New Mexico

View from the back of the rig.

We finally made it out of Texas!  What a big state it is.  But we enjoyed each day we were there - I do love Texas.

We stayed the night in Las Cruces, New Mexico and will head out today for Arizona.  Tomorrow we reach our goal of Yuma, Arizona and my sister!

It amazes me that the setting up each day and breaking down is getting so much easier for us.  We seem to just do it almost wordlessly now.  The only pure blue job is the sewer - but I do hold the bag for Kirby when he puts the slinky away each time.  Actually there are other blue jobs - connecting and disconnecting from the hitch and some of the physically difficult jobs like putting the steps away.  I have tried that and just can't budge them.  The power cord is too heavy for me also.  That thing is huge!  So, anyway, it is becoming more like the boat - we just do it without it stressing us and not too much thought.

Someone asked me recently if I am happy with our chosen lifestyle.  The answer is a solid "YES"!  Kirby and I both need a lot of change so having a new backyard every day or so is perfect for us.  And Jake is finally adjusting to that.  I think he is beginning to enjoy it!

Coachlight RV Park is fine for what we wanted...just an overnighter.  I haven't looked for laundry or showers.  It is kind of strange because it is connected to a motel but the grounds are level, no big holes, and the spaces are large.  I love this life!

Day One of Month Two

Today is the first day of the second month of my retirement.  I think I should celebrate or something.  Retirement has been really great.  Sorry all you folks that I used to work with but I don't miss SRC at all.  I do miss you but not the job!  I am loving my life!

But that is not to say that it is all roses and wonderful things.  Right now as we sit in our RV in Meridian, MS, there is a trailer parked next to us that came in yesterday.  I feel like I am in a first floor apartment with someone over my head.  It is really weird but they have a least one small child over there and when he/she runs (which is constant) the booming takes us right back to apartment/condo living.  Explain that to me!

I expected not to have stress in my life but we have had so much of it, I might as well still be working.  Of course some of my stress is self induced and wouldn't bother someone else at all.  Kirby has done a great job of pulling the 5th wheel, changing lanes, merging and all of that.  But because I am not in control, I get to be the one stressing over it - and I have to keep my mouth shut!

We have learned so much over the past 2 or 3 months!  OH, my, I didn't realize how little I did know!  I have started a list of Lesson's Learned and it is a very interesting little list!  And it is just for me!

You should have seen us up at Lake Hartwell.  We could have entertained a great audience but luckily there were no other RV'ers there.  The pull-through that I reserved was way too short for our long rig.  Finally Kirby ended up pulling all the way through and then backing up.  It was very narrow also so that made it even more stressful as I watched him (him being in control and me just an onlooker).  He didn't think it was a big deal.  Oh, how I miss being in control, which I was when I worked!  But of course I am not willing to learn to drive the rig!

Traveling through Atlanta is way high on the stress list.  It is one of the worst cities in the country to drive in and there we were!  But, no mishaps, no missed freeway changes, everything went perfectly.

At the top of the list of course was when we got stuck in the sink hole.  That one even made me cry and want to sell the RV!!  Having things break in our brand new rig has been a big disappointment.  We have day and night shades that are really, really cool - until the strings break.  One is completely ruined and the next is on the way.  We need to get some string and learn to fix them as it is obvious that this is going to a constant in our lives.

Ah, but the good does out-weigh the bad.  I love being in new places.  I love seeing beautiful parks and having new views out my windows.  I love meeting new people.  I really adore spending each day with the man that I love.  I married him because I enjoy his company so much and when I was working I didn't get to see him often enough.  We have such fun together.  And I love my home and living in a small space.  I have everything that I need right here! I can get the whole place cleaned up in not too much time at all.

It will be fun to see where my 2nd month of retirement takes us and what kind of adventures we will have!

Lake Hartwell State Park, SC

Kirby did a fantastic job of getting us on this little RV pad.  It was a tight squeeze.

As we left the Charleston area yesterday, I told Kirby that I felt that I was on a holiday again, just like when we were at Buck Hall last week.  Next thing I know, Kirby is singing, “Life’s a holiday on Primrose Lane”!  Now I just want to be singing that all the time and I want to rename Myrt, Primrose, but I won’t!  I am just having so much fun, this can’t just be everyday life can it?  Surely it is a holiday?  And guess what, the fun continues!

We got away by 9 am just as we planned, went to the weigh station just like the big trucks and got ourselves weighed.  Kirby made me stay in the truck with Jake so our weight was included!!  Yikes, that will tip the scale!  Our overall weight was perfect but our truck is a little on the heavy side because of the tools Kirby brought.  Will he need them???  I don’t know.  (I think you could read this - My overall weight was perfect but my butt is a little on the heavy side.)

By 3:15 we were all set up at Lake Hartwell State Park.  The park is just one mile from Georgia and near Clemson University so we will get to visit with Casey, our grandson.

I can’t believe this place!  There are over 100 campsites and we are THE ONLY ONES here! It feels like a ghost town – but we LOVE it!  The leaves haven’t even begun to bud here and all is brown and grey but the quiet is awesome.  No sirens, no trucks, no motorcycles – all that noise we have lived with for the past 3 months.  (Since it is so brown here I decided to do all the photos in B&W)

Oh, and you have to remember that we are from the Lowcountry….we don’t have hills of any type.  Poor Jake, our dog, just stood for the longest time looking down.  He won’t leave the flat pad – too funny!

You can see us through the trees.  Notice there are NO other campers here.

We took a quick stroll down to look at the water.  This must be gorgeous in the summer.

More empty spaces.  Really - there is NO ONE but us!

Ready to Go

This is the view from our back window today.  Not beautiful but not crowded either!  We have thick gravel and lots of grass.  To the right is the laundry room and if it quits raining, I may do some wash!

What a busy day we had yesterday!  We were up at the crack of dawn to get Myrt over to Camping World by 8:00 AM.  They never bothered to tell us if they could make the repair in one day or not so we also had to pack our things to stay at Christie’s if needed.  And – neither one of us had slept very well.  KOA in Ladson is just YUK!  It is the dirtiest place and I just kept having nightmares of having to go back there for another day to wait for weather.  Kirby was tossing and turning about the tight quarters we were in and getting out of there.  It is a terribly congested park.  But we were out by 8:00 and over to CW right on time!

We were pleasantly surprised when informed that Myrt would be ready by 11:30.  So, we headed off to Denny’s for breakfast and to decide what to do with 2 hours.  Wannamaker Park has lots of trails and it was nearby so off we went.   Years ago I had been there with Christie and the boys but Kirby and I had never been.  It is a wonderful park!!  Lots of trails, ponds, a waterpark, playground equipment and a dog park too!  So Jake also had a good time!

At breakfast we had called Oak Plantation and told them we were coming back!  So here we sit at the same campground we were at all winter but this time we are in a pull-through near the entrance of the park.  We will be off tomorrow after the rain.  We are retired – can’t see going out there in the rain in order to get underway!

I guess this is where I say how much I am going to miss my daughter.  She has been a delight to me from the day she was born and these past years living near each other have been so very fantastic!  When she moved to Charleston I didn’t think we would ever live near each other again.  So, never say never.  Who would have believed that we would spend 4 years just a half mile apart and then almost 2 more only 20 minutes apart?  It may happen again – who knows!  I will miss the whole family – Christie, her husband, Michael, the boys – Brendan and Casey and my two terrific granddogs – Socks and Lacey!  See you in about a year!

Divesting Part II

Friday was my last day of work!  Hooray!  Getting closer to our departure.  Three weeks ago we sold the car and I rented a nice Honda for my final weeks of work.  Today we returned the rental car and are now a "One Vehicle Family"!  We have been this way before.  In fact when we met, Kirby had a boat and no car - I had a car and no boat.  Perfect fit!

We still don't have a schedule because of the warranty work we need to have done to our RV.  They had to order the parts and seem to have NO IDEA when they will be in.  That's OK - we are both retired!

Nothing Broke!

I guess I did a good job with my preping to travel as when we returned Myrt to her home space and inspected the cupboard, nothing was broken and only a couple of things even showed any evidence of having moved.  Yea!  That was the best part of the day!

We left here on Monday morning, with me following Kirby in the car so I could go on to work after we checked our rig in at Camping World for repairs.  I don't know why the whole thing stressed me like it did, but I was really, really stressed by the time I got to the office!  I kept telling myself that I have comfortably traveled the oceans in a 35 foot sailboat and never felt like this.  Is it that it is all so new?  Probably.

We had packed bags for two nights max.  Packed clothes, pillows, dog bed, wine, slippers, vitamins....all the little things we need to be comfortable.  Then, the service rep at Camping World told us it may be a week.  I freaked over that one and went back to work panicked over what we would do. And - made plans not to work Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday with Friday being my last day.

What really happened is that they did some work and said we could come get her on Tuesday morning, which we did!  Hooray!  Not so bad after all!  But we will need to return next week when they get the parts in for the rest of the repairs.

At this point I could write a book about the day we had, all the newer looking rigs getting repaired,  my frustrations with the whole process.  All of this is so new to us!!

We were there to get Myrt by 9:15, trying to be nice and remain calm!  Then we headed back to Oak Plantation Campground with 'our girl'.

Oh, what fun it is to be new to all of this.  Sailing just came natural but I am sure there was a learning curve in there somewhere, I just don't remember it.  It took us two tries to get the rig where it needed to be, get it leveled and all hooked up again with water, power and sewer.  By the time we finished the rain was beginning....we got it done just in time.  Hopefully the next trip won't be so nerve wracking on me!

First Repairs

I am trying to keep this blog like journal for myself.  So, I need to say things like - We have to take our brand new rig in for repairs this week!  I am not a happy camper right now as I pack a bag because we can't stay with her while they work on her.

There is something wrong with our slides.  A technician came out on Thursday and took a look but then they decided that they need the rig at Camping World for 2 days for MORE diagnostics.  I thought that was why he came out but I guess I was wrong.  So, the first time we go someplace with our rig it is to the repair garage.  And this is just diagnosis.  Next week when the parts come, we will have to do it again.  Good practice I guess. I can find out what is going to break and what rattles too much!

The silver lining is that we are going to stay with our daughter and her family!  We need more time together before leaving.  I will miss her so much because she is my best friend.  So, this is the good part about having to have repairs made to a brand new rig!

Preview

You have to remember that we are new to this RVing game and we are excited to get it started.  Not too many more days now!  We have reservations beginning March 2 to stay at Buck Hall Recreation Area which is about 30 miles northeast of Charleston.  We have been there quite a few times for short visits and first saw it from our boat as we traveled south on the Intracoastal Waterway in 2006.  I can remember commenting at the time about the campground being right on the ICW.  So that will be our first stop on our adventure.  We are paid up til the 2nd and Kirby has one more doctor visit before we leave so we will just go up there and rest and relax!

We were there last June for a Father's Day cookout. You can see those pictures by clicking HERE.

So, yesterday we got in the truck and drove up there!  Anxious.  Excited.  We found the slip we have been assigned - Number 4 - and Kirby checked out the water and power.  I checked out the showers - or, excuse me - shower.  It will be spit baths for me unless it warms up.  No heat in there at all.

Here are Kirby and Jake checking it out.  Love that solid surface pad!  No dirt and gravel like we have here.  And - the rate is half price for us because we are old.  Hope WiFi works there!  If it does - you will be treated to more pictures when we get there!!

Divesting

When we first moved to Charleston from our sailboat we had an old van filled with our only belongings.  I went shopping for a job and the day after I signed an offer letter we went out and purchased this commuter car.  I didn't really like it.  The glove box wouldn't stay closed, the windows sometimes didn't work and you never knew if you would be able to get the key out of the ignition!  But it always ran like a champ.  I didn't really think I would ever bond with it like I have some of my cars.  I actually never even named it.

But today when I walked away with cash in my pocket and no keys, I felt like crying.  Go figure - it is a stupid car!  And it is gone now!  We are that much closer to being free of belongings and on the road to our adventure!

I will get a rental car to use until we leave - then I will HAVE to learn to drive that great big truck!

New Home

We are so enjoying living in our new 5th Wheel. Even going to work from here is getting easier each day....if only it would be light when I leave.   The commute is easier than the one I have had for the past 5 years so I am not complaining.

We are thinking of moving to another spot in this park as it is quite noisy here with the traffic behind us.  Kirby spent Christmas Eve morning preping for the move and found out that our slides don't slide.  For those of you who are not familiar - those are the areas that pop out when you are parked so the rig is larger inside.  They are stuck and Kirby has done all he can to troubleshoot the problem. He put a call in for a technician - we will see how long it takes.....since it is the holidays.

We just enjoyed Christmas at my daughters home and now we are looking forward to the new year.  2013 - the year I retire and we head out on a new adventure.  Please come back every once in a while to see what we are up to.