DATE: 06 Aug 2007, 7:44 pm / MOOD: Stuck at home

"Where you stand is holy ground."  I don't even remember where this, number two of my all-time favorite quotes, came from, but it reminds me of all of you.

As you know, we've spent the summer at home, fighting Bob's lung cancer.  Sometimes it's been the worst time in our lives, and other times, I think I wasn't born until we got "woken up" about the precious nature of our lives.  How fragile!  How short it can be!

And even though we're not traveling right now, I can go back in memory to hundreds of RV trips we've taken; I can stand beneath an endless western sky in the dark, contemplating the rings around the moon.  I can see, in my mind's eye, an Iowa cornfield at sunset, glittering with the lights of a thousand fireflies, hovering over rippling acres that go on forever.  I can holler in a canyon, saying hello to my own self, over and over and over as the echo bounces off the rim of the universe...

     These, and other thoughts hold me together these days, and I think of all of you Scrappers... somewhere out there... traveling your own roads and standing on your own holy ground.  That's right... wherever you are right now, it is sacred.

      So this might be something like a prayer or a meditation, more than a blog, but what's important is that people like us know there is "something out there" that we need to connect with.  Some of us are always chasing it - it's around the next bend, it's down that unexplored road.  We roam and we search... but are we "present?"  How does a trip on four wheels become an inner journey that will give us a place to escape to when the "trip" is only in our minds?

     When we wake each morning in a new place, it's a good reminder to take a mental inventory.  Why did I come here?  What do I hope to see?  What will I leave behind, if anything?  What can I GIVE to this day, and what can I take from it?

     What I have taken from my journeys is a lifetime supply of inner vistas, pictures that can never be "deleted" or "crashed" from my memory, and the feelings that those experiences stir within me.  I can pull them out any time, like an album, and relive a moment or a place... There are many places I left behind, and recorded nothing, left nothing... those are the places where I forgot I was standing on holy ground.

      In the RVer's life, the distances we travel can bring us to the realization that no matter where we go... it's still our planet.  The dirt beneath our feet remains connected to the dirt we stood on yesterday.  The land and the winding roads are all entwined, and so are we. 

     Please take a moment today to stop.  Look down.  Whether you're in the hot, arid desert of Arizona, the cool green mountains of Tennessee, or the warm, slow bayous of Louisiana... it's holy ground.  YOU are the spirit of exploration.  Breathe deeply and don't let the moment slip by...

Anne Pierson,

Happy Camper President, RVer stuck at home, for now.

 

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DATE: 26 Jul 2007, 5:49 pm / MOOD: Learning

Buzzing along here in St. Joseph, Louisiana - still stuck at home, but at least we're at the campground, and we've been enjoying gorgeous spring weather. 

Today was the day!  We had to wait one week to check on "the girls," who are, if you missed last week's blog - my bees.

We put our bees into their new home (hive) last week, and, against all basic instincts, we have left them alone for a whole seven days before checking on them. 

Our assignment today was:

1.  Check to make sure the queen is released from her little queen cage.

2.  Check for any formations being built.

3.  Check to see if they ate all their food. (This, by the way, was about 5 gallons of sugar water).

So... in preparation, we had Elizabeth, our park manager, reading the "Beekeeping for Dummies" book all day today.  I had read this chapter before, but it's been about a month.  It turns out, Elizabeth is a GREAT professor!  She really studied it, and was able to explain all the details to us as we carefully studied the hive today.

Here we are, like girl scouts, being prepared this time.  This is our smoker, and we did get it lit correctly this time so that it burned throughout the adventure:

And here we are smoking the hive.  This calms the bees, and causes them to drop to the bottom of the hive, so that we can take the frames out to see what's going on:

Lo and behold:  the queen's cage is empty... and there's all kinds of stuff being built in there!  It's like a little city! 

Go, girls, go!  Look at this!  All this in just a week, and there are four frames like this already:

The very last frame is still pretty empty... so I'm putting it back, very, very carefully!  That's a NERVOUS smile on my face. (But I am also thoroughly enjoying playing with my bugs).

And this stuff, unfortunately, fell off, attached to the feeder when we removed the top.  Cool, though.  Aren't these perfect little honey combs?

Today - no stings!  Let's hear it for girl scouts. :)

And, I almost forgot.  We saw the queen.  That doesn't always happen, according to the "bee books" we've been reading, so that was a bonus.  She's a real beauty (her name is Sophia, by the way), and she was crawling around in there, just as happy as... well, a bee.

Debb was our photographer today, and she got so excited that the camera shook, and we missed our chance for a picture of her.

Next week, I forgot what we're supposed to do, but I think we get to check it again.  Ernie, if you're reading this, I do remember what you said about letting them "bee."  But... just one more peek shouldn't hurt, huh?  It's so COOL, I can't resist.

Anne Pierson

President of Happy Camper Club, sting-free beekeeper (!) and campground owner with a big box of trouble on the grounds :)

PS - I promise I'll get back on topic about RVing soon!

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DATE: 15 Mar 2007, 9:38 pm / MOOD: Stuck at home

We've all talked a lot about slowing down, appreciating the small things that happen each day, and enjoying the "journey" of life.  Simplicity is important, but doesn't always come naturally. 

     How do we remind ourselves to take each part in each day as its own little jewel in time?  I wanted to share a small incident with you, to demonstrate how this sometimes happens for me, at the strangest moments.  I think it's worth noting, even if nothing about it was important, except to me.

     Since we are entrenched in country life right now, it breaks the monotony of the day when I have to go "to town."  Town is just a quick little strip of stores, including a grocery store, about seven miles away from my house. The library, the post office, and the grocery store are my connection to life away from the campground, aside from the people I see every day, and seven miles is just enough of a drive to unwind to some music, watch a few crop dusters diving, and reconnect with the fact that the world still exists.

     I went in for a gallon of milk and a few items the other day, and there was a new thing going on.  A black lady, about 30 years old, had installed herself as a "greeter" outside Mac's Market, giving each customer a cart, and giving a nod and her own brand of welcome.  She was slim, bright-eyed, and cheerful.  As I reached for the cart she rolled toward me, she said, "That's number three."  I had no idea what she meant, but smiled, went in for my groceries, and rolled the cart into her outstretched hands as I left.

    Today I saw her there again.  There were a few people getting carts, receiving their welcome, and I could see this time that the new greeter was mentally challenged in some way, but seemed to be enjoying herself.  I heard the lady in front of me say to her, "That's okay, darlin', you don't have to count it."  I smiled, because it's so nice to have all these refugees from New Orleans among us in the last year.  Since I'm from very near New Orleans, I really miss hearing everyone called "darlin'."  It makes me feel loved to hear it all around me again. 

But the greeter insisted,

    "I gotta count 'em.  If not, who gonna count 'em?"

     I remembered her telling me my cart was "three" the other day, and the lady from New Orleans looked at me, we shrugged together, and agreed that indeed, someone must count the carts.  New Orleans lady took her cart, which was "three," and I took mine, which was "four." 

     I expected the person behind me to get "five."  But no, the count started over.  The cart behind me was "one."

    I just had to know.  I asked our greeter, "Not five?"

     She shook her head.  "One-two-three-four, one-two-three-four.  That's how they go."  Like a waltz, I guess.  The rhythm in her head.  The beat of her own inner drum.

     I couldn't argue.  It seemed reasonable enough to me.  Four is enough.  Her game, her rules.  Wasn't she cute?  I got a little surge of warmth in my chest, thinking how much I love a small town.  If we were somewhere else, would everyone play along with her?  Who cared?  In St. Joseph, Louisiana, these things are okay. 

      I filled my buggy, browsed around the store, tried to remember what I had on my mental list of things to pick up.  At the register, I saw the manager looking out the front door, and he frowned as he heard the greeter telling someone, "That's two."  He looked at the elderly lady in front of me, and said,

     "I'm sorry if she's been bothering everyone.  I'm trying to get someone to come pick her up."

      I was thrilled when the good lady told him, "You leave her alone.  You should buy her lunch, that's what.  Hmph.  Poor little thing, it makes her happy."  I agreed with a nod. 

     A man at the next register said, "Yeah, she's no trouble.  Gave me Number One when I came in."

      "I got Number Three," added a young black man, chuckling as he paid for his plate lunch from the deli. 

       Suddenly everyone was smiling.  Across three cash registers, down three lines, everyone compared notes on their cart numbers, and a high-five was exchanged when two customers discovered the both had "Twos."  What the hell?  It was a good way to pass the time waiting in line.  The manager relaxed, and by the time I checked out, the mood in the checkout line was like a back yard cookout.  We were neighbors, she was our "counter," and this was our conversation about the neighborhood today.

      All the rest of this afternoon, I've caught myself counting by fours.  As I let the dogs out, I saw three robins hopping on the patio.  (You don't have the count them, darlin').  As I turned to go back inside, I saw a fourth robin, landing on the roof.  There was a sense of finished business as I counted the fourth.  Now I could start over at one.

      Same thing with plates for dinner tonight, glasses for juice, towels I folded, letters I mailed.  Now I feel uncomfortable when there are too few or too many of something...  I can't get the greeter off my mind, because "Somebody got to count 'em."  If we don't, who will?
      
      It's just like what they teach in Zen.  Beginner's mind. 

      Just as a child who cannot count above four, we're instructed to get back to a world that is all about NOW. There is no future, no past, and we can't even count past four. 

      Fuzzy things feel nice to touch.  Sweet things are tasted without analysis, only pleasure; and if we slow down enough to savor the numbered carts at the grocery store, chat with our neighbors in the line, and smile at one another while we go through our daily routine, then Beginner's Mind and the Zen of the moment is our own. 

     Somebody's got to count 'em.

Anne Pierson

President of Happy Camper Club, RV Scrapper blessed with friends far and wide, and student beekeeper with Beginner's Mind.

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DATE: 03 Mar 2007, 11:34 pm / MOOD: Itchy Wheels

Hi Happy Campers:      It seems that being stuck at home, in a more relaxed atmosphere than usual, inspires me to think more often of the road.  Strange, but true.        For the next few months, I am living full-time on our campground at Lake Bruin (come see me - www.shilohrvresorts.com), but I'm not RVing right now.  We own the resort here, and for the last few years, we have spent the springs here in our RV, on a beautiful waterfront lot; but not this year.       Truth be told, I love RVing for the convenience of taking our family on the road, having all our things in one place, our familiar favorites on board, and our pets and kids comfortable for the entire trip.  What I do NOT love is long-term clausterphobia - almost guaranteed by spending five months with two teenagers, one husband, two dogs (Doberman and Daschund), and three parrots (whose cages are larger than any of us)...  all crammed into a space the size of my hallway at home.  You can imagine for yourself the cabin fever that gets hold of me.  It's not pretty.      So, this year we moved back into our double-wide camp on the water.  It's at the front of our property at Lake Bruin, just a stone's throw from the fish cleaning station, and boasts 1,400 elbow-roomy square feet, of which I am in dire need.  Funny how our perspective changes with RVing... it would seem small compared to my "real house," if not for spending the last two years in a 38' motorhome out here.      Still, I'm fully entrenched in the RV lifestyle at all times here, and I feel I'm getting the best of both worlds at the moment; room to breathe, but in constant contact with others who love the outdoors, and enjoy RVing.       This makes me think of how much I love our web site, for the "window" it gives me into our roaming community.  I know that many of you feel the same way... we get to see the whole story.  We've seen the Newbies come in to ask questions and stay for a camp fire chat... we've seen the Wannabes become Newbies, jumping up and down as they hit the road for the first time.  And we've also seen some inspiring adventures as our more experienced RVers throw caution to the wind and begin a whole new life.  It's way better than a movie, and we're all starring in it!      With that said, the biggest lesson I have learned about RVing here is that we each do it in our own way.  There's no "right" or "wrong" way to RV, and I think we teach each other by example, and we love to share what we know.        I remember when we bought our first RV.  It was the year our sons, Bobby and Gary, graduated together.  1996.  I was mad as hell.       I didn't grow up RVing.  The only RV I was ever in was my friend's parents' Airstream.  They took four of us girls to Flint Creek Water Park, and it rained the whole weekend.  We were all stuck inside that small place, playing cards the whole time; we got in trouble for tracking mud in, and went home on Sunday, like we escaped!  I decided I never wanted to go camping again.       Although my husband was in the RV park business when we met, it never occured to me that I had to participate in the lifestyle in order to make a living at it.  I enjoyed the people, thought it was great to wear jeans to work and walk outside to visit with the folks I met; but own an RV?  Nope.  Not me.      You can imagine my surprise when Bob said he wanted to buy one.  Boy, was I puzzled.  We had just sold our houseboat, because it proved to be, as promised, a "hole in the water you put money into."  Wasn't an RV the same thing, but on land?  I put my foot down - no way were we buying an RV.      That worked like a charm, because the following week, Bob pulled into the driveway in a Class C Holiday Rambler Allumalite, and announced that we were taking the boys to Vegas after graduation.  I sulked for three days, and when the RV remained in the driveway, I figured out that he really meant to do this, and the trip was scheduled.       We had the best time ever.        Not only did we enjoy the casinos, the food, and the western landscape; we had long and cozy conversations with our newly emancipated boys.  We sat in the cool quiet of a desert evening, watching them climb "Camel Rock," a rock that, indeed, looked just like a camel.        We ate delicious, ulcer-inspiring Eggs Rancheros for breakfast three days in a row.  We tasted rattlesnake.  We white-knuckled over the Grand Canyon in a helicopter.  And to this day, Bobby and Gary, (now with kids of their own), love to pull out the photo album and talk about the best time they ever spent with Mom and Dad - just the two of them.  The first picture in that album is of our Class C parked in front of our first night's camp site - you guessed it, a transmission shop. :)       I've learned a lot since then.  I've learned that bigger is definitely better, (we traded for a larger unit with a slide a few years later), I've learned that the RV itself is not what it's about - it's about the places you can go, and the quality of the journey.  It's about kids sitting comfortably on a couch, ignoring you with a Walkman (or now, an Ipod), yet absorbing every cloud that floats above, and thanking you later for the stupid Kenny Rogers album that plays in their memories like a soundtrack of their childhood.  It's about mosquito bites and fights about whose turn it is to ride shotgun.  It's about backing up to the smooth white beach, and falling asleep to the sound of the ocean.  It's about slowing down life to match the rate of your heartbeat.       So I was wrong.  If you tell my husband, Bob, that I said so, I will deny it all.  This is just between us, here at Happy Camper, and I hope that by sharing this, maybe some of the Wannabes who aren't sure what it's really going to be like will take the plunge - get in the RV and find yourself.   Find your family, and explore the country AND your own soul.          It's a journey worth taking, and you can't climb a rock that looks like a camel at a Holiday Express.  :) Anne Pierson President of Happy Camper Club, World's Worst RVer, and Scrappy soon-to-be Apiculturist (yup, that's a fancy word for beekeeper).

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DATE: 26 Jan 2007, 4:36 pm / MOOD: Learning

Are Camp Club USA, Passport America and Happy Camper Club all the same thing? They are all three rv clubs that offer half price (50%) camping rates, but the similarities stop there... Compare Passort America and Camp Club USA with Happy Camper Club, and you will learn why Escapees and dozens of other RV clubs endorse Happy Camper Club vs. Passport America and Camp Club USA.

After some research, you will learn that there are big differences that distinguish the three RV clubs from one another. We will be adding a comparison chart to the Happy Camper Club web site, which will demonstrate why most RVers agree that Happy Camper is the most RVer friendly club available to the RV public today, compared side by side with Passport America and Camp Club USA.

Key points include the following club member benefits:

1. Happy Camper Club and Passport America each offer their members 1,200 locations to choose from, serving RV parks and campgrounds in every state in the US, plus many Canadian provinces. Camp Club USA is just coming into the half price camping community, and is thus far predicting only 500 park locations in the printed edition of their directory for 2007.

2. Passport America serves Canadian RVers with several hundred RV park locations north of the US border, while Happy Camper focuses on US travel, with approximately 40 Canadian campgrounds now participating. Full-time and seasonal travelers often find it useful to join both clubs. For under $100, they can access over 1,600 campgrounds - much less than the cost of "home park" membership programs, which provide just a few hundred locations at a similar price. Camp Club USA is still building its parks list, with 255 parks participating in the 2006 camping guide.

3. Camp Club USA is the only half price RV club that emphasizes "nearly all of our campgrounds are rated 3 Diamond W’s by Woodall's, the name in campground rating, or have an equivalent rating." A browse through either Happy Camper Club or Passport America's directory will reveal that this benefit can be claimed by all three clubs. Most participating rv parks also have amenities for big rigs.

4. Happy Camper Club is the only half price club that offers "real-time" membership sign-up, enabling RVers to join the club and access "instant" use of the membership via an online "create your card" feature, plus a complete online directory of rv park locations. Passport America and Camp Club USA do not offer this feature at this time. Passport America does offer its directory online.

5. Happy Camper Club is the only one of the three clubs that offers a free, customized RV trip planner, allowing members to create RV trip routes which indicate all the half price camping locations along their route. Happy Camper also offers exclusive monthly discounts at about 100 of its parks, an effort to serve full-time RVers and seasonal campers.

6. Passport America offers an optional (added fee) mail forwarding service. Happy Camper Club and Camp Club USA do not offer this feature. Happy Camper members can, however, receive a $10 discount on joining Escapees RV Club, the leader in mail forwarding for RVers, and the only RV mail service with its own zip code.

That is a brief overview of what is available to member of these half price rv clubs. Please feel free to share your experiences with any of the clubs by clicking "reply" at the bottom of the story.

** Happy Camper Club is not affiliated with Passort America or Camp Club USA.

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DATE: 22 Dec 2006, 11:49 pm / MOOD: Inspired

Hi Everyone!

    Sorry to repeat this blog, but it will soon disappear from the top 5, and I want everyone to be able to see updates on this for the next few weeks. 

     Update:  $150 raised today for CARE.

Not too bad for our first day :)  Let's shoot for $2,000 by the 15th of January... you can help!  Please email this blog to all your RVing friends, newsletter lists, or whatever you can do to help get the word out.

Great job, this is a labor of LOVE, and I feel it all around... so many messages to me today about this - you can't imagine how important our efforts can be :)

For those just checking in, please read below for the VERY important announcement, and help us by placing your order right now...

Anne

 

 

 Hi Everyone!!!

     Big announcement today... our CARE recipe e-book is on sale now!

      Many thanks to all of our family members here who have contributed recipes for this meaningful cause... now let's place some orders - and raise some money for aging RVers at CARE!

Just click on the picture to order now.

For those of you who are new here... for the past month, we've been compiling this fantastic recipe collection in our forum - to raise money for the best RV charity in the world - CARE.  CARE was founded by the esteemed Escapees RV Club (www.escapeescare.org) and all donations are 100% deductible as contributions to a 501c corp - and this one is so neat. 

     CARE is a facility in Livingston, Texas, run by medical staff and RVing volunteers, and it allows aging RVers to continue to live in their RVs, on a campground, while receiving "home health" services right there at CARE.

     Our very own ambassador from CARE, Caretaker1 (also known as Bob), is here to answer any questions you may want to ask an actual patient at CARE.  Bob is 85 years old, a fellow member of RVScrapbook, and he resides at CARE with his beautiful wife, Inez. 

     We have made our very special community recipe collection available at YOUR CHOICE of prices, ranging from $15 - $100   The e-book will be emailed to you within 24 hours of your order.  If you can't receive it by email, we will direct you to a download page, where you can download and save it to your computer.  (For all $100 donations, 6 months Happy Camper half price camping is included).

     Unfamiliar with ebooks?  Ebooks are fun!  They are electronic versions of a book, but they are a bit more interesting, because all the menus are linked to pages in the book, and all web sites are "clickable" if you're online, so if you see something you like, you can click on the source, for even more information!

      What a great last-minute gift idea for an RVing friend!  You can order it now, and email it to them, just in time for the holidays.

*** Order yours now!  It's the most important thing you will do this holiday season...  Just click the picture above.

Much appreciation to all of you... may your families be blessed this holiday season, and may our efforts here fill you with joy.

Hugs,

Anne

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DATE: 07 Dec 2006, 9:40 pm / MOOD: Inspired

Hi everyone!

    Most of you know that we've been working on a special E-Cookbook, which we'll compile and sell, with all the funds going to benefit Escapee's CARE facility in Livingston, Texas.

     If you're not familiar with CARE, I urge you to learn more.  In a nutshell, it's an assisted living center for RVers who can no longer take care of themselves... and there are complete details at their web site:  www.escapeescare.org  

      As a campground owner, I have seen this all too often.  A couple retires, sells their home, enjoys many years of RV travel... then someone gets sick.  One spouse, or both, need medical supervision, and at this point, the scene becomes very sad.

     Under most circumstances, our friends are forced to sell their RV, and often have to enter a nursing home, an apartment, move in with the kids, or otherwise change their lifestyle to something now totally unfamiliar... and the sadness of losing their "home" (in my opinion) increases their feeling of illness and helplessness.  We have seen it many times, personally.

     What CARE does is this:  it allows our fellow RVers to continue to live in their own RVs, but also to receive the medical attention they need in an assisted living environment in Livingston, Texas.  It is truly a wonderful solution, and the center is run by both medical staff and RV volunteers.

     I can't think of a charity I'd rather support.

     That said, we've been collecting recipes in our forum, under "camping recipes."  On December 15, I will take the recipes collected there and compile an ebook.  I am hoping we'll have over 100 recipes there by then.

     We'll add the ebook to our camp store, and we'll send a message to everyone here, plus at other web sites that want to help us raise the money for CARE. 

      ALL proceeds from the sale of the ebook will go directly to our friends at Escapees in Texas, delivered by our own Hiker_Happy at the end of January.

      Please help with this.  For those of us in the RV industry - it's our chance to say "thank you" to the generation of RVers who were there when we got started, many of whom are now aging and in need of our help.

       For those of us who are still RVing, it's our chance to do something that really matters, for people who have touched our lives and taught us the ropes of RVing... 

Please post your recipe as soon as you can.  Just eight days left, and I hope we'll all buy a copy of the cookbook when it's ready - it's going to be a fantastic collection, priced at your choice of $5, $10, $15, $20, $50 and $100.  All donations are 100% deductible, because CARE is a 501c (non-profit) corporation.

Have a blessed holiday season...

Your friend,

Anne Pierson

President, Happy Camper Club 

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DATE: 06 Dec 2006, 10:07 pm / MOOD: Inspired

Since we're all here enjoying this great RV community, why not do something simple to help aging RVers, who find themselves unable to travel any longer? 

If you are not familiar with CARE, it is a great non-profit organization, started by the esteemed Escapees RV Club - a family-owed company for over 25 years, and one of the most respected names in RV camping.

CARE makes it possible for aging RVers to keep their RVs and continue to live in them, while getting top-notch treatment for illness and infirmity at the CARE facility.

What can you do to help?

Just add your camping recipes here.  Once we've collected fifty recipes or more, we will create an ebook for sale at this site, and ALL proceeds will be donated to CARE. 

I know you will all help with this, so let's get started, and help a great charity help our fellow RVers.

Anne

(To learn more about CARE, visit their web site at www.escapeescare.org )

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DATE: 05 Dec 2006, 9:46 pm / MOOD: Stole a Happy!

DATE: November 15, 2006, 6:51 pm / MOOD: Happy

Most of you have been following the adventures of Hiker Happy, our Happy Camper logo man who has been traveling with www.your-rv-lifestyle.com for the last few months. If you missed all that, you'll want to be sure to visit his blogs at his own page - just click on his picture!

Jill is helping me create a "states visited" map for his profile page; but he is, by far, our most well-traveled Happy to date.

Today, Jill & Jose brought Hike home for the holidays.  We were thrilled to see him - he looks very happy and rested - a little pink in his cheeks, and he is full of great stories from the road!  He is a little disappointed to be back in Louisiana, as there are really no good hills to climb, and certainly no mountains, but Hike always comes home for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

For all of you who have been enjoying the wild ride with Hike, don't worry - he's addicted to blogging now.  He made me promise that we will keep up his blog while he is home for the holidays, and he assures me he will post a picture of himself decorating the Christmas tree and hanging the stockings. 

(For those of you who follow MY blogs, you'll remember that I vowed to put up our tree Monday night.  Let's just say it hasn't worked out so far... so Hike was here in time to help).

Our new pet, a cockatoo named Pretty Girl, is a bit alarmed about Hike.  She's never seen a Happy before, and it sure did raise the feathers on the top of her head when he walked in the door this afternoon after work.  Hike tried his best to make friends, but she backed away on her perch and said, "Be sweet," as we tell her when she is trying to nip at the dogs.  I think she believes he will bite her.

It sure is good to have one of the Happies back home.  I really missed Hike.  He will be home for the holidays, and will be helping with a few Christmas promotions around the office.  Then he has an appointment to visit Escapees CARE center, to take a check to them for the fundraising efforts here in our forum.  (Which gives me an opportunity to remind you... please help aging RVers by submitting a recipe to our forum.  We're creating an e-recipe book to help raise funds for CARE  www.escapeescare.com).

     After that, Hike will rejoin Jill and Jose for even more exciting hiking trips... they have really become good friends, and he has requested another "road trip" with them when his responsibilities here are completed.

     So... it's been a busy summer for Hiker Happy.  Please visit his profile page and tell him which of his adventures you like best.  He's taking a little survey.  For me, I liked his trip to the Balloon Fest the best.  Jill says she enjoyed fording the creek in Arkansas with him... Jose, I think, was relieved when they got to Hot Springs, AR and got rid of all his "doubles!"

     Welcome home, Hike! 

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DATE: 05 Dec 2006, 9:44 pm / MOOD: Inspired

DATE: November 14, 2006, 5:41 pm / MOOD: Inspired

Once you've mastered the basics of making your profile page, here are some fun toys and added features you can add to your profile - absolutely FREE!  (Note:  Some of these do require a lot of "bandwidth," or "space" on the site, and you will need to be a GOLD member to use these; except for the first one (#1) and (#4), which are just pictures).

1.  Create a "states visited" map for your profile page.  Here's how:  Go to:  www.epgsoft.com/VisitedStatesMap/index.html

Create follow the steps to create your map, then save as a jpeg image when you finish. 

Go to the "gallery" at RVScrapbook and upload your picture.  Once you've uploaded, right click on the picture and go to "properties."  Then, copy the URL you see in properties.

Next, go into your profile settings, and link to the URL of your gallery picture by typing this:

[ img] Here put the URL you copied by right-clicking and "pasting" [ /img]   (Do not use any spaces).

This will cause your map to show up on your profile page!  Here's mine, as an example:

2.  Add music video codes to your page!  Go to http://www.allmusicvideocodes.com/ and find a video you like.  You will see a place on the page where you can "copy code to clipboard"  

Click to copy the code.

Come back to RVScrapbook and go to your profile settings.  Right click and "paste" the code into your favorite music area.

3.   Funny videos: Go to http://www.video.google.com/ and do a "search" for video on any topic.

Once you've found a video, click on it, (please make sure you view it for appropriate content... sometimes, titles are deceiving), and when the video loads, look to the right side of the page.  If you see "add to your Blog or MySpace," click on that, and you will get a piece of code.  Copy and paste the code onto your page, and the video should display on your profile!

Have fun, and please let us know if you discover other fun features that can be used here!

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