(Tucson, AZ)
We didn’t have to wait long for the phone call to come this morning. By 8:30 we were talkin’ and feeling good about what we were hearing.
Bob Tiedge (tee-gee) called and introduced himself and wanted to know what was going on. He made the mistake of saying to me, “Start at the beginning.” So I did. Oh boy, did I ever! I didn’t leave out anything as far as the Lippert problems we had been having.
He listened patiently and said, “I just got into the office after being gone for a few days and I need to look at my calendar to see when I can fly out to see you next week.’
ME: “I appreciate that you want to fly out here, really I do, but are you a mechanic?”
HIM: “Some people like to think I am.”
ME; “Again, I appreciate your help but I would feel a whole lot better if you would send someone out who is a mechanic and knows how to fix this thing. Enough is enough and we want to get out of here.”
HIM: “Just give me a chance, that’s all I ask, just give me a chance.”
ME: “I don’t really have any choice do I?”
HIM” “I’ll call you Monday morning and let you know my schedule.”
ME: “Ok, thanks for calling.”
So there we are. Waiting. Again. Still. Always waiting.
Life went on as usual. We decided to go to the base and get our ID’s taken care of. It took us a little while to find the building we wanted and even longer to find a place to park The Beast. We got inside only to find that we had an hour and a half wait at the very least. An announcement was made in this very crowded room that anyone who wanted to make an appointment was free to do so and come back on another day. Bob and I debated on what to do and finally decided on the appointment. We aren’t good wait-ers. We went to the desk to see if we could get an appointment for later in the day or even Monday. Well, were we in for a surprise. We were given an appointment for next Thursday. We took it, its not like we’re aren’t going to be here.
We stopped at the store for a few things on the way back to the campground and settled in the for the rest of the day.
Our friend who left a week or so ago, Fred, called and said that he would be back on Monday to take care of some things with his rig. We told him to plan on dinner with us. We’ll be glad to see Fred again, we both like him a lot.
So, once again we’re waiting for a phone call.
Friday, June 7, 2013
Thursday, June 6, 2013
6/6/2013 Silence is NOT Golden
(Tucson, AZ)
I hate to wait. Bob isn’t too fond of it either. We first waited to hear from Dennis, the head service tech here at Lazy Days, to find out what he heard from Lippert.
Around 8:30 Dennis stopped by to let us know that he had received an email from the fellow at Lippert and that was going to call us. This was good news.
We each kept our phones close by and waited. And waited. We went about our day as usual. Bob puttered around the truck and storage areas and then putted the afternoon away in his golf game on the computer. I went to the pool.
The temps are really rising here now and we’re over a hundred every day. I only lasted about two hours at the pool and had to go home. The sun is just too intense. That said, I’m working a nice tan.
At three I called Dennis and left a message that we hadn’t heard anything from Lippert yet. I called him again at five to let him know that there was no phone call today. He called me back at six and read the email he received and no actual date or time was given as to when the call would be made. Oh great! It could be a month from now!
Ronnie, one of the Lazy Day lot guys, came over after his work day was done and sat the shot the breeze with Bob. These two have struck a nice friendship. Bob is very careful not to talk “shop” with Ronnie because he doesn’t want to put him in an awkward position. With Ronnie being from Florida coast, they talk fishing, and also being prior service they talk military stuff. And RVs, they talk a lot about RV’s since this is Ronnie’s line of work.
Will the phone call come tomorrow..….or not?
I hate to wait. Bob isn’t too fond of it either. We first waited to hear from Dennis, the head service tech here at Lazy Days, to find out what he heard from Lippert.
Around 8:30 Dennis stopped by to let us know that he had received an email from the fellow at Lippert and that was going to call us. This was good news.
We each kept our phones close by and waited. And waited. We went about our day as usual. Bob puttered around the truck and storage areas and then putted the afternoon away in his golf game on the computer. I went to the pool.
The temps are really rising here now and we’re over a hundred every day. I only lasted about two hours at the pool and had to go home. The sun is just too intense. That said, I’m working a nice tan.
At three I called Dennis and left a message that we hadn’t heard anything from Lippert yet. I called him again at five to let him know that there was no phone call today. He called me back at six and read the email he received and no actual date or time was given as to when the call would be made. Oh great! It could be a month from now!
Ronnie, one of the Lazy Day lot guys, came over after his work day was done and sat the shot the breeze with Bob. These two have struck a nice friendship. Bob is very careful not to talk “shop” with Ronnie because he doesn’t want to put him in an awkward position. With Ronnie being from Florida coast, they talk fishing, and also being prior service they talk military stuff. And RVs, they talk a lot about RV’s since this is Ronnie’s line of work.
Will the phone call come tomorrow..….or not?
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
6/5/2013 Our Big Meeting
(Tucson, AZ)
We had expected our meeting to take place early in the day since the head service guy for Lazy Days was to arrive this morning. That wasn’t the case.
Time was dragging waiting for him so Bob decided to go to the store for a few things and I headed to the pool. Finally at 1:30 he called my cell phone. He was onsite and would be over in ten minutes. I asked him to give me fifteen because I was at the pool and Bob had run to the store. He suggested we meet at three giving me time at the pool, Bob to finish up at the store and get home and he had some things he could do. That worked for all concerned.
Right on time he and Dennis, the head service tech arrived at our camp site. Now Bob had seen Dennis around before and had a nodding acquaintance with him but I had never seen this guy before.
I was inside the first two minutes they were here so Bob was in the full swing of things explaining our problem when I arrived on the scene. They patiently listened and then the smoke and mirrors started. Mr. Tickle, from Tampa, started with how sorry he was we were having these problems but sometimes, try as they might. they just can’t duplicate it. What???? You don’t have to duplicate the problem. It’s ongoing. Every. Day. It’s a LEAK for heavens sake. Just go LOOK,,,FEEL,,,it’s there for you, in living color! See the reservoir Mr. Tickle? It’s near empty. Bob went on to explain that after the last day it was in for service he had to add one and a half quarts of hydraulic fluid. Dennis spoke for the first time at this point and defensively said, “What are you trying to say?” We had the feeling he thought Bob was saying it was neglect on their part by not adding the fluid. That wasn’t the case at all, we knew it was filled because if you know Bob you know that he looked at everything when we got the rig back. Bob said to Dennis, “I’m not saying anything, I’m asking where did the fluid go?” They both looked at us blankly. Actually, they looked like deer caught in the headlights. They were now between a rock and a hard place and they knew it. I spoke up at this point and told them that the very first tech we had, Dan, told us that there were two leaks. Dan quit a few days after we got there so this was never followed up on even though it was brought to the attention of our service writer and our new technician, Eduardo, on several occasions. No one listened to us. Yes, there were leaks at the hose connections but that is a slow drip and certainly not a quart and half’s worth in 16 hours! We kept saying, “Drop the belly, pull the insulation down and you’re going to find wet insulation. They wouldn’t do it. We get that no one wants to work with insulation, especially in this heat, laying on your back and working with your arms extended for what could be hours. We get that. But darn it, we have a leak and it needs to be fixed!
It was suggested that Lippert, the designer and the manufacturer of this hydraulic system be called for suggestions on what to do next. WHAT???? All this time you couldn’t fix it and the manufacturer was never called? Bob and I just looked at each other. I spoke up again. “That’s an excellent idea! In fact, I think a mechanic from Lippert should fly in and work on this now because I no longer have any confidence in the service techs here.” Well, that didn’t go over very well as you can imagine.
I wasn’t liking the silent attitude I was getting so I decided to go in for the kill.
“Mr. Tickle, while I have you here, I think there is something else you should know. Though it wasn’t said directly to us, it was overheard by one of the friends we’ve made here and it got back to us. Since we have spent considerable time in your parking lot before moving to the campground, Bob and I have been referred to as SQUATTERS by some on staff here” Need I even tell you that Mr. Tickle’s eyes got as big as saucers? Bob got a glance in at Dennis and he said the blood just drained from Dennis’ face. “Oh, Mrs. Quinn, that is totally not acceptable and I can assure you we certainly do not think of our guests that way! I will be sure to talk to the entire staff about this. No ma’am, this is NOT acceptable and I apologize on behalf of Lazy Days.” I went on….. “Mr. Tickle, its not bad enough that someone, or some people, refer to customers who stay in your parking lot as SQUATTERS, but they said it about someone who writes an RV travel blog!” I thought we were going to have to call an ambulance. Dennis’ entire upper body was now devoid of any blood at all and Mr. Tickle looked like,,,,well, he looked like he just wanted to say, “Oh please, just shoot me now.” Needless to say tunes were changed in an instance. The next sentence we heard came from Mr. Tickle. “Mr & Mrs Quinn, you are our top priority! Dennis, you call Lippert first thing tomorrow morning and if you can’t get anyone call Tampa and we’ll call the higher ups to get the ball rolling.” My, my, my, how tunes have changed.
Dennis assured us he would call us as soon as he talked with the Lippert Company to let us know what the next step is.
Bob and I thanked them both for their time, waved goodbye, went inside,and high-fived!
Things are gonna change now!
We had expected our meeting to take place early in the day since the head service guy for Lazy Days was to arrive this morning. That wasn’t the case.
Time was dragging waiting for him so Bob decided to go to the store for a few things and I headed to the pool. Finally at 1:30 he called my cell phone. He was onsite and would be over in ten minutes. I asked him to give me fifteen because I was at the pool and Bob had run to the store. He suggested we meet at three giving me time at the pool, Bob to finish up at the store and get home and he had some things he could do. That worked for all concerned.
Right on time he and Dennis, the head service tech arrived at our camp site. Now Bob had seen Dennis around before and had a nodding acquaintance with him but I had never seen this guy before.
I was inside the first two minutes they were here so Bob was in the full swing of things explaining our problem when I arrived on the scene. They patiently listened and then the smoke and mirrors started. Mr. Tickle, from Tampa, started with how sorry he was we were having these problems but sometimes, try as they might. they just can’t duplicate it. What???? You don’t have to duplicate the problem. It’s ongoing. Every. Day. It’s a LEAK for heavens sake. Just go LOOK,,,FEEL,,,it’s there for you, in living color! See the reservoir Mr. Tickle? It’s near empty. Bob went on to explain that after the last day it was in for service he had to add one and a half quarts of hydraulic fluid. Dennis spoke for the first time at this point and defensively said, “What are you trying to say?” We had the feeling he thought Bob was saying it was neglect on their part by not adding the fluid. That wasn’t the case at all, we knew it was filled because if you know Bob you know that he looked at everything when we got the rig back. Bob said to Dennis, “I’m not saying anything, I’m asking where did the fluid go?” They both looked at us blankly. Actually, they looked like deer caught in the headlights. They were now between a rock and a hard place and they knew it. I spoke up at this point and told them that the very first tech we had, Dan, told us that there were two leaks. Dan quit a few days after we got there so this was never followed up on even though it was brought to the attention of our service writer and our new technician, Eduardo, on several occasions. No one listened to us. Yes, there were leaks at the hose connections but that is a slow drip and certainly not a quart and half’s worth in 16 hours! We kept saying, “Drop the belly, pull the insulation down and you’re going to find wet insulation. They wouldn’t do it. We get that no one wants to work with insulation, especially in this heat, laying on your back and working with your arms extended for what could be hours. We get that. But darn it, we have a leak and it needs to be fixed!
It was suggested that Lippert, the designer and the manufacturer of this hydraulic system be called for suggestions on what to do next. WHAT???? All this time you couldn’t fix it and the manufacturer was never called? Bob and I just looked at each other. I spoke up again. “That’s an excellent idea! In fact, I think a mechanic from Lippert should fly in and work on this now because I no longer have any confidence in the service techs here.” Well, that didn’t go over very well as you can imagine.
I wasn’t liking the silent attitude I was getting so I decided to go in for the kill.
“Mr. Tickle, while I have you here, I think there is something else you should know. Though it wasn’t said directly to us, it was overheard by one of the friends we’ve made here and it got back to us. Since we have spent considerable time in your parking lot before moving to the campground, Bob and I have been referred to as SQUATTERS by some on staff here” Need I even tell you that Mr. Tickle’s eyes got as big as saucers? Bob got a glance in at Dennis and he said the blood just drained from Dennis’ face. “Oh, Mrs. Quinn, that is totally not acceptable and I can assure you we certainly do not think of our guests that way! I will be sure to talk to the entire staff about this. No ma’am, this is NOT acceptable and I apologize on behalf of Lazy Days.” I went on….. “Mr. Tickle, its not bad enough that someone, or some people, refer to customers who stay in your parking lot as SQUATTERS, but they said it about someone who writes an RV travel blog!” I thought we were going to have to call an ambulance. Dennis’ entire upper body was now devoid of any blood at all and Mr. Tickle looked like,,,,well, he looked like he just wanted to say, “Oh please, just shoot me now.” Needless to say tunes were changed in an instance. The next sentence we heard came from Mr. Tickle. “Mr & Mrs Quinn, you are our top priority! Dennis, you call Lippert first thing tomorrow morning and if you can’t get anyone call Tampa and we’ll call the higher ups to get the ball rolling.” My, my, my, how tunes have changed.
Dennis assured us he would call us as soon as he talked with the Lippert Company to let us know what the next step is.
Bob and I thanked them both for their time, waved goodbye, went inside,and high-fived!
Things are gonna change now!
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
6/4/2013 I’m Mad As Hell and Not Going to Take It Anymore!
(Tucson, AZ)
We spent this morning just letting this latest development sink in. Another week. Still leaking. Starting over. Probably waiting for parts. Living on a blacktop parking lot again. On the bright side, we’ll be right across the street so it won’t be noticed that I’m still frequenting the pool area. Heck, we’re practically residents here anyway so it will still be normal to see us around! We’ll have new eyes looking at the situation.
Around one I just had to get away from the house. There doesn’t seem to be any bright side for Bob and I needed to get away for awhile so I went to the pool. I tried to read my book but I just couldn’t get into it. I sat there and thought about this situation we’re finding ourselves in and the more I thought about it the madder I got! It’s official….I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore! No siree! It’s time for action. It’s time to be heard!
I grabbed my cell phone and called the Lazy Days switchboard. When the operator answered I told her I wanted to talk to the head honcho, the big cheese, the top dog. She told me that they were in fact in between general managers, that the one who was there was no longer and the new person had not arrived as yet. A brick wall! She said that I sounded as though maybe I were a bit upset and if I told her if it was a sales or service problem she could put in touch with that particular department manager. I replied that it was a service problem and she came back with, “I’ll be happy to connect you with our service manager Ed Crowley.” I told her that I’d enough of him and that wouldn’t do me any good. She then suggested that she patch me through to the Tampa location and I could talk to the CEO or the head service manager. Oh heck, I’m not foolin’ around here, I’m going for the CEO! As it turns out he wasn’t available. Darn it. I had to settle for the head service manager. Turns out I got the 2nd in command but I didn’t know that at the time. I started my call with, “Don’t say anything, don’t hang up on me, I need to talk and I need you to listen,” I heard a very nice voice on the other end assuring me that he would be glad to listen if I would just tell him my name. Oh. Well, ok, I gave my name and I started from the beginning. When I got done, or maybe just out of breath, he told me that Bill Tickle, the Service Manager for Lazy Days would be flying into Tucson the next morning and that he would be meeting with Bob and I at our campsite, which site were we in? Whoa! I hung up and just looked at my phone. OMG, what had I just done? Then it hit me. This trip was already planned and he was coming to Tucson regardless. I have to admit, I felt all powerful there for a few minutes. Damn reality! I called Bob and let him know what I had done and who was coming. His spirits lifted immediately. Perhaps something could/would
be done now.
It’s a common question here at the pool to ask if you are here for vacation or service. Most times, this time of year, its because of service. I mean who comes to Tucson in June? The next most asked question is, “How many days have you been here?” I love to be asked this! Today a new couple was at the pool and of course the why are you here question came up. They were here for service and would be here 2 or 3 days,,,,tops. I just smiled. “And you?'” they asked. I watched for the look on their faces when I told them that today the magic number was eighty four! “EIGHTY FOUR DAYS???” they said in unison, I gave a shortened version of our story and they shook their heads in disbelief.
It’s too hot to eat a big meal or even a small hot meal, so we did the sandwich thing this evening. I don't how we are ever going to get used to this heat.
Can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.
We spent this morning just letting this latest development sink in. Another week. Still leaking. Starting over. Probably waiting for parts. Living on a blacktop parking lot again. On the bright side, we’ll be right across the street so it won’t be noticed that I’m still frequenting the pool area. Heck, we’re practically residents here anyway so it will still be normal to see us around! We’ll have new eyes looking at the situation.
Around one I just had to get away from the house. There doesn’t seem to be any bright side for Bob and I needed to get away for awhile so I went to the pool. I tried to read my book but I just couldn’t get into it. I sat there and thought about this situation we’re finding ourselves in and the more I thought about it the madder I got! It’s official….I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore! No siree! It’s time for action. It’s time to be heard!
I grabbed my cell phone and called the Lazy Days switchboard. When the operator answered I told her I wanted to talk to the head honcho, the big cheese, the top dog. She told me that they were in fact in between general managers, that the one who was there was no longer and the new person had not arrived as yet. A brick wall! She said that I sounded as though maybe I were a bit upset and if I told her if it was a sales or service problem she could put in touch with that particular department manager. I replied that it was a service problem and she came back with, “I’ll be happy to connect you with our service manager Ed Crowley.” I told her that I’d enough of him and that wouldn’t do me any good. She then suggested that she patch me through to the Tampa location and I could talk to the CEO or the head service manager. Oh heck, I’m not foolin’ around here, I’m going for the CEO! As it turns out he wasn’t available. Darn it. I had to settle for the head service manager. Turns out I got the 2nd in command but I didn’t know that at the time. I started my call with, “Don’t say anything, don’t hang up on me, I need to talk and I need you to listen,” I heard a very nice voice on the other end assuring me that he would be glad to listen if I would just tell him my name. Oh. Well, ok, I gave my name and I started from the beginning. When I got done, or maybe just out of breath, he told me that Bill Tickle, the Service Manager for Lazy Days would be flying into Tucson the next morning and that he would be meeting with Bob and I at our campsite, which site were we in? Whoa! I hung up and just looked at my phone. OMG, what had I just done? Then it hit me. This trip was already planned and he was coming to Tucson regardless. I have to admit, I felt all powerful there for a few minutes. Damn reality! I called Bob and let him know what I had done and who was coming. His spirits lifted immediately. Perhaps something could/would
be done now.
It’s a common question here at the pool to ask if you are here for vacation or service. Most times, this time of year, its because of service. I mean who comes to Tucson in June? The next most asked question is, “How many days have you been here?” I love to be asked this! Today a new couple was at the pool and of course the why are you here question came up. They were here for service and would be here 2 or 3 days,,,,tops. I just smiled. “And you?'” they asked. I watched for the look on their faces when I told them that today the magic number was eighty four! “EIGHTY FOUR DAYS???” they said in unison, I gave a shortened version of our story and they shook their heads in disbelief.
It’s too hot to eat a big meal or even a small hot meal, so we did the sandwich thing this evening. I don't how we are ever going to get used to this heat.
Can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.
Monday, June 3, 2013
6/3/2013 Oh. NO!
(Tucson, AZ)
While I was getting ready this morning to go to the air force base nearby for ID cards, Bob went outside to start enjoying the day.
He came rushing in and said, “You aren’t going to believe this!” He startled me to begin with so I didn’t get into the guessing game and just said “What?” He replied, “The 5th wheel is sitting on the jacks.” Oh. NO! The system had failed again. The hoses were leaking again or maybe I should say …. still!
We put the idea of the air base out of our minds without even realizing it.
What do we do now? First things first. I called the campground office and extended our stay for a few more days.
We have absolutely no confidence in the service techs here. We put a call into Lippert to find out who they recommended in this area. They gave us a choice of two, one in Lake Havasu, quite a haul from here and La Mesa RV which is directly across the street. I called the service department at La Mesa and got an appointment a week from today. Oh great, another week here.
Not only do we have the hot weather to deal with, monsoon season is right around the corner. Monsoon season, known for its high winds, torrential downpours and lots of lightning strikes, not to mention the flooding, starts on June 15th. We so did not want to be here during monsoon season. Much like hurricane season is a big deal where we’re from, here in Arizona June 9th through the 15th is Monsoon Awareness Week. If something has its own awareness week you know it can’t be a fun time!
So here we are, starting over with a new service department, practically melting when we walk outside due to the 109 degree days and monsoon season is bearing down on us.
Life is good! Isn’t it?
While I was getting ready this morning to go to the air force base nearby for ID cards, Bob went outside to start enjoying the day.
He came rushing in and said, “You aren’t going to believe this!” He startled me to begin with so I didn’t get into the guessing game and just said “What?” He replied, “The 5th wheel is sitting on the jacks.” Oh. NO! The system had failed again. The hoses were leaking again or maybe I should say …. still!
We put the idea of the air base out of our minds without even realizing it.
What do we do now? First things first. I called the campground office and extended our stay for a few more days.
We have absolutely no confidence in the service techs here. We put a call into Lippert to find out who they recommended in this area. They gave us a choice of two, one in Lake Havasu, quite a haul from here and La Mesa RV which is directly across the street. I called the service department at La Mesa and got an appointment a week from today. Oh great, another week here.
Not only do we have the hot weather to deal with, monsoon season is right around the corner. Monsoon season, known for its high winds, torrential downpours and lots of lightning strikes, not to mention the flooding, starts on June 15th. We so did not want to be here during monsoon season. Much like hurricane season is a big deal where we’re from, here in Arizona June 9th through the 15th is Monsoon Awareness Week. If something has its own awareness week you know it can’t be a fun time!
So here we are, starting over with a new service department, practically melting when we walk outside due to the 109 degree days and monsoon season is bearing down on us.
Life is good! Isn’t it?
Sunday, June 2, 2013
6/2/2013 We Go to a Lumberjack Festival
(Tucson, AZ)
I get Living Social offers in my email everyday.
Actually I get two because I get one for Tucson and one for Wilmington/Newark so I can keep up on the offers there. If I see one for a restaurant in Delaware that I knew I my parents frequented I would buy several offers and send them to them.
On Friday there was a an offer for buy one ticket get one free for a Lumberjack Festival. We needed something to do, that’s for sure, so we took the offer.
I don’t know what we were thinking this was going to be but we didn’t expect to be in a parking lot of a restaurant on the edge of a large shopping complex. Only in Arizona.
So we made our way to The Lodge – Sasquatch Kitchen.
How they got their name.
This Lumberjack Festival was a fundraiser for Jared Allen's Home for Wounded Warriors. In case the name Jared Allen is familiar to you, he is the All-Star Defensive End of the Minnesota Vikings and has created his own charity to build homes for our wounded Heroes coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan. All the proceeds today went to this worthy cause.
A local car dealership donated not one but three cars to the event. I found out later that unless someone, whose ticket was picked from the ones bought for a donation, threw a football from 100 feet through the open window of the car then the car went back to the dealership, One try to get the football through the window was given. Needless to say the cars went back to the dealership.
There were games for the kids, there was a DJ, a moon bounce type thing, again for the kids. Food, a beer stand and of course the Lumberjacks. The show was put on by Timberworks Lumberjack Shows.
The two lumberjacks performed several lumberjack events.
They sawed on a log to see which one could cut through the log first.
After this these lumberjacks tried their hand at axe throwing.
Getting ready to throw…..
Through the air it flew……
They always hit the target.
Next was chopping down a portion of the log while standing on a board wedged into the bottom part of the tree….if that makes sense. Look at the picture you’ll understand.
From here it was ontotree pole climbing.
Then came the event that everyone was hoping they’d call for volunteers. Can you guess? How about log rolling? We all wanted to jump in that pool, after all it was…….
……yes, one hundred and nine degrees! Can you say….hotter than hell?
The log rolling was fun to watch but I would have volunteered in a New York minute! (I think that’s faster than an Arizona minute)
This event was the final one for this show and we beat feet into the restaurant to get a cold drink and soak up some much needed air conditioning.
The restaurant is a typical sports bar with TV’s everywhere tuned to, well, sports. This restaurant is known for having the best hamburgers in Tucson. I know the ones that were walked by us were sure tasty looking.
We’re glad we went as we certainly wanted to support this charity event. It was an entertaining, albeit hot, way to spend an afternoon.
We didn’t even want to think about cooking so we stopped at the store and bought cold cuts for sandwiches later. It’s even too hot to eat.
Since we’re only five minutes from the air base we’re going to run over in the morning to get our ID’s and head to Arizona City. We will be so glad to finally be out of here.
I get Living Social offers in my email everyday.
Actually I get two because I get one for Tucson and one for Wilmington/Newark so I can keep up on the offers there. If I see one for a restaurant in Delaware that I knew I my parents frequented I would buy several offers and send them to them.
On Friday there was a an offer for buy one ticket get one free for a Lumberjack Festival. We needed something to do, that’s for sure, so we took the offer.
I don’t know what we were thinking this was going to be but we didn’t expect to be in a parking lot of a restaurant on the edge of a large shopping complex. Only in Arizona.
So we made our way to The Lodge – Sasquatch Kitchen.
How they got their name.
This Lumberjack Festival was a fundraiser for Jared Allen's Home for Wounded Warriors. In case the name Jared Allen is familiar to you, he is the All-Star Defensive End of the Minnesota Vikings and has created his own charity to build homes for our wounded Heroes coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan. All the proceeds today went to this worthy cause.
A local car dealership donated not one but three cars to the event. I found out later that unless someone, whose ticket was picked from the ones bought for a donation, threw a football from 100 feet through the open window of the car then the car went back to the dealership, One try to get the football through the window was given. Needless to say the cars went back to the dealership.
There were games for the kids, there was a DJ, a moon bounce type thing, again for the kids. Food, a beer stand and of course the Lumberjacks. The show was put on by Timberworks Lumberjack Shows.
The two lumberjacks performed several lumberjack events.
They sawed on a log to see which one could cut through the log first.
After this these lumberjacks tried their hand at axe throwing.
Getting ready to throw…..
Through the air it flew……
They always hit the target.
Next was chopping down a portion of the log while standing on a board wedged into the bottom part of the tree….if that makes sense. Look at the picture you’ll understand.
From here it was onto
Then came the event that everyone was hoping they’d call for volunteers. Can you guess? How about log rolling? We all wanted to jump in that pool, after all it was…….
……yes, one hundred and nine degrees! Can you say….hotter than hell?
The log rolling was fun to watch but I would have volunteered in a New York minute! (I think that’s faster than an Arizona minute)
This event was the final one for this show and we beat feet into the restaurant to get a cold drink and soak up some much needed air conditioning.
The restaurant is a typical sports bar with TV’s everywhere tuned to, well, sports. This restaurant is known for having the best hamburgers in Tucson. I know the ones that were walked by us were sure tasty looking.
We’re glad we went as we certainly wanted to support this charity event. It was an entertaining, albeit hot, way to spend an afternoon.
We didn’t even want to think about cooking so we stopped at the store and bought cold cuts for sandwiches later. It’s even too hot to eat.
Since we’re only five minutes from the air base we’re going to run over in the morning to get our ID’s and head to Arizona City. We will be so glad to finally be out of here.
Saturday, June 1, 2013
6/1/2013 Washing & Waxing Day
(Tucson, AZ)
We put everything away and got the 5th wheel ready for travel. We didn’t go far, maybe 300 feet.
Our friends Bonnie & Steve had gotten their rig washed and waxed and it looked beautiful, like it had just come off the showroom floor. The people here use a swirl free wax.
We had our 5th wheel washed and waxed when we were still in Quail Run but we weren’t happy with the job. Steve and Bonnie had also gotten their coach done by the same people and they too were less than satisfied with the job performed.
So we took our filthy, dirty house over for a good cleaning. We even had the carpets cleaned since Lazy Days comp’ed us the wash part of the work. Yes, I went and asked for a wash on the house. It was given with no hesitation.
We dropped it off and went to run some errands.
We returned a few hours later and it was ready. Kinda, sorta. As we walked around the rig we noticed these brown splotches and pointed them out to the fella on duty. He grabbed a rag and ladder and got on with rubbing it out. The more he did the more we saw. He finally told us to over to the lounge and he would find us when it was done. He wasn’t going to fool with a spot here and a spot there, he re-waxed the entire side. We didn’t see any spots on either end or the other side. Service with a smile from the detail department. Forty five minutes later he came to get us and it looked beautiful! See how shiny it is!
We went inside to look at the carpets and they came out beautifully. We both vowed to be very careful about walking on them with shoes. We’ll see. I wear flip flops most of the time so it won’t be a problem for me.
At the end of the day I heard Bob say, “Oh no, do you know what we didn’t do?” I couldn’t think of anything and Bob said, We never got our military ID’s renewed. Oh darn…that’s something we have to get done as mine runs out very soon.
Plan A Change 98?
We put everything away and got the 5th wheel ready for travel. We didn’t go far, maybe 300 feet.
Our friends Bonnie & Steve had gotten their rig washed and waxed and it looked beautiful, like it had just come off the showroom floor. The people here use a swirl free wax.
We had our 5th wheel washed and waxed when we were still in Quail Run but we weren’t happy with the job. Steve and Bonnie had also gotten their coach done by the same people and they too were less than satisfied with the job performed.
So we took our filthy, dirty house over for a good cleaning. We even had the carpets cleaned since Lazy Days comp’ed us the wash part of the work. Yes, I went and asked for a wash on the house. It was given with no hesitation.
We dropped it off and went to run some errands.
We returned a few hours later and it was ready. Kinda, sorta. As we walked around the rig we noticed these brown splotches and pointed them out to the fella on duty. He grabbed a rag and ladder and got on with rubbing it out. The more he did the more we saw. He finally told us to over to the lounge and he would find us when it was done. He wasn’t going to fool with a spot here and a spot there, he re-waxed the entire side. We didn’t see any spots on either end or the other side. Service with a smile from the detail department. Forty five minutes later he came to get us and it looked beautiful! See how shiny it is!
We went inside to look at the carpets and they came out beautifully. We both vowed to be very careful about walking on them with shoes. We’ll see. I wear flip flops most of the time so it won’t be a problem for me.
At the end of the day I heard Bob say, “Oh no, do you know what we didn’t do?” I couldn’t think of anything and Bob said, We never got our military ID’s renewed. Oh darn…that’s something we have to get done as mine runs out very soon.
Plan A Change 98?
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