gordfromborder
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Joined 21 years ago
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Re: Currency conversion for Canadians
I guess I'll wade in with our method. Keep in mind this has evolved over a few years so for us it hasn't been as complicated as it seems when I write this out. ( also my wife and I are kind of frugal as we retired at 55 and 53 respectively w/ o pensions.) First we have a CIBC U.S. Chequing acount. All our U.S. Dividend stocks get deposited to this account. Unfortunately we didn't buy more Johnson and Johnson and other stocks when the C$ was at par.......sighhhhh. Secondly, we opened a trading account with Canadian Forex. They are a currency trader, dealing in pretty much all free world currencies. When we have some extra C$ and we think the dollar exchange rate has bumped up a bit, we go on line to Forex, get a quote on buying US $, and if we like it, book the trade. Our CIBC US$ and CIBC C$ account are linked to Frorex. They don't have a store front where you can get actual currency, it is strictly inter bank transfers. They take the C$ from our CIBC C$ account and deposit the converted amount to the US$ account. The transaction takes about four to five days. At $5000C, they charge about 1% plus your bank may ding you $15.00. At $10,000C, the charge is about 0.5% plus the $15.00. The rate they charge is added to the official Bank of Canada spot rate. For a Credit card for US purchases, we have a BMO U.S. MasterCard that is linked to our CIBC US account for monthly auto payment. This credit card has a $35 annual fee, but is reimbursed once you have $1500 in purchases......like I said we are frugal.....and survived the 2008 2009 market melt down! Hope this all makes sense, and it works really well for us. Gord901Views0likes0CommentsPalm Springs RV storage
Good afternoon, We hope to be out of Alberta before the end of October! We will end up in the Palm Springs, Cal. area by December. Thanks to Westjet seat sales, we are flying out of PS to return home for Christmas ( grand daughter drawing us home......) We are looking for any recommendations for one month RV storage in the Palm Springs to Indio area for our truck and trailer. When I checked on line, the rates were pretty pricey compared what we are used to paying in the Phoenix area when we have done this in the past. Thanks in advance for any help and information. Gord1.5KViews0likes5CommentsRe: Not impressed with 2014 Arctic Fox (VIDEO INSIDE)
Hello Skydiver31, I feel your displeasure with AF. We purchased a 27T ( factory order ) in January 2014 and took delivery in May when we returned from down south. ( we are retirees in Alberta, and before I get flamed, I will change my signature details ). I did a two hour PDI and had a list of 30 items that the dealer fixed prior to delivery. Since then we have added at least 50 more items! We are experiencing similar issues that are just as frustrating. It's great AF puts greaseable fittings on the suspension, but after one of the zerk fittings fell out, I checked the others. One more ready to fall out and four extremely loose. Broken welds on the aluminum lower slide out frame that has been fixed with metal strapping and sheet metal screws that keep loosening, leaky shower door retraction mech., saggy recliner that has to go to an upholstery shop, hide a bed that couldn't be used because it couldn't be fully opened without contacting the kitchen cabinet, uneven and poorly installed sink, broken ground wire...........and on and on. My dealer, Tee Pee Trade in Camrose has been great to deal with and AF has been authorizing most of the repairs in a timely manner, but our trailer has been in four times since delivery and goes back on Oct 17 for more service work. The final one before we head south. Now am I being too picky? Maybe, but when we pay a premium for an RV that we expect to be better than average and end up with less than average, I am PO'd. Like skydiver, I have taken to doing numerous fixes and improvements that should have been caught by AF or better design and or execution by them. I have completed mouse proofing. My latest project is as a result of the mouse proofing. While under the trailer, I noticed the coloplast ( plastic covering material ) was very saggy under the front holding tank ( grey water). When I pushed up on it, water started running out the " drain " hole in the plastic. I have removed the panel to expose both tanks and as suspected the fibreglass is soaked, turning black plus rusting the light weight steel frame cross members. I have added tank supports and am putting in 1" styrofoam rig in insulation. After I replace the coloplast all joints will be sealed with an asphalt type car undercoating spray. Anyways, enough complaint for now. Gord624Views0likes0CommentsRe: What's behind the name? Screen name that is.
Well, it's my turn. Been so busy through the summer, I missed the start of this thread. Mine is fairly straight forward: my first name, Gord, but not capitalized as I'm a two finger typist and takes too long to stab the shift....and the company I work for as a project manager/ estimator for the past 29 years is Border Paving Ltd. All my customers/ engineers/ consultants/ suppliers have called me gordfromborder for years. As a side note, we also have a place in La Paz, Mexico, so we cross many borders back and forth. This way I can keep my handle when I retire in nine weeks and one day! Fishing, camping and enjoying the great outdoors in the summer....here I come. Gord667Views0likes0Comments
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Prefer to camp in a travel trailer? You're not alone.Jan 13, 202544,029 Posts
