Post Holiday Wishes, Moon Rises & Daily Challenges

Sorry for the quiet this last week.  With traveling to find a new boondock and getting set up just before the holiday, I didn't get a chance to scope out the library in town to recharge my computer.  No  electric, no computer, no posts.  That's how it is folks, living the life of luxury in a teardrop on the road.

As a late well wishing to everyone, I hope you had a wonderfully fun & belly-filled

Save the Turkeys Day! 

And that you all did your part on behalf of turkeys everywhere and ate Tofu (They were very close to being our country's national symbol you know!) .

I did move north last week to Lake Havasu City, where there are a few more stores available to get some things I needed.  It is a nice city and beautiful area and has lots of places to explore.  Though I'm not a "city" gal, I do like to see new places and check out what cool things there are to see and do, and LHC is small enough to not overwhelm me.  It has been a nice place to plop down for a bit, while I work on some projects and work out kinks in my set-up.

Cactus windows - very cool idea!

Upon finding a spot with an amazing view, I was welcomed by a flying, tiny, sparkly green neighbor who liked to show off his brilliant neckpiece.  He has a couple of lady friends, but isn't very gentlemanly when it comes to sharing the feeder I put out for them.  I have chided him about this on several occasions, but he seems to be ignoring me.  I told him he would be sorry come mating season!  Maybe he is this way because he has been disgracefully named like the ladybug. . . he is an "Anna's" Hummingbird.

On the second day at my boondock, I met a fellow full-timer who has been on the road for a couple of years and is very well-versed in many aspects of the simple, full-time lifestyle.  She has been a great source of information and ideas and has been helping me come up with a plan to hopefully get my solar system set up sooner and less expensively than I originally thought; and has already become a good friend too.  It's nice to meet someone who shares similar perspectives on life and who is well-versed with this full-timing lifestyle to bounce ideas off of.  I have appreciated all her help & friendship more than I can say.

Morning Moon Set

One thing I like about what I'm doing with my life is that it challenges me almost every day.  Sometimes those challenges are small, like trying to drain the water out of my cooler without soaking the car or myself while trying to get it to flow into my water jugs; and sometimes the challenges are a bit larger and harder to find a solution to - like trying to stay warm in the tearbaby during the cold weather we have had here.  For most full-timers, they have bigger rigs with built in propane heaters or generators to power electric heaters, but for my little tearbaby, I don't have many options.  I don't want a generator.  Too loud; too costly; too big to store; have to haul and store fuel; not my thing.  I thought about a small propane heater, and my friend lent me her Mr. Heater "Little Buddy" to try out (I had been considering one of these), but it turns out it is too big to sit on the counter in my teardrop and I don't have enough clearance on the floor to run it safely.  So that leaves just me. (Yep, always have to do everything myself.).  One nice thing about a small teardrop is that your body heat does eventually heat up the interior space - EVENTUALLY!  Yes, it is a bit nippy on these cold nights at first, but by morning I am pretty much snug as a bug in a rug under all my blankets; that is until I have to take my morning constitutional - which is outside.  Brrrr! isn't quite explicit enough to describe the brisk experience some mornings.  To help keep warm in the evenings, I have been boiling water in the afternoon and storing it in my thermos for hot tea and I even got out my gloves to keep my hands warm - which are always cold.  So far I have managed to survive these cold nights, but am very much looking forward to nights warmer than the 30's.  Cold evenings and mornings make me a slug.

Evening Moon Rise

One thing I have been enjoying is the night sky and the moon!  The full moon rise just before Turkey Day was amazing.  Watching it come up over the jutting rocks in the evening and then set over the opposite cliffs in the morning has been one of my greatest joys.  The other night my friend and I even witnessed the biggest shooting star either of us has ever seen.  It was so bright and glowed green as it fell though our atmosphere.  Truly spectacular.  These are the things that we so often miss in our day to day lives, but I feel they are the things that can bring such joy and wonder and we need to make them more a part of our lives to help us keep focused on what is really important.  So, take some time to stop and smell the roses - figuratively and literally.  Give yourself a little joy in your life every day.  It does make a difference.


And for those of you who have been wondering what mutant eggs look like, here you go!

Mutant Eggs