We’ve had an eventful couple of days at the Airstream park, TCPC, in Tennessee. (If you missed my previous descriptions of the park, try here and here: then you’ll see that “eventful” also means “relaxing” and ”delightfully social” and <insert all kinds of positive words here>.)
First Pro Wash and Wax!
Sherri and Mooch turned us on to an RV washing company that comes by the park a couple of times a year, so we asked if they’d come by while we’re visiting. Bingo!
They park their trailer here for several days and then drive their truck full of gear around the loop to wash and wax a kazillion Airstreams, really efficiently and at a reasonable price.
In the almost-three years we’ve owned ours, we’ve washed and waxed it twice I think, which is so far below the recommended maintenance schedule from Airstream that it’s pitiful. There’s no layer of paint under the clear coat to protect the aluminum, so you really do have to make sure no debris slips in and ya gotta keep her shiny.
Moving into the Shed
The day we were scheduled for our wash and wax was plagued by scattered storms, which delayed the washing team (husband and wife and friend). We didn’t want to get in their way on the patio or be stuck in the trailer while they were washing, so we moved our outdoor furniture into the little sunroom/shed at the back of the lot we’re on. That turned out to be a quite pleasant way to spend the day!
(Tracy’s stocking cap is actually carefully placed to cover just enough of his head. Can you tell he likes posing for photos about as much as Banjo and Finn do? I need a model! See below for how I found one.)
The shed is where we’re storing the broken shower door until Tracy can figure out what the heck to do with it. A pin that connects the frame of the glass to the hinge on frame on the wall broke off in the middle, and apparently you just can’t get the bit that’s still in the frame out. I think the whole thing is shot.
Mooch might use some of the sealant at the bottom (that stuff is always coming out of Airstream shower doors), and maybe we’ll find a taker for the glass. Otherwise, Tracy is taking the whole thing to the local recycling center today. Bye bye shower door, for who knows how long. I did order a slightly-more attractive shower curtain that I’m hoping will arrive before we leave.
Acorns!
We listened to music in the shed, Tracy did a bit of Alaska planning, Sherri and Mooch visited us—we had a grand old time in there.
The only bummer was that, as a storm approached, acorns from the huge oaks in the park would plummet like falling meteors onto the tin roof and freak Banjo out. She shivered until her teeth rattled and followed Tracy around the little shed, trying to get between his legs. Here she’s hiding behind his chair as he wraps up some research.
We ended up putting her in the trailer while we walked all the way across the street to shoot the shit with Mooch and Sherri under their car port before the big storm came. An exciting moment was when a hawk flew into the eves of the carport and got a little flustered until he could find his way out. A sharp-shinned hawk, we think. Big fun at TCPC!
Cousin Reunion
So, you guys know how I whinge about having hardly any family left, but I actually do have several cousins and and aunt and uncle. I’ve seen two cousins on my dad’s side a few times right before we hit the road (what a delight!), but that was the first time since I was a child; we’ve never been close.
This cousin, Melissa, I’ve also seen just a couple of times in maybe the last 40 years, so I was honored when she offered to drive an hour and a half to meet me at a brewery, in the middle of a very busy work day (she runs an interesting 3D printer company).
We chatted about family, her recent African safari, her business, and we stayed and stayed at the brewery until she had to take a conference call on the drive home.
It was more than wonderful to see her: it was epic. When we hugged at greeting time and at goodbye time, she said, ”family” and we both had to wipe away tears. When we talked about our mothers, who were extremely close sisters (see the top photo, one of many of them hugging), we just had to stop talking because we were going to blubber right there in the beer garden. (We decided on a raincheck for the blubbering.)
I feel like the top photo shows how much Melissa looks like her mom but not as much about me and my mom, so I created this one from what I could find. Man, I miss her. (Ironically, the photo of me was taken the afternoon of the evening she died.)
Plans
We added an extra day to our stay here, for practical reasons but also because, damn, it’s nice.
Our plans include:
- A fried green tomato and soft-shelled crab feast managed by Mooch today;
- Getting the trailer waxed (it was too wet on wash day);
- Dinner tomorrow at a famous BBQ place where we meet our friends Susan and Alex who are driving up from Atlanta for the weekend;
- Spending Saturday with Susan and Alex, showing them the park, visiting their AirBnb, and maybe even washing the Airstream curtains there! Glory be, its exciting times here. Seriously.
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