vandwelling, heat and dogs

http://thereluctantpaladin.blogspot.com/2010/06/summer-heat-danger.html

i just saw this on a blog i read when i actually get around to reading blogs. it is a reminder of the challenges of living in a van with a pet and keeping them safe. the temps inside the vehicle were a sobering reminder of what happens inside a vehicle in the sun, and how quickly it can happen.

one advantage of vandwelling is that i can follow seasons and climate according to our comfort and safety. i absolutely hate the heat, so avoid it if at all possible. if i can't relocate to a cooler region, then gaining elevation is an option, and will be experimenting with that in the future, after i relocate to the southwest.

even here in the northeast in the summer, i do most of my shopping at night, thanks to walmart and other 24 hour businesses. if i do have to go somewhere in the daytime i leave the engine running using my spare key, and leave the air on. i still keep my business short, because i worry about an AC malfunction or the engine stalling (never has, but there's always a first time)  i set a timer on my phone to beep me after 10 minutes, in case i lose track of the time, and i wear a neck lanyard with info and photos about my vehicle and my dog, so if i should become incapacitated, someone will know to get to Mutt. it also contains vet and emergency contacts who are instructed on how to recover Mutt and get him home safely.

this issue has had a lot to do with the types of things i do on the road. i don't go anywhere dogs aren't welcome, which would be most tourist attractions, some national parks or campgrounds, theaters and malls, restaurants...that sort of stuff.  but that's cool, because none of that holds a candle to the pleasure i get from hanging out with Mutt. he is just the best thing that happened to me since my kids, and dogs lives are too freakin' short. i don't want to miss a minute :-)

Ahoy maties!

We are on the PA/Ohio border....almost at the farm, where we will stay a couple months, then out to the sierras for a bit, then down to taos. Am not going to turn on the phone or 'net at the farmhouse, so will have to see how my connection through my cellphone will work.

It has been quite the trip, and the desert is firmly entrenched in my heart....it remains to be seen if I can pass muster as a true desert rat. We'll see!

The first thing you see

I'm on the move again. Fast. Want to be on the east coast for my son's graduation on saturday. Left pahrump at noon on sunday, made alot of stops to play with mutt, so only made 473 miles in 9 or 10 hours (damn time zones). Slept in a motel 6 parking lot and after the initial shock of waking up and not being in camp, fell in love with this view. 

I miss the early morning visits from Tony and Tori. I think Mutt does too.

Final shots of pahrump

The view in pahrump

Literally. Ya gotta love it.

The knives

 I owe a special thank-you to Steve for letting me use his knives for a pattern. They were his Dad's and have special meaning to him, therefore making the gift of sharing them even more precious to me.

The knife on the right is his kitchen knife....he used it to cut the date bread that Suanne shared with us. Ya gotta love a man that uses a dirk for his kitchen knife!