Bear in mind, Eddie, if you buy something like the "EddieLivesHereMobile" shown above, you can generate extra retirement income by selling ice cream to the tourists.
I made a decision over the last couple of weeks that is truly going to be life changing. I don't use that kind of term loosely, so this truly will be life changing for me.
As I have been doing renovations and upgrades to my house, all with an eye on selling next year and moving, I realized that about 45% of my monthly income has been going into the house. 45%!! Mortgage, utilities, cable/internet... throw the car payment in there, and credit cards, and I have no money to do anything other than work on the house. To sell it.
Well, I am 99% sure I am going to get drastic and make a life adjustment. Since I really don't play anymore, I have started selling off my gear. 3 keyboards (of 7) and a rack piece are gone already. Another rack piece will be seen tomorrow. All the money I make on that stuff is going to a separate bank account. That bank account will be earmarked for a Class C motor home, and by a year from now I plan to be living on the road for the rest of my time on earth. It will be a change to live in 160 sq ft, but my life is so full of excesses and repetitions (7 keyboards?) that paring down is a good idea.
I retired 17 days after I turned 62. The idea was that I would travel. I want to walk in both oceans. I want to see the Grand Canyon. I want to walk my dog on the trails of The Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I want to spend winters in Arizona and summers in the mountains. It is the house and related bills keeping me from doing that. I can either do "the house" or I can do "the travel", but not both. I have been pricing used motor homes, researching solar power, wifi and cellular amplifiers, talking to friends that I never met who have been doing this for 25 years. The concept of solar power for those times I am not near civilization is not really all that difficult to grasp. 2 panels on the roof, feeding 2 pairs of 6v AMG deep cycle golf cart batteries wired in series to become 12v, and a good 1000w pure sine wave inverter will cost me about $1000. That means $1000 for my electric power forever, vs the $75 a month I pay here. With no oceans and mountains. Just a couch. I'll take my 32" flat panel into the motor home, change to unlimited data, and stream TV from my laptop via Chromecast. I also have a Firestick and a Roku (another repetition).
I remember the drive and passion I had when I was working on my CD. I have the same kind of passion for this right now, and I hope it doesn't fade. Winters in Arizona, New Mexico or Florida, summers in TN, SC, NC... sounds like a life I will love. And worst case, if I hate it after a year or so, I can always settle back down somewhere.
So I have a lot to do. Computers I do not use need to be sold, etc. I have a year but some of this stuff can start going right now and the money go into the RV fund. All of you PG people around the country, beware!! I will be pulling into your yard in a couple of years! LOL!!
Why not rent one first? Take a couple months, head to California, and see how you like it. You could rent the same style camper you're thinking of buying, and get some real world experience with it.
Pacific Coast Highway from Santa Barbara to Big Sur is beautiful this time of year.
We have thought about getting a travel home in the past, not an expensive one mind you.
One of the things that has put us slightly off( as I'm not a DIY mechanic sort of person) I just got the impression that its better knowing a bit and being able to fix the engine or other stuiff yourself should something go wrong.
Windows 10 (64bit) M-Audio Fast Track Pro, Band in a Box 2025, Cubase 14, Cakewalk and far too many VST plugins that I probably don't need or will ever use
We have thought about getting a travel home in the past, not an expensive one mind you.
One of the things that has put us slightly off( as I'm not a DIY mechanic sort of person) I just got the impression that its better knowing a bit and being able to fix the engine or other stuiff yourself should something go wrong.
Or does it really matter?
Musiclover
I'll say, "being handy with tools and having mechanical skill is a huge benefit for any RVer." One of my RV friends is usually quite frustrated by his lack of handyman skills. Always asking for my help. I was an auto tech for 23 years and now fix motorcycles by trade. I can fix most things around the house and RV. Even electrical stuff. I'm just blessed with a knack. So, I'd say yes it matters. But, if you have lots of money, which I don't, then you have the equalizer.
If you don;t have automatic leveling jacks, be sure to get a socket and extension that fits the jack's bolt and an nice 1/2" cordless drill to turn it. Sure beats cranking those jacks by hand.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
If you don;t have automatic leveling jacks, be sure to get a socket and extension that fits the jack's bolt and an nice 1/2" cordless drill to turn it. Sure beats cranking those jacks by hand.
Been there, done that. Keep in mind, most scissor style levelers designed for hand cranking are not "levelers". They are stabilizers to reduce bouncing and rocking once you are set up. If you crank them too much in an attempt to "level" the unit you end up flexing the frame in such a way that your doors and windows don't open and close properly. So, be sure of what they are designed for. If that door jamming or not closing properly situation happens then you probably have "stabilizers" not levelers. And, if so, level first by finding a fairly level spot, use a rake and shovel to get one of the wheel spots closer, then get one wheel up on those little yellow plastic blocks or 2 x 8 wood ramps. Then stabilize it with light cranking on the stabilizers. The X jammers between the wheels really help too. They reduce tire bounce and front to rear sway which is a big part of the instability.
Eddie said: "The vehicle I will buy will be a glorified van rather than a true motorcoach.", about 18 feet I believe.
I seriously doubt if it would have levelers and likely wouldn't need stabilizers. The smallest of motorhomes, even 18-24 feet are made wider and can benefit from stabilizers, but just a camperized van wouldn't do much "rockin' and rollin'", that is, under "normal use" whatever that might be <grin>.
I want to walk my dog on the trails of The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Before I developed Charcot's Arthropathy a couple of years ago, I was an avid backpacker and the Great Smoky Mountains national park was one of my favorite places to go. I have logged several thousand miles of hiking in the back country there since my first trip back in 1972.
Pets are banned from all of the serious hiking trails in GSMNP. They allow pets on only two small walking paths in the park; one at the Sugarland Visitors Center, and the other at the visitors center in Cherokee.
Pets are banned from all of the serious hiking trails in GSMNP. They allow pets on only two small walking paths in the park; one at the Sugarland Visitors Center, and the other at the visitors center in Cherokee.
I read that on the National Parks web site Keith, but I should clarify that my idea of hiking is likely not the same as yours, given that you logged that many miles. My knees have so few steps left in them that 1 mile is about it at one time for me. So a half mile out and a half mile back. Thus the "kiddie path" will pretty much be where we go.
Last week I stopped in to see a motor home they had after having a talk with myself and agreeing that this was NOT the time to let the cheap Slovenian make the decision to go as cheap as possible. Those cheap old units would have probably gotten me about 79 feet from my driveway without the engine seizing or the transmission exploding, so I went ahead and decided that trading in F'n Jay and adding some money would be a big enough down payment to buy a more reliable one for more money.
So, the salesman took me by golf cart out to see a 25 ft unit. As we looked at it, he said "How did you know about this one? We just took it on a trade and it isn't on the web page yet." It turns out that it wasn't the one I thought I was seeing but it was a lot nicer. So, we went inside and talked turkey and I put on a deposit and gave them a credit app. He said it was a little different from buying a car so it might be a few days until they knew anything. That was Thursday.
Today about 1, the financing manager called and said the bank wanted $2000 more down before they would approve me. I told her I simply didn't have $2000 more than what I told them I could put down, so unless they raised the value of my trade by $2000, I guess we had no deal. And I said "I really didn't want bad news on my birthday." (And it IS my 66th birthday!) She said "My manager is here. Stay by the phone and I will call you right back."
She called in 5 minutes and said that he agreed to kick up my trade in to cover that $2000. She got me a loan for 10 years at 7.4%, and that works out to a monthly payment of $215 a month, $84 LESS than my FJ Cruiser payment. My eyes actually lit up when she said that, because at some point (ASAP) that $215 will replace my mortgage payment and car payment, or roughly $900 with $215.
So, bottom line, I pick it up Friday. My next task is to find an old beater Jeep Wrangler to use as a daily driver so I am not running errands in a 25ft motor home. And then if the Jeep is enough car to do so, make it my toad so I can bop around places in a Jeep instead of an RV.
I now have to push to get my house ready for sale. I have laminate flooring to go in the living room, and now a guy to install it. Then some "as little as possible" cosmetics, and I will list so I can start living in this!
XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs Special Extended Until August 31st!
XPro & Xtra Styles PAKs Special Extended Until August 31st!
The XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAKs special offers are now available until August 31st at 11:59pm PDT!
Ready to take your Band-in-a-Box® 2025 experience to the next level? Now’s the perfect time! Expand your style library with XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs—packed with a wide variety of genres to inspire your next musical creation.
What are XPro Styles and Xtra Styles PAKs?
XPro Styles PAKs are styles that work with any version (Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition) of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). XPro Styles PAKS 1-9 includes 900 styles!
Xtra Styles PAKs are styles that work with the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box® 2025 (or higher). With over 3,500 styles (and 35 MIDI styles) included in Xtra Styles PAKs 1-20, the possibilities are endless!
Get the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 9 for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Listen to demos and order now! For Windows or for Mac.
Note: XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Get Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 20 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 19 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Listen to demos and order now! For Windows or for Mac.
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 19 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
Don’t miss this chance to supercharge your Band-in-a-Box setup—at a great price!
Mac 2025 Special Upgrade Offers Extended Until August 15th!
It's not too late to upgrade to Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac® and save! We've extended our special until August 15, 2025!
We've added many major new features to Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac®, including advanced AI tools like the amazing BB Stem Splitter and AI Lyrics Generator, as well as VST3 plugin support, and Equalize Temp. Plus, there’s a new one-stop MIDI Patches Picker with over 1,100 MIDI patches to choose from, all neatly categorized by GM numbers. The MultiPicker Library is enhanced with tabs for the SongPicker, MIDI Patch Picker, Chord Builder, AI Lyrics Generator, and Song Titles Browser, and the tabs are organized into logical groups. The Audiophile Edition is enhanced with FLAC files , which are 60% smaller than AIFF files while maintaining identical audio quality, and now ships on a fast 1TB SSD, and much more!
Check out all the new features in Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac® here:
Purchase your Band-in-a-Box® 2025 for Mac during our special to save up to 50% off your upgrade purchase and receive a FREE BONUS PAK of amazing new Add-ons. These include the 2025 RealCombos Booster PAK, Look Ma! More MIDI 13: Country & Americana, Instrumental Studies Set 22: 2-Hand Piano Soloing - Rhythm Changes, MIDI SuperTracks Set 44: Jazz Piano, Artist Performance Set 17: Songs with Vocals 7, Playable RealTracks Set 4, RealDrums Stems Set 7: Jazz with Mike Clark, and more!
Upgrade to the 2025 49-PAK for just $49 and add 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and 20 RealStyles, FLAC Files for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks, Look Ma! More MIDI 14: SynthMaster, MIDI SuperTracks Set 45: More SynthMaster, Artist Performance Set 18: Songs with Vocals 8, and RealDrums Stems Set 8: Pop, Funk & More with Jerry Roe.
Learn more about the Bonus PAKs!
We’ve expanded the Band-in-a-Box® RealTracks library with 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 449-467) across Jazz, Blues, Funk, World, Pop, Rock, Country, Americana, and Praise & Worship—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Blues & World (Sets 449–455):
These RealTracks includes “Soul Jazz” with Neil Swainson (bass), Mike Clark (drums), Charles Treadway (organ), Miles Black (piano), and Brent Mason (guitar). Enjoy “Requested ’60s” jazz, classic acoustic blues with Colin Linden, and more of our popular 2-handed piano soloing. Plus, a RealTracks first—Tango with bandoneon, recorded in Argentina!
Rock & Pop (Sets 456–461):
This collection includes Disco, slap bass ‘70s/‘80s pop, modern and ‘80s metal with Andy Wood, and a unique “Songwriter Potpourri” featuring Chinese folk instruments, piano, banjo, and more. You’ll also find a muted electric guitar style (a RealTracks first!) and “Producer Layered Guitar” styles for slick "produced" sound.
Country, Americana & Praise (Sets 462–467):
We’ve added new RealTracks across bro country, Americana, praise & worship, vintage country, and songwriter piano. Highlights include Brent Mason (electric guitar), Eddie Bayers (drums), Doug Jernigan (pedal steel), John Jarvis (piano), Glen Duncan (banjo, mandolin & fiddle), Mike Harrison (electric bass) and more—offering everything from modern sounds to heartfelt Americana styles
And, if you are looking for more, the 2025 49-PAK (for $49) includes an additional 20 RealTracks with exciting new sounds and genre-spanning styles. Enjoy RealTracks firsts like Chinese instruments (guzheng & dizi), the bandoneon in an authentic Argentine tango trio, and the classic “tic-tac” baritone guitar for vintage country.
You’ll also get slick ’80s metal guitar from Andy Wood, modern metal with guitarist Nico Santora, bass player Nick Schendzielos, and drummer Aaron Stechauner, more praise & worship, indie-folk, modern/bro country with Brent Mason, and “Songwriter Americana” with Johnny Hiland.
Plus, enjoy user-requested styles like Soul Jazz RealDrums, fast Celtic Strathspey guitar, and Chill Hop piano & drums!
With your version 2025 for Mac Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, Audiophile Edition or PlusPAK purchase, we'll include a Bonus PAK full of great new Add-ons FREE! Or upgrade to the 2025 49-PAK for only $49 to receive even more NEW Add-ons including 20 additional RealTracks!
These PAKs are loaded with additional add-ons to supercharge your Band-in-a-Box®!
This Free Bonus PAK includes:
The 2025 RealCombos Booster PAK:
-For Pro customers, this includes 33 new RealTracks and 65+ new RealStyles.
-For MegaPAK customers, this includes 29 new RealTracks and 45+ new RealStyles.
-For UltraPAK customers, this includes 20 new RealStyles.
Look Ma! More MIDI 13: Country & Americana
Instrumental Studies Set 22: 2-Hand Piano Soloing - Rhythm Changes
MIDI SuperTracks Set 44: Jazz Piano
Artist Performance Set 17: Songs with Vocals 7
Playable RealTracks Set 4
RealDrums Stems Set 7: Jazz with Mike Clark
SynthMaster Sounds and Styles (with audio demos)
128 GM MIDI Patch Audio Demos.
Looking for more great add-ons, then upgrade to the 2025 49-PAK for just $49 and you'll get:
20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums with 20 RealStyles,
FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
Look Ma! More MIDI 14: SynthMaster,
Instrumental Studies Set 23: More '80s Hard Rock Soloing,
MIDI SuperTracks Set 45: More SynthMaster
Artist Performance Set 18: Songs with Vocals 8
RealDrums Stems Set 8: Pop, Funk & More with Jerry Roe
New! Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher for Mac!
Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
We're excited to bring you our latest and greatest in the all new Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box! This fresh installment is packed with 200 all-new styles spanning the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres you've come to expect, as well as the exciting inclusion of electronic styles!
In this PAK you’ll discover: Minimalist Modern Funk, New Wave Synth Pop, Hard Bop Latin Groove, Gospel Country Shuffle, Cinematic Synthwave, '60s Motown, Funky Lo-Fi Bossa, Heavy 1980s Metal, Soft Muted 12-8 Folk, J-Pop Jazz Fusion, and many more!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 20 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 209 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 20 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
New! XPro Styles PAK 9 for Band-in-a-Box 2025 and higher for Mac!
We've just released XPro Styles PAK 9 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 29 RealTracks/RealDrums!
We've been hard at it to bring you the latest and greatest in this 9th installment of our popular XPro Styles PAK series! Included are 75 styles spanning the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres (25 styles each) that fans have come to expect, as well as 25 styles in this volume's wildcard genre: funk & R&B!
If you're itching to get a sneak peek at what's included in XPro Styles PAK 9, here is a small helping of what you can look forward to: Funky R&B Horns, Upbeat Celtic Rock, Jazz Fusion Salsa, Gentle Indie Folk, Cool '60s Soul, Funky '70s R&B, Smooth Jazz Hip Hop, Acoustic Rockabilly Swing, Funky Reggae Dub, Dreamy Retro Latin Jazz, Retro Soul-Rock Fusion, and much more!
Special Pricing! Until July 31, 2024, all the XPro Styles PAKs 1 - 9 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2025 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
New! Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box 2025 and Higher for Windows!
Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Windows & Mac Band-in-a-Box version 2025 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
We're excited to bring you our latest and greatest in the all new Xtra Styles PAK 20 for Band-in-a-Box! This fresh installment is packed with 200 all-new styles spanning the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres you've come to expect, as well as the exciting inclusion of electronic styles!
In this PAK you’ll discover: Minimalist Modern Funk, New Wave Synth Pop, Hard Bop Latin Groove, Gospel Country Shuffle, Cinematic Synthwave, '60s Motown, Funky Lo-Fi Bossa, Heavy 1980s Metal, Soft Muted 12-8 Folk, J-Pop Jazz Fusion, and many more!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1 - 20 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 209 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 20 requires the 2025 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
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