Buttpains 5 & 6

Why report these ho-hum events?  Who cares?  Nobody, I reckon.  It's like this: I feel like writing but the place (McMinnville, OR) was covered in prior posts.  Besides, I don't want readers to think our summer travels are all rainbows and unicorns. 

Number 5
The RV Microwave went belly up.  It's a small one, only 1.0 CF, but plenty big enough for 2 people and a real convenience since our rig doesn't have a conventional oven.  I'm guessing all the bouncing around shortened its life.  And, we've bounced around a fair bit, especially on the Alaska trip a couple years back.  The old one was Brand X (High Pointe), never heard of it.

The microwave lives in an enclosed cabinet, is front-vented (a rare thing in smaller units) and has a frame which is screwed to the machine and the cabinet face.  The frame is what keeps the appliance in place so it doesn't bounce right out of the cabinet and fall on the floor, and it provides a built-in appearance. 

Good luck finding a front vented 1 CF microwave online.  Tried all the usual suspects: Lowes, Home Depot, Nextag, Walmart, Amazon - nada.  Finally bought a 0.9 CF unit for $58 at Home Depot; it's not front vented but the size and appearance are nearly identical to the old one.  To address the venting concern, I cut a hole in the top of the cabinet directly above the vent holes in the top of the appliance.  Hopefully, that will prevent overheating and other issues.  If not, I'll jump off that bridge when I get to it.

Number 6
Most RVs have outdoor showers.  They're rarely used for showering but are handy for mud room applications and dog washing.  Whilst Ranger was 'enjoying' a bath recently, the nozzle head broke off.  Called Camping World: they don't carry replacement hoses, just the entire assembly: knobs, base, valve, the whole enchilada.  In your dreams, CW, you suck as usual.  I'll be going to ACE to get the replacement hose, thank you very much.

On the bright side, given our considerably less ambitious itinerary this summer, dealing with these little challenges hasn't been all that bad.