Days 121 & 122: Oviedo, FL

We've continued to make modifications and improvements to Loraine (our van).  The effort has been helped by signing up for a 30 day trial of Amazon Prime, which gives us free two day shipping on a lot of what is sold at Amazon.com (we won't be here long enough to wait for free standard shipping).  We've been amazed by having stuff arrive on Saturday and Sunday, and it has greatly simplified fulfilling all of our shopping needs!

The big news today is that we had our Katzkin leather kit installed, so we now have one less place for dog hair to become embedded.  Coupled with the vinyl floor in the cab and the vinyl load floor in the cargo box, this is likely the easiest vehicle we've ever owned for managing pet hair.  Of course Corwin Ford managed a slight screw up on that order, but we've come to expect that.  We had requested perforated leather for the seat inserts, like we had on our crystal blue Miata.  Instead, we  got plain solid inserts.

A factory match for the interior would either be grey or a very light whitish-beige.  The latter was a bit too light, so we opted for a slightly darker, warmer color (sandstone) - it won't show dirt quite so easily, and won't absorb heat from the sun as easily as the grey would have.  The main thing is that it is easier for us to keep the seats clean, though we also gained a storage pocket on the driver's side seatback (where we can store our supply of leather wipes).  It will make life a bit simpler for us, and simpler is better.

Our new Katzkin leather!

We installed our new fork mounts on the load floor.  In trying to figure out the optimal placement, we learned that by eliminating the handlebar bag on Alea's bike we ended up with the maximum amount of usable space (with it on, it made it hard to get my bike out of the side door).  We bought her a new rear rack today that mounts to the seat post, and and a bag that fits on top of the rack.  That will replace her seat bag, which I'll get, since it is a better design than my present seat bag.  She happily noted that on rainy days the new rack would greatly reduce the road spray that gets sent up her backside in the form of gritty, muddy stripe.

The main effect of storing the bikes with fork mounts is that we end up with a lot of surplus space in the rear middle portion of the load floor.  That helps to resolve a problem that has vexed Alea these past four months: our mesh laundry bag, which is too small and gets caught on all manner of sharp bike parts and just generally has been of very marginal utility.  Now that she has a 'normal' laundry basket, she is very happy.  And we still have a lot of left over floor space, for storing groceries, etc.

I ordered a mesh pocket from Amazon.com, which I had planned on mounting to a bulkhead that we originally considered adding above Lana's new den.  It has the hook-type of Velcro tape on its back, which is intended to stick to a carpeted surface.  That bulkhead idea was dropped, so I was thinking of returning the item.  Then we realized that we had a different use for it.  We purchased some additional loop-type self-adhesive velcro, which we stuck on one side of our new laundry basket so that we can attach the pouch.  The pouch gives us a place to store our Resolve stick, bag for delicate items, pre-measured laundry detergent, etc.  We also purchased a coin purse to hold laundromat quarters, which we can clip to the basket.  So yet another aspect of our life on the road has become much simpler.

Our spiffy new laundry basket.

We added another small shelf below our charging station for our Luggable Loo, freeing up yet more floor space.  Our REI Alcove shade structure goes underneath it, as does my handlebar bag (when I'm not using it).

A shelf for our Luggable Loo, safely strapped in place.

An item of nearly daily concern while traveling on the road is where to answer nature's call.  In rural areas, our van and camper make the solution very simple, providing a mobile pissoir that is fashioned by simply opening up the rear barn doors of the van.  If we want more privacy, we can open one or both doors on the camper, creating a completely enclosed space to commune with nature.  To simplify such a practice for Alea, I installed a toilet tank spare roll holder by the rear passenger side door, putting the toilet paper near where it is needed.

A supply of paper where it is needed most.

And finally, I needed to solve two minor problems: where to store my baseball caps and how to keep our broom from sliding forward into the cab (it is stored strapped with our outdoor furniture, atop our drawer pedestal).  A simple piece of 1x2 attached to the front edge of the drawer pedestal did the trick.  I angled it at about 30 degrees, so that it sticks out above the rear of the front console, where Lana accesses her new den, putting it just so that the end of the broom handle rests against the back of the stick.

A simple and efficient cap rack , plus broom stop.

Lana's den with her new crate pad.  Note the two spare bike tires on the left of the pad.

We also drove over to Palmetto on Sunday to meet with Teri and Carson Robinson, to discuss the details of our staying at their vacation home during December and January.  We're very excited about being able to stay there, but we'll hold off on giving those details until we finish cycling across the state.  We'll be back on the road some time between Thursday and Sunday, if all goes well.