"Let's do the Time Warp again!"

Oh, I have SO MUCH to tell you all about!!  A lot has happened since I last posted.  I’ve been super busy working long days into the nights and traveling, all of which has kept me from getting my computer fully charged and posting.  But first, I need to catch you all up.  We need to time warp back a couple of weeks. 

"It's just a jump to the left, 

and then a step to the right"

On January 14, I headed south to Quartzsite for the last few days of the RTR (Rubber Tramp Rendezvous) and the opening of the RV Big Tent Show (and when they say Big Tent they mean BIG TENT!).  

The BIG Tent

The RTR is a yearly gathering of mostly vandwellers (but there are lots of other types of rigs there too – anyone is welcome) organized by Bob Wells of CheapRVLiving.  

If you want to hit the road, 

with a tent or with a towed, 

in a bus or in a van, 

or an SUV with your best friend Dan, 

Bob’s great website is the place to go, 

with everything you will need to know.  

- (I was in a rhyming mood)

Participants gather for 2 weeks of boondocking in the desert around Quartzsite enjoying seminars that cover pretty much everything you need to know for your full or part-time life on the road.  There is no cost for attending the RTR nor do you have to register, just show up and join in on the fun.  The other great part of this gathering is seeing all the different rigs people live in, how they have set them up for living, and learning about their unique lifestyles.  I saw some amazing designs and ingenious ideas.  Even though I missed most of the gathering, I still learned so much and met some amazing people. 

RTR Gathering.  Everyone is scattered all over the desert - this is just a small portion of the attendees.

One of the coolest things I noticed was age range of those in attendance – 20-something’s to 70-something’s (maybe even 80-something’s).  It just goes to show that you don’t have to be young or retired to start such a journey.  I met several women in their 60’s – 70’s who had raised their families and were now on their own but had the clarity and courage to make THEIR longtime dream a reality.  They didn’t let their children's or friends' fears and doubts stop them, they just blazed ahead.  Boy, do I admire them - they are road warriors in every way. 

The desert and Quartzsite off in the distance

Another reason I wanted to go to Quartzsite to attend the RTR and check out the big RV Show was to learn more about Workamping and find a job for the summer.  A lot of full-timers workamp for a season or more to earn enough money so they can travel the rest of the year.  Workamping can take many shapes:  Camp hosts at campgrounds; retail, wait staff, shuttle drivers, and equipment rental jobs in National Parks; working at Amazon in the fall; or even sugar beet harvest work.  There are so many different types of jobs in so many locations.  (NOTE: Not all workamping jobs pay wages, some only give you a campsite in exchange for working 20-40 hours per week; some may pay a wage, but not provide a campsite or housing for free; and others pay a wage AND give you a free campsite.  If you are looking for a workamping job, be sure to find out what the terms are BEFORE accepting a position.  Do the calculations to see if what they are offering is worth your time).  Probably the most common workamping job is as a campground host.  As a camp host, you greet guests, “enforce” the rules, and basically keep the campground and bathrooms clean.  Hopefully you also have time to enjoy where you are – especially if you are lucky enough to be working in a National Park or National Forest or other gorgeous location.  Well, I was fortunate to score a sweet job for the summer working as a campground host in Washington State in the Cascade Mountains.  Ah, the Pacific Northwest, one of my favorite places.  I am super excited.  My campground is on a lake so I will get to enjoy paddling around it in the beautiful handmade canoe my dad made me.  What an adventure this summer will be!   

An RV Wagon Train I saw circled up ready to defend against. . . Wiley Coyote?  Roadrunners?

If you have never been to Quartzsite, AZ, you are missing out on a very unique experience.   During January and February the small, quiet town and surrounding desert swells in population from just under 3,500 to upwards of 1 million people with RV’s, trailers, tents, vans all scattered across the desert boondocking among the Saguaros.  Most are coming for the (Ah-hum) warm weather and the big Rock, Mineral and Gem shows, RV Show, and the hundreds of vendors who sell just about anything you can think of, and a few things you probably don't want to think of.  

Yep, you read that correctly, Bacon Lemonade.
I have to say the Garlic Parmesan Curly Fries DID look good!  But I couldn't afford them financially or gastronomically.

For someone like me who is crowd-a-phobic (and short), going to the Big Tent show and vendor area was a bit overwhelming, but I am glad I went and experienced it.  I recommend checking it out at least once.  Be sure to bring comfortable shoes, and a GPS! - I got lost trying to find my way back out of the Big Tent area - and I don't get lost easily.  I think I got confused with the rows upon rows of huge, "all-look-alike" RV's on display and the deviously calculated placement of the porta-potties.  I did eventually find my way out of the maze and back to the general mayhem of the A - Z rows of vendor tents.  

Rows A - Z of vendor tents across the street from the Big Tent area.
I never got through all 26 + rows of vendors and I was there ALL day and had to have walked several miles.

The trip to Quartzsite was a blast and a much needed break from hanging in Lake Havasu for so long.  I ended up staying for 5 days and enjoyed the company of new friends and a new place.  After Quartzsite, I headed back to Lake Havasu City and the BIG surprise!

. . . to be continued  (Oh, it's going to be good!!!)

Golden Rays of Power & Extraordinary Friends

When I first decided to start my road warrior life and bought my tearbaby, I knew I would need a solar system in order to do. . . well, lots of things - like charge my electronics, be able to see after dark, work on my business projects and keep warm.  I started reading about how solar power worked and found it kind of like this:

Well, thanks to my two new friends here, I am about to have my very own "Solar Array of Power" AND thanks to their amazing skills of explaining things to me, I have a little better idea of how many pancakes will fit on my roof and why aliens don't wear hats - the rest is still a bit fuzzy yet.  I also plan to conquer the properties of electricity and bend them to my will and desires so that I can run an electric space heater on high as often and long as I want and use an induction cooktop inside my trailer on my 200 watts of pure golden energy!   My friend doesn't believe I have such powers and just walks away saying "I can't hear you!".

The other project we have been working on is a minivan modification.  One of the main reasons I wanted a minivan over an SUV was so I could use it as my office / work space when I couldn't work outside.  Problem is, it turned into an overflowing storage shed nightmare inside and has been totally unusable for a work space without my having to unload half of my stuff.  Yes, I do still have too much stuff, but even with getting rid of a lot of things, I found that it still wouldn't be very conducive as a work space the way I imagined using it.  So, it has to be reconfigured and modified into what I hope will be a fabulous office.  We are almost done with both the van mod and the Solar Array of Power so very soon I will have light, computer usage anytime I want (meaning more blog posts!), an office to work in, and if I am successful with my extraordinary cosmic powers, heat anytime I want it!!!!  Bwahahahaha!!   I know, "You can't hear me!"

But seriously, I can't even begin to think how I could ever express my overwhelming gratitude for their tremendous help, kindness and generosity towards making my dream of being a successful road warrior possible.  Sometimes I wondered why my departure was delayed so long, now I know why - so that our paths would cross.  It is amazing that when you make the right decision for yourself, the right situations and people often find their way to you.  I will never understand the reason(s) why I would be so deserving of such incredible friends, but I am grateful beyond words.  Thank you!

In other news, can you guess what the weather has been like out here?  I'll give you one guess!  (Trust me, your odds of guessing correctly are pretty good - much better than your odds of winning the Powerball Jackpot!).  If you guessed cold and rainy, you'd be correct!  We haven't had a warm day since before Christmas!  I have to admit, this relentless cold weather is taking a toll on my spirits lately, and it really isn't much warmer anywhere else in this region for me to head to.  Quartzsite, about 85 miles south and where I am trying to get to, is actually COLDER than where I am now!  What's up with that!?  And this next week doesn't look like it's going to be much warmer.  It is distressing and no fun to be cold all the time and having it get dark so early doesn't help.  I can’t wait for it to warm up and stay light till at least 7 p.m.  It is like the scene in "When Harry Met Sally" where Sally is putting letters in the mail box one at a time then checking to see if they went down as Harry is waiting impatiently for her, then when he can't take it any longer he stuffs them all in.  I am ready to stuff these short, cold days into a mailbox and mail them to Guam!  I wonder how long it would take me to drive to Costa Rica?  Hmmmm, may have to look into that!

Well, as soon as we have some of the projects a little further along, I will take some pictures and post them so you can see what we've been working on.  I am so excited to have them done so I can use my office and have lights in Zelda!  I know I shouldn't complain about the cold and not having power for things like lights and computer when there are so many people who have so much less than I do.  I really am grateful for all that I do have.  I have a roof over my head, some food in my cooler, transportation, and amazing friends and family who are always there for me should I need a place to crash, a listening ear, love and support. or wisdom that I lack.  Really, what else do I need?  

"Surround yourself with people who make you a better person."

- Zig Ziglar

Out With the Old and In with the New!

Well, it certainly has been a long time since I last posted.  I know, get with the program here Jordan!  A lot has happened since our last chapter.  Let’s see, I guess we’ll start with the flu!  Yes, I was the lucky recipient of a most delightful little Flu Bug as an early Christmas present.  Just imagine my surprise when I awoke to find it hopping around under my miniature tree!  It was so cute with its big red bow I just had to keep it!  I guess it didn’t like living in my tearbaby with me out here in the desert, since it only stuck around for about 2 days before it moved on to what I can only guess was a more obliging host with a warmer home and a lot more friends to play with.  Not much to entertain it here or for it to eat, so I can understand it wanting to find a better deal.  I am however grateful that it came to visit while we were having one of our rare, short “warm” spells and during the full moon - made visiting the bucket at all hours of the night much more pleasant.

My Christmas Decorations - took me and entire morning to put them up!  The Tree and Santa are from my dear friend, and the festive little Teardrop Trailer is from my wonderful sister and brother-in-law!

Christmas Day I was feeling much better so treated myself to my traditional “On-my-own-for-the-holidays” trip to the movies.  I rarely get to go see movies anymore and hate crowds, so I always love to go to the earliest show on the big holidays.  Usually I have the whole theater to myself or nearly so, but not this year – the theater was almost full - but it was a fun group of people in good spirits that were enjoying the movie as much as I was.  And it was SO worth it!  As a diehard original Star Wars fan I of course was biting at the bit to see the new Star Wars movie, and I loved it.  What a fun treat. 

Oh, and Santa was kind enough to bring me more cold weather.  Geez, Thanks Santa!  You’re a real sweetie.  And I have to say the 36 hour windstorm was extra special, especially followed by a week’s worth of lows in the low to mid 30’s.  Boy, you really know how to pick great presents Santa - I would have been ecstatically happy with a nice misfit toy or even some coal in my stocking (I KNOW I was bad this year – that had to have counted for at least some coal!).

Unfortunately with the biting cold temps, my fingers have been a bit on the frozen side, so typing hasn’t been very doable (tonight is no exception), and I haven’t yet perfected typing with my mittens on.  Though you might have had fun trying to decipher what I did type.  Maybe we’ll try that sometime.  

    

So then Jordan, why didn’t you get your butt to the library to recharge your computer and type us up a new post?  Well, I did go during the windstorm, but got there late and didn’t have time to do much besides warm up.  Since then I have been busy with a new big development!  My friend I met here has been helping me set up the “solar array of power”– should be up and running by early next week if all goes well.  No more 4 hours at the library waiting for my computer to recharge!  I will get to hang out in the sun all day while those glorious little solar cells work their photovoltaic magic.  “Hello sun, it’s me, Jordan’s computer, please feed me!”  I am swooning already.  And I’ll even have lights in Zelda too!  No more hanging out in the dimness from my little lantern each evening wondering if I really DID get my contact lens into the little case or not.  Good-bye Dark Ages!  It’s been fun but I must go towards the light.

On Wednesday, I received a very special gift.  A very dear and wonderful friend of mine who is originally from Arizona came to visit me.  Her amazing mother drove them 4 hours each way so I could see my friend and finally meet her mom!  How many mom's do you know who would do half as much?  We got to visit for several hours over a huge lunch and they even drove out to my campsite to see it.  They also brought me goodies!  Cookies, oranges picked fresh from an actual TREE! (I've only had ones from a bag or bin!), and homemade tamales!  I've never had a tamale before and the first ones I get to taste are made by Experts!  I can't wait till dinner tomorrow.  YUM!!!  As always, it seems with those that are most dear to you, the visits are never long enough.  But it was such an incredible thing to have my friend BE a part of this life of mine.  To her and her mom - a most heartfelt THANK YOU!!

To start the new year, I am hoping to head south to Quartzite next week to join up with a group of vandwellers and check out what the Big Q is all about.  This may be somewhat problematic since I am crowdaphobic.  But sometimes you just have to pull yourself up by your socks and face those big Fear Monsters . . . and beg them not to eat you.  I think it will be quite an experience and I see it as kind of a Right of Passage into full-timing.  Hey, maybe I’ll even get a gold star for going.  One can hope!

Well, that about covers the past week and a half.  I’m looking forward to what 2016 has waiting for me (PLEASE let it include some extended periods of warm weather soon!).  2015 has been another challenging year, but also one full of wonderful memories of time spent with family and friends, great learning experiences, and best of all, the beginning of this amazing life I have chosen for myself.  Chose the life that is right for you - make it one of your New Year's Resolutions.  

My New Year’s Wish for you . . .

Here's to an EXTRAORDINARY 2016!!

Fire in the Sky!

I apologize for the unrefined post here, but I am posting from my phone.

For those of you in the Southwest I hope you caught the massive meteor that shot across the whole sky around 7:00 MST.  To say it was amazing would be a huge understatement. I was bummed to have missed the Geminids Meteor Shower last week due the extreme cold we had, but this more than made up for that & more.

If you missed it, there are pictures & videos on the internet & I'm sure news stations will show footage. Do check out a good video of it if you can. It was like fireworks as pieces broke off in other directions.

What a way to say farewell to the long nights & usher in longer days!  THAT is exactly why i chose to live this life; to experience the unforgettable wonders nature has to show us.

(NOTE: The authorities have said this "light show" was debris from a Russian rocket re-entering Earth's atmosphere and not a meteor. Either way, it was still quite breathtaking to watch!)

Hello Again Light!

Wishing you Tranquility, Magic, and Inspiration 

on this Winter Solstice!

Hipahipa!!

Break out the Hula Skirts and Coconut Shells folks!  

We're havin' a heat wave!

We finally got out of the low / mid 30's for overnight temps!!  The next couple of days will bring us slightly warmer weather of 40's and 60's.  It will be short lived, but every degree in the upward direction helps!  

Water Conservation MacGyver Style!

Thirty years ago I participated in a semester long field study program in the desert southwest.  That was the first time I had ever been to a desert or even this part of the country.  Coming from the lush, green, moist mid-west I thought I would hate the desert, but I fell in love with it instead.  That experience changed my life in so many positive ways.  One big way was sparking a deeper passion for the environment and a career as an Environmental Educator.

One of the topics we studied during that semester was water issues.  Growing up on the shores of Lake Erie, this was such an alien concept for me.  I basically thought, 'If you don't have water someplace then don't live there!'.  Simple.  But I was stunned by how many people lived in the desert and even more so by the amount of water that was wasted - huge fountains and lush, green lawns to name a few ways.  Today, I feel that even as a nomadic full-timer, I have to be conscientious of my water consumption.  I may think that since I have limited water storage that alone makes me a good water steward, and to some extent that is true, but I can still be wasteful if I'm not careful.

So, in the spirit of my first desert experience 30 years ago, I bring you my simple, cheap, and "MacGyvered" approach to water conservation.

Water Storage:  I don't have tanks on my trailer and have limited storage space in general.  I use & refill five, 1 gallon jugs for my drinking water.  I also have a big blue 5 gallon jug & two 1 gallon jugs for "other use" water, like dish-washing or hand-washing.  I have those two jugs marked so I don't mix them up with my drinking water jugs.  I also refill these two jugs with the ice water from my cooler.  That alone keeps these jugs full most of the time, so score one for the annoying cooler!

My 2 "Other-use" Water Jugs

Hand-washing:  I have gone through a couple of trial tests with this one while living on my friends' farm.  First I bought wet-wipes, but they are too wasteful, too expensive and the chemicals are really bad for your skin (though I do use baby wipes for my hands if I use the pee jug at night).  Then I had an idea - use an empty soap pump dispenser filled with water as a "faucet".  It worked, but took a long time to rinse all the soap off my hands with the little squirts of water that came out.  The concept was good, but I needed something that would squirt out a little more water.  I found it at an antique shop.  This little drink dispenser works great.  It is glass, but that weights it down and helps warm up the water in the sun.  It puts out enough water to rinse easily and fits perfectly on my wheel fender with a foaming dispenser of very diluted Dr. Bronner's soap.  Those plus a towel hung to my trailer MacGyver-style and I have a great little hand-washing station.  

My Hand-washing Station

Hair Washing:  This one took me a little longer to come up with a simple set-up that didn't waste so much water.  I had made a garden sprayer shower to use, but it was too big for my hair washing needs and took too much time setting up, drying out, and storage space, so I returned everything.  I only wash my hair 2x a week (weather permitting!) and didn't want to be bothered with the contraption.  Since my budget it so tight, I felt that the money could be better utilized right now.  I may change my mind down the road and make another one, but for now, what I have works great and only cost me $1.00 - my kind of set-up!  It consists of a reused a 2 liter plastic bottle, colored black with a permanent marker, set out in the sun to warm up the water; along with another reused plastic water bottle with a squirt top to wet and rinse my hair that I refill with warm water from the bigger bottle.  I basically hang upside-down over the blue dish pan and wash away.  Since I don't use shampoo or conditioner, it doesn't take much water to rinse my hair (I use a baking soda / soap solution and apple cider vinegar - which is an amazing long hair detangler by the way!).  I use about 1 liter of water to wash and condition my long hair.  Of course, sun & wind dry when done!  The hardest part is the bending over the dishpan - OUCH on the lower back!

Hair Washing Station

Dish Washing:  Since I haven't been able to do much cooking, I haven't had many dishes to wash.  Typically I try to use only about 2 cups of water or less to wash, unless I have a lot of dishes.  I use a small amount of environmentally safe dish soap for washing and a spray bottle of water with a little vinegar to rinse with.  I also strain out any food particles from cooking or the dirty dishwater with a coffee filter in a funnel before the water goes into my gray water jug.

Bathroom:  My family and friends are quite familiar with my "morning constitutional" routine and beautiful sunrise pictures when I lived on the farm; but for the rest of you, I will share.  (Com'on, you were dying to know! Fidgeting on the edge of your seats aren't you?).  I have re-purposed wide mouth jugs for my "pee jug" which I keep inside the trailer.  I wanted to build a urine diverting composting toilet, but the urine diverters were too expensive and came with a bunch of stuff I didn't want; plus adding one to my bucket made it too big to move in and out of the trailer daily.  So, after 2 years of designs and redesigns, I finally came up with a "composting" toilet that works for me and cost less than $20.00.  Using my pee jug, I keep at least 95% of my urine out of the bucket, and it has been working well so far with no smell from the bucket.  As for the bucket, I double line it with tall kitchen garbage bags and at the moment, use peat moss for the covering medium - I know, GASP!!  So horrible for the environment!, but all I could get at the time.  I want to try coconut coir since it is environmentally sustainable and comes in small, light weight, dried bricks.  When the inner bag is mostly full, I take it out, tie it up tight so nothing can fall out and put it in a plastic shopping bag which I tie up tightly and toss into the garbage.  I hate using the plastic bags, but I don't have anywhere to compost it.  Digging catholes in the desert is NOT easy with the hard, rocky ground and dumping that much waste in a couple of catholes is too much and not a good idea for established dispersed camping sites.  Packing it out has the least impact.  

My "Composting" Bucket Toilet
(Kitty litter bucket holds the medium to put on top of the waste)

Gray Water:  I collect all the gray water that I can't reuse in an old kitty litter jug (1 1/2 - 2 gallons), then find a place where I can dump it safely.  Everything I use (with the exception of toothpaste) is not harmful to the environment, especially with how diluted it gets, so I don't feel too bad about the waste water I produce.  I have only just filled my gray water bottle once in a month.  I could have used some of what I put in there for another purpose, but wasn't able to utilize it at the time.  I may re-purpose another bottle to hold that water for a time when I can reuse it.

My Gray Water Jug

"Wait, you forgot bathing!  Don't you bathe?"  Hey, I have to live with me, so heck yea I bathe!  Though I wish I could say it consisted of soaking in a hot spring this time of year, but sadly it doesn't.

Bathing:  I use 2 cups of water for bathing which lasts me about a month!  Yes, you read that correctly, and yes, I do bathe daily.  I make homemade "bath wipes".  I prefer to make my own so I know what is going into them.  The store bought wipes have so many chemicals in them and I don't want to use them all over my body, plus they are much more expensive than mine.  I make mine with paper towels and only use 1/2 - 3/4 of a paper towel to bathe with.  They work great and are good for my skin as well.  The only downside is the storage area in my trailer gets really cold, so I try to warm them in the sun a little first before using them - otherwise they are better than a whole pot of espresso for getting one WIDE awake!

So there you have it, my water usage and conservation methods.  I still have areas where I can make some improvements, but for the most part, I am pleased with what I have in place.  It may seem rather primitive to most of you (maybe even horrific), but that's what I like about it.  Conservation doesn't stop at water but is about all resources.  I have so much fun trying to come up with "MacGyvered" solutions to the challenges that leap out at me.  Simple, inexpensive and re-purposed are my parameters and that combination is what makes it fun for me.  Living deliberately does take extra time and creates more "chores", but living that way also makes a difference.  For me, that is important.  Less impact on the earth lets me enjoy its beauty more.

Shores of Lake Erie