FREE CAMPGROUNDS IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Side View

It was love at first sight.
The way she stood there, so forlorn on her own slab at Slab City.
As if she was embarrassed about that "For Sale" sign she
was wearing. I swear that she blinked her headlights at me as
I drove by.

Front View

After I parked my pick up truck, I walked up to her like a horse trader.
It was then that something hit me like a ton of bricks and I realized
that I was in love! Can't remember feeling this way since I met my wife
for the very first time over 40 years ago.

THE SALE
Smiley, the guy who was selling her, told me that her previous owner,
Bruce, had passed away and that he, Smiley, was only an agent for
Bruce's brother who inherited her and was now her legal owner.

I named her "HOLLANDIA, a ship for the desert" and I knew right
then and there that I had to have her.

HOLLANDIA

Like most of us RV-ers, I too, came up through the ranks.
Starting with a tent, going to a van, to a VW pop-up camper
and for the last few years, a pick-up with a cab-over camper.
I like to boondock and so far my outfits were kind of primitive
for this kind of camping.
Not HOLLANDIA, she has every luxury one can think of.
A bathroom with a real shower, a water heater, a sink, an oven and
even a real refrigerator. No more ice chest!

Just Like Home

Bruce had lived in her as a full timer for six years and during
those years he lavished her with every gift he could think of.
Two solar panels on her roof, three house batteries.
An alarm system, stereo, catalic heater and even a color TV.

In Living Color

For someone like me, who had roughed it for all those years,
I pictured myself living the life of Riley!

NOTHING BUT THE VERY BEST.
All HOLLANDIA's accessories are of the highest quality and installed by
professionals. She was well taken care of. Records show that her oil
was changed on time and that whenever something broke down, it was
fixed immediately. Still, because she has some miles on her
(almost 100.000) it was not a bad idea to have an expert look at her.
I couldn't stand to watch when first my friend Marty and later my
neighbor Joe, both retired auto mechanics, probed her and poked her
while looking her over.
Check under the hood, crawl underneath her body, climb on her roof,
rev up her engine until I thought she'd burst.
Then came the prognosis: "She was in good shape for an old lady (1977)
like her!" What a relief!
But frankly, I think that even if there were something wrong with her,
I would've bought her anyway. I was in love and I would have nursed
her back to health, no matter what.

Before


After

INTERIOR.
Of course she needed some sprucing up. Inside she was in need
of a good scrubbing, new carpet, upholstery and mini blinds.
What she wanted most, she told me, were new front seats.
The kind her "well-to-do" siblings have.
They're called captain chairs, with high backs and armrests.

Before


After

SOLAR SYSTEM.
Solar Mike OK'd her solar system. No wonder, he had installed
it himself. "Bruce bought nothing but the finest," Mike said.
During the change of ownership HOLLANDIA had somehow
lost one of her solar panels and a converter which eventually
has to be replaced. Other than that, everything was perfect.

A SECRET.
It was during the deep cleaning that HOLLANDIA revealed
her secret. Underneath a liner in one of her drawers she had a
packet of travelers' checks. One thousand dollars worth!
When I contacted George, Bruce's brother, he told me to send
him the checks and that he would reward me with a $200.00
finder's fee. Mighty generous of him, don't you think?

A NEW DRESS.
HOLLANDIA never in her long life has had a new dress and
now she wanted one. "A bright one," she said, "maybe orange
with a red white anb blue stripe and yellow trim.
"Are you sure? You will create quite a stir wherever you go.
I warned her. But she had made up her mind, so orange it was.

Philco, a full time Slabber is the official painter of Slab City.
It made no difference to him which color we chose.
"Just get the paint and I'll spray it on," he said.

No Turning Back Now


Ain't She Pretty?

THE STRIPE.
Brad, a winter resident of The Slabs, normally paints store windows
for a living but for HOLLANDIA he made an exception. He took care of
the stripe and the lettering.

Brad At Work


Brad Adding Her Name


Finished Side

To be continued....