Sunday, January 11, 2015

SOME THOUGHTS ON SOCIALIZING & COFFEE HABITS:))

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I AM GUESSING THIS LITTLE LADY I PHOTOGRAPHED THIS AFTERNOON TO BE A CACTUS WREN

A comment from a reader had me thinking today about the social side of RVing.  Commenter said in part, “Dad always said that they had a better social life in the south than they did at home”! (Canada)  Well I’m sure not the one to be talking nor am I any kind of authority on socializing but I do have a few thoughts about it.

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SOME DAYS IT’S JUST A LITTLE HARDER TO MAKE MY BED THAN OTHER DAYS

First, we do very little socializing anywhere whether it be back home in Ontario or here in Arizona.  Just not our thing but what the commenter said is true for us & others as well.  Back home in Bayfield we do not really socialize with anyone.  We did years ago but that was a different era.  Nothing at all wrong with the majority of people there, it’s just that we prefer to keep to ourselves & do our own thing.   We do the same in the southwest all winter but there is a difference.  RV’ers have a common interest which happens for the most part to be the love of traveling in a somewhat Nomadic fashion whether they be Snow Birds, Full Timers, Week-Enders or whatever.  There is an unspoken bond between people on the road regardless of how they are doing it or where they are staying.  It seems RV folks & especially RV Blogger folks always have so many things in common to talk about, share, learn, & pass on to others.  Friendships may be made quickly & last a lifetime or simply turn out to be a bump in the night as traveling trails briefly cross.  With RV’ers being fluidly mobile nobody seems to end up in someone else’s face long enough to be annoying.  And you know how quickly we older folks can become annoyed with things & each other at times.  The key I think is not being around each other long enough to get on each other’s nerves & that ‘in my opinion’ seems to be an unspoken thought throughout the RV world.  I have talked to fellow RV’ers who on the surface appear to be quite sociable yet have told me in private how they much prefer their quiet alone times.  Also I believe another bonding factor is the fact when you say good-bye or so-long to a fellow RV’er chances you may never see them again are greater than a neighbor living just down the street or around the corner.  In the Autumn & early Winter months RV folks head for warmer weather flocking together across the southern United States & Mexico with very common interests.  Old friendships re-newed & new friendships begun.  For 5 & 6 months of the year RV’ers criss-cross each others paths pausing briefly for a quick hello, a sharing campfire, a happy hour or two.  Then come Spring everyone scatters northward across the country heading back to homes or favorite locations away from the heat of hot southern summer days.  The often short durations of meetings kinda has everyone putting their best foot forward & I like how that works.  There is an old saying which says, ‘Familiarity breeds contempt’ & I figure if folks don’t get to know each other’s business just too darn well, stay out of each other’s faces, & show respect for other’s opinions we should all be just one big bunch of happy smiling campers.  Well sounds good in theory anyway eh:))

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‘Almost’ without exception we have met so many fine fellow RV’ers over the years.  As a rule RV folks just seem to be a different type of caring & adventurous people.  However if it were not for blogging we probably would have met very few of them, if any.  We’re just not the type of people to walk up to someone’s campsite & strike up a conversation.  Well I’m not anyway.  Kelly has been known to do that on occasion.  It’s a stretch for me to even say Hello to anyone but it has been my blog & the blogs of others plus readers that have occasionally drawn me out of my self imposed shell.  I’m not at all comfortable being out of my shell but with the shorter infrequent & occasional encounters with passing Nomadic fellow RV’ers I am on occasion able to step out for a little socializing now & again.  But just now & again:))

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And I might as well throw this in while I’m on the topic.  By nature I am not a rude, arrogant, or aloof person & if you say Hello or speak to me I will not ignore or be unfriendly to you despite my self professed grouchy & hermit like ways.  Quite the contrary in many cases & depending on the subject of conversation I could well become your very much most next best friend.  I may not wave to you going by in my Jeep, Motorhome, or on my Motorcycle but if you happen to wave to me first you can be guaranteed a big Howdy-Doody wave back. 

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GAMBLE’S QUAIL IN ONE OF OUR MESQUITE TREES

Okay I’m getting myself a little too far extended & kinda over the top here so I had better change the subject right quick before I get myself any deeper into the soup……………:))

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Can you imagine living in your RV during these recent horribly cold freezing record breaking temperatures that have been happening in places like Alberta Canada.  No, I can’t either but Peter & Bea are doing it at the moment & you might be interested in seeing how they are coping & what has been happening to them & their rig.  Check out how Peter & Bea are doing at When The Mattress Is Freezing To The Wall.   

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I have over 100 fellow Bloggers on my sidebar & the list stretched quite away down my page so this morning I shortened that list up to show only the most recent 25 posts.  Everybody that was on my list is still there & can be found by clicking the words ‘Show All’ at bottom right:))

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And for all you Quilting folks out here & there are many of you I would suggest having a look at Monica’s blog at,  Color My World With Warmth

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Is only half a cup of coffee a day worth even drinking coffee at all?  Sure why not & this coming from a former coffee addict.  When I gave up my alcohol addiction many years ago I turned right around & replaced that addiction with a coffee addiction.  Back in the bad old drinking days it was very rare for me to ever drink a coffee in the first place but after those days ended my many cups a day coffee dilemma literally began overnight & reached it’s peak sometime in the late 90’s I think.  Can’t remember what it was that caused me to finally wrestle that addiction into a controllable situation but somewhere along the line I managed to cut my coffee consumption to 4 coffees a day.  No exceptions.  That 4 coffee’s a day lasted right up to the summer of 2012.  First coffee of each day was 7 a.m. with the second cup at 10 a.m.  Next coffee was always 2 p.m. with my final coffee at 7 p.m. & I never deviated from that.   This system worked well with one of the biggest benefits being my 10 a.m. & 2 p.m. coffee breaks.  Those 2 time slots always forced me to take a break from whatever it was I was doing at the time & I always so much looked forward to those 2 relaxing breaks each day.  

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AND HERE’S PHEEBS HELPING ME WITH ANOTHER NIGHTLY BAYFIELD BUNCH POST

Talking to my Nurse Practitioner one day in the summer of 2012 about my sleeping disorder she suggested ‘no coffee’ after 6 p.m.  Went home & thought about that for a few hours & started out the very next day by eliminating my 10, 2, & 7 o’clock coffees.  And that brings me to today.  Found myself not drinking a full cup of coffee each morning quite awhile ago so Kelly only pours me half a cup now.  Half a cup of coffee a day for a former coffee addict is working well.  Only exception I make to that half cup is when traveling I will often have a coffee while on the road or on rare occasions when I have an early evening coffee with a couple close friends.  Oh yes & when Pheebs & I head out some mornings on our country Jeep drives back home in Ontario.  So why not just give up coffee altogether?  Good question I suppose & maybe some day I will but for the moment I’m Okay with my usual half cup a day.  It’s just kind of a nice gentle way of getting those early morning fuzzies out of my mouth:))

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ALRIGHT MR. PHOTOMAN I’M DONE POSING & I’M OUGHTA HERE!!

GROANER’S CORNER:(( Jack has died. His lawyer is standing before the family and reads Jack's last will and testament:  "To my dear wife Esther, I leave the house, 50 acres of land, and one million dollars. To my son Barry, I leave my big Lexus and the Jaguar. To my daughter Suzy, I leave my yacht and $250,000. And to my brother-in-law Jeff, who always insisted that health is better than wealth, I leave my sun lamp."

21 comments:

  1. Yep, RVers of all ages have at least one thing in common and usually more. Plus they tend to me a nice friendly bunch of folks, whether social or not. Just open the hood in a RV park and see how many friends you can make in a hurry. ;)
    Didn't drink coffee until I was almost 40 and then someone introduced me to 'latte' and I was hooked, but only one a day. A quadruple almond mocha breve made at home.
    Hope it's warming up around there a bit.

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  2. Love that levitating bird in the last pic. Great shots tonight.

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  3. First of all, that first picture is amazing! Such details! And I think you have something there about the RV social life. If your meeting is brief and you put your best foot forward, it would usually be positive. As for blogging 'friends', you don't have to see them at all. Who knows what they're really like!?

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  4. Those wren pictures are just outstanding. Really so sharp. I don't think we would have met anyone on the road if it weren't for blogging. We are just such loners. We don't mean to be unfriendly, we just don't ever intrude on folks in neighboring sites and tend not to be joiners when there is a gathering. That said, just today we had breakfast with a couple we met from our blogs. They saw us come into an RV park and came over and introduced themselves. It really is nice to know people; I just never seem to take the first step.

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  5. the whole aspect of the 'blogger meet and greet' can most times go well but there are those times when it doesn't go as planned..we just learn from it and move on..that's when it's good that the 'house has wheels'..don't like the neighbourhood..move on!..
    as for coffee?..don't indulge..have been told I am socially challenged..I may say to someone.. 'meet for coffee?'..but I don't drink it..I am one of those ones who make you boil the kettle and break out the tea!!

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  6. I ran into a couple from canada today at Einstein Bagel and because I follow you I asked if they came down in an RV and they chuckled and said no but on their way down here, the highways are loaded with them. So I was thinking of you while I ate my bagel today.... ha ha. Also, wanted to say that I too am in the process of cutting coffee from my diet. after a week of no coffee, I finally had a starbucks today and lets just say it didnt sit well with me. I bet your tummy is feeling better along with your sleeping patterns :-) blessings and thank you for your blog. Its a fun and easy read.


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  7. I love the close up of the wren in the first photo. The detail of the feathers and beading around the eye are beautiful. Thanks for the recognition and posting my blog. The majority of bloggers that I have come across have been very warm, caring, and friendly. Since I'm new to the RV world, I haven't met any RVer, but I am reading lots of wonderful blogs written by RVers that provide a wealth of information on places to boondock and camp. I'm learning about the West through their blogs. I've been a hiker/camper since my teens. I did lots of backpacking in the central Appalachian region with Dolly Sods being my favorite place to hike and camp back then. Coffee can be very medically beneficial to some, but for me that isn't the case. I love the taste of coffee, but I don't drink it anymore. I enjoy reading your blog daily. Peace and safe travels!

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  8. I love my morning coffee and drink 3 to 4 cups. I almost never drink it later in the day. It doesn't interfere with my sleep and I hope I never give it up. The best is when I have someone to share the coffee with.

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  9. I know for a fact that I'm hopelessly addicted to coffee, since I know that when I go for "blood work" (and we all know about those two words) I have a headache by about nine a.m. or until I have my first cup of coffee. I don't drink it after about five p.m. though, since it does tend to keep me up.
    I know one guy who quit. Said he felt better. I'm not sure what that means. Pretty sure he had some other issues concerning his health. I'm not there yet, and I'm not looking forward to the day when I have to give it up.

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  10. Great post Al!! You may remember that a year ago I discovered that the source of many of my problems was coffee, seems I am allergic to caffeine. I discovered this by giving up coffee and a month later eating chocolate and breaking out into some major hives. I now drink a coffee substitute found at health food stores in Canada, not sure if it is available in the US. It is called 'Akava' , a product of Poland containing barley, rye, roasted chicory root and roasted sugar beets. Not bad once you get used to it.

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  11. Very well stated and I believe Gaelyn is so right also. RVers tend to be a very friendly group social or not. WE Rvers should be very happy, heck we are livin' the dream.

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  12. Love this posting. Socializing as rv er's I could not said it any better. Visit for a bit chat for a while, and not in each others face all the time. Another reason we like to keep moving around, we are able to enjoy some very nice quality time together that we both much enjoy.

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  13. Thank you Al for so succinctly summing up my feelings on socializing while being a full time RVer. Although I don't comment often, I do read your blog religiously & enjoy your photographs. My best to you & Kelly. - Gayle

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  14. Al, you have very eloquently summed up my feelings, too. We don't camp or boondock, but I have meet other bloggers and those experiences have been very rewarding! Thank you, Gaelyn, for meeting us in Arizona! And, Al & Kelly, I'd love to meet you sometime, but work calls. We travel to Arizona during the monsoon season, when you guys are back home, so for now, we'll just chat here!
    Cheryl Ann

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  15. Others have said they know more about their fellow bloggers than any of their neighbors, and that is certainly true for me. We socialize very little, and then mostly with family, but are very much looking forward to connecting with the nomadic community once we hit the road. It is generally the lure of that first cup of coffee that wins out over turning over and going back to sleep. Second cup is now decaf, and that's all I have all day. It's as much ritual for me as it is consumption :-)

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  16. Those close ups of the Wren are amazing! As for coffee...Den and I drink a pot in the AM..My big thing is being able to sit outside with my coffee. At home, we have a screened porch and in Spring, Summer and Fall (weather permitting)that's where I run to with my first cup of coffee..So when RVing, I get our chairs set up outside and after our walk, that's where I run to..

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  17. Very well said Al! In spite of the amount of socializing we seem to do Mike and I are also kind of private people, Mike more so than me. He said the other day he always had solitary jobs--equipment operator, cowboy, etc. Me, I was inside an operating room full of people every day and I guess I need more other people contact than some. We enjoyed so much seeing you guys Saturday!

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  18. Im a huge One cup coffee Addict! We got a Keurig makes it very simple but its costly!
    I am not yet and don't plan to be a full time rv'r I do love to travel and extending stays are in my future if I have any say..I love taking off in my travel van go exploring seeing the countryside, camping as I go....I enjoy a chat around a campfire or quick meet and greet then I'm ready to be on my way...excellent photos the detail is amazing.... I believe its a Pyrrhuloxia, a female who has come to pose for your you in this post..sometimes referred to as the desert cardinal...so maybe you have added a new bird to your life list! Im enjoying your blog!

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  19. I think I've met most of my "on the road" friends through my blog, too. We love meeting up and getting together and socializing for a while, then moving on by ourselves for a while. I always look forward to get-togethers, and then look forward to my alone time. This is the best of both worlds.

    I look forward to my one cup of coffee in the morning, and that's usually it for me. When I worked, I'd sometimes have another cup around 3, which was my down time of the day, and it would pick me up and get me going again. :)

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  20. Your photos are amazing, Al!

    We are currently experiencing in Michigan some of what Peter and Bea are going through in Canada. To get an idea of our experiences, check out our blog at exploRVistas.com.

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