Solos just conversation

[traveldogs]

Originally Posted by mangy dog

No, sorry I didn't mean Amazon was as bad. I didn't particularly like Amazon but they weren't like American Land and Leisure.

Amazon is a very "numbers" oriented place. After lunch you can see exactly how your pre-lunch performance compares to the established standard and fellow workers that day. As a camperforce person your standard of course is lower than a normal hire. In stow (put stuff in bins), some would pick carts based on how fast the merchandise could be stowed. The standard rate for different size items varies but if you're careful you can raise your "numbers" at the expense of your coworkers. I took carts based on which one was closet to me at the time and sometimes left the really good ones for the people who wanted to be kept on into January. The needed good numbers while I was leaving.

mangy dog

Gotcha...

Which AM campus(s) have you worked at?

I notice the ones in the wintery parts of the country are always open for jobs....my rig is not winterized.

[mangy dog]

Originally Posted by traveldogs

Gotcha...

Which AM campus(s) have you worked at?

I notice the ones in the wintery parts of the country are always open for jobs....my rig is not winterized.

I've only worked at the Campbellsville, KY facility. My 28' Class C is also not built for winter use. Since there was always at least one heater running I didn't have a condensation problem. I used the campgroung showers. You don't really need heated tanks and stuff if you're careful. I used table salt in my grey and black tanks. More than one smaller camper had incandescent lights under the tanks on really cold nights.

I would think but can't say for sure that the campground staff can show you how to deal with the cold. I'd wintered in freezing temperatures before and didn't ask.

I heard there was another facility in TN or KY that was using workcampers this year. If you go to Campbellsville try to get Heartland Campground. It is right across the street and the others require significant driving to get to work. There is some snow and it does freeze hard. Getting smashed up on ice isn't my idea of a good Christmas season. If you don't have a toad, or truck, Heartland is really a necessity.

I cannot say enough good things about the floor supervisors and "ambassadors" that worked my shift. They were top notch. Some would put proprietary coins in the carts that were usable in the cafeteria vending machines. These were mostly in the "bad" carts. I left there with about a dozen big Three Musketeers bars!

And something nobody seems to mention, there is free coffee and gatorade along with a few free snacks and meals.

The work IS tedious. Most say they lost weight- I gained.

In fairness I should mention that Heartland is sort of a graveled Walmart with hookups. Well no, not really... most Walmarts have a few trees.

mangy dog

[traveldogs]

Originally Posted by mangy dog

I've only worked at the Campbellsville, KY facility. My 28' Class C is also not built for winter use. Since there was always at least one heater running I didn't have a condensation problem. I used the campgroung showers. You don't really need heated tanks and stuff if you're careful. I used table salt in my grey and black tanks. More than one smaller camper had incandescent lights under the tanks on really cold nights.

I would think but can't say for sure that the campground staff can show you how to deal with the cold. I'd wintered in freezing temperatures before and didn't ask.

I heard there was another facility in TN or KY that was using workcampers this year. If you go to Campbellsville try to get Heartland Campground. It is right across the street and the others require significant driving to get to work. There is some snow and it does freeze hard. Getting smashed up on ice isn't my idea of a good Christmas season. If you don't have a toad, or truck, Heartland is really a necessity.

I cannot say enough good things about the floor supervisors and "ambassadors" that worked my shift. They were top notch. Some would put proprietary coins in the carts that were usable in the cafeteria vending machines. These were mostly in the "bad" carts. I left there with about a dozen big Three Musketeers bars!

And something nobody seems to mention, there is free coffee and gatorade along with a few free snacks and meals.

The work IS tedious. Most say they lost weight- I gained.

In fairness I should mention that Heartland is sort of a graveled Walmart with hookups. Well no, not really... most Walmarts have a few trees.

mangy dog

Yeah...I understand you can use antifreeze in the tanks, too.

But, there's the water lines to worry about!

[iquilt888]

So far the posts I've read make me definitely the oldest, turned 71 this past March.
I have been divorced since 86 which is an awfully long time ago. I'm retired; have a significant other; a dog; and, a couple of cats. Am I a solo? You bet! The significant other has absolutely no desire what-so-ever of traveling.
Have recently purchased a class A gas motor home. In the time I've had her have gone to the east coast and to New Mexico.
My biggest disappointment is don't like to travel alone and have not been able to find anyone to travel with.
My kids have their own lives as do the grand-kids.
What is a solo suppose to do?

[rvarner]

OK you got me beat by 4 months. There is a group called the WINS (Wandering Individuals Network) that seem to travel quite a bit. They usually caravan and you can jump in or out at anytime. There may be someone on this forum that could tell you more. Their age limit was 70 but they have removed that requirement to join.
Also a group of single rv'rs on "Yahoo Groups".

I don't like to travel alone either but not gonna stop. No one to share the experiences of the road can be a bummer. Talk to myself a lot ;<) I am in CO right now and will leave next Tues for WY, UT, CA and eventually NV. I am a member of FMCA singles and SKP Solos but they are mostly back east right now. If I can find any, I'll join em.
Good Luck
Rich

[mangy dog]

Since my laptop screen went blank, and I picked up a cheap tablet, I've been bumming wifi whenever I could. Today I bought the Straight Talk mobile hotspot. Set up was relatively painless.

It is working well in an area that my Virgin Mobile USB dongle usually would not. The coverage map in Wally World looked a lot better too.

1 GB costs $15. That is $5 less than virgin mobile. Of course saving $5 a month will take a long time to recover the $80 hardware price. But it works with my tablet and when I hook my laptop up to my TV it will also be connected.

All in all- not bad so far.

mangy dog

[traveldogs]

Originally Posted by iquilt888

So far the posts I've read make me definitely the oldest, turned 71 this past March.
I have been divorced since 86 which is an awfully long time ago. I'm retired; have a significant other; a dog; and, a couple of cats. Am I a solo? You bet! The significant other has absolutely no desire what-so-ever of traveling.
Have recently purchased a class A gas motor home. In the time I've had her have gone to the east coast and to New Mexico.
My biggest disappointment is don't like to travel alone and have not been able to find anyone to travel with.
My kids have their own lives as do the grand-kids.
What is a solo suppose to do?

You're supposed to enjoy it. ...that's what!

I'll admit when I headed out for my first solo trip in May I was very sad the 1st 200 miles, 'cause I missed my DD so much.....you see she came with me last year. But......she's starting a career now, and likely won't be able to come with me again until 2016.

That's life, and if you don't grab it by the horns now....you don't get another chance.

I talked to myself, too. Plus, to the dogs, the radio....idiot drivers. But, I managed to entertain myself by listening to every bit of the music I brought along. I forgot my playing cards, but I got them in the rig now for the next trip.

I figure the more times I go out alone, the better it'll get.

[traveldogs]

Originally Posted by mangy dog

Since my laptop screen went blank, and I picked up a cheap tablet, I've been bumming wifi whenever I could. Today I bought the Straight Talk mobile hotspot. Set up was relatively painless.

It is working well in an area that my Virgin Mobile USB dongle usually would not. The coverage map in Wally World looked a lot better too.

1 GB costs $15. That is $5 less than virgin mobile. Of course saving $5 a month will take a long time to recover the $80 hardware price. But it works with my tablet and when I hook my laptop up to my TV it will also be connected.

All in all- not bad so far.

mangy dog

Nice!

How does it work in the Ozarks? Have you driven through there yet?

And what kind of tablet did you get for$80?

[mangy dog]

Originally Posted by traveldogs

Nice!

How does it work in the Ozarks? Have you driven through there yet?

And what kind of tablet did you get for$80?

I'm not sure about the Ozarks. None of the online coverage maps say they are for the hotspot. I saw the map at Walmart. It is the hotspot itself that I mentioned was under $80 but the tablet was also.

I tend to stay east of the Mississippi or at least close if I cross it. I was in Arkansas year before last when I missed an exit in Memphis. I stayed a few days because it seemed a shame to waste a successful bridge crossing. It is pretty but I was headed further south and didn't explore much.

I the got tablet at Best Buy. It is a offbrand called "Proscan" plt7044K-C. It was on sale and came with a keyboard in a folding case. The operating system is an older version but it woirks as well as any of these things work. It is NOT a computer but until I find somone to repair the screen on my laptop running XP I'm stuck with it. I turned off as much g**gle malware as I can find but I'm sure there's still more there.

I'd love to find a new laptop that is native 12-14 volts running a reasonable operating system. When Vista first came out I saw 12 volt netbooks pretty reasonable at all the office stores. I wish I'd bought a couple.

mangy dog

[traveldogs]

Originally Posted by mangy dog

I'd love to find a new laptop that is native 12-14 volts running a reasonable operating system. When Vista first came out I saw 12 volt netbooks pretty reasonable at all the office stores. I wish I'd bought a couple.

mangy dog

Interesting...what do you mean by "native 12-14 volts?"

[rvarner]

Mangy dog
I found a power transformer that plugs into cigarette lighter to run my dell mini. I use it to monitor engine parameters with a Silverleaf program using Win 7.
Rich

[mangy dog]

traveldogs, By native 12-14 volts I mean something was made to operate from 12-14 volts. My laptop is a HP and the transformer supplies 18.5 volts. I need an inverter to make 12 volts into line voltage and then the power supply turns that into 18.5 volts- just a little higher than where I started. It likely wastes as much power as the computer uses.

Rvarner, What voltage is your mini? I'd like to find a cigarrette lighter doodad that would power my laptop. I can get a USB adapter for the tablet but havent yet because it charges fast going down the road.

I'm in the Travel America in Lodi, OH. I'm considering risking life, budget, and waist size to report on the TA "Steak and Shrimp" buffet. I would make this sacrifice only to benefit the solo communuity. I'm beginning to think that TA/Petro is using this restaraunt as a training facility. Quality and service are all over the map. The "managers" seem to change constantly and average around 14 years of age.

The reason I stopped in here was to mention that TA/Petro now has a free little booklet listing all it's locations. At the bottom of each spread there is a... footnote saying in part, "...At preferred parking locations you receive up to 24 hours of free parking when you make a minimum purchase of 50 gallons or more of fuel or spend a minimum of $20 in the store restaraunt or service area. Without a minimum purchase the first 2 hours of parking are free; thereafter, there is a daily parking fee."

Interesting. There are very few "prefered" locations-8 by my quick count but maybe it's a coming thing. It mentions chapels but not rv's. The booklet also does not mention that at the location on I-70 in WV, they only serve diesel. That diet gives my 460 cu/in Ford indigestion.

mangy dog

[rvarner]

Quote; "Rvarner, What voltage is your mini? I'd like to find a cigarrette lighter doodad that would power my laptop. I can get a USB adapter for the tablet but havent yet because it charges fast going down the road".

Mine is 12v to 19v DC to DC adapter but you'll need to search on your make and model due to the laptop plug. The one I have is specific for the mini but may fit others-good luck.
Rich

[traveldogs]

Originally Posted by mangy dog

traveldogs, By native 12-14 volts I mean something was made to operate from 12-14 volts. My laptop is a HP and the transformer supplies 18.5 volts. I need an inverter to make 12 volts into line voltage and then the power supply turns that into 18.5 volts- just a little higher than where I started. It likely wastes as much power as the computer uses.

Rvarner, What voltage is your mini? I'd like to find a cigarrette lighter doodad that would power my laptop. I can get a USB adapter for the tablet but havent yet because it charges fast going down the road.

I'm in the Travel America in Lodi, OH. I'm considering risking life, budget, and waist size to report on the TA "Steak and Shrimp" buffet. I would make this sacrifice only to benefit the solo communuity. I'm beginning to think that TA/Petro is using this restaraunt as a training facility. Quality and service are all over the map. The "managers" seem to change constantly and average around 14 years of age.

The reason I stopped in here was to mention that TA/Petro now has a free little booklet listing all it's locations. At the bottom of each spread there is a... footnote saying in part, "...At preferred parking locations you receive up to 24 hours of free parking when you make a minimum purchase of 50 gallons or more of fuel or spend a minimum of $20 in the store restaraunt or service area. Without a minimum purchase the first 2 hours of parking are free; thereafter, there is a daily parking fee."

Interesting. There are very few "prefered" locations-8 by my quick count but maybe it's a coming thing. It mentions chapels but not rv's. The booklet also does not mention that at the location on I-70 in WV, they only serve diesel. That diet gives my 460 cu/in Ford indigestion.

mangy dog

Thanks for the education!

Also, this is a tidy piece of info about TA/Petro....I assumed they were on the honor system like Walmart.

BTW, you are genuinely witty and funny....I like that in an RVer!