A Solo Trip to San Simeon

March 4, 2022

I booked a campsite at the San Simeon State Campground for this weekend, and set out on my first solo van-camping endeavor. The van that Danielle and I invested in is well set up for a solo or duo camping trip--quite roomy and comfortable for one, in fact. Lisa and I have used the van for an overnight trip before, and not long ago Danielle and I did, but this was my first time on my own. There were plenty of people around me who were properly tent-camping at the site, but my goodness I would have frozen my tail off if I had done that. Even cozied up with two sleeping bags and a giant sweater-blanket, shut inside my turned down bed in my van, I was a little chilly. That being said, it is lovely being able to gaze out the window and see all the crystal-clear, beautiful stars, and to hear the crashing of the surf just a little ways off in the distance. Not a bad way to fall asleep.

That New Car Smell....

January 17, 2012

My Honda Odyssey has been something of a money pit over the years. Up until this mini-van, I have always loved Hondas--efficient, reliable, spacious. But this one that I got cost way too much (courtesy of a balloon payment at the end of my lease from the previous vehicle), and it has had all kinds of things we've had to repair along the way. A key that wouldn't turn in the ignition. (We replaced the ignition switch, so that we had separate keys for the doors and for the ignition.) Oh yeah--the door keys only worked selectively on the doors. Rarely for the driver's side, only occasionally for the passenger side. Mostly we relied on unlocking the trunk to unlock all the other doors. Then there is the air conditioner, which suddenly stopped working in the 100+ degree weather last summer. Since it was supposed to cost nearly $1200 dollars to repair the system, our solution to the no air conditioning situation (I get cranky when I'm too hot) was to trade cars with Doug during the summer. Since his commute to work takes him an hour up into the foothills, the heat wasn't as much of a factor for him. Plus, he's not a princess, like me. He'll tolerate sweat. Add all that to some minor cosmetic issues--windows that screeched horribly when I wanted them raised or lowered, plus a few dings in the windshield--and you have a car with issues. Nothing terrible, nothing insurmountable, but still--issues. This is all besides the fact that it was a boring silver color. Ugh. Not beautiful blue, not racy red. Just blah.

Nevertheless, it was drivable, workable. We made it work. It was sufficient for hauling around kids and friends and soccer balls and stacks of books and just-about-everything-but-the kitchen-sink which comprises what my kids and I cart about with us on any given day. It was working, until we hit the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back. This particular straw came in the form of a Friday evening trip to the bank. Mind you, this was Friday night on the last day of the month, when lines can be out the door. We drove into the parking stall, took care of our banking needs, and then got back in the car to leave. Except that the car wouldn't go into reverse. Or rather, it did go into reverse; there was just no corresponding movement in that direction. I tried everything, including coaxing, coddling, bargaining. But try bargaining with an oversized piece of tin. It's just futile. I called Doug asking for advice, and he thought I should put the van in neutral, push it back out of the stall, and then shift into drive. My worry, however, was that I'd get it pushed back and manage to block the pathway of all the folks who were driving into the lot for their Friday evening banking needs. (There is only a single lane driveway into the bank,) I assure you, that would have been worse than staying put. I didn't want to have a mob of angry people behind me in addition to having a colossaly uncooperative vehicle. Finally, after closing hour at the bank, my car decided inexplicably to actually shift into reverse. Once backed out, I was able to shift into drive, and drive I did---straight to the auto mechanic. There, I was given grim news. In addition to all of its other quirky issues, my van's transmission was shot. The problem was only going to get worse if I did not send it in for repair, to the tune of $2100. I don't know about you,. but I don't happen to have $2100 just lying around in loose change. However, having a car that only sporadically decided to travel in reverse would simply not do, and it was my understanding that the forward motion only had a short shelf life as well. It was time for a new car.

After doing some online research and looking around at local lots, we settled in on a greenish gray Prius. The MPG is, of course, leaps and bounds above what the van was getting, and certainly much better than Doug's Durango gets as well. We've decided that Doug will mostly drive the Prius while he's commuting an hour or so each way to work every day, because we'll save quite a bit in gas money. In the meantime, I'll be using his Durango for the daily Mom Taxi Service. For now, the van haunts the driveway, big lumbering hunk of tin that it is, until we can pay it down enough to make selling it a viable option.

The new ride:

A Little Venting (Not the Air Conditioning Vents, 'Cuz Those Don't Work)

June 24, 2011

My van has been operating without air conditioning for at least a couple of months now. It hasn't really been a huge deal, since we have, up until fairly recently, been experiencing a very mild spring. However, we hit the first day of summer--not the one on the school calendar, but the actual one--and suddenly, someone got the memo that it's supposed to be hot. Really hot. Like attempting to break records hot.
I knew I needed to get my air conditioning up and running before the ridiculous Fresno heat really set in, but I was lulled into a sense of complacency. Well, that and a rather unfortunate financial position kept me from dropping the van off at the shop. Unfortunately, not long ago, the van developed another even more worrisome 'character trait'. Brakes that used to operate smoothly, quietly, and compliantly suddenly decided to go on strike. Accelerating? Piece of cake. But slowing down became a grinding, screeching affair--a loud protestation that let me know the brakes were ready for a break. I'm an adventurous type, but rear-ending someone is not on my to-do list for the summer. It was either time for replacement--brake pads and rotors--or I'd have to train my kids in the art of hitting the ground running when exiting the vehicle. Literally.
So replace the brakes we did, with the cash I was hoping to drop on repairing the van's internal atmosphere. Now I'm driving around in 105 degree weather with the windows down, hair blowing in my face (notice how much less sexy that sounds than 'hair blowing in the wind'), dripping with sweat while I drop my kids off at their various destinations. It's not pretty, but it's safe, I suppose.

In a bit of irony, now that the brakes are fixed and the van's air conditioning has moved up to 'next on the list' again, the air conditioning on the house has decided to assert itself. Yes, it appears that the air conditioning in the house, with its uncanny ability to sense that it's time to pay the premium summer prices, has decided to slack off. So guess what? Van's moved down on the list again. House air comes first, then van air. Sneaking up to vie for attention are Doug's car (bleeding power steering fluid like there's no tomorrow), and registration for both vehicles. Not to mention that kid I'm sending off to college in two months.

One step forward, two steps back sometimes, I tell ya.