Researching, reading, purchasing, organizing, reading, planning, routing, reading......nearly three years of getting ready.
Still I knew that nothing would take the place of actually being out here. That was part of the preparation after all - to be ready for anything.
We've been on the road about two weeks and there is plenty of anything out there waiting for us. We haven't even left our home state yet.
So are there already some "un-expecteds"? Naturally. Do I think I'll forget them if I don't capture them now? Of course.
These are some of the things I didn't expect, in no particular order:
- one-ply toilet paper is not cheaper than two-ply
- even in RV parks, everyone does not pick up after their dog (Tessa is appalled)
- dishes left dirty overnight will not come alive and kill you in your sleep
- legally-blind people designed the lighting in this motorhome, or it was intended to double as an operating room
- the rig is not nearly as stable on winding roads as I'd like it to be
- according to Bill, the rig is not nearly as unstable as I think it is
- I miss watching Big Bang Theory re-runs
- every campsite slopes in the front
- waiting lists work for reservations
- the GPS software has a sense of humor
- mine tends to diminish with each wrong turn
- cooking is simplified greatly when everything is within arm's reach (even my arm)
- the outside of the rig is never going to stay clean for more than a few hours
- people being loud on Friday and Saturday night don't bother me
- jury's still out on the other nights
- my husband is even more tolerant and patient than he already was
- Waking up in a beautiful place knowing you don't have to go home, because you're already there.
You do need to pinch yourself occasionally to remember this is real! I still find, as we start our sixth year on the road, that I have trouble believing this is really happening. I love waking in the morning and having to figure out where we are and which way we are facing when I hear sounds outside. It sounds like you are settling in just fine to this amazing adventure:) Remember to take enough time to really enjoy each location. You don't want to get on that whirl wind of go, go, go every minute of every day. That will kill your love of the road. This is life and we all need to take days to just "Live" as I call them...stay home, clean, do laundry, read, bake, etc. Take a big breath and smell the roses:)
ReplyDeleteWe're loving eight nights here in Trinidad and want to do a lot more and longer stays. With our route up the coast we're challenged with stays over the weekends in spots we really like, but I'm slowly figuring out our way around. With the shorter travel days we can still visit the nearby area if we do move up the road. Love being somewhere long enough for the person at the coffee counter to know my name :-)
DeleteNetflix is awesome! I'm not sure if they have Big Bang Theory or not but they have many, many great shows. We have been watching Criminal Minds and Burn Notice lately. Eagerly awaiting the next season of Bones...
ReplyDeleteWe love it too, especially if the park WiFi is strong enough to use it. Otherwise we have to keep an eye on our data usage. We have cable here so will try to find the re-runs and get our fix that way :-)
DeleteNetfiix is definitely awesome. We've also discovered we really cannot live without a DVR to record all those shows we may want to watch in the distant future when we're too busy doing nothing to watch it when it comes on. Yes, dogs don't clean up after themselves and sometimes some owners feel they are not subject to the clean-up or leash rule. I have been known to leave a leash and doggie bags on the steps of an RV or two. I doubt it does any good though. We also discovered amazing LED lights have different brightness levels. I can't do much about one-ply toilet paper except get used to it.
ReplyDeleteThe learning curve will continue as long as you call your RV home. It's no different than any other place you've called home over the years. Enjoy it. Nothing is better than the life you have chosen..
Couldn't agree more, we love it. We're planning on Direct TV when football season starts and definitely use the DVR again :-)
DeleteHmm. I may have been wrong on my last sentence. Maybe living in a houseboat and going north and south on the ocean could be exciting too.
ReplyDeleteThere's that :-)))))
Deletelife is good! There will be some bumps, but keep looking out.
ReplyDeleteOh yes, those bumps just keep us on our toes.
DeleteYou are amazingly astute to the wonderful things and the surprises. We never have enough band width to do netflix so we don't belong. Even our Amazon prime isn't very useful to us other than for getting packages here in 2 days although over night was a lot better. Still, I wouldn't trade the ability to be where I want, when I want and mostly stay as long as I want.
ReplyDeleteThanks Sherry :-) Definitely finding the trade-offs are worth it!
DeleteSomehow hubby always manages to find Big Bang via the antenna. Welcome to life on the road :-)
ReplyDeleteKeep that man! We have cable here for the first time so maybe it will show up this week :-)
DeleteI love to research and plan, which you can still do, yet I also love to go with the flow. Not always easy to do if staying in RV parks especially weekends where I'd never get used to the noise of weekend, or week day, visitors. And because I haven't owned a TV in over a decade and have a slow signal I've only heard of the Big Bang. May be the advantage of not missing what I've never seen. Life is full of speed bumps to teach us various lessons along the journey and being mobile adds a new dimension. I love the lifestyle, with 2-ply that doesn't go into the tank.
ReplyDeleteIt's true there is still some fun planning. We've been fortunate in our parks so far - completely quiet except a few revelers on Saturday night. This place is nearly full and not a peep last night :-) Being able to leave adds such a sense of freedom
DeleteI can so relate to just about every item on your list...but I'll just comment on a couple of them!
ReplyDeleteI learned that I can't stand one ply, so we switched to two ply and throw 99% of it in the trash...just dump the trash every day.
We switched out a few bulbs so we have some mood lighting, the best is a strip of lights above our cabinets for a soft glow.
You CAN watch Big Bang Theory every night if you have satellite!
Traveling with ones home is the best possible way to travel...especially if that travel happens during retirement!
I know my mother is looking down and not believing I'm using one-ply - she hated it too :-) Still don't know why it's not cheaper!
DeleteRetirement is the best, and being able to do it before 60 (barely) is something we appreciate every day.
Loved your observations about life on the road. :-) We suffered through withdrawal from Big Bang, too, but it gets easier with time, haha. And those overhead bright RV lights are ridiculous! We switched out all of them for the lowest LED warm lighting possible (and it's still too bright, in my opinion). Mostly we use a regular small lamp on our dining table, which provides great ambiance. It's all worth it for the magnificent adventure of life on the road, and as you said, waking up " at home" wherever we are.
ReplyDeleteThanks Laurel :-) I definitely want to switch out those glaring bulbs as well!
DeleteGPS can be a hoot. Ours had us driving in Lake Michigan once, even though we were actually a mile inland. I did keep our life jackets handy, just in case. :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome! Our friends followed theirs off the freeway at Salt Lake City just to get back on a few streets later. They weren't sure what it was they were supposed to see :-)
DeleteHi Jodie,
ReplyDeleteI've been reading your blog for over a year now. It's been of special interest to me because we too have been planning, since 2011, to retire and live life on the road. At this point we're six months from leaving our jobs and eight months from the road. We still have to buy our rig (truck & Airstream) so that hurdle is looming in my mind. Anyway, I wonder all the time what life will really be like and will we love it like we think we will? Your experience (and the experience of others including your commenters) give me confidence. Thanks for sharing!
How fun that you've been with us for so long Joanne! I know that reading other's blogs who were, or had been doing, what we were helped me a great deal. Getting the rig is such a huge part of the puzzle - would love an Airstream if we ever went with a TT :-) I thought I would want to do things the same as others but am finding that even in the first few weeks we're figuring out our own comfort level, and just relaxing as we get more experience. Six months will fly by!!
Delete