Mobile Lifestyle: Ultimate Freedom?
Mari
I’ve lost count of the number of people who say, "How old are you?", or "Are you retired?", when they first find out about our life on the road.
Many people assume those of us who RV full-time must be baby boomers with an abundance of free time. Sure, there are plenty people in this category. But me? I’m only 41 and not retired… don’t intend to be for some time, if ever. (Hubby is 54 and a serial entrepreneur too).
Granted, we do have the luxury of freedom, flexibility, and mobility. As I talked about here, one of my top ten favorite aspects of living in a motorhome is the ability to relocate our home on wheels anytime.
Okay, it’s true, we do have the best of all worlds, and maybe it’s difficult for some folks to perceive how it’s possible to earn a living on the road as I described here. Plus, we get to see and experience beautiful America and Canada first hand!
We don’t have kids ourselves, but I can tell you, this would be an incredible way to raise a family and teach your kids all about history, geography, geology, and culture, without your kids ever sitting in a classroom, reading a boring textbook, or listening to lectures. Couples with children who choose the mobile lifestyle homeschool their kids (or is that motorhomeschool?!)
Recently we visited Pendleton, Oregon - home of the famous Pendleton Woollen Mills since 1893. Ty and I spend quite some time perusing all the fabulous clothes, blankets and nifty woolen items. (Ty treated himself to a gorgeous blackwatch tartan wool shirt).
We took the tour of the factory too and learned the entire process for making raw wool into a blanket. (Did you know they can get seven miles of thread from one pound of sheep’s wool? Amazing.)
Pendleton has quite the checkered past too. This relatively small town used to be the entertainment capital of Oregon with it’s underground saloons, poker playing, opium dens, and brothel. We went on the 90-minute Underground Tour and learned tons about the days gone by! I was shocked by the prejudice against the Chinese in the late 1800’s/early 1900’s. Their living conditions below the streets were awful, yet there was such opulence going on right above them.
(BTW, I had pics of Pendleton but due to a camera card hiccup, somehow lost ‘em. Bummer).
Now, we’re in the Kootenays, B.C., Canada taking a brief side trip to visit with my mum and her hubby. We left our coach at Spokane and drove the ~4 hours north.
[We're learning there's a whole process to winterizing your RV in case of freezing. Frozen pipes are one thing, but a frozen hot water tank is big bucks to repair. Our guy at Alderwood RV Resort recommended we leave our hot water heater on for the five days we're away. Whew, thank goodness for helpful and knowledgeable people!]
Today, we enjoyed a special ceremony in Nelson for Remembrance Day (Canada)/Veterans Day (US). Enjoy this clip with bagpipe players - I get misty eyed whenever I hear pipers playing live. Ah yes, you can take the girl out of Scotland, but you’ll ne’er tak’ Scotland oot o’ the lass.
P.S. As a Canadian-born Scot married to an American, I feel I already have ultimate freedom. A buddy of mine calls multiple-citizen folks like me "third culture." We have the luxury of being able to legally live and work in several places in the world. And now, with being a fulltime RVer, I have the luxury of living anywhere I can drive to!
Posted on: Sunday, November 11, 2007 at 6:36 pm 
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Mari,
Being greeted in the morning with an update from your travels always brings a smile to my face! I am taking notes on your advice for the best traveling experience as well as the towns to which you travel.
As we prepare for our trip WITH OUR CHILDREN, I have to say that
“motorhomeschool” is a great terms and one which will become endearing to us in our travels!
Happy and safe Travels, Mari!
Kelly
November 12th, 2007 at 5:16 amMari,
What a fabulous way to live life! I just discovered your Mobile Lifestyle blog, and I will be sure to tune in again. As a college student, I am envious of others who have the time to travel extensively. I was especially happy to see you made it to Pendleton, OR. Although I am a native Oregonian, I have yet to make it there to visit the factory. I do however, own a couple blankets. Where else in Oregon did you stop?
Your blog has also inspired me to gather a bunch of friends and hit the road. Not sure if we would be able to maneauver an RV well, but road trips are always a fun learning experience, no matter the mode of transportation.
Wishing you safe traveling,
Jessica
November 17th, 2007 at 4:08 pm@Kelly - Thanks for your kind words!
I’m so tickled to hear you’re going to do the mobile lifestyle with your children!! Just let me know if you have any questions or if there’s anything we can help you with in making the transition. 
@Jessica - It’s great to meet you in cyberspace. We went to Burns, OR - a real small town with not much happening. Probably more fun in the summer. Oh, and the drive along Abert Lake & Abert Rim is spectacular! Did you see the video I posted recently? BTW, I manage just fine to drive our 34 footer with tow car. You’d be amazed at how easy it is!
And there’s all kinds of sizes and types. I certainly encourage you to travel as much as possible.
Cheers,
November 19th, 2007 at 11:38 pmMari
I think the reason that people associate RV people with retirement is the fact that 1) it’s a considerable investment to make (hence the need of a retirement nest egg) and 2) traveling about can take up considerable amounts of time, implying no comittment to work.
August 22nd, 2008 at 12:55 pmBut I suppose there will always be exceptions.