Bad news -Yr 1, Day 320

Marion, NC

Back on the roller coaster ride.  It would sure be nice if life wasn't all ups & downs and had a few steadies thrown in.

First, we learned that the gray tank which was supposed to be replaced this week was not delivered yet and won't be until next week!  We deliberately came here a month early to make sure we didn't run into a parts problem.  Oh well, it is what it is.  And this part is the good news, compared to what comes next....

Regarding the slide:  after they took the bedroom apart to get to the mechanics that work the slide, it was discovered that the entire floor and wall are rotted.  Apparently, there must have been some kind of water leak a long time ago which rotted it all out (and this is what caused the slide not to work properly).  Since this is a maintenance issue, it will not be covered by the warranty, and we're looking at a minimum of $5,000 to repair, not to mention who knows how many more days in a hotel.  This is not something that could have been detected during the inspection; the only way to find out was to take the whole thing apart.  Oh, I also didn't mention that all 10 tires need to be replaced.  They are in good condition on the outside, but as tires age, the insides get rotten.  It is recommended for any vehicle not to have tires that are more than 5 years old (ours are going on 7).  When it's our home involved, we can't take chances and wait for a blow-out and very severe damage or worse.  At $400/tire, that's another huge chunk of cash.

So tomorrow we need to make a decision: clean out our nest egg to pay for this or take what we can get and give up the lifestyle.  With Mitch's new job about to start, it will give us a chance to replenish the funds little by little, so I think the answer is pretty clear (stay).  We have to consider ourselves blessed that we even have the money in the bank to make that decision.

I just want to know when this is going to end.  But then again, it could happen in a sticks & bricks house as well.  Things break down, wear out, go bad, and need to be fixed.  Better our home than our bodies, although it's true for that too.