Moose Issues

We made it out of Kansas City bright and early this morning. Our travel day was a tad windy, but otherwise uneventful. Tonight we're 350 miles north -- and about 20 degrees cooler -- returning to a place we recently left: Forest City, Iowa. Bullwinkle is tucked in a skinny spot here at Camp Winnebago. Our fingers are crossed that a couple of chronic issues will be resolved within the next couple of days and we'll be heading west to enjoy some obligation-free exploring.

It's been awhile!

Winnie buddies Mike and Susan raised an astute observation in their most recent comment. They're wondering how much of our recent evolution has been sparked by moose issues. We've shared more with these two than we've let on here on the blog. After all, they were witnesses to -- and fantastic helpers with -- our leaky wheel bearing a year ago in Moab. And, we've kept them posted about our moose's maladies since.

They raise a good question. When the place where your rolling home was built starts to feel like home, it can start a couple of weary fulltimers dreaming of a sturdy stick and brick place. But, we all know those have their problems, too.

It's really hard for us to separate how much of an impact, for example, living with half a heat pump for a year has had on our yearning for a home base. With this stop, we are wrapping up a Moose Maintenance Tour that has dominated our Spring travels. (Yes, there are places we'd rather travel to than Gaffney, Moscow and Forest City!) We started this fulltime RVing journey with an intention to explore new, exciting and beautiful places. When we're not doing that, it's easy to think about finding a new, exciting, beautiful place to live. Add to all that the fact we've spent the last month in our "home" park. That dumpy, tight, gravely park may be convenient, but we find it increasingly depressing. When we actually lived in the Kansas City area, we always had a comfortable home and a lovely lawn. So, it comes as no surprise that we tend to miss all that when we visit our old hometown.

Back to Mike and Susan's comment. We are keeping an eye on the real estate market. Of course, where it goes from here is anybody's guess.   Prices have been so low for so long we just can't keep ourselves from looking. It's too tempting!

Meanwhile, we'll focus on getting Bullwinkle back in shape this week. We are so looking forward to getting back on the road and doing what we love to do: Explore this beautiful country.

Wish us luck!