September 12, 2007 at 7:14 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
I got up early to get six hours of work in, before we headed out to the Colorado Mineral and Fossil Show. It’s one of the biggest in the country, but we wouldn’t have known about it if not for our friend and fellow Airstream full-timer Jim Breitinger, who flew out here to sell meteorites.
Gem and fossil shows have become a favorite event of ours since we got addicted to the annual Tucson Gem Show a couple of years ago. At this one, I finally bought Emma a little meteorite for her rock collection. It’s a “Campo del Cielo” meteorite, which means it came from Gran Chaco Gualamba, Argentina.
Mostly meteorites are hunks of iron with some nickel and other trace elements. They aren’t much to look at, but I prefer meteorites and fossils to pretty gemstones because they are so inspiring to the imagination. Emma’s little meteorite was flying through space at something like 20,000 miles per hour for an unimaginable amount of time as part of a larger rock, until it fell into the Earth’s atmosphere and landed in South America. Then it sat for five thousand years, got buried several feet underground in a forest, and was finally discovered by one of Jose Guggiari’s people.
Jose is “the source” for Campo del Cielo meteorites. Jim buys a lot of his meteorites from Jose, too. Jose has a staff of a dozen people who spend all year with metal detectors and shovels, finding and uncovering these meteorites. Meteorites sell for anywhere from 20 cents per gram to a $1 per gram, depending on the quality and type. Because they are nearly solid iron, a small specimen can be surprisingly heavy.
I also found a guy selling coprolites, and I insisted on buying one for Emma. Every kid ought to have a piece of fossilized fish poop from the Cretaceous Period, right? Especially for just a buck.
The heart-shaped thing in the photo is the coprolite, and the larger object is the meteorite. Just imagine, 75 million years ago, some big old fish pooped out something and here it is in the palm of your hand. Now that’s cool…
Just this morning I was talking to Eleanor about the need to carry only things we need in the Airstream, and not clutter it up with stuff we want or stuff that might be useful. “Useful isn’t good enough,” I said. “It’s got to be essential or we shouldn’t acquire it.” And now we have a piece of something that even a dinosaur fish didn’t want, and a hunk of iron from outer space.
I got away with this by buying Eleanor something for our 14th Anniversary, which happened a few days ago but hasn’t been properly celebrated yet. She has a very pretty piece of Australian ironstone with opal “tiger stripes” running through it to wear around her neck. So everyone got something fun.
I bet all the women who read this blog are going to say she got the better end of the deal, and that’s exactly what you should think. (But us guys know that a space rock and fish poop are way cooler.)
September 6, 2007 at 7:00 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
As you can see, the blog is undergoing a makeover. It’s far from complete but I should have it tweaked into shape in a week or two. All of the old blog content is here, but occasionally you may find broken links and pictures that don’t quite fit.
In the next couple of weeks all of the blog elements will move around until they find their comfortable places, so don’t be surprised if things change. I’ll probably also change the template that governs the look of the site. The current look is temporary — “Excuse us, we’re remodeling.” Behind the scenes there have been enormous improvements in how the blog works, which will make it easier for me to post and manage the content.
The new blog is courtesy of our lovely friend Charon, who in addition to being a sword swallower, fire eater, reader of tea leaves, bartender, podcaster, and blogger, is also pretty handy with computers. Moving our massive blog (700 entries, thousands of photos, thousands of links, and many customizations) over to WordPress was not as straightforward as we would have liked.
We did the final work in the Airstream visitor’s lobby this afternoon, and it was quite a sight: Eleanor with her Apple iBook, Charon with her Apple Macbook Pro, and me with my Apple Powerbook G4, and Emma with a paper book, all heads-down and concentrating. The folks who showed up for the 2:00 pm tour were amused by all the glowing white Apple symbols. Brett, alas, still uses a Windows laptop but we plan to convert him later.
Tom Collier, International Vice President of WBCCI, has been here for several days and he dropped by to chat, as well as Dave Schumann (who runs Airstream’s Customer Service, Parts, and Warranty operations). We told them that this was a gathering of Airstream Life staff: I was the Editorial Department, Charon was the I.T. Department, Eleanor was the Accounting Department (and Food Editor), and Brett was there as the Advertising Department.
We are planning to hit the road Friday morning, heading west toward Denver. At first Denver was just a stop where we were going to leave the Honda Fit, but serendipitously a number of very useful meetings have come up. It looks like our week in Denver will be very full.
September 5, 2007 at 9:55 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
It was all work today, so our adventures were minimal. But midday we did get a chance to break over to JC Pizza and meet with Jennifer and Bart Housholder. This was a meeting that had its roots in October 2005, when we were in Jackson Center and blogged that “JC Pizza is closed on Mondays.”
About a year later, I got an email from Jennifer saying that next time we were in Jackson Center we should drop in. I wrote back and said we would. This week, I gave Jennifer advance warning we were coming, and so today when we walked in we got a smile from the lady behind the counter as she said, “You must be Emma, and you must be Rich, and you must be Eleanor!” It was like coming to a familiar place at home.
The pizza was good and so was the company. Charon and Alex came with us, and Jennifer came over to our table a couple of times to talk. Like a lot of people we meet, she told us we were doing the right thing by homeschooling. She homeschooled all of her kids for years, too, before going into the restaurant business.
Since I was too busy running around all day with my laptop to carry my camera, I took no photos all day. But here are a few bonus shots from yesterday, when we were playing with fire at sunset.
Alex demonstrates the technique …
Charon practices lighting her tongue on fire
Rich cautiously attempts to eat a small fire without igniting mustache
Charon spent a few hours today moving this blog over to WordPress software. We’ll be working together on Thursday to complete the transition, and with luck we’ll be running the new software by Thursday night. There are likely to be some differences in the blog for a while, until we work out the glitches, but I am looking forward to a lot of new capabilities that should make it more enjoyable for you to read.
Tonight a couple showed up in the Terra Port with a new Airstream 25FB, and managed to lock themselves out of it. For a moment it looked like they might end up in a motel for the night, but I was able to slide in through a storage compartment door and push up the bed from the underside to gain entry. They’ll be getting a couple spare sets of keys tomorrow — one of the things that was on their list anyway.
September 4, 2007 at 11:09 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
This has been the most entertaining day I’ve ever had in Jackson Center. Earlier today a fellow Airstream full-timer named Paul dropped by to say how much he liked reading Airstream Life, and to play us a song he wrote about going out on the road.
I made a video of it to try uploading it to YouTube, but so far have encountered a lot of problems. I’ll have to get some experts on the job. Once we’ve got it successfully uploaded I’ll post the address here.
Later in the afternoon we were pleasantly surprised to see Alex and Charon pull in beside us in their 1965 Safari. We seem to run into this pair every year somewhere, sometimes in Florida, often here in Jackson Center. They are professional carnies, doing their act of sword-swallowing and fire eating at festivals and events every summer and fall. We featured them in Airstream Life back in the Fall 2004 issue (that issue is sadly no longer available). They also do a bunch of podcasts, and have a blog.
They’ve got a new pet, a ball python, and this immediately got Emma’s attention. Now she wants one for a trailer pet. I’m personally not wild about the idea of harboring a snake that grows to four feet in length …
This evening Alex and Charon felt the need to practice their fire eating. That was entertaining enough, but then after I stepped away for a moment I found out I had been volunteered to try it myself. Always game for an interesting new experience, I very carefully followed Alex’s instructions (the key one being, “don’t breathe in — it will take you nine months to die”) and managed to extinguish a small flame in my mouth. The only casualty was a slightly burned spot on my lower lip.
Because of the problems with the blog software and my general disgruntlement with MovableType (it can’t handle podcast video, it isn’t very well supported, it has random glitches), we will be switching this blog over to WordPress software this week. This may result in the blog disappearing temporarily, or being stranger than usual this week. Bear with me ..
September 4, 2007 at 8:48 am · Filed under Uncategorized
We’re back at Airstream for the second time since we picked up our trailer in October 2005.
For those who have never been here, and who own an Airstream or hope to own one someday, the factory is almost a mythical place. It doesn’t hurt that it is located far from the beaten path, sitting in a tiny town in Ohio that is surrounded by soybeans and corn. The inconvenient access of Airstream only makes the pilgrimage a little more satisfying.
Of course once you arrive in an Airstream here, it’s a very comfortable experience. The factory provides a little camping area called the Terra Port, which features full hookups, wi-fi, and a view of the Service Building. Most people camped here today are waiting for service appointments, and if you are, your Terra Port stay is free.
Around the corner of the Service Building is an outdoor display of historic Airstreams, including the famous “gold trailer” once owned by Wally and Stella Byam. (See Airstream Life, Summer 2006 issue for an article all about this trailer.) Inside the Service Building you can sign up for a factory tour, given daily at 2:00.
There’s not a lot to do in Jackson Center, being a small town, but we’ve found that you can make your own fun. Last night Emma and I spent an hour circling around the acres of asphalt on our bicycles, checking out interesting Airstreams and talking to other people who are staying here. Down the street is JC Pizza, a movie theater, and a laundry … so we’ll catch up on the simple things while we are here.
Tomorrow we have a service appointment scheduled. One of the tires is wearing oddly, which indicates a likely need for axle alignment. We also need a check of the disc brake pads, and to repack the wheel bearings. A few inside parts have broken (a knob on the stove, an arm for the folding cutting board, etc) and we’ll get replacements for those also. I’d like to see if we can do something about that front compartment which leaks when we tow in the rain, but only if the solution isn’t too invasive. This isn’t the week for us to get into major projects, since we want to be heading out Friday morning.
September 2, 2007 at 5:21 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
We arrived at Lou & Larry’s with no specific plans, other than to recuperate and enjoy the weekend with some friends. So when Loren, their daughter, invited us to visit Cleveland’s historic West Side Market, we hopped in the car and headed out.
The West Side Market has been open in Cleveland since 1840, and in its present building since 1912. This is the sort of place that Eleanor absolutely loves, with dozens of sellers of meats, ethnic foods, bread, vegetables, fruits, desserts, spices, flowers — all fresh and fantastic.
I could have bought one of everything, since it all looked amazing, but instead I bought nothing and just took pictures as Eleanor led Emma, Loren and Randy along through the aisles. The place is great for photographic opportunities. If you go and don’t want to come out with armloads of food, don’t arrive hungry.
Saturday evening Lou and Larry hosted a party for a bunch of Ohio Airstreamers. Ultimately about fifteen people arrived, and two families arrived with their Airstreams, so we had a mini-rally of three Airstreams.
One of the nice things about rallies is that you can usually bring up a mechanical problem and get plenty of helping hands. Five rivets on the rear end of our belly pan had come loose, allowing some of the aluminum to droop down. Eleanor had noticed this a week ago and we’d been waiting for a chance to fix it. So I broke out the rivet tool, the cordless drill, and a box of rivets, and invited the Airstreamers to learn how to replace rivets.
Unfortunately, everyone already knew how, since they all have their own projects, and so they declined my Tom Sawyer-style invitation. But they did all slide under for the photo above, including Emma. Later, Dave lent me some washers (to make the rivets hold the aluminum better) and Larry helped hold the aluminum in place while I put in the new rivets.
The potluck dinner resulted in absolutely massive quantities of food. We had enough leftovers to feed all the overnighters again, probably for several days. That didn’t stop Larry from making a fire in the morning and between him and Dave we had another big meal that held me for most of the day.
Today I have been finalizing articles for the Winter magazine, so it has not been a complete vacation for me, but this necessary to allow all the business I need to do this coming week. We’ll be at Airstream for service and meetings all week, and expect to be quite busy. I’ve also got to sit down with the atlas and figure some stops along the route from Dayton to Denver for the week after. Any suggestions are welcome.
August 31, 2007 at 10:32 pm · Filed under Uncategorized
I believe this is the third or fourth time we’ve stopped to visit with Lou and Larry in Ohio. We always park in the side driveway, wheels close to the grass, where we can connect to the house power and pick up their wifi signal. Everytime we have visited, they make us dinner and in the evening their daughter comes over with two clever dogs who end up as the center of attention.
It has been like this ever since Lou wrote to me out of the blue, as many people do, and invited us to stop in on our way to Jackson Center. Every time we have accepted such an offer, we have made new friends, and many of them have ended up being people we see again and again. For this reason I am already regretting that we won’t be able to accept several invitations to stop in Iowa, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Those are lost opportunities of a very significant sort — friends we won’t be able to make this time through.
As soon as we arrived today, Emma and Eleanor were immediately enticed into Lou’s basement rubber-stamping headquarters, where they all became absorbed in the task of making some cute greeting cards. Larry and I were left to go fetch fresh sweet corn for dinner and discuss all types of Airstream-related topics until the cards were, finally, all done and dinner could be served.
Another Airstreamer has appeared this evening, too. Dan lives nearby in Ohio and is parked in another driveway (Lou and Larry have access to several driveways on this street). Another Airstream or two will arrive tomorrow, along with about a dozen Airstream owners who are coming without their trailers, for a mini-rally and potluck dinner Saturday night. We’ve never been part of a “driveway rally” before. It should be a great weekend.
I also found a guy selling coprolites, and I insisted on buying one for Emma. Every kid ought to have a piece of fossilized fish poop from the Cretaceous Period, right? Especially for just a buck.
