Lodi, California: Our exciting adventure just continues to be more exciting and adventurous. Never a dull moment around here. Some people dream of untold riches... beauty... happiness. I dream of one dull moment.
My Driver woke me this morning before sunrise so we could go for jogs and hit the road before 8a. Ugh. I spent a few moments under the duvet rationalizing an attempt to sue him for spousal abuse, but decided to get out of bed - since he was the poor soul who had to drive this monster 400+ miles today... and the fact he woke me AFTER the coffee maker had brewed a pot of Starbucks French Roast.
I think I'll keep him.
But I never did go for a jog. DT did. Of course.
The ice blanket/wine cooling situation worked overnight, as the temperatures dropped into the low 50's in Canyonville, Oregon. We replenished the ice sheets before leaving this morning and I monitored acceptable temperatures all day. However, the temperatures inside our RV were not acceptable. Our dash air conditioner hadn't received a Freon boost in quite a while. We realized it would be a miserable ride through the desert over the next few days without dash air conditioning.
DT has a serious aversion to running the generator while we are driving the RV. We discussed this issue recently with our tech, Brian, so after our lunch stop, I was able to convince My Driver to fire up the generator to power two (of our three) roof air conditioners. Success! Except for suffering through Friday afternoon rush-hour traffic in Sacramento, we had a smooth (and cool) drive today. We decided to spend the night in Lodi, at a campground Kathy & Woody recommended to us a while ago. As long as we were stopping, we decided to see if we couldn't find a place that could fill our dash air con with Freon.
It is unbelievable what a RV Goddess can do from the passenger seat, equipped with an iPhone. Within a few moments, I had reserved a site at the Flag City RV Resort (I-5 at Highway 12 in Lodi, California) and had booked an after-hours appointment with Jonathan Black at Dealers Choice (108 N. Houston Lane, Lodi 95240 - 209.663.5447). Jonathan and his business partner, James DeFehr, operate a small auto repair shop just off Highway 99. They specialize in classic, foreign and domestic cars - and apparently - RVs! Jonathan stayed late to drain the sad remaining bits of our cooling chemical, tested the system and refilled our bus with six pounds of Freon. One hour later, we were good-to-go. Top notch service.
Jonathan Black of Dealers Choice in Lodi, California
We barely made it to Flag City RV Resort in time to observe Shabbat. Sunset was spectacular this evening - florescent pink - with a full moon to the east. You will have to take my word on this, as I was following the motorhome - driving our unhitched Honda CRV - thus unable to take a photo. I think Creedence Clearwater Revival wouldn't recognize Lodi these days. We drove through the entire town on Highway 12 and found the community quite pleasing for a town in the San Joaquin Valley.
Tonight I prepared Chicken Paprikash - a recipe I have been making for a while and a recipe I will share in the October 2012 RV Goddess Newsletter. (Be sure to sign-up to receive our free monthly email newsletter!) This few-ingredient recipe is so RV-easy. It came together in about 30 minutes tonight, while we set-up camp, put-up satellite dishes, tested the martini shaker and started laundry.
I served the Chicken Paprikash over poppy-seed dusted buttered noodles. Just so you don't think we live only on poultry and pasta...
I also served a salad. Yes, half an avocado with a few grape tomatoes, drizzled in olive oil with cracked black pepper is salad.Gut Shabbos!
One more thing... our contractor sent this photo tonight with a wonderful caption: We Are Ready!
I just love camping!Until my next update, I remain, your Lodi correspondent.
RV PARK: Flag City RV Resort. Arrived too late to take photos, but for a place at the intersection of two major freeways, it is pretty snazzy and decently quiet. We paid $48 for a 70-foot paved full-service pull-through.