Guess Who's Coming To Dinner??

Miss Terry, internationally known chef and author is coming to my house for dinner.  YIKES!!  And she's bringing husband Nick, better known as the Rain God.  (Sorry, I couldn't help myself!)  As you all know, Nick is an internationally known writer too!!

I'm sure everyone who reads my blog knows Nick and Terry Russell of Gypsy Journal fame, the newspaper for everything RV.  We spent a lot of time kite flying on the Oregon Coast this last summer and have become good friends.  Nick has read all about my misadventures, including not finding suitable help around my house, and volunteered his and Miss Terry's services on their way South to sunnier weather.  

When they finally arrived, the rain had stopped and the sun came out.   In a matter of minutes Terry, with her expert directional skills, had Nick backing on a serpentine course to the designated parking spot, missing trees, lawn and landscape.  

At that point I should have walked away, but Terry and I got to talking while Nick set the jacks and started moving the slide out.   I copied this picture from Nick's Blog where you can read all about it!!

Nick wanted to get right to work and see what the light problem was, so I drug out the ladder and dismantled one of four garage lights.  They are all adjustable to either motion sensor controlled or dawn-to-dusk.  One works on one setting, one stays on ALL the time and the other two don't work at all.  I've already been told I have to replace all four, an expensive proposition.

I unscrewed the fixture, but being scared to death of electricity, Nick removed the wires and we took one down.  Don't let him tell you he can't fix anything, because this guy knows electricity!!  Of course so does Miss Terry, but Nick took the Head Electrician position on this job.  I was just amazed at how they tested every wire all along the fixture to see what the problem was.  

I even learned how to use an electrical meter to test for juice at every section.  The final decision was the ceramic plug the bulb screws in to was getting power TO it, but not THROUGH it.  So Nick sprayed it with a magic concoction called Strike Hold and we let it sit overnight.  It may just be corrosion and crud on the contacts.  If not, we will run to Home Depot and buy replacement ceramic sockets and hopefully I'll be back in business.  Wasn't I amazed to see how simple these lights really are and exactly how they work.  It's not rocket science after all.

After pulled pork sandwiches and salad for dinner, we discussed my other two problems ... my home internet service and the Sprint MiFi I use on the road.  CLEAR has been my provider, recently purchased by Sprint, who has told me this antenna with my unlimited data will no longer work as of November 6.  I have to purchase a Sprint unit along with a new two year contract and pay almost twice the price with LIMITED data.  Today I'll check out Verizon and AT&T to see if I can get just internet service at my house (without the phone service) and what the cost will be.

I also got a letter from Sprint saying this device I use on the road will no longer work as of November 6.  This Sprint device does NOT work at my house ... never has.  The perfect solution would be a MiFi that I can use at my house AND on the road.   So if I get a new device from Sprint (no more unlimited data) at a much higher price per month, is it going to work at my house??  That's the million dollar question.  I am actually willing to pay $100 a month if I can be guaranteed the device will both work at my house AND on the road.

In the meantime, Nick will check with his buddy Greg ... the guru when it comes to all things router and internet, to see if we can come up with a solution.  

It's past my bedtime by now, but UPS delivered my two speakers to cover the remaining holes in the ceiling, so we unpacked them and took a look.  It took a few minutes to figure out how they attach to the hangars in the ceiling, but this looks like an easy fix, if I can only find the ends of the wires I need to connect.  The hardest part will be trying to figure out the receiver and actually turn the music on to see if the speakers work.  

We had great fun trying to figure all this stuff out.  There's nothing like a challenge to get your blood moving!!  Now comes the BIG question .... what's for dinner???