Nobody Told Us The Simple Life Takes Work!
Mari
Okay, here we are in our fourth week of living in our 34′ motorhome FULL-TIME… and, I have to tell you, yes it’s awesome to have the freedom and flexibility, for sure. But, it takes a lot of darn work!!!
Simple day-to-day stuff like cooking, washing dishes, grocery shopping, doing laundry. Everything seems to take at least twice as long in our downsized home. 
And, each time we move the coach - it’s a 2-3 hour project! Whew! (Our pro full-timer RVer buddies tell us they break down and set up in under an hour… okay, there’s hope for us!)
It’s amazing how much we take for granted living in a “bricks ‘n’ sticks” house. Take laundry - you just pop it in the machine at home and do something else, right?
My first time doing laundry took three trips to the laundry room as I forgot quarters, then the detergent. Darn nuisance. I swear I think I need to hire a personal assistant to follow us around–I’ve got better things to do with my time. (Actually, our RV is pre-plumbed for a wee washer-dryer… we might get one added sooner than later!)
And buying food - yikes, each time I’m in a different grocery store I have to figure out the layout. Maybe one day Google will add maps of store interiors. Then I could pre-plan my shopping trip online to maximize my time. LOL.
I can see how retirees enjoy this lifestyle – there’s no rush for anything.
Well, I’m really trying to adopt Tim Ferriss’ philosophies of taking tons of time out to enjoy more leisure pursuits. Honest. Dang, I confess I’m still addicted to the computer.
Hey, the good news though is Ty and I are in a really sweet spot together!! This whole mobile lifestyle pursuit has brought us even closer together and we’re having WAY more fun (now that all that family drama estate stuff is behind us!) I’ll be revealing tons of personal insights and stories along the way. 
Aaaah, bring on the good life.
Hey, got any good tips for simplifying life on the road?
Posted on: Friday, August 17, 2007 at 8:18 pm 
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I had some deja vu experiences seeing Ty laying there on the bed…I spent 11 months inside a 33 footer, had the same layout…
problems I had is that you couldn’t leave anything set up, and while laura was the “j” we were lucky as she didn’t need much computer time, perhaps you’ll be lucky too on that, no real area to work except taking over the table area and as long as you didn’t move around too much it was ok, we got stuck in kerrville (wonderful area) in the texas hill country rainy season for two weeks, ugh…
it’s ok when you can get out and move around, but after a few months living tight, once you accumulate some stuff, there is no longer any place to put stuff…so staying simple is best…
internet access was our biggest issues, running websites and stuff where uploading was an issue sucked on dial up or close to dial up speeds…
we got stuck once on the florida beach, and the sand flies ate us alive, that was the beginning of the end for our transmission, those are fun to replace…
all in all we did ok…there are campgounds with free washer and dryer and I recommend stopping at hotels, motels about once every two weeks and using their free facilities and getting out of the rv…but then again, i liked watching TV and still do and the thing i missed most was my cable satellite, as most campgrounds are built for campers and not livers…
but that’s just me…
i wish you luck, watch your weather is the most important thing, being in the rv for days on end in winter weather where it’s a pain to get out…well it will become a pain to stay in cramped up in what seems huge, but becomes one of those slowly torturing boxes…
the thing I didn’t realize was how it was affecting my spouse over time, I can’t get her near one anymore, and while she didn’t complain at all, she didn’t see it as a fun experience
August 27th, 2007 at 3:44 amGreat comments, Mike.
Ty and I must’ve looked at somewhere between 40-50 RV’s before going with our ‘96 Residency by Thor West. Got it for $26.5k - paid cash. Awesome feeling to own our own home free and clear!
I got to choose the one I *really* wanted - Ty was lobbying for a 22 footer (yikes!!) and a Class C - ugh.
Remember the motto, “Happy wife, happy life!”
Several features stood out that we didn’t see on any other coaches: two skylights, two tables (dinette + a fold up one behind the passenger swivel captain’s chair - includes a leaf, so it’s the same size as the dinette).
So, even in a 34 footer, Ty and I actually have our own ‘office’ - okay workstation.
I have a regular office chair and get to look out the front windows!
Internet is working out (satisficing) with Verizon EVDO, USB aircard & KR1 router. Definitely need an antenna & amplifier to boost the signal - next on the list.
We’re full-timing in Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve so far - very nice facility, good rates too. Once we hit the road in Sept/Oct - we plan to be snowbirds for sure!
Simplicity and frugality are our middle names - still have tons of storage and have everything we need, plus extra.
So sorry to hear Laura won’t go RVing again. I find it a great lifestyle for a High Order J - easy to keep clean and orderly even with a Low Order P husband!
And you can get as much or as little Social Contact…but maybe that’s because we’re still in our familiar community here… it’ll be interesting to see what unfolds on the open road.
Cheers,
August 29th, 2007 at 9:05 amMari
[...] the mobile lifestyle does take some work as I talked about here. I’ll go put a meditation CD on shortly and hit the sack - hopefully that’ll drown out [...]
October 4th, 2007 at 1:25 am