Camper from Richmond

Sadie Mae had her first adventure with a lengthy drive yesterday, going with us (straight into the rising sun) to Richmond and back (right into the setting sun, of course) as we bought our used camper & hauled it home.

I am so glad Dick knows about hauling loads. He took along some special 'arms' (?) & chain & his drill & other things he'd known we would need, along with a check from our bank for the agreed-upon price provided we liked the camper & the condition it was in. Since it was a bank foreclosure, we could not be sure it would be in mint condition as a 1999 Holiday Rambler, 33 feet long. The pictures online were very clear but we needed to step into the camper, put the slide-out in operation, check the bathroom...some campers have tiny bathrooms...this one was spacious, with sink & vanity on one side, then the flush, then a roomy enclosed shower stall much like a house or apt would have.

Everything looked tip-top. Sofa will need a good cleaning, brown rug looks fine but probably should be steamed. One cupboard door had been broken off but will be easily fixed by my handyman hubby. Long awning hadn't been used; the previous owners had parked it in a trailer park & put some kind of porch onto it. The tires were brand-new. There are some disability bars mounted in the bathroom; my guess is the owners were elderly, kept it at a trailer park for occasional visits...nothing looks like it had been used very much, including the stove, oven, fridge, microwave. It may be that one of the couple died, putting the unit into foreclosure when the survivor could not pay the loan off. Total guess there.

We checked everything out, hubby even climbing a ladder to check the top of the unit, the AC, etc. Then we closed the deal, hooked it up to the Tundra and hauled it West to Rocky Mount. It was a smooth trip; couldn't even feel the camper behind us according to the driver. Backing it in next to our garage was a bit of a struggle...I suspect our neighbors down in the hollow heard me holler "STOP!" in a bit of a panic when the camper tore a foot-long piece of gutter off the garage, but they must not have called 911 'cause we did finally get it straightened out. Notice I say "we"? Well, I was the person guiding it into place. If I'd been driving Dick's truck, we'd probably be building a new garage right now.

It will stay here in Rocky Mount as a guest cottage, when family and friends come to visit us, maybe on their way to NASCAR?

As for Sadie Mae, she was delighted to get home last night. She's a good traveler; drank water several times but like Muffie, the Lhasa we had for 16 years, she wouldn't eat while traveling, saving her appetite for home. She also made up to every male who came over to see her, the little hussy. Especially the fellow at the RV place, who had owned a Yorkie for years. Sadie practically wagged her tail off whenever he'd come near her. I guess she'll never be a good watch dog, unless the person is on the other side of our front door. It's a good thing we have two chocolate Labs...