Meeting Up

We're well into our second week on the road, and it's official: We Love Fulltiming!

(Not that there was ever any doubt, mind you.)

So far, the thing we like best is meeting up with people. Sure, we've had all kinds of casual conversations with neighbors at each stop. And, those are great. What I'm talking about is meeting up with people we already know...and the people they already know. It's made our initial days as fulltimers like a party. There's so much to celebrate!

We met up with two couples we've known for several years in Bend. This was the first time we got to see them on their home turf. Hanging with the locals made our stay in Bend extra special.

In Crescent, we met up with Linda and Steven, future fulltimers we met virtually just a few weeks ago. There was something about them that compelled us to make a special stop to meet them in person. And, we're so happy that we did. Our initial meeting was filled with hugs, smiles and loads of laughter. When you can meet people for the first time and feel immediately like long-time friends, that's something. We so look forward to seeing them again down the road.

Here in Port Orford, we scheduled a very special "meetup". Gordon and Juanita were the very first commenters on our blog. We've been avid readers of their travel journal since we started reading travel journals. Since that first connection over a year ago, they have provided us with valuable information, inspiration, insight, encouragement and a some broad shoulders to cry on. Along the way, we deemed Gordon "da Godfadda". We knew da Godfadda and his lovely bride would be spending the summer in Port Orford. As soon as we had a closing date, we made reservations to spend a week at their wonderful summer park. We could not think of a better way to start our fulltiming adventures.

To say we received a warm welcome to Port Orford would be an understatement. As we pulled into the unfamiliar park, we saw a very familiar face sitting on a bench with camera in hand, capturing our arrival. We cheered and hopped out of the moose as fast as we could to greet Gordon. Again, it was a first time meeting with a long-time friend. Moments later, we spotted Juanita. We had the privilege of meeting Juanita over lunch in February. So, this was a second meeting with a long-time friend. Hugs, smiles and laughter all around. What a pleasure it is to see these wonderful people who mean so much to us. We could not have made this journey without them.

We're so glad we're able to spend some time here! It gives us plenty of time to spend together. As I informed Gordon when I made our reservation: "I hope you like us. We're staying a week!" Gordon, Juanita and their best friend Bodie hosted a wonderful welcome dinner that featured some fine Alaskan halibut from their adventures we read about last summer. They went to a lot of time and trouble to deliver that tasty entree! Between every delicious bite and celebratory sip we shared more stories and filled in between the lines of our respective journals. The spaces between the words were filled with lots of laughter. We couldn't imagine a warmer welcome.

Gordon and Juanita have introduced us to several friends in this wonderful park. The park owner's, Cindy and Tim, are fellow escapees from California who made us feel immediately right at home. They promote a real sense of community in their park and it shows. Sue and Doug are avid readers of da Godfadda's journal. They traveled to Port Orford from their home in Canada catch up with Gordon and Juanita. As future fulltimers, this very fun couple was very curious about our transition. They probably heard more than they wanted about how it is to purge a stick house of so much stuff! We look forward to spending more time with them this week and seeing them on the road in the future. (And, we're so happy to see they're following our blog. We look forward to reading their just birthed travel journal.)

Although we don't want to think about leaving Port Orford just yet, we're excited about other "meetups" that are scheduled down the road. We look forward to meeting Deb and Rod in Port Angeles, Jenny (and maybe Neil) near Spokane. Plus, we'll hook up with good friends from the Bay Area when we're in Montana. How fun!

Sure, in our initial days of fulltiming, we've seen some amazing, breathtaking and stunning sights. (I need to brush up on my superlatives!) But, the best thing - by far - has been the chance to meet and spend time with some very special people.