Thursday 29 August 2013

More chores but good progress.

Started the day with a Flying-J truck stop coffee - yuck....  Now I know why I swore off coffee last time over here....

America's Mailbox headquarters and RV park.
They're really big on flags here, that one is 60 ft long....

America's Mailbox has made an business of registering and insuring full-time RVers who have no other home address but their rig.  The owners have been full-time RVers themselves, so knew the need.  Most states require utility bills and such to prove residence, and many charges local taxes even if you spend all your time elsewhere.  They provide a mail forwarding address, and hold mail until you email them with a current address, and then they forward it to you.  They also help arrange driver's license, registration and insurance, and it's really popular, with a lot of big motorhomes arriving to become new South Dakota 'residents'.  They have an RV park adjoining, and all that's required to declare to be a SD resident is a receipt for one night in the park!

Then over to the drivers license office.  Really quiet and efficient there.  The receipt for the night in the RV park, a written test, a driving test, an eye test, a photo, and then handed a new license, all for $20.  Really exciting, felt like a teenager with first license!

Then back to America's Mailbox to do registration.  A bit of mucking around cause I never got a bill of sale, just the signed off title.  Some phone calls and some faxes and it was fixed.  The purchase price of $2000 was just right to exempt from sales tax...   Registration fee $67 for a year!  It's hard to see those charges cover anything more than the office costs...

Then to the in-house insurance agent.  $195 for 6 months, compared to the $929 for 6 months in Arizona!  It was really worth coming here to South Dakota to do this.  Lots of other RVers doing it as well, it's a bit of an industry here.....

Then went to Wells Fargo bank and opened an account and get a plastic card, real simple now that I have this US address.

So now I've got a drivers license and a credit card, and a vehicle, what more do you need to tour America!

Late in the day by then, but just had to get rolling.....  Now camped in a gravel pit next to Wall airfield.  Flew from here last year to see the Badlands, so no need to fly again now.  Gulping a Big Bud, it's been +100F (38C), and still just about that at sundown....

Stopped along the way and fixed the problem with the fan in the van, so the the air conditioner couldn't work this last couple of days.  We Aussie's are tough and not bothered by heat, but a/c sure feels good sometimes, eh....

p.s. - I just checked the Spot locator and it's amazing!  In satellite view you can even see the piles of gravel that I'm hiding behind........  Don't think anyone will notice me here......  Nearly dark now.....

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