“You’ve never heard of the Millennium Falcon?

  …It's the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs...outrun Imperial starships.  Not the local bulk cruisers mind you, I'm talking about the big Corellian ships now.”  ~ Han Solo, Starwars (1977)

I’m a fan of Starwars – when it first came out, I waited in line to see it.  Not a lot of movies that I’ll wait in line to see, but that was one of them, and I wasn’t disappointed.  It was amusing to see how the heroes managed to evade all the bad guys in a vessel that was full of quirky systems that were held together (in essence) with bailing wire and spit...also helped to have a wing and prayer too...so you may see some similarities...

We’re in the process of learning how to navigate the “new world” of RV servicing and routine maintenance.  It’s a whole lot different than taking the ’95 Volvo wagon into Larry’s down the street and telling him to work his magic.  He’s reliable, honest, and efficient and you can drop your jalopy of on Tuesday for a major repair and get it back by the end of the day on Wednesday.  You don’t get a rose on the dashboard like the Saturn place, but you walk out with money still in your pocket and your credit card isn’t suffering a melt-down. 

Our RV, in fact, is going to be sort of like a Great Dane.  When you take a Dane into the vet, (other than passing through the waiting room filled with “lesser canines”, terrified kitties, and owners commenting “Do you have a saddle for that thing?”)  you will most likely experience a degree of sticker shock.  Unless it’s a nail trim, you're going to pay handlsomely.  We’re talkin’ a fair sized load of cash for gracing the place with your fur-faced child’s presence.  Took us a few visits to figure out we were indeed paying for the “Dunn-Bilger Wing” of the vet clinic and oh-by-way, Doc has a really nice airplane as well.  To his credit, he’s awesome and the best Dane Specialist around, and you gotta know that you don’t get a Dane unless you acknowledge they are NOT the economy model.  Goes for an RV as well.

So, we dropped the Three Dane Inn off for (pre-arranged) servicing which was to get a 45-point inspection, roof reconditioning/resealing, an oil change and the removal of the two seats which are located on the platform area right behind the cab.  That was on Tuesday, and here it is, Thursday (11:00 am) and they're "not sure if it's ready yet."  This could be a problem - we have an appointment to get the "truck" part serviced starting tomorrow...in a different place, 'cuz the guys who do the coach part - don't do mechanical.  Since both areas are critical, we are a bit nervous on the timeframe. 

The anxiety is - one part of the job is (don't laugh) to ditch the extra seats and so make a "Dog Lounge" right behind our seats so the kids can be there in lieu of sprawling in the back...on the bed.  

No joke - we have a certain member in our family that feels his appointed place at home is to recline on the king size bed in the Master Bedroom.  We have learned that if you don’t get there before him, he will hunker down like a 175 pound barnacle and you will spend the night clinging to a sparse 18” on the edge.  You will also be white-knuckled trying to keep a corner of the blanket over you because “His Highness” (I'm not talkin' Donald here!) has parked his hiney on top of the sheets, and again has that barnacle thing going.  

Remember that old joke:  “Where does a (insert any large animal) sleep?   Answer: “Anywhere it wants!”  Well, 'tis TRUE, TRUE, TRUE!!!!  Not to worry, I’ve already staked my claim on the bunk above the cab, and as long as I can haul my butt up there and the dogs can't - my slumber is safe! 

Anyway, we’ve discovered, that an RV is similar (as one would expect) to any other unique, bigger, “special” dogs, vehicles, etc. and would tend to cost more.  So, when you take your “special” items in to be serviced, be sure to bring a pre-approved loan application and have patience as it may take them longer than usual to DO the work. 

This is where I'm thinkin’ that we are not unlike the Millennium Falcon - regardless of the preliminary maintenance we do, and all the prep and planning, this may still be a bit of a bumpy ride, especially since we're getting the hang of the whole contraption and there are so many things to rattle lose and go haywire!  

So, stabilize your rear deflectors and hold on until we make the jump to light speed!