Living Large In A Small Space: December 2016

We've been in Oklahoma City about a month. Chris has been here many times during his time driving bus and the two of us spent a week here together a few years ago and there's not a whole lot that we're eager to explore in the area. That, plus the work conditions are strange and the weather hasn't been great (though a few days have been nice) have caused us to ask to be moved. We're still waiting for an answer on that. Fingers crossed.

Although we are currently less than enthusiastic about our location, looking back on 2016 has given us reason to be grateful.

Here are some of the highlights (and a couple low lights).

We've spent at least one night in 12 different states. 2016 seemed to be the year of the casino since we spent four months staying in casino campgrounds (one in MN and one in ND) as well as one night stops at casinos in North Carolina, MN, and South Dakota. We didn't do a lot of gambling, but all in all, we probably came out slightly ahead.

Improvements to the Motor Home:

a second new TV (yes, that's a lot of TVs for a small space, but now we can lay in bed and watch too)
new furniture
a magnashield screen for the windshield (it keeps the heat out and also provides privacy even when the curtains are open
a new mattress
new tires (a hefty but necessary expense)
tire covers (to protect the tires from sun and heat damage while we are sitting in one location)
new shower head (ahhh, so much better after a long day)
a wifi ranger to extend the wifi and strengthen the signal we get (we're still undecided about whether it's been worthwhile, but over time, I'm sure it will be)
heated hose so our water doesn't freeze in cold weather
a couple of vintage print curtains

Highlights from our travels

The Badlands
Devil's Tower
FDR's Little White House
Wall Drug
Corn Palace
Ft. Bragg Infantry Museum
Fagan Flyers Museum
Mt. Rushmore
Crazy Horse
Winnebago Factory
RV Hall of Fame
Pipestone National Monument
Split Rock Lighthouse

Unique Experiences

Attended a Wacipi (PowWow) at the Upper Sioux Community in MN
Escape Room in Sioux Falls, SD
Visiting Duluth to see our favorite scientist and get a tour of her research vessel
Jolly Green Giant Statue (and other giant sized statues throughout MN including an otter, coffee cup, loon and walleye)
Eating waffles in an airplane hangar
Watching the sugar beet harvest (and having our own sugar beet, Sherm, for a few days)
Seeing eagles and coyotes in the wild
Experiencing 70+ mph winds while in our MH
Chris got to put on a haz-mat suit and go into a chicken farm to survey their gas meter (remember, this is unique experiences, not highlights. LOL)
Watching the sunrise and sunset over Devil's Lake, ND
On our tour of the Winnebago factory someone asked the tour guide the difference between Winnebago and Itasca (also made by the same company). The guide held up both hands with one slightly higher than the other and said "Itasca used to be up here and Winnebago was down here." Then he lowered his upper hand and said "but now Itasca has come down a bit and they are about the same." We've been cracking up over that for months.
There actually are places in North Dakota with no cell service.

Food highlights

Best meals---Ruth's Chris, Cherokee, NC

The Empire at 138, Tiffin, OH

Best Pizza----Pies and Thighs, Columbus, GA

Best BBQ---The Whistling Pig, Pine Mountain, GA

Best dessert---South Dakota State University Ice Cream

Chocolate cake at Mad Mary's, Flandreau, SD

Betty's Pies, near Split Rock Lighthouse, MN

Pie and apple crisp I made with apples from my friend in ND

Food lowlights

"Shrimp burgers" that we both assumed would be like a shrimp po' boy but turned out to be shrimp that was compressed into a patty and then deep fried into oblivion.

Most all restaurant food in MN (the shrimp burgers were in MN too). We took a month off from eating out, in part to save money and eat better, but also because we had so many bad experiences. The best place we found to eat in MN was at a Hy-Vee Grocery store.

The applesauce bread I made and forgot to put the baking soda in. Who knew that it was so important? I ended up with four mini loaves with a hard crust and wall-paper paste like interior. They were thrown away.

Vehicle Highs and Lows

We bought a used truck with the intention of switching to a 5th wheel and also so that if we had two vehicles we could get paid twice as much for mileage when we worked. We thought we'd found a good deal, but a month after our purchase, the engine blew up. We had to sell the truck for salvage and used that money to buy a small car so we have a second one for work. The blown up truck engine and the significant financial setback it caused was the low point of the year.

Unique Camping Experiences

Getting our own mailbox in Fergus Falls, MN
Spending the night in a rest area in Iowa and using the free wifi to stream movies. We were in a narrow space, so kept our slides in. It was an adventure.
The steam shower in Pine Mountain, GA
Visiting Tom and Joni in WV
Spending a night in a parking lot at ONU (thanks, Pat!)

Favorite Photos