June 2, 2025 (Mon.) - new drs., chores
The day kicked off later than planned—again. We officially extended our stay in Box Elder for another two weeks, thanks to upcoming appointments, shipments, and unfinished vehicle registration.
Breakfast was at Perkins, where Lynn happily embraced the 55+ menu perks – because she can!! (plus, the serving size is just right!). The real entertainment came when the server didn’t believe her, assuming she was borrowing Kirk’s “senior status” to get the discount. A flattering misunderstanding!
Kirk spent the day handling logistics—calling USAA, Progressive, and Mike Thompson RV to wrap up loose ends on our South Dakota move. One surprise? USAA won’t insure motorcycles in SD, meaning we’ll have to hunt down a new provider. Not the smoothest transition, but manageable.
The big task of the day was meeting our new doctors—a successful visit, but definitely an eye-opener. The cost difference between Kaiser and our new PPO (Blue Shield) was, well… let’s just say “yikes” sums it up perfectly.
Lynn kept things low-key—chores, blogging, and movies filled most of the day. But the real win? Booking reservations at Custer’s Gulch for June 16, 2025! Finally, a change of scenery from Box Elder and a chance to dive into more South Dakota sightseeing. All in all, just another day in the adventure!
Weather – High 69*, Low 51*. Winds varied from 9-42 mph!
Traffic – None.
Notable – new doctors!
Food – nothing major to report.
Screen time – The Gardener, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters – both pretty good
June 3, 2025 (tue.) - RV repair, hair salon
The day started early with the RV Tech arriving at 9:30 AM, ready to tackle two issues—the fridge temperature problem and the mystery water leak Kirk discovered. What was supposed to be a quick half-day fix turned into a full-day ordeal. The culprit? Not just one, but four pinhole leaks in the water line!
Meanwhile, Kirk spent hours battling Good Sam over repair coverage, only to hit a frustrating dead end. Despite having a policy, their response lacked all common sense, making an already chaotic repair process even more aggravating.
Also received the final CDTFA letter so we’re almost done with the vehicle registration!
On the brighter side, Lynn finally found a hair salon, and it was much, much, much needed. Three hours later, she walked out very happy with the results.
By 4 PM, both Lynn and the RV Tech were officially done, and to shake off the stress, we headed to the dog park. The weather was gorgeous, and Otis soaked up every second of playtime—a well-earned break after a long day!
Weather – High 64*, Low 58*. Winds mild.
Traffic – None.
Notable – new hair salon
Food – Bashful Bison – good but not as good as the first visit.
June 4, 2025 (Wed.) - TSA, Pigeons, food
The day kicked off with Lynn’s TSA appointment, a necessary task since her KTN# had expired and was still under her maiden name. The address given led us to the Goodwill Donation Center, which seemed completely wrong. After much confusion and a call to TSA customer service, it turned out this was actually the right place—though you wouldn’t know it at first glance! A tiny sign on the front door confirmed it was also a TSA processing center (they really could make that a little easier to find). Thankfully, once inside, the process was quick and painless, wrapping up in just 10 minutes. Fingers crossed for smooth processing ahead!
After TSA, we stopped for brunch at Ron’s Cafe in Rapid City—Kirk’s Yelp discovery, also highly rated on Trip Advisor. It did not disappoint! Lynn’s chicken fried steak was so good it now ranks #2 on her favorites list. Kirk opted for blueberry pancakes, eggs, and ham, and the pancakes were a solid win. Bonus points for their fantastic coffee. The cafe itself is small with limited parking, and its interior is packed with retro games, figurines, and nostalgic decor—definitely a spot worth revisiting.
Just when we thought we had settled into the RV routine, a pair of pigeons decided to shake things up. These pesty visitors have been hopping from one RV to another, but they seem particularly fond of ours—taking up residence under the slide toppers and on the roof, making a ruckus at all hours. Let’s just say, Kirk wishes he had his BB gun.
Dinner was back in the RV, where Lynn baked peanut butter cookies for dessert using pre-made dough from Colonial House. The RV oven took twice as long as the instructions suggested, but the final result? Delicious!
All in all, a day of small victories, great food, and the ongoing adventure of RV life!
Weather – High 64*, Low 43*. Mild winds. Beautiful day.
Traffic – None.
Notable – Ron’s Cafe, Peanut Butter Cookies
Food – Ron’s Cafe (breakfast)
June 5-6, 2025 (Thu. & Fri.) - vertigo, minor upgrades
Thursday, June 5, 2025 – Finally, a day without appointments—at least that was the plan. But the morning took a sharp turn when Lynn’s vertigo hit hard around 9:30 AM, triggered by a simple stretch to the left. The result? A full-blown tea cup ride gone wild. The only option was to ride out the spins and hope for no vomiting. Luckily, it didn’t escalate that far, but the dizziness and nausea stuck around all day.
Lynn, having been through this before, knew the drill: rest, hydration, and anti-nausea meds from the last bout. She also tried ‘sea bands’, designed to put pressure on the wrists to ease nausea, but they weren’t noticeably effective—plus, they started to hurt after a while.
With Lynn mostly out of commission, Kirk took on full-time caregiver duty, making sure she had everything she needed while the world kept spinning.
Friday, June 6, 2025 – Day two of vertigo, and Lynn made the unfortunate mistake of stretching left again—this time triggering crystal bursts in her vision, like tiny fireworks exploding in her eyes. Once again, bedridden and barely able to move.
The weather was perfect—sunny, calm, and wind-free—ideal for the ride to Iron Mountain that had been on the agenda. But, no chance of that happening today. Instead, Kirk stayed busy running errands at Bass Pro Shops and making minor RV upgrades: installing magnets on the doors, cleaning window screens, and removing the old gun safe.
Lynn, unable to handle too much TV, turned to audiobooks—a much better way to pass the time without aggravating her vertigo.
The past few days haven’t been the most exciting, but at least small victories were achieved. Hopefully, brighter days are ahead! Lynn’s vertigo typically lasts 2-3 days, so the countdown is on for it to finally ease up. Looking forward to getting back to normal soon!
Weather – Thursday = High 60*, Low 49* with rain. Friday = High 68*, Low of 43*. No winds, partly cloudy.
Traffic – None.
Notable – vertigo
Food – nothing major to report. Did get a pizza delivery to the RV park though!
Screen time – Four Seasons, The Accountant, The Accountant 2
Audio books – My Next Breath (Jeremy Renner) – very good, The Fall of Crazy House (James Patterson) – ok.
Oh no! Sorry to hear about Lynn’s vertigo. Sounds so debilitating. No meds for that?
I know what you mean about the TSA application places being sketchy. I was convinced I gave all my personal information to a scam when I went to have my picture taken in person in Chicago, totally a back alley location. Not a government building.
Thanks Michelle. No meds for vertigo other than anti-nausea meds. There’s a maneuver that is supposed to help but doesn’t work that well for me (probably because I’m doing it wrong). Weird that the TSA doesn’t have better signage or information regarding services at odd locations!