Raven’s RV
The ongoing education and adventures of two rank newbie RVers

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I woke up to smoke again this morning. Then I tootled on up to see the traveling vet administering all manner of maintenance to some particularly displeased horses. Various of the locals club together to rent the vet and then split the costs, which works out very well. Also, I discovered that one of the neighbors is a demolition derby (stock car) racer, so I can see a fun visit in the future. (The next race is at the county fair, in August.)

There was supposed to be a motorcycle rally at those same fairgrounds, in Hayfork, this weekend, but it got canceled. The fairgrounds are being used as firefighter central. (more…)

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Don started chuckling, and quickly shut the window. It would appear that the dog got nailed by a skunk…again. ;)

He’s sitting back there, laughing at typos in the Yellow Pages we got our paws on a couple of days ago. I’m here, blogging away, with an about-to-be opened beer beside me. This morning it was clear and lovely outside, but by the afternoon the smoke had drifted back in. It has been a day to stay indoors. The winds are creating havoc with firefighters, and some of the Shasta County fires have gotten out of hand. There are more evacuations, and I think parts of highway 299 are closing down by Redding. It’s not great. And it’s been crazily hot–106 degrees up here.

I sent my first invoice off today for the writing contract I had. With that and other income sources, the rent is paid this month. This is quite a good feeling, but not as good as the one I’ll have when I pay all our expenses. So saying, the accounts are up to date now and we’re living incredibly cheaply up here.

The cats are putting on their cute faces. I think it must be suppertime.

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We’ve had clear skies as the temperatures have soared. Yesterday Redding topped its record for that date at 112 degrees; today it was 103 up here, and tomorrow we’re looking at 108(!) There will be no hiking in my immediate future.

It’s easy to forget that there are still many fires. In fact, new evacuation orders have been issued as the dryness combines with wind-whipped fires. And when we headed into Weaverville to check mail and do laundry, there was a plume of smoke in the hills above the city. Some firefighters came into the laundromat and Don found out that this was a new fire, fresh in the last hour. :: sigh :: (more…)

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It’s hot. We got back from the vet and I had a hard time being outdoors. In fact, we got up to 101 degrees and I gather it’s going to get hotter. Setting up camp is a little different with these kinds of hookups, i.e. non-campground utilities, so today was the first time I attached the macerator, first time I attached the water with its new splitter, and first time I helped set up the satellite dish. (more…)