E-Cigarettes Care and Maintenance

Follow up from The Cowboy . . .

Well it has been 3 months now since my last cigarette. It is the first time in 50 years that I haven’t stunk of tobacco and with the E-cig it has been easy. Some may say that I am cheating and that’s true. I am cheating the devil out of his dues, the monkey is off my back and I haven’t felt this healthy since prom night. I have learned a few things about these E-cig’s, they do require some minor maintenance and I thought I would share with you.

The e-cig is basically made up of three components; the battery to supply power, the atomizer to super heat the liquid and the cartridge that holds the liquid.

BATTERIES:

In the E-cig world the batteries have a life span of approximately 6 months for a heavy “Vapor” that is constantly recharging them. They are a bit delicate so dropping them is a little hard on them. Inside the battery compartment is a mini board that turns the power on and shuts it off after the “Drag” is finished. The wiring inside is very fine and is soldered together by little tiny “Keebler Elves” with little tiny blow torches. I have one that wants to stay on all the time.

Atomizers:

The atomizer contains a very small coil of wire (same Keebler Elves) and this is the part that super heats the liquid using the power from the battery. This little element gets really hot in a hurry. The harder and longer you drag on the E-cig the hotter this element gets. It can burn out or partially burn out. This will result in less or no vapor and a very unhappy user.

There are a couple of things that you can do to get better performance and longer life from your atomizers. First understand the e-liquid does help keep the atomizer cooled. NEVER use it DRY. By keeping it well flooded it will perform cooler and longer. The manufacturers advise anyone that is using an E-cig to always have it tipped slightly down. This stops juice from running out of the cartridge into your mouth and it ensures the atomizer is getting the liquid it needs to work. After you have filled your cartridge with liquid applying 2 drops directly inside the atomizer will give you a wonderful “HIT” and ensure the atomizer is flooded but keep it pointing down.

 

The E-liquid that we use has flavoring in it and this flavoring has a small amount of sweetener. This sweetener can burn and buildup on the coil inside the atomizer and will plug it over time. I have brought atomizers back to life by cleaning them. I use Isopropyl Alcohol put into a small container.

Place the atomizer in the alcohol and leave overnight. Shake it around once in a while. Take the atomizer out of the alcohol and blow it out by mouth. It tastes like the Keebler Elves left a little deposit for you. Let it dry for at least 4 hours then attach your battery,

Fill the cartridge with liquid and drip 3 drops of liquid directly on the sides inside the atomizer. Allow it to set for about 1 minutes so the liquid coats the inside of the atomizer and you are ready to go. I try to do this with mine about every week.

Cartridges:

You might think these things are pretty straight forward and they are BUT you do need to learn how to fill them completely. When you are adding liquid to the cartridge add only one drop at a time and add it to the side with the cartridge turned upside down. By adding the liquid to only one side it allows the air to escape slowly from the other side and ensuring the cartridge is full. If you just squirt it in the odds are you will trap air in the cartridge and you could “Dry fire” the atomizer and burn it up. The absorbent material in the cartridge that the manufacturer sends with you E-Cig is adequate but there is a method of doing a better one using a “Tetley Tea Bag” I will post information in another Blog.

Enough for now. Got to go get a cookie.

Now don’t forget; Never slap a man who’s chewin’ tobacco.

This is a note from our friend Vicki about her experience with E-Cigs:

No more real smokes for me. Finished my last one on Saturday and was down to maybe one a day. Since I had the real ones I had to smoke them just to get it out of my system and couldn't just throw them away.  Smoked since  I was 16 and was  a pack a day smoker. Never thought I could quite. Tried the drugs and gum with no success. The e-cig seems to be working so far.I love that the house, car and myself does not smell of smoke anymore. I will admit the I had to get the TGO tank from Apollo (company in the States ) it is the Big Daddy. I have this one usually about lunch time. In the morning the 910 that we bought in London is ok but later I NEED the big boy. It give huge smoke and a great throat hit, love love love it. It is much bigger than the 910 and you have to hit a little button but the battery lasts all day and usually only have to refill it once a day also. I have so far figured that the fruity  flavors  e-juices aren't for me. I like the coffee, carmels, buttery ones.  Love the RY4 from Apollo , biscotti blush and waiting for Madvapes to arrive.  I ordered Carmel Cream and Creme brulle  from them in the 30ml size 24 nic. So I guess it is safe to say I am still somewhat experimenting with tastes and company. I agree that MadVapes has the best price so far.  I of the 30mls was $8.00  where as I paid  $10 for 10 mls here.

Any way will let you know  how it goes  and my take on Madvape. I am so proud of Ron , who'd of thought  he would have done so well. The guy that couldn't even stay for the lady to explain it all , to go and have a smoke.!!!! 

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Just another (gorgeous) day in the RGV

A previous post by The Cowboy Click here described his involvement with MASA – Medical Air Services Association.
Below are a few shots of a couple of the Parks or Resorts that he spends his time ‘working’ at


This is the pool area near the activity centre at The 4 Seasons in Brownsville.











Beautiful flag display representing some of the home states of their guests.

Nice to see the Big Canadian flag flying proudly in a very prominent space.

Very nice lounging area where The Cowboy was relaxing before his seminar begins at 4:30.

Let’s just zoom in a little on that shot . . .

Almost 80 degrees? Yup, that’s what I thought! Nice!

Sorry for rubbing that in – to all of our family and friends back in Canada. AW Heck! No, I’m not all that sorry

Stretching from Brownsville to Zapata, the Rio Grande Valley is home to over some 300 parks and resorts which include retirement communities and subdivisions. The Cowboy’s portion of parks in the Mission/McAllen area encompass about 65 parks.
Whether it be a privately owned park or a resort that is owned by some large conglomerate each park that we visit takes on it’s own personality, much like a small town or village.
Sometimes it noticeable when you drive in or will become more pronounced when you enter their community hall.

I’ve heard many Winter Texans say that they are more socially active down here than they are in their home towns up north in the summer.



Their bulletin boards are filled with activities to sign up for . . . breakfasts, pot luck or dining out with others, jam sessions, card or board games, tours for shopping, casino’s or museums.

Many Winter Texans come down here every year just for the live entertainment. Any day or night of the week you can enjoy live music and/or dancing in many of the parks.


Ladies enjoying a relaxing afternoon playing the real game of Mahjong.
While The Cowboy prepares the meeting room for the 85 people that have signed up.

One of the commonalities that all of these parks have is that they are all extremely friendly. We rarely come across any Winter Texans that aren’t willing to chat and share stories of their families and friends back home or all the fun activities they are experiencing down here in The Valley.

Happy Ending

A Winter Texan couple that had been reported as missing last week has been located safe and sound.

Family members reported 61-year-old Bruce Stewart and 65-year-old Linda Stewart as missing to Weslaco police last week.

The Canadian couple was supposed to be staying at an RV park in Weslaco but family members from Canada told police they hadn't heard from them in weeks.

Investigators told Action 4 News that the couple had been staying at Falcon Lake State Park.

The couple came into the Roma Police Department to speak to authorities.

They had been safe and sound the whole time.

The couple told police that they didn't even know that they had been reported as missing.

Prayers needed

This caught our attention on the local news this morning:

WESLACO - The son of a missing Winter Texan couple says they've dropped off the map. He hasn't heard from them in weeks.

Most Winter Texans ride out the winter months laying low. Police say Linda and Bruce Stewart virtually disappeared. Friends, neighbors, even family members haven't heard from the couple since December.

"They waved, and they're real nice people," says Gary Musgrove, a neighbor.

The couple used a credit card to rent a space at the Snow to Sun RV Park north of Weslaco. Back in Ontario, Canada, Derek Marshal says he can't help but worry about his mother and stepdad.

"Somewhere in the back of my mind, it's telling me something has happened just because it's unlike them not to contact anyone," says Marshal.

Marshal says his mother survived breast cancer and wanted to enjoy her time traveling. She kept family up to date on her Facebook page. Her last post was in late December.

"No calls during Christmas. No calls during on New Year's. You know, they took their canoe with them. I hear they could have gone out on a canoe trip somewhere and maybe gotten lost or maybe had an accident somewhere. Maybe they got into an accident on the highway," says Marshal.

Some friends told investigators the Stewarts wanted to go to Yuma, Ariz.

"There is always a difficulty in it, because the United States is so wide and these people evidently they traveled a lot. So that they're not really in one place ever long enough to set up a pattern of behavior. We're having a hard time tracking them down," says Interim Weslaco police Chief Mike Kelley.

Family members don't want to think the worst. They're holding out hope the couple is alive and well somewhere out on the open road.

Weslaco police put out a statewide alert to help officers track down the missing couple. If you've seen Bruce or Linda Stewart, call 956-968-8477.

Whatever The Princess wants . . .

I spend waaaay toooo much time reading other RV’er blogs and websites. That’s probably the reason I don’t post on our own blog as often as I should.

They, so willingly, share their travels and daily activities online with the rest of the world. They also contribute with their wonderful photography. Through their blogs we find the best (and worst) places to eat and shop.

But I especially enjoy reading about their renovations and decorating ideas.

Shortly after we arrived down here in the Valley The Cowboy was anxious to start on some of the projects we had in mind to make our home ‘Ours’.

This was our dining area. Very nice chairs and beautiful Corian table. All very nice but we never used it – at least, not as a dining table. We have a wonderful drop leaf oak coffee table that adjusts to dining table height. That table seats up to 6 guests quite nicely.

What we needed I wanted was an office space. You should all know by now that what The Princess wants . . .

Maybe it comes from all those years of working in an office and sitting behind a desk but I feel more organized and productive if my work space is ergonomically correct. I know they’re called Laptops but mine just isn’t that comfortable on my lap.

So . . . out with the old.

We had two mis-matched filing cabinets on either side of the table which our neighbors were happy to recycle for us.

Then a shopping trip to Lowe’s was the order of the day:

The Cowboy carefully measuring and making the necessary adjustments to make it all fit together.

Measuring Twice . . . Cutting Once!

Lookin’ pretty good . . .and how lucky am I to have such a wonderful handyman?

After installing the pre-made cabinets and pre-cut counter top (backsplash removed). . .

and adding a swivel counter-height stool that we picked up at a thrift store it’s really coming together nicely.

Coffee station all set up on one end and our printer/copier set up (temporarily for the winter) on the other end leaving lots of room for a nice working space with a great view for me.

So while The Cowboy was hard at it . . . this is what I was up to:

Thanks for stopping by and we hope everyone is having a wonderful day!

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Family Nostalgia

Looking back over the past year The Cowboy got a little nostalgic so we decided to post a few photos from some of the highlights of our family gatherings from 2011.

A Christmas card from Shy, our youngest (perhaps not our brightest) and her (Poor) husband Dave along with their cocker spaniel Jesse. (Please note this is an actual card and the characters are very real.)  *Sadly*

Here’s a gingerbread house that Shy created: Her DREAM home.

Shy’s creativity and great sense of taste comes from her Dad’s side.

We did all of our shopping on line this year.

Good to see the kid’s got their new door bell installed. Dang but those young ‘un’s are hard to buy for. After winning the $7.00 jackpot at Bingo one night they went out and blew it on a lottery ticket and Darn! if they didn’t win that too! They didn’t waste any time splurging on a new car.

Sure makes the neighbours jealous but it looks purdy good parked in the trailer park.

Nice lookin’ RV they picked up too for our family vacations.

‘Course they made sure their pets got taken care of too. A new doghouse for the mutts.

And a handy dandy new cat carrier

We added a couple of guest rooms to our trailer park site – so come on over.

 

 

 

We even have our own mail box:

 

 

 

 

We’re a lot closer to the lake now which is nice and handy for docking our yacht:

Family Wedding Announcements:

We also had our share of weddings:

along with fancy wedding cakes:

Honeymoon photos: The ones we can share anyway.

A little rain don’t spoil Cowboy and his brothers love fer fishin’!

Lots of fun ‘n games at the annual Family Reunion:

The Cowboy’s hoping that he’ll be able to make a deal with this guy for that great looking Bass Boat.

He knows he has to trade off one of these toys in order to be able to afford it tho’!

Lots and Lots of memories. Remember “Everyone can have a HAPPY childhood”. You just have to decide when you want to have yours.

We’re on our second one now