08/03/2021
Living in an RV is much different than living in a regular house or apartment. The most obvious is of course the difference in size and space available and the amount of storage room. RV’s basically come in all makes, shapes and sizes and are generally different variations of a house on wheels. Depending on the type governs how much room you really have to live in.
What it really comes down to is what do you do with yourself if you are fully retired and not having to work in any way shape or form except to take care of the day to day chores associated with RV living or come to that, even plain old everyday living. This basically falls into four categories. Sleeping, eating, personal hygiene and entertainment. With an RV, you have to add in maintenance chores like emptying the grey and black tanks, checking on the propane tanks and keeping things tidy. There needs to be a place for everything and everything in its place because of the limited space available.
One thing I have noticed is that unless their is a need, I very often don’t wake up until 9:00 am. A lot of that is because I generally watch TV in the evenings up until midnight or thereabouts but even so, I sleep well. Incidentally, the dogs are also late sleepers and generally make no attempt to wake me to get me moving. When we do roll out of bed, the first thing is a trip to the bathroom both for physical relief and then to take a shower and clean up for the day. My bathroom is approximately 5ft by 4ft and includes a shower, a sink and a foot pedal operated flush toilet. Incidentally, I always know when it is time to empty the tanks when the water puddles up on the shower floor and doesn’t drain until the tanks are emptied.
My kitchen is very small and compact and I do wish I had more counter top space. As it is, I make do and have a wood top that covers the stove if I am not using it. This does give me an extra flat area for food preparation and other things. I also purchased from eBay an over the sink unit to hang and stores plates and such and to drain off items that I have washed and this is very handy. My very good friend BJ gives me a hard time about how much stuff I need in the way of plates and cups and such as she says I only need two, one plate, one cup and maybe a knife and fork. She is almost right but it is a bit more than that especially when I have to use pots and pans to cook up stuff and it all takes up space to dry after it has been washed. Space that is very limited and needs to be used very conservatively. Consequently, there are no knickknacks and if it is not useful somewhere, then it has to go. I found all of this out the hard way when I first started RV’ing with my second RV, a 5th wheel unit named the Eagle which had a lot more storage space than my current RV. I had downsized from an 1800 square foot home to that 300 square foot RV and now have downsized again to Eagle Two which is about 200 square foot. As you can imagine, on the first move, a lot of stuff went to the Estate Sale and on this move, I was able to find a space for almost everything and gave away what I couldn’t find room or use for.
When you get right down to it, there is only me and two little dogs who tend to run my life. Because they have no yard to run in with a doggy door that gave them immediate access to the outside, we are on a sort of a schedule so that they can get both exercise and to relieve themselves. After we get up and I have cleaned up, we go for a walk around the park and cover at least a half mile or so meeting and greeting my neighbors along the way with their dogs, Sandy especially, barking and screeching at any other dog she sees. We try to make friends but sometimes it is not possible and with a comment to the other dog owner, we go on our way. We walk twice and sometimes three times a day and we vary which direction we take based on the sun and amount of shade available. This also gives me the opportunity to see which new RV’s have come in and which ones have left and of course to chat to the owners. I like to find out where they are from and where they are heading. I have met some very interesting people along the way. Incidentally, the dogs exercise is also very good for me and keeps me moving.
If I have no business in town checking on the house and ponds or any appointments that I need to keep or groceries I need to get, then the rest of the day is spent reading and writing like in this blog. My life has certainly changed from even a year ago. The house and ponds took up most of my time and there was always something to do that needed taking care of. Now, that is a thing of the past to be added to so many other things that I cannot or am no longer able to do or interests that have changed as the years progress. Such is the way of life as it would be a boring old world if we stuck with just one or two things to keep us interested. The active mind needs to constantly be challenged with new and different things along with as much physical activity as the aging body allows. My other interest, hiking, has slowed down considerably mainly due to the hot weather and time of year.
At the end of this month, August, my business with the house should be complete and I will be free to roam as I please for as long as I am able. I will be leaving this park to travel a bit and heading for the coast to spend some time at other resorts and parks. The plan is to return here for the winter months of December and January and hit the road again after that. Yet another turn in my forever changing life.
Written 08/03/2021
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