Date: Fri, 5 Dec 2014 08:59:39 -0800
Reply-To: Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Don Hanson <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Might be a double post...winter trip
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Friday and not of interest to all, I think..a semi-self-centered post..
In the next few days I will again be leaving the Pacific NW on my normal
wintertime sojourn, driving my 84 tintop/westie interior with it's inline
ABA VW motor and five speed manual trans......Snowbird, I am. When it
begins here (east of Portland Oregon) with the gray skies, the freezing
rain or freezing fog, the black ice-covered roads and the daily high temps
in single digits, I have to leave..
It's my intention to post some highlights of this trip on my
long-neglected blog page. I am hoping that with my smart phone and a
little more familiarity with the digital media it will be easier for me
now. We'll see how it goes,
The general plan is to find a weather window to head south along the
east slope of the mountains and eventually end up in the desert of southern
California and Arizona for a month or two of off the grid living.
I usually easily pay for this trip, a few times over, by having all my
medical, dental and optical work done in Algodones, Mx...... at Mexico's
honest prices...The services in Mx. are almost affordable, usually at about
30% of what the Health Insurance industry and the Medical industry have
agreed they can get away with charging us, here in the United States for
the very same products and services. For example, my asthma inhalers
(Provental) cost ME $14..my co-pay to my insurance here in the states,
after I give a doctor $100 for an office visit to renew my prescription for
these common meds...In Algodones, the very same brand (Glaxo) inhaler is
$3.00-full price.......I am told the US pharma companies charge our US
insurance companies well over $50 each for those athsma inhalers. I buy a
bag of these Puffers, about 15 of them for the year (there is my gas money
for the trip right there), .My eyeglasses in Mx. are usually about $70 per
pair for photo-gray blended progressive lenses with high dollar name brand
frames, including the exam and it takes about 2hrs from the time you walk
in the door till you leave with your new glasses...A root canal is $130 and
a crown is 1/10th the price I was quoted in the US....It seems a national
disgrace that every day of the year you encounter crowds of seniors and
sick people who've come to Mexico, to this former small agricultural town
to try to get the services they must have but can't afford in the
US...There are Medical Tour Bus companies out of Yuma, AZ who'll truck you
across the border for the day...
This is my 5th or 6th desert winter trip in the 84 Vanagon. Gasoline
is going to cost me about $140 each way (1100mi) with the mileage I get
from this ABA 2.0 liter motor.. http://www.fuelly.com/dashboard the
Fuelly App says it cost's me $14/mile to drive my van right now. People
often ask..."How do you manage to take these extended trips??"..Well, I
just turn off everything here and head out the door and I usually end up
saving money by not staying here in the cold and snow, trying to keep the
house going and pay for it on '90s era carpenter wages..
I am 'ready' this year for possible mechanical issues with my van The
'innards' are becoming 'well-used'..the motor has lots and lots of hard
miles on it now but still hums along happily (so far...) there are some
noises and the van is now 30 years old...but thanks to the various online
lists and forums I've become pretty comfortable with my ability to do
almost any mechanical task on the van...so if she blows....I'll hit the
junkyard for a 'new' motor and perhaps get another 75k miles for ~$300...
I have no glaring reason to doubt the van's dependability but Dang!...I
drive the crap out of this vehicle and eventually stuff wears out, right?
For this Friday Post, I have not added to the blog below, but there it
is...as the winter progresses I'll hopefully be able to add something
interesting to it on a regular basis....
http://dhanson928.blogspot.com/
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