Stupid non-slides

I'm really thrilled to report that the coach is living up to its reputation. Yesterday the hydraulics gave out. The front two slides wouldn't come in when we were leaving Wasilla, AK on the way to Talkeetna. And the leveling jacks wouldn't come up.

I fussed with the set-up for a while and finally called the manufacturer. I was on the phone with him for 2 hours and we finally (we, she says-the 'we' here is Sooz and me) were able to HAND PUMP the kitchen slide and the jacks in, but not the living room slide. Hand pump with a big screwdriver since the called for tire iron number one doesn't exist, and when we borrowed one, it wouldn't fit anyway. While sitting on the frozen ground scrunched under the cabinet door which I couldn't open all the way because it was under the living room slide that wouldn't go in.

At that point, the tech I was talking with said "we" couldn't do any more and that I needed to call a roadside assistance service. An hour and a half later a guy showed up. We talked a while, he walked around and around a while. Finally he jury-rigged a jack on as much loose lumber as we could find to jack up the outside edge of the living room slide. We could then pump it in an inch before he had to dismantle the jack and move it in a little and do it again. An hour later, the living room slide was in too! For $110! At least my roadside assistance membership paid for the $35 additional service call fee.

Of course by now it's Friday afternoon - we're in the middle of nowhere - and there is no one who can fix it. No one works on Saturdays and it's a long weekend. So Sooz and I had ANOTHER drink and decided to just proceed as though nothing has happened. I've called three places who all tell me that they can't see me until at least Thursday, altho' one guy said he'd take a look at 8:30 Tuesday a.m. so that he might be able to tell if it's fixable and perhaps order parts - which would take 3-4 WEEKS to arrive, if necessary.

During all this, I had called Gulfstream's customer service where, after threatening a lawsuit a couple weeks ago, I had finally found a very nice and helpful lady. I had five people on the phone at one time trying to help, after I left a message in the morning saying I wanted a new coach. But it was 5 p.m. on Friday afternoon and there really wasn't anything they could do.

So we're on the road again - living out of the bedroom area because the front room slides won't open - walking gently because we can't put the leveling jacks down, and probably it will be like this until I drop Suzie in Vancouver in 19 days.

Are we having fun yet? I guess so, because the sun is still shining on us!