Camping World Redefines Dog-Friendly

My prior reference to the "iffy" reputation of Camping World was based on a large number of bad experiences shared by bloggers and forum-participants. I am well aware that the bad is more often reported than the good, and was very happy that some commenters here shared positive examples of their own interaction with CW.

The number one reason we chose CW in the first place was proximity. It is literally two blocks from the apartment - an easy walk to return home while any work is being done. Even before our first appointment we had another reason to choose them. The RV dealership quote for the same brand/model of tire pressure monitors plus installation was nearly $800.00 more!

Still, I'm a little wary when I take the Jeep in Wednesday morning for the Invisibrake and Sterling towbar install. Dealing with the parts "guy" on the phone had been a pleasant experience, but a few times it was difficult to get ahold of him. I don't know what to expect on the service end.

When in doubt, take Tessa. I'm sure everyone who goes there gets great customer service, but I felt like a celebrity. The regional manager, Laif, was spending the day at our location and handled our service from beginning to end. He explained everything they were doing, confirmed costs, and understood my time contraints - all while petting the dog. The other service agents stopped by at least once for a doggie-fix, some got on the floor to pet her. It was hysterical to listen to their voices change to "cute little dog" mode!




Just pet me - you know you want to!

 Because we share the car now, I needed to pick it up by four so I could pick Bill up from work. It would still mean his staying later, but we wouldn't need to rent a car if they didn't keep it overnight. Laif said he would call at 2:00 with a status update so I could make arrangments if necessary, and keep Bill in the loop as well.

One can't just walk into CW, go to service, and walk out......one must shop a bit. It's a rule. A sales rep comes up to me and says "Excuse me, I'm the fluffiness inspector and need to check the dog before you can continue shopping." Tessa is already wagging her tail because he said "fluffy". Of course I give permission as this is clearly a serious requirement. She passes with high marks and the delightful young man continues stocking shelves. I'm sure only until his real work is needed again :-)

Walking home I'm feeling pretty darn good about my first service experience at CW . When my phone rings at exactly 2:00 I'm still surprised it's Laif. Jeep will be ready before 3:30, come over a little early to finalize. Sweet!

This time Tessa is greeted by name and introduced to those who weren't there in the morning. No one asks to have their picture taken with her. This time. I'm asked when "we" are coming back, and when I say February 9 for the tire monitors the cashier marks her calendar to be sure she's working. They only know my name because it's on the paperwork.

All the pieces are identified and I'm shown how to attach and remove the towbar. The wiring that I'm sending to be installed on the motorhome by the dealer is bagged separately for me. Everything looks perfect. We head out at exactly 4:00. I'm sure those weren't tears in his eyes as Laif said goodbye to Tessa........

Like the commenters, I'm very happy with my Camping World experience. I imagine their service is excellent for everyone at this store, but just in case, I'm always taking Tessa :-)




Adorable is so exhausting......

Ice Cream Memories

On our way home from Vasquez Rocks on Saturday we stopped for a couple scoops of ice cream.  A rare dose of comfort food on a beautiful day.

For me, the "comfort" of comfort food comes from the warm fuzzies of good memories.  The strong combination of smell and taste brings back chuckles and smiles, sometimes even tears. There are the traditional-meal-memories like Thanksgiving dinner and Christmas cookies.  Sometimes it's a common food enjoyed at a special place like a kraut dog from a cart at Venice Beach (or Home Depot) that reminds of us fun times from our past.

 

 

Although neither of my parents were "cooks", they both had their signature homemade dishes. 

When I was a little girl I brought friends home to prove that Mom really did "hang up" her noodles in the kitchen!  She made these wonderful thick noodles from scratch that she hung over clothesline strung between the cabinets. The process took an entire day. Added to long simmering chicken or a ham hock, those noodles were the stuff of legend.  I've never attempted the recipe, and I have still not tasted a noodle that compares - even from San Francisco's Chinatown, and those are pretty amazing.

Dad's macaroni salad was always served in the large yellow Pyrex bowl (the red one for ambrosia and the blue for tuna salad - always).  He was a machinist by trade and the importance of details came with him to the kitchen.  He always said, and I repeat every time I make it, that the secret to the salad was cutting the ingredients in perfect, small squares.  Pre-chopped black olives were allowed, but everything else was (is) cut with a knife, and added in the proper order.  Made with Tilamook cheddar and pimentos, making it and eating it both remind me so much of my dad.

Most people have a favorite flavor of ice cream.  With or without toppings, there is one flavor that is the absolute best for each of us.  For most of us these flavors are found among the traditional "31".  Others have found their match in the fancier combinations created by Ben and Jerry or Dryers, or the newer favorites by Blue Bunny and Tilamook.

Dad's was Baskin Robbins' Chocolate Chip. No other brand. Just Baskin Robbins. If not available he would default to plain vanilla or forgo the ice cream altogether. No fancy-schancy flavors for him.  He had standards.

Mom loved butter pecan and was less picky about brand name.  When Pralines and Cream came along she decided that having two favorites was just fine.  She was always wilder than Dad.

My favorite(s)?  It's almost embarrassing to share, siting a clear lack of imagination and independence on my part.  Baskin Robbins Chocolate Chip, and Pralines and Cream.  Seriously.  My choice on Saturday? - a scoop of each.  Dad would be so proud.  Mom would be slightly disappointed.

Being in the ice cream shop, with the pint containers lined up in the tall freezer toward the back, always sparks a great Dad memory.  A delightful ice cream memory.

Brian (oldest son)'s dad and I were living in Ontario, CA, about a four hour drive from my dad in Quartzsite (he had a S&B there). One summer evening Dad called to say he was about an hour away and was picking up ice cream before stopping at our house for the night.  Cool.  Naturally he got chocolate chip, I got the pralines this time, and the third was german chocolate cake.  I don't remember what I had for dinner last night.......but I know it wasn't ice cream :-)

So dad comes, we enjoy the ice cream and some television, we go to bed.  Next morning he heads back home after breakfast.  A nice quick visit.  Nice of him to bring ice cream.  Two days later I realize I missed his birthday.  It was two days before.  Oh crap!

When I call to apologize and give him hell at the same time he is cracking up - big belly laughs.  I'm in my 20's at the time and horrible at remembering birthdays.  He thinks it is the funniest thing in the world that he brought us ice cream for his birthday and we didn't even know it!  I vow I will never forget his birthday again.

Fast forward 12 months.  Summer evening.  Dad calls.  He's on his way to Long Beach, wants to stop on his way and go to Vince's for spaghetti.  It's a favorite for all three of us, yes let's absolutely do it!  On the way back to the house he stops at Baskin Robbins.  He buys us ice cream.  He decides to spend the night and we all enjoy our dessert on the patio.

Bet I don't have to tell you what day it was.  This time it was a few days longer before I made the connection.  I waited a week to call him.  No matter, he just thought it was even funnier! 

The next several years he was on the road in his motorhome over his birthday, and most of those years I did call him on the actual day.  We always laughed about those two years.  He always laughed harder than I did!

With reminders from my phone and my calendar and my Facebook page I remember birthdays every year.  And when I go to Baskin Robbins I remember Dad's "birthday surprise" every time.  

 

 

KISS - Keep It Simple Saturday

Even though it is a four-hour drive one way to Quartzsite from here, I was really hoping to get to the Bloggerfest on Saturday. I knew there would be "familiar" faces, and that I would have a great time matching what I've read with those faces. Unfortunately it was not to be :-) After seeing Al's photos this morning I'm even more bummed!

I still wanted to get out and "see some stuff", and Bill is always up for an adventure, so we packed a lunch and headed out. One of the things we enjoy is traveling roads we (or one of us) have never been on before. I have always lived in California, and Bill arrived in elementary school, and we have both lived in each half of the state, so between the two of us we have been on a lot of roads!

Big Tujunga Canyon is an area of the Angeles National Forest north of Los Angeles. Neither of us had been there. Big Tujunga Canyon Road intersects with Angeles Forest Hwy and runs between Hwy 210 and Hwy 14 - so it made a nice loop for a Saturday drive. I had hoped to stop and take photos but the blowing dirt and brush made staying in the car the better option.

With the severe drought and several fires in the last ten years, there is not much "forest" left along this route. The dam now holds back a small pond surrounded by long-dry creek beds. Although there is a lot of green grass and other low-growing foliage, driving this area is like watching a documentary on the long-term devastation of California's drought. If it ever returns to it's former beauty (you can still see what it used to look like in the landscape of dead trees and water-carved canyons), it will be decades.

Sometimes those "beauty-challenged" areas make you look harder. Instead of driving faster to just "get through it", I slowed down, letting the other very few cars pass as soon as there was a turnout. We noticed the incredible variety of rock color - chocolate, brick, cream, charcoal, even green. Random out croppings of stone, drastically different in color from their surrounding soil, were remarkable. The ghostly skeletons of burned manzanita look like the villian's forest in Disney movies. Crumbling stone walls with no other sign of civilization hint at a past that is impossible to imagine in the present.

Tessa is not a fan of winding roads and we stopped along a flat section to let her out of the car. The wind was still blowing hard and she was not impressed with my choice of rest stops. It was nearly on top of us before we saw the tumbleweed coming at us. It was the size of a mini-cooper, and I had to pull Tessa out of its path at the last minute. We watched it make its way between the trees, and then between the fence posts like it had built-in sonar - they are really kind of creepy :-)

Soon we were in "civilization" and getting hungry. And we were back on roads we had already seen. The sign for Vasquez Rocks gave us our best option so we headed there. I didn't know until we were pulling in the park (free admission) that Bill had never been there. We were back in adventure-mode! Us, and about a hundred others.

Those of you who have not been to Vasquez have very likely still seen it in movies and/or TV shows. I also referenced it in this post about our local area.

Home to cowboys and aliens

Yes there is a person on top, no I don't have decent zoom on the phone

I have only been one other time myself, a day with only a couple other people. Not this day.

A nearly full parking lot

Families with toddlers, teenage girls with loud (always) voices, older boys with remote-control dune buggies and drones, young and old couples with and without dogs - all out enjoying a windy, sunny Saturday. I forgot a jacket and it was just cool enough for me to be uncomfortable standing still so we ate our lunch in the car with non-stop entertainment all around. I couldn't watch the guy attempting to run down the largest rock slab - it was so steep his much-smarter (usually) girlfriend was sliding down on her butt.

Lots of green among the rocks

Trails around the back lead to the top

A good spot for those poles.......

Please take my picture

Why are you taking my picture?

After lunch we hiked among the large junipers and smaller out croppings. With all the people in the parking lot and up on the big rocks, we saw very few others where we walked. It would have been a good place to practice with my trekking poles and I was sorry I hadn't thought to bring them for the day (they're hanging next to the jacket). There is very little signage in this park so I figured the one we saw must have some significance. Google is clueless on this sign.



What??

If there are 11 other signs we didn't see them. There was no California buckwheat growing near the sign. It was not a trailhead. I remain as clueless as Google.

So we got out, took a drive, had a hike, saw new things, people-watched - a simple and very enjoyable Saturday.

Not the Arizona Desert or the Florida Keys

While we are not yet spending our days and nights in unique and exciting places, our temporary S&B gives us a great view of the morning skies......

 

 

Reminds me of those rocket popsicles I enjoyed as a kid.....

 

 



The Honeymoon Phase

Everything is perfect. 

The motorhome is beautiful and all its surfaces are shiny. I get excited every time I realize it's ours and has everything we want. The mechanical parts all work as designed, and the electronics are easy to understand. The interior storage is sufficient, the exterior storage is huge, we have room to spare. Driving it is easy and comfortable, it almost drives itself. The dealership loves us and the upgrades, additions and inspections are on time and without incident.

Perfection

We haven't picked it up yet.

The weather is ideal. Blue skies, warm temps, and no wind. None. Windshields are no longer frozen in the morning, and the afternoons are comfortable in a t-shirt (maybe with long sleeves). All signs point to an early Spring with perfect travel conditions. A February weekend in the desert will be fabulous.

Always

Good thing we don't have historically unpredictable weather in SoCal.

One of the reasons I read blogs and forums is to learn from others who are living the fulltime life. To learn from their mistakes, and from their successes. The biggest takeaway is that there is no one right way to do this. Still, there are some consistent do's and don't's - like waiting until you get out there to buy a lot of gizmos and gadgets that you may never use. Makes perfect sense.

Necessary

Over half our Amazon Wish List items are now in the garage, purchased in the last two weeks. They look really cool.

Another helpful part of following the veterans out there is paying attention to customer service reliability. Even better than reviews on Yelp, this information is from people I have grown to trust over nearly two years. It is so smart to avoid places where these folks have had consistently bad experience.




Exceptional

We're getting our Invisabrake and Roadmaster tow kit installed at Camping World. They're across the street......they're "nice guys"......every CW can't be horrible.......

Because when you're in love and all your dreams are coming true, you want to hold on to that feeling for as long as you can. You expect perfection. Regardless of the little but, but, but in the back of your mind, and the well-meaning reminders from others, you keep dancing to the music that keeps your feet from touching the ground (Al gave me that one...).

This "phase" of our journey is So Much Fun! With the sale of the house behind us and the purchase of the rig complete, we are free to focus on the exciting stuff. Like a child with a new toy, or a teenager with their first car, or a couple newly married, we feel only the joy of having gotten what we most longed for.

Not only longed for, but worked for. There's also a feeling of reward, of crossing a finish line of sorts. In this case the finish line does not indicate an end, but rather a most wonderful beginning.

Bill still has ten more Mondays to work, and I know for him that crossing that finish line will truly mean freedom. It will be another huge milestone, but not one there is any doubt about the if or when. Like Richie's graduation on June 2, it is a date on the calendar that gets closer every sunrise.

We know there will be some bumps moving forward, there always are. We'll do our best to limit them, and get through them with as much good humor as possible. We'll do it together. But in the meantime......

The honeymoon is perfect :-)

THIS Year!

 

As anticipated in last year's post, it feels a lot better to say "This year we are heading out...."  Actually it feels better than better - it feels amazing and about fifty more flowery, exaggerated adjectives, all meaning GREAT! 

There was never any doubt that we would realize this dream, just whether we could pull off all the things that needed to happen to keep us on schedule for a June, 2015 launch date.  When I clicked "publish" on my very first blog post I remember thinking I might regret putting all those goals "out there", inviting public accountability :-( 

Looking back now I am so glad I'm recording this critical part of the journey. We worked hard to get to where we are, stayed on track, and have been incredibly blessed at every turn. There have been some sad times, the passing of Bill's brother Wayne was particularly hard; and a couple potential side-liners like the wheel-bearing on the trailer and the huge income tax bill. 

We took a leap of faith and listed the house four months earlier than our original plan, and it turned out to be the best thing we could have done!

We learned some important lessons - like purging has no end-date, and keeping your options open might find you an even better motorhome :-) The learning continues.

Now that we have the rig, school is definitely in session!  We finalized everything yesterday, and made arrangements to pick it up in February. Yes, it took a lot of will-power not to say "We want it tomorrow!"  But a month of free storage while they prep the rig, and we get the Jeep set up with the tow and brake package, was the smarter way to go.

In yesterday's Bayfield Bunch post, Al talked about the forward-feeling of a new year.  I can so relate to that feeling - putting up a brand new calendar, starting the first page of a new journal, making commitments that you might or might not keep.
 
THIS year that fresh-start, unlimited-potential, open-opportunity feeling is nearly over whelming!!

 

 

New Year Blessings

From our home to yours - bright blessings for a wonderful 2015.

 

 

A Huge Piece of the Puzzle Moves In Place

Don't have the keys, and haven't signed the last of the last documents - but we bought our motorhome on Saturday! 

 

Although the Tiffin Allegro 33aa was still on the list, after our introduction to the Thor Tuscany 34ST in October we have really thought that was the rig we wanted. I've been "checking out" the photos of a 2014 at Giant RV here in SoCal for weeks, thinking it was near perfect for us. Didn't like the red stripe on the exterior and the couch looked uncomfortable with little option for changing it out. Everything else was great.

 

Like so much of our journey, this piece just sort of fell into place. The rep we met in October stayed in touch, and Bill got an email about a dealer "show" back at the Pomona Fairgrounds starting on the 26th. The timing was good and we made plans to head over there on the weekend "just to look". Uh huh.

 

I called the rep when we got there and found out he was in Quartzsite preparing for the big show next month. He gave me the name of another rep to find on site. We headed to the diesel pusher "section" and walked up to the first reps we saw. Yep, one of them was the guy (turns out he was a sales manager), and one of them was the factory rep. Score!

 

So we have "the" guy, and two units over is "the" rig. The one I've memorized online. It's the only 34ST. Naturally the "red" stripe is really a beautiful brown/wine color, and the tan is the exact color of the Jeep (I think the serial number is a code that spells our name). Bill and the sales manager head inside while the factory rep and I discuss some possible options for the couch. Good to know. 

 

But is anyone surprised to hear that the couch is really comfortable? Of course not. 

 

Tessa-Approved Comfort

 

From the darker leather upholstery to the larger bathroom and bedroom to the more efficient storage to the 360 HP engine.......everything we want. It's big though. Not big like the 45-footers next to it, but it's still intimidating. Yes, we want to take it for a drive. The weather is Chamber-of-Commerce perfect. 

 

Bill goes first as my passenger skills are much more in question than either of our driving skills. He handles it like a boss. On city streets, on the freeway, into a parking lot, all good. No shaking, no rattles, it glides on every surface. I only make a fool of myself once in the passenger seat. The reps were warned ahead of time. We all survive it.

 

When it's my turn I'm actually wondering if my feet are going to reach the peddles well enough to drive it safely, but the seat does everything but lie flat so I get situated comfortably before "engaging" the behemoth. I've driven a 29 ft Class A with a small toad. This 35 ft baby handles ten times better! Out the parking lot, down small streets (do have to remember those trees on the side), and then on a dead end street. No problem, just make a U-turn! Because the rig doesn't just turn tight, it pivots on a dime - so cool :-) 

 

Bill and I don't even have to discuss it. He says "Are we going to buy it?" I respond "Yes we are." We spend some time alone in the coach while the rep meets with the mysterious office people, and start to get pretty excited about what we're doing. Tessa has made herself at home , and she clearly approves. In about 20 minutes he returns. We have a deal. We have a motorhome!

 

Everything on our list

 

A couple more signatures and instructions in the office and we're back in the Jeep headed home. Never looked at another rig. After just five weeks to sell the house, I guess less than five hours to buy the rig is about right.  Again, we are VERY grateful for our good fortune!!! 

 

We made one stop for Juanita's burritos. My favorite burrito for the last 30+ years, and the perfect celebration for completing this very critical step in our plans. I try not to spill rice all over me when I occasionally start giggling. Geez, I am REALLY excited!

 

There are a couple storage places nearby that I'll look at in the next week, and find a good spot to keep the coach for the short time we're here. We take possession in a few weeks. As much as we want to "play with it", the longer they have it, the less we pay for storage it so there's no real rush.

 

Two big steps left - Bill retires and Richie graduates from high school.  Nothing to do but just wait for those to happen, so we're both feeling that the dream has become reality.  We can easily see ourselves on the road, can see fitting comfortably in our new home.  Bill is driving it in his sleep and setting up his music both inside and out.  I'm looking at a more colorful bedspread and searching for spots to boondock nearby. 

 

2015 is already looking very good!

 

  

 

 

Holiday Musings.....Room for Everyone

Even the act of not celebrating by Jehovah's Witnesses is a form of spiritual celebration. While all around them are the colors, music, events and decorations of many different faiths, the absence of these things in their lives defines their beliefs. I find it wonderful in its simplicity.

That is, I now find it wonderful. I spent many years thinking it was weird. Those poor kids never believing in Santa Clause or getting gifts for the eight days of Chanukah or celebrating Yule in a sacred circle or attending a beautiful Christmas Eve Mass! I knew they must be so miserable.

Likewise I spent many years aghast at the excesses of those with over-the-top lights and trees and parties. Stores that began their hype before Thanksgiving were disgusting. Extreme consumerism turned my stomach, making me feel quite smug at my more reasonable approach (although looking at photos of past Christmas mornings I don't know just how reasonable it was). People who go into huge credit card debt to bury their tree in packages were stupid and short-sighted. I knew they were just trying to fill some huge emptiness in their lives.

When I worked for the government I understood the prohibition against decorating for the holidays. Even if your intent is Santa Claus, some will claim the law requiring separation of church and state is not being followed with Christmas decor. However, when I went to work for a private organization we were encouraged to decorate for the holidays, and all beliefs were welcome by the employer. Our official greeting was "Happy Holidays". I knew they were just being politically correct.

There are some real eye-opening moments when you are called to a path that includes taking responsibility for yourself. Among those moments for me was realizing I didn't know squat about any of this stuff. I didn't know a single Jehovah's Witness, let alone how their childhood was. I had no clue what motivated  gigantic light displays. I never noticed how many fellow shoppers were singing along to carols in October. I was unaware of the reduction in the use of sick leave at my job during the holidays.

In the past few years I've come to realize, and enjoy, that there is plenty of room for every type of holiday celebration, including the simplicity of non-celebration. Multiple religions hold this time of year as holy - how great is that?! I'm grateful for those who go to the trouble and expense so I can just drive around the neighborhood to enjoy all the beautifully lighted homes. Christmas displays beside ghosts and jack-o-lanterns is a bit silly. But silly is just funny, not something horrible. Many reasonable and organized folks are delighted to have their shopping done before Thanksgiving, and I think they're on to something there! I don't have to pay anyone else's credit card bill, so why do I care if the amount is high?

Wow.  Thanks for all your hard work!

Finally, being "politically correct" is like so many things that start out with good intentions, and get abused by a few over-zealous folks. Not using slurs to describe someone or their religious beliefs or cultural practices is common courtesy. Giving up any non-harmful practice because someone might be offended isn't even common sense.

A loving greeting is not offensive

It's easy to find fault with the actions of others without taking a look at our own. I was certainly guilty of that for years. Today I find myself blessed with a broader perspective, one that allows for more holiday joy. Sometimes that joy even starts in October.........

See?  Lots of room :-)

 

Even the shortest day of the year is a big deal, a holy day, and reason for celebration.  Blessed Yule everyone - may the lengthening days bring light and love to your life.

　

The Power of Photos

Lifetimes at your fingertips

Is there anything more powerful than a photo?  Songs and smells can take me back to a particular moment, even seeing an old movie will stir up times I'd forgotten. Returning to a place from my past evokes memories of good and bad times, good and bad people. But those kinds of memories I have to "see" in my head, having to guess at the color of the sky and the size of the bicycle.  With a photo it's all right there.  Still right there.  Powerful stuff those pieces of vellum.

When asked what someone would take if their house caught fire, the number one answer is still "my pictures" or "the photo album".  It's interesting to me that given this common response, almost no one keeps photos in safe deposit boxes. Apparently we want them safe and close by.  Photos are very important to us.

Like many traits, keeping photo albums skipped a generation in my mother's family. I have my grandmother's albums, black paper with little glued corners holding each black-and-white photo, description written in white ink. One album is the "baby book" for my mother and her older brother Charles.  My mother kept no albums, so the photos of her teen and adult years, along with my baby and youth years, are loose in boxes.  I, like Grandmother, kept albums and scrapbooks from my teens through my youngest son's teens.

Uncle Chuck

Grandmother's "whole blooming family"



Mother on her first day of school

Dad kept an album of his Navy and post-discharge years - more black paper with white writing, but took (or kept) almost no photos in the years following. Most of the ones I have of him are those I took myself. 

Navy buddies, WWII

Dad always loved working on engines

Numerous times over the years I have taken out the very old albums and loose photos, and enjoyed "seeing" the life my parents and grandparents lived. A few repairs have been necessary, some of those black pages are flaking away.  Some are a hundred years old now.  Amazing photos of the beginning of the last century that I can hold in my hand and imagine in some detail. Different than memories, these are the stories of where I came from.  Very powerful indeed.

My last purging project - the one I've put off until the last - is all the photos and albums.  Both Bill (yes, of course he has them too!) and I did a first sorting last year, tossing duplicates and unidentified subjects, of the loose photos. When I first moved in with him a few years ago I made an album of all his boys' photos, so that made a good dent in his boxes and folders. 

Just  part of the "project"

Over the years my sons enjoyed looking through the albums of their lives - most often with a new girlfriend (I don't remember doing that as a girl, but it seems to be a "thing" with the girls they've dated).  I'm very glad I took the time to save a chronology of sorts for all those wonderful years.  Watching the faces of my children react to the memories of a photo, hearing them tell the stories, or laughing at their swearing "that never happened!" - that too is a special kind of powerful.

Still, I hadn't gone through my albums with "a critical eye", and I knew it needed to be done.  Because what I didn't do, in any of the albums, was label the photos.  Not even with dates :-(.  I also didn't use much discretion in the choice of photos to keep.  If it came out of my camera, it went in the album.  This made for very many pages of sometimes very similar (if not identical) photos of the same subject.  It also meant that even if you can't actually see what I was photographing because it was so far away, it still made it in the album. 

It was also my habit to order duplicate prints of every roll so I could send my parents photos of their grand kids.  Naturally I didn't send them every one, meaning I had lots of duplicates left over. Rather than tossing them, I put them in the ever-growing "box of photos".  Why?  No clue. 

Duplicates

So I knew it was very likely I could purge a lot of photos (unknown subjects, unidentifiable subjects, duplicate copies), both from the albums and the boxes.  I just had to commit to doing it.  I have put it off because quite frankly it's scary.  Love and fear are the two most powerful emotions, and the act of keeping or tossing your photos calls both to your heart! 

My first plan was to have every photo scanned to disc and get rid of all the boxes and albums completely.  Now that I'm actually doing it, I've changed my mind.

Although there is some fading and flaking in the very old albums, part of their amazing charm is the black paper and white ink. Yes, I could take photos of the album pages and save those to disc (which may be necessary eventually), but I'm not yet prepared to give up the "feel" of the real thing. I'm taking steps to preserve each page, as well as the albums themselves, and will store them in a climate-controlled place for now.

After I go through and purge the more current albums, I'll condense them to fewer books and label each photo - and keep them in storage (where the boys can easily access them if they want).

The remaining loose photos will be scanned to disc where I can sort and label them as an on-going project either this Spring or after we get on the road. 

Plenty to put on disc

I started yesterday, and made a big dent in the tossing phase.  One just doesn't need photos with old boyfriends and ex-spouses no matter how great you looked in that dress!  I think my favorites were several pages of photos of a little spec of water-spray in the middle of the river that I know was someone on a Seadoo at the Colorado River, but even with a magnifying glass I can't tell who!  These were not so hard to discard :-).

One of four identical pages

Now that I have a plan that feels right it's not so scary.  I will take my time (which is different than procrastinating - really!).  I will enjoy seeing all the memories.  And I will certainly enjoy feeling the power that only looking at a photo you hold in your hand can give.