Halfway

It's a noteworthy day around here.

Livingston is bracing for record-breaking lows in the teens tonight. We realize this is big news in these parts, but for us it's, happily, a non-event. Our event d'jour is the celebration of our first six months of fulltiming!

Yes, a mere six months ago today we left the crazy but comfortable confines of the San Francisco Bay for the fun and freedom of life on the road. What a memorable half a year it's been.

We've visited 21 states and covered some 7,770 miles as we traveled coast to coast and halfway back. We've made 37 stops, all at campgrounds or parks. No boondocking for us yet! We've stayed at two places twice. Striking the averages with those stats, we've moved every five days and our typical travel day covers 210 miles. Thankfully, those miles have been essentially trouble free.

The miles have been memorable, indeed. We've met wonderful people, seen stunning places and enjoyed tasty treats along the way. We've enjoyed all kinds of weather, much of it record breaking. We've spent time reconnecting with friends and family. It's been wonderful.

Much of this first six months has been spent adjusting to new stuff. We spent the first few months adjusting to our new lifestyle. About the time we were getting comfortable with that we bought a new motorhome, which has us adjusting to more new stuff. While it's been more than a bit stressful at times, it's all good.

As we look forward to the second half of our newbie year, we want to share what we consider the funniest moment of the first half. For some reason, it didn't make the blog when it happened. But, we'll bring it to you now.

Our Funniest Moment

Date: November 17

Place: Bristol-Kingsport KOA

Time: Just after 11PM

After our first full day of driving our new moose, we settled in for an overnight at this quiet little campground in the hills of eastern Tennessee. Snug in our pull-through with campers on either side of us, we readied for bed. Suddenly we were startled by the unending blast of an air horn, and it was ours! I did a one-second 40-foot dash to the front of our new motorhome to find our girl kitty sitting happily on the steering wheel, oblivious to the commotion she was creating. I grabbed the cat and silence returned to the campground. Afraid of how our sleeping neighbors might react, we waited quietly inside the next morning until they rolled away.

Sure, we laugh about it all...now.

Here's to a second half of our rookie year that is as memorable and as fun as the first.

Cheers!