Sunday, September 04, 2011

THE FULL TIMING DREAM……I WILL ALWAYS HAVE THAT

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A FIELD OF BEANS IN RURAL SOUTH-WESTERN ONTARIO

Had it not been for the thunder and lightning knocking our power out about 2:30 a.m. this morning I might have racked up my fourth night of a reasonably good night's sleep.  Motormouse woke Kelly up when she crashed through her door and scrambled under the bed.  Pheebe handled the storm in stride as she took up most of my bed again leaving a small space on one side for me.  When I head down the hall to go to bed now she races ahead of me, jumps up on my bed and picks her spot.  In our house, dogs rule.   And, at the first sign I may be waking up in the morning, I am immediately smothered in big slurpy dog smooches:))

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You would think with my miserable mechanical track record I would know enough to leave things alone by now other than trying to change a light bulb now and again.  But, oh no, I had to go out one morning this week and mess with the rig's hot water tank and drain plug.  Just wanted to drain the tank and refill it.  Those plugs are generally as inaccessible as fuse panels.  Took me awhile with an assortment of wrenches, crowbars, hammers and a front end loader to get that plug out and drain the tank.  Of course  when I attempted to screw the plastic plug back in I over tightened it and broke the head off the plug.  Par for the course.  So now the plug's threads are fully inserted with no way for me to remove it.  Even if I had a tool to get it out, knowing me, I would probably screw that up too and just do further damage.  Luckily, we have a fellow here in Bayfield who makes house calls so Lorne from Lorne's RV is going to drop around this week and hopefully fix that up for us.

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I remembered JERRY asking why I clean the storage bins out in the Motor Home when we get back from the Southwest each Spring.  In fact, that is a question I frequently ask myself as well.  After nearly 6 months on the road in a lot of dusty and sometimes muddy locations those bins have a habit of getting dirty and somewhat disorganized at times so I generally like to empty the bins and hose them out.  Some of the things in the bins are used here at home in the summer such as lawn chairs, BBQ, etc. so I just leave them out.  For whatever reason, I like to start anew each Fall with empty bins because I have a tendency to organize things a little differently each year.  No wonder I can never find anything two years in a row!!  And why put things up in the rafters?  Maybe if I knew the answer to that question I wouldn’t be putting things up in the rafters.

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Tonight the Bayfield Bunch welcomes our newest Blog Follower, Donald.  Welcome aboard my friend and thanks for having the interest and taking the time to stop by.

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First thing Tuesday morning many children will be heading back to school in our area and quite a few will be picked up by school bus from the many farms in our rural countryside.  Kelly and I were both school bus drivers for a few years and I am still reminded of those days when I see the big yellow school buses on the road or the occasional little elf like buildings at the end of some farm lanes.   Parents have built these huts or shelters for their kids to wait inside for the school bus on cold frosty wintery mornings.  Below are a few I have come across on my back road photo tours.

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Have you ever been bothered by nasty smells in your rig and have had trouble finding the cause.  Check out R SANITY RV ADVENTURES and you just might find out the cause for those smells and how to easily remedy the situation.  Who knew.

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BIT OF A MIXED HERD HERE

A question was asked by a commenter as to why I was giving up my dream of Full Timing.   There is both a long and short answer to this question and I will give you the short answer.  First, let me say I have not given up the dream.  I will always have that.  For a major lifestyle change like Full Timing both parties have to totally be on the same page or it is not going to work.  That's it.

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GROANER'S CORNER:((  In Canada's Newfoundland the Newfies have finally solved their own fuel problems. They imported 50 million tonnes of sand from the Arabs and they are going to drill for their own oil.  Those Newfies are pretty smart eh:))

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GODERICH TORNADO DAMAGE PHOTOS....5 DAYS LATER

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Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.

Until one has loved an Animal, their  soul remains un-awakened.

OUR BLOGGER WEBSITE  http://thebayfieldbunch.com/

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The only thing better than right now  will someday be the memories of right  now...AL.

17 comments:

  1. Looks like you've got a male monarch there in the last pic. :)

    As for fulltiming, one of the perks of traveling alone is that I'm the only one that has to make up my mind...

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  2. Totally understand that both of you need to be on the same page for full timing...That's why we don't....Amen.

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  3. Love all the little "waiting rooms". Got some creative parents up there.

    Motormouse reacts to storms like our dogs do - HIDE!! Poor pups - I hate to see them so distraught during a storm.

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  4. " For a major lifestyle change like Full Timing both parties have to totally be on the same page or it is not going to work."

    Craig says he wants to full time. But at the rate he gets things one around here he will be in his 80's before the house is ready to go on the market. Also it is absolutely impossible for him to get rid of anything.

    That's OK. I came to terms with it this spring, but I think he knew how unhappy I was and so he suggested we move to buy an RV.

    I'm hoping for some long trips starting after he retires in December.

    Looks like you and Kelly wave worked out the compromise that satisfies both of you. I hope we can do the same.

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  5. Love your pic of the blue sky with the wee puffy, floaty summer clouds...the goldenrod, queen anne's lace, etc in the foreground. It is such a quintessential "summer vista in southern Ontario"! Love it!

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  6. I had a double wide bus shelter with two doors when my boys were kid's I even put a storm window on each side with a screen so it was cooler in warm weather. It was constructed like a miniature house with jousts, insulation and inside panel walls and the roof was a tar paper and shingle affair to match the house, the outside was a match to the house and garage with the same wood panels and stain.It weighed a ton.A tornado picked it up and moved it into the driveway one might. I had to drag it into the back acre with my truck as you couldn't move it by hand. We ended up having a Shed burning instead of a campfire one night. Be safe out there. Sam & Donna.

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  7. You guys sure are catching the wild storms up there lately. Glad The Bunch is high, dry and safe.

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  8. Love the school bus huts...how inventive..careful with the tools there Al...:)

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  9. Many people who end up fulltime RVing may not have a choice in the matter, perhaps lost their home and job. When one has choices especially as one gets older, the one of least resistance is chosen.
    Most of the fulltimers seem to be single though. It may be a good way to meet other singles with a similar mind set.

    Virginia

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  10. Well, can't agree with Anonymous about most full-timers being single. The single ones we've met are in the minority, and are often folks who are carrying on after losing a partner. When it was time for us to retire, Suzy took just a little convincing, which was largely done by our financial guru who told us we'd be OK in retirement, as long as we got out of California! Best advice we ever got!

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  11. You are so right it does have to be a mutual agreement or full timing won't work for very long!!!
    Have fun
    Donna

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  12. Virginia said: Most of the fulltimers seem to be single though. It may be a good way to meet other singles with a similar mind set.

    She must be reading a lot of blogs written by LOW, WIN and SOLO members. A more representative sample would be to compare couples to singles at hitchitch.com. Or go to any social event at a RV Park!

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  13. we all have our dreams but to do the fulltiming dream you both need to be on the same page..you just have to be thankful for the months that you are south for the winter!..onwards..time to start packing??..or at least getting organized!

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  14. The color in your shots is stunning! Love that first photo!

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  15. Al,

    Thank you very much for pointing your readers to our blog. It is amazing how our hits jump up when you've done that.

    Keep up the great work on your blog, we enjoy your posts and photos very much. Don't give up your dreams, they can come true.

    Paul & Marti, R Sanity RV

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  16. To make such a drastic lifestyle change as fulltiming, you absolutely have to be on the same page. And even then, it's not perfect. There's a lot of truth to the 'grass is always greener on the other side'. Although I don't regret our decision to go fulltime, I feel like I now better appreciate a lot of things we had when we were in a stix n brix. But you can never stop dreaming and you should never stop seeking...

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  17. Thank you so much for your kind words about me and my blog. It was a very thoughtful thing to do. I had over 130 hits in one day from your referral alone!

    Best wishes to you and Kelly,

    rvsue

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