A 'Home Day'

Today was mostly a quiet day.  We've run around a bit the last couple of days, visiting a couple of National Parks (more posts in the coming days), but today was all about school, and a little rest.

Jill had the girls get computers out after school, and the funniest thing happened.  We started figuring out how many computers I keep on the rig.  As an IT guy - I have a lot of backups, extras, and used stuff.  We have the girls use our old laptops when they can.

Fact is, I finally counted it all up.  We have 11 wireless-network computers on the rig, and that doesn't include the three phones.  In our rig, that means I have one device per 3.5 square feet.  We're probably more saturated than most IT companies... I knew I was an IT guy, but I didn't know I was that dedicated...

Madelyn decided that she was more interested in playing outside than on BreyerHorses.com or StarFall.com.  Her sisters love those sites on the Internet.  Madelyn, however, has such an imagination playing outside with water.  I joined her outside after about an hour and at one point she spilled a huge jug of water on my papers.  Out of her mouth came one of my favorite lines of the entire trip - "Daddy, I'm sorry, but if I don't mess things up - how can I learn?"  Make mistakes, learn from them - I love the lessons from my kids.

Madelyn, Erika, little Victoria, how does your garden grow? With sun and water, then we transport 'er, fresh herbs do we now know.

OK, so its a little corny, but the girls have really enjoyed their gardendom. In early spring, after a home-school lesson on how plants grow, I came up with a concept that we could, in fact, still have a garden on the road. If it were contained, small enough to transport yet still had enough space, it could be done. So I concocted the box-garden you see here. It is basically two tupperware tubs, one short, one taller (inside the short one), and one lid with holes drilled in it (to act like a greenhouse, when we started the seeds). I put in some river rock (collected on-site) then put a bag of potting soil over that and viola - garden. It left enough room for the plants to get about 12 inches tall, and plenty of soil to not need watering twice a day.

We started the project in Morgan Hill, CA the first week of April. I bought 6 packages of commercial seed packets at Walmart and then gave each of the girls their own two plots, and their own two packets. We sat down and planted them together. They loved to see the different sizes and shapes of the seeds. We even got to chat about how seeds are made and what it takes to make a plant from a seed. It was all very educational. :)

Madelyn chose Chives (she liked the purple flowers on the picture) and Cilantro. Erika had Spearmint (she LOVES mint) and Italian Parsley. Victoria got Basil and Oregano, and was happy just to be involved in the whole thing. The variety was mostly so that the girls could learn about the different rates things grow and how different the leaves look. Here you can see some of them sprouting. The Cilantro came up first, and strangely, they all kinda looked the same in the first few days.

I can still see Madelyn running back to the front door to scream "Mommy, Mommy, my plants sprouted!" the first time we could see leaves.

The girls loved touching the soft leaves and tasting the different flavors. So far, Madelyn LOVES chives. In fact, just about every time she walks by the garden she snaps one off and eats it. At least she's getting greens somehow...

At some point we needed to thin things out, and honestly, if we completely followed the plan there would only be one plant per square, so I've let some of it be a little overgrown. Oregano is still especially tight on space.

When we move it rides along nicely in the backseat of the truck, and then we bring it out first thing and find it a nice, sunny spot on the ground. Personally, I've loved having the cilantro and Parsley right there so that I can make one of our new favorite things - chimichurri. Unfortunately, it only grows so fast, so harvests are few and far between.

Overall, I'll call it a success if for nothing else than giving the girls the experience of growing their own garden, tasting different flavors, and understanding why things taste different. I've been told that when this experiment runs its course we need to do a flower garden. I think that's a fine idea, and it'll make the truck smell especially nice when we're treking from place to place.

Quotes....

Ran across a good one tonight, and while I don't always seem to subscribe to it, I think it's important to teach the girls...

Time and Money should be managed and spent the same way: always deliberately and always on things of value.

I got this from Tynan, a nomad, for lack of a better term, that is off travelling, and who I occasionally enjoy checking up on. I'd have liked having his free spirit at his age, but then I'd never have had my wonderful life - so.. I'll take what I have, thank you. Regardless, he comes up with some interesting stuff, and you can take a look at "Life Outside the Box, Tynan.net".

Bottom line is that what my Algebra II teacher tried to instill in us the first day of class is still true. You have 86,400 seconds today and if you don't spend them, you lose them... How are you spending your 'bank' account today?

Unclutterering. (from an outside source).

Jill sent this to me with a subject of simply: 'Saw this and liked it...' And I thought, we should share this, because it may mean something to people who are following along. Then today, Jill got a note from someone I don't know (but I've heard about) saying they were uncluttering because our changes inspired them, so I knew I had to post it...

From Unclutterer.com:

Choosing simple living

An unclutterer is someone who chooses to live without the distractions that get in the way of a remarkable life.

Contrary to what you might assume, the most important word in the definition of an unclutterer isn’t distractions (or what we also call clutter) or even the goal of a remarkable life. The pivotal word in the definition is chooses.

The pursuit of an uncluttered life begins with a choice — you choose to practice simple living. No one can force you to be an unclutterer, and you don’t stumble into a simple life by mistake. Even people who lose all of their possessions in a catastrophe are not unclutterers, as they might choose to fill up their homes and lives again when circumstances permit.

Choosing to live an uncluttered life starts with wanting to get rid of distractions. Once this desire is present, you begin to see your life from this new perspective. When your mindset has changed, your actions will follow. Getting rid of clutter is usually the first outward sign of your choice to be an unclutterer.

From these first steps, you continue to choose to live simply every moment you’re awake. There will come a time when you stop acknowledging this moment-to-moment choice, but you continue to make it (or not make it). Then, when you turn your focus to the things that matter most to you, your reward is the remarkable life you desire.

It all begins with a choice ...

We made a very big change to go from what we had (and nobody really was truly aware of HOW MUCH we really had), to where we are now. We now have a 10' x 10' storage unit, I'll say mostly full, not packed to the rafters by any means. It is really full of sentimental stuff that we should pass on and things that we know we'll want when (if?) we go back to a static, land-based, housing lifestyle. On top of that we have 6 boxes in the truck (all of which just needs to be 'handled'), and the stuff in the fifth-wheel, most of which we need (always just one more clean-out away from being perfect). :)

It'd be a big change for most, but if you knew me, and how much I've uncluttered, you'd be afraid actually. It was one of the biggest steps in the process I think. If anyone wants to know what it took for me to go from - hey, I might have a use for that at some point... to - That's so heavy, and bulky. If I ever need anything like that, I can just buy a new one (but I'll probably never need that.) - just ask me. Its a life-changing decision. :)

Updates...

Hey all - We've finally settled in and are finally getting down to routine. Work in the daytime, kids to bed, personal time at night. Its a little funny to me how little some things have changed since we were in the ol' sticks and bricks (RV slang for a house), but how much other things have changed. I'm hoping to change my schedule a little more to be more in line with the kids. I've been saying that for a long time now, so I'm sure Jill doesn't believe it - but it'll come. My guess is that next week will have a significant push toward that direction - true boondocking.

I know I haven't posted in a couple of days, and let me tell you why. I got a little funky about the comment on the West Virginia post. We know nobody (that I know of) from West Virginia, and while at first it seemed a little cutesy and in jest, the more I thought of the comment the snarkier it became in my head. We post so that people can keep up with us without having it rammed down their throat. Know what you want, see what you want, comment back when you find something funny, or truthful or fulfilling. You don't even have to leave a name, in fact - we love it when we get comments at all, and so far most have been signed in some way so that we can tell who you are, but that the commenter doesn't have to open themselves up to the whole universe. That's fantastic, and all we ask. However, the WV comment was anonymous, in the most anonymous sense -- the text, the verbiage, the mocking - didn't fit with anyone we'd expect. So - my policy is now this... This is a friendly blog. We are not trying to get famous, gain followers, promote RVfor5, or do anything other than let friends and family know what's going on without having to make 25 phone calls a day. It has become a forum that we can talk on, share with you, relive the trip and all its, uh, fun and learning. There are a lot of things that I want this website/blog to become, but a snarky place for unnecessary comments is not one of them. I'm not naive enough to think that there aren't people out there that are looking at our blog that we haven't told or invited. The Internet is a wide open thing. I am just saying this - there's no need to be that way. Step up WVA person and tell us more about yourself...

Bottom line: If your comment is anonymous, snarky, and neither Jill nor I know who wrote it - its probably gonna get axed. I'm leaving Mr. WestVirginiaGetOffMyHighways as a learning experience. I'm just putting it out there otherwise.

Now - that all being said.... Updates:

Injector - I went down to Richmond today to try to get that fixed and was told rather unceremoniously by Jason that without being able to replicate it, they'd never be able to figure out what was wrong. I was pretty sure I knew what was wrong, gave them info, but if "it don't throw codes" then apparently they can't figure it out. I now have to wait until it REALLY breaks and makes towing really difficult before taking it in. Hopefully at some point it breaks just enough to tell them what's wrong without halting our trip... And they say the American car industry is in a comeback. :/

Today - I'm sure that Jill will blog a bit about our visit today, but can I just say how nice it was to visit with friends from the past. Everyone here needs to know that without the friend we visited today, none of this (and I'm talking down to the Jill and I even meeting part) would be happening. Thank you for changing the course of my life. It was fun to catch up and I hope to see you more in the next couple of weeks, not to mention on the trip back down. Somehow, we'll find a way to get you camping yet :)

Campgrounds - WOW. How different they all are. We've had - GREAT (Horse Park), CORPORATE - (First 3 days in Cave Creek), RURAL, SMALL and disconcerting (but by far the most friendly - Bardstown), TROUBLING - on so many levels (Jellystone Park), and now PURE STRANGE (here - in three days I've talked with one other camper, and it was not good). Its funny that our first park is maybe one of the best parks in the US (and now we are starting to understand why). We still have a lot of different experiences to go through, and I'm sure a lot of different types of parks to see, but I think we've run into a good mix of things. I'll post more on the different parks soon, but let me just say this - read between the lines of advertising; read comments and posts about the parks before you reserve them; unless they are in the exact, perfect location for what you're trying to do (read: not another park that rated close within an hour), research more.

I'm really enjoying the many aspects of this trip, but its going to be tough to find an RV park that will fulfill everything we are looking for. I know for a fact that it is tough to start your trek with such a good park, and that most will have a tough time measuring up. However, its also amazing to me how much personality each park has... We've just got to learn what type of park we want to be friendly with... :)

I've still got a lot to post about, but now its late and I'm going to need to get up rather early tomorrow to get a full day of work in. I can see why retirees favor this kind of lifestyle, and while I wish I could do the same, I'm glad to be able to provide and work from the road. Hopefully I can figure out everything Internet in the next few weeks and be all set for every situation. I'm sure it'll get expensive, but if that's what makes the trip happen, then whatever it takes - right?

R.

The things I've learned...

There are a number of lessons that I've learned or that have been reenforced like crazy this last week, and I just thought I'd blog them. Seemed a nice place to remind myself about things that are important in all aspects of life, not just on our journey. Most of these have a more profound meaning than just the surface and let me say this - just because what I wrote is about one thing, didn't mean the revelation didn't come from doing something else. :)

• Always wait for the full story before jumping to the end in your head.


• Just because you measured twice, does not mean that you'll only cut once.


• Live in the moment, for the moment - do not constantly be trying to get to the next moment, you may never see that moment again.


• When you're knee deep in s#!t, breath shallow.


• Fresh water is a precious commodity, as is the time and energy required for filling it. (ok, that one really is as it sounds) :)


• Sometimes it really is better to trust the instruments and shun instinct.


• Even after reading everything you can read, looking at everything you can look at about your rig - experience is still the best, and sometimes only, teacher. It tells you what you really need to know. (Though for me, a doctor/nurse that reads their medical journals to find the one treatment for what someone has but that only 2 people in the world have experienced -- that's ok too) ;)


• There are 2 kinds of 30 amp power. Know how to tell which is which.


• You haven't lived until the washer spin cycle runs at 120RPM and you're on the toilet.


• In the things that you dread doing there is usually reason. However, dread creates nothing but worry and lost productivity. Bite down and get it done.


• The pinhole leak that you've been neglecting to fix will be aimed right at you everytime you turn on the hose. Just take the 5 minutes and fix the hose.


• In every move, the last fifteen things take 5 times as long, and 3 times as much space as you planned. That, and everytime, no matter how hard you try not to - there will always be at least one box of crap that you threw together because you ran outta time.

I'm sure there will be more of these as time moves on. They are actually kinda fun to think a a aaaaa bbb ou t. (washer spin cycle again) :)

Conversation - and why I think RVers talk a lot

So the other day I was reading this article about how to start a conversation - and it rang some bells. What I found most interesting is how it made me think of why people that 'belong' to groups seem to get along so well. Groups of people that share a common interest - RVs, Classic Cars, Sports Bars, Knitting Clubs, Chess tables at the park - seem to find an easier time of meeting and having conversation - and this article really pointed out why.

"So I have developed a theory -- the theory of the third -- which says that neither person should start a conversation by talking about himself or the other person directly. Instead, you have to find a third subject, a third person, or an object to begin the conversation around."

According to this tidbit, the key to starting a conversation is to have a third party for a topic. All those groups have the party already established. They all like it (or why would they be there), they all know a little bit about what they are talking about, and they know the same about the other party - making approachability much easier. I don't know - maybe this was an obvious concept for some, but I'd never put it in specific terms before. It has really opened my eyes to the fact that we really will be more accepted on the road, and will probably not have any trouble starting conversations out there.

"The theory of the third explains why the weather is such a common resort. Unfortunately, it's so common as to be clichéd, but at least it's an attempt at neutrality -- like commenting on the interesting color of the wall you're standing next to. And that's the best way to start a conversation, with an attempt at neutrality.

This sounds like lame advice, but it's not. What you're saying is "I'm not going to invade your privacy, and you're not going to invade mine. We'll test each other out by talking about something that seems inconsequential and see if we want to deepen this a bit."

Overall, I really enjoyed the persective of the article, and I think it says a lot about why people in groups talk so easily (favorite team, talk sports, puppies in the park or kids at the mall) - clearly "an attempt at neutrality". --'We have a common like. I didn't get too personal, and you can stay non-personal until you want to get more personal.'-- Welcome to small-talk. :)

Full article: http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/personal/01/13/o.breaking.the.ice/index.html

Advice to the American family setting out on the road

William Least Heat-Moon, best-selling author of "Blue Highways," "River-Horse," and most recently "Roads to Quoz," shared his insights on the American road with CNN. I found this last part quite interesting.

CNN: What advice do you have to the American family setting out on the road?

Heat-Moon:

• Go with a loose sense of destination.



• Don't go farther than your time easily allows, and try to move reasonably slowly.



• We're a nation of speeders: speeders in all sorts of things; we invented fast food.



• But speed and good travel aren't comfortable or useful companions.



• Speed is anathema to deep travel.



• If you want to learn the territory between your place of departure and where you end up, you have to have time and use it wisely.



• Speed corrupts travel far more than bad Chinese food.

Day 8 | a little late...

So I'm posting this on Monday from my notes, just like I'll be doing for Sunday's blog. My goal was to drive while I wasn't sleeping and sleep while I could. I've done that reasonably well.

I stayed in Northridge on Friday, having driven up after work to see my Grandmother and whoever else was around. It took longer than I thought it would, with LA traffic and all, but overall not a bad trip. I stopped at Camping World in San Bernadino (what a pit), and strangely became a rockstar there... The techs were coming out to check out the rig - never seen anyone gooseneck it before, never seen a fiver that came over the top of the rig - both things I was extremely happy to do with our rig. Then I talked with a guy that had looked at Glendale's before and went with a juiced up something or other instead (weight issue for his 250 I think). He did talk to me about Banks and how much better it was than stock. I can't imagine what this truck would be like with a full Banks setup on it. I'd probably be able to eat Ferarri's for lunch at that point - if I went the whole route. But, do I want to do that. I'd probably like to put a better air system on it (Banks or K&N), maybe juice the chip a little, but I've always thought that the factory did stuff the safe way - the don't-break-it way. Why mess with that? I'll be out of warranty for the powertrain soon though, so, who knows... Its just money right? ;)

Friday night I slept in the rig. Not entirely by choice - I guess that'll teach me to make a joke about towing around my house. "Great, I won't have to make a bed... doh!" Oh well, looking at the positive it was a good way to break everything in and force myself to get a good night ssleep in a comfortable bed. No TV to distract, so all ended well.

I started Saturday morning a little late - about an hour behind what I wanted, but that's really not too bad. I had a stop to make in Phoenix to see a long-time friend and I wanted to spend a little time, but I also wanted to put some distance on. My plan was to make Flagstaff that night up the 17. I did that and then some... More on that later.

Notes:

Kevin and Bean on the World Famous KROQ - it was great listening to an old friend. it was better when I turned it on and heard a song from the past... "I'll give you candy, give you pearls, I'll give you anything you want - hundred dollar bills..." Ah, my youth! They were funny and it was a good reminder of my time in LA.

Truck - Man what a rig. I still hate the freeways in CA for what they do to me. I think it'll take me a week to sort out the damage that all the bouncing does, but its only for awhile and then I'm out into the regular freeway world. I think they should make the guys that make the decisions ride in a truck like mine to see how it feels. I've been watching how much work it is to drive a rig this big. I'm not sure if those guys in 350s see the same kind of stuff I see, or if the motorhomes that aren't mansions see it worse than I do (the mansions have wheels and wheels and wheels... so they aren't affected as much on that platform). Its especially hard and busy in the slow lanes that have been around for awhile and have a bit of a groove in them. Low spots and valleys just want to grab the wheel and make the truck go in their own direction. Its a constant fight to keep it in-line. AND speaking of that - why is it that the slow lanes, with the biggest trucks, the most cargo, and the highest volume of dollars to pass over it are always the most neglected, hideous stretch of road in the area? I know that its a circle (heavy stuff rips up roads, more travel rips roads, spot fix so that we don't inconvenience anyone, then they get bad, blah blah blah) but I can't imagine what that costs anyone in terms of real dollars at the grocery store, in driver fees, in maintenance. Back to the truck - I'm still happy with it. So far I've seen the temp needle crawl twice - once over Cajelco Pass and once in the mountains up to Flag. It moved about a quarter of an inch, so not too bad, and you know me - I wasn't going easy in either spot. I've been happy that thus far on the trip I'm averageing about 8 MPG towing. I expect it to get better through the flats, but we'll see - I'll do a full write up on the truck when I get back. Should be interesting.

Phoenix... WOW is all I can say. What a difference 10 years makes. There were malls and houses and schools arther out than I thought possible. The freeways are all connecting so well that I didn't even have to go anywhere close to downtown to get up North. Places that I knew are no longer what they were, so it'll be fun to spend a little time there on our trip. Now, all that new stuff looked just like all the new stuff when we were there did - that hasn't changed, but PHX is PHX, they do know how to plan and execute growth.

Two last things - In-n-out and Quartzsite. I'm sad to see my beloved in-n-out go, but I know I'll see it again sometime soon. It really is a good burger, and one of my goals on the trip is to try to make one that's close. I plan on working on it A LOT! Quartzsite is a town I never understood before. It looked like this desolate, ugly, utter wasteland everytime I went through it. Now, knowing that it takes on an enitrely different persona in the winter, I now know what I'm seeing. Acres of parking, with power hookups - they look like drive-in movie boxes - and just weeds in the pavement. But that's now, in the summer, not wintertime when you travel to meet your oldest friends after being away on summer vacation. Its the same as school kids - they fill up with stories while they are out wandering the country in their full-time RV and then gather around the lunch table the same way we used to write that paper the first week of school - what I did on my summer vacation... Some things - never change, and that's probably a good thing.

Some day maybe we'll be part of that crowd, part of that scene. For now I'm content to leave the kids the stories, and to be the vessel that allows them to have stories to tell :)

So much to talk about...

I have so many things to talk about, and no mind to do it. Tomorrow I promise, tomorrow.

Topics include:

• How fast things move when you pull the trigger
• Timelines change when things move fast
• How to grab the only trailer in inventory, while trying to sneak that you're doing it
• How many things have come about in the last several hours that might set aside the entire schedule.

More to come soon, but first, a little rest. :)

R.

Mayo, Golf Balls and Beer

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the jar, balls, pebbles, sand and the 2 Beers.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.. 'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

• The golf balls are the important things --- your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions --- and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.


• The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.The sand is everything else---the small stuff.'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18 holes of golf. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first --- the things that really matter.Set your priorities.


• The rest is just sand.


• One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked. 'The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.