. Normally the water flows gently about 20 feet lower than the pic shows.

Later                                Pictures