Tag: Camper

Burning up the Road

Apparently Jessie and I have been burning up the road.  How do I know?  In the last seven days, we have replaced seven tires.  I already posted about the two camper tires last week.  Today we brought five new tires into the family.

This weekend we had a show in Florida, and Jessie’s car needed an oil change.  I decided that I should do a tire rotation too, so I took it to my grandfather’s shop Thursday night to do all of the work.  I jacked up the car and took off the tires while the oil cooled.  As I was rotating them, I noticed one tire was so worn on one side that I could see the cords that are embedded under all the rubber.  That was not good.

I went ahead and changed the oil (it’s much easier with the front passenger-side wheel removed), and I put the bad tire in a position where I thought it would get the least amount of wear.  It was 9 p.m. the night before we leave for Florida – no time to get new tires before we leave.  The rest was going to be luck.

35616948_453771575087125_6055370190428831744_n.jpg
Jessie kissing a gator at Bayou Bill’s in Florida

We made it down there, did our gig, had a fun weekend on the beach with our friends, and then headed home Sunday afternoon.  Monday morning, I was at the tire shop having my tires (I thought) balanced to remedy some shaking I noticed as I towed the camper back from Paducah.  Unfortunately, one of my tires was beginning to separate, meaning I needed a new tire.  $$

I had made an appointment for Jessie to get new tires today too, somewhere between teaching music lessons and meetings.  $$$$

All this on top of the two camper tires, having work done on my truck, and my gas-and-tire-saving bicycle being stolen.  It’s been a rough couple of weeks around these parts.  My friends suggested we start a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds to replace my bike so I can get back and forth from work.  It seems more and more like a good plan every day.

We have a couple of shows in Wisconsin this weekend.  I’m hoping we sell a bunch of merch at these shows to help offset all of these recent costs.  For those of you who won’t be in Wisconsin, feel free to check out Jessie’s merch over at Swampicana.com – there are even a few new items I have yet to add to the online store.  That reminds me – I need to add the new Jessie Smith tank tops to the store.

Maybe we can make a case for a tire endorsement…

36771858_559077701157045_8669911255328227328_n
This is Cam and me getting the spare tire out to put on the camper somewhere in Nebraska.

Our New Tour (Camper) Bus!

Jessie and I have been talking about a pop up camper for a while. It would make it so easy to pack up and tour, save money that we would have spent on hotels, and we can take a little bit of home with us wherever we go! So several weeks ago, we bought a pop up.

We found one on Craigslist that was just right for us, and that was ready for some work. We have found a little website called ThePopUpPrincess.com that gave us the confidence that we can make a pop up our own. We have big dreams for this little thing, and I can't wait to get started.

The camper is in good condition, and I think we can do quite a bit with it. Some of the first things we would like to do are replace the floor with some faux-wood vinyl (or something similar) and paint or replace the cabinets. When we do this, I also want to carve out space to build-in our mini fridge. Eventually, we want to redo counter tops, upholstery, curtains, paint the exterior, and a laundry list of other things as well.

Shortly after we bought the camper (just days after), we headed off on our maiden voyage. We had a show at our favorite venue on the Gulf of Mexico – the Green Door Music Hall in Ft. Walton Beach. Jessie survived the heat and humidity in the camper for two nights, and we called the trip (and the show) a success! We had so much fun!

We love the quiet peacefulness of the camp sights we've found so far, and we can't wait for the adventures that await us. As I write this, we are currently on a week tour across Wisconsin in our camper, playing our music for the wonderful people in this state. We have yet to meet people that are better friends or love music like these cheese heads! I can't wait to update you with our latest adventures when we return. Until then, I'll enjoy the ride and reminisce about the awesome times we've had like lunch at the Back Porch a few weeks ago.

I'll do my best to log our adventures, both on the road and in remodeling the camper, right here.