Go Do It

One of us, who shall remain nameless (but does most of the writing on this blog), has developed quite an obsession about this fulltiming thing. I spend just about any spare moment doing something related to fulltiming. Seems I'm either adding to our list of things to do before we go, taking inventory of all of our stuff and figuring out where it will go, reading a blog of a current or future fulltimer, checking out the fulltiming topics on an RV forum, researching campground reviews across the country or adding to our list of places we'd love to explore on the road.

Yes, it's serious. The other of us is totally on board and passionate about this idea, of course. We're both growing a bit concerned about my obsession.

Until today.

On my way home from work I spotted a quote in a store window:

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it.
Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

The words belong to Howard Thurman, an American theologian and civil rights leader.

Today this quotable quote inspires me to keep moving toward our fulltiming dream. It's not a crazy, worthless obsession as I've lately worried. I've wondered if we should be pursuing something more noble and less self-serving.

What I know is pursuing this idea of really seeing our country for a year or three makes us both come alive. I can't imagine how alive we'll be when we're actually doing it.

And, I love the thought that it might do the world a bit of good.

New Grill

Our new grill is here!

I had it shipped to my office...because our UPS driver at home has been known to throw things at our front door. Plus, who needs a shiny new BBQ grill all boxed up sitting on your front porch just waiting for someone to carry it away? I laughed as one of my colleagues pushed the 45-pound box toward my office door.

We got it home and Boris went to work doing the "some assembly" that was required. Moments later he had the propane tank connected and the burner firing.

Something tells me we're going to grill many meals this weekend!

100 Days

It's the beginning of a new week, and we're the first to admit we are a bit overwhelmed. The reality is starting to sink in: If we accelerate our plans, everything - from packing to leaving our jobs - starts coming at us faster and faster.

Yowza!

But then, we think back. It was just 100 days or so ago that we completed our trip in the rented Tioga that got us hooked on this lifestyle in the first place. In 100 days we've researched, shopped for, found and purchased a motorhome that we can play in now and fulltime in later. In those 100 days we have gone out on four outings and spent 10 nights in our new home away from home. While we still have tons to learn, we are beginning to get the hang of it all. In those same 100 days we've given birth to an idea to make a major lifestyle change and embark on a great RV escape. We've taken very early steps to begin the big purge. We've started to inventory our house and all our possessions. Heck, somewhere in those 100 days we even launched a blog or two. We are on our way.

So, when overwhelm hits, and we can't believe how much is in front of us, we just look back at how much we've accomplished in just 100 days.

With some one, two or three hundred days ahead of us -- give or take a hundred or two -- to do what we need to do, we're reminding ourselves of how much we have done and how much we are capable of doing.

Shredding

Sundays at home have become "bin filling" days. With Monday being trash day, we do our best to fill our garbage and recycling bins to the brim with stuff that we won't need as fulltimers. (Actually, we don't need any of it now!)

Today we gave our shredder a workout, freeing ourselves of papers that, once upon a time, seemed important enough to keep. But, not anymore. Along with the shredding, Boris parted with a pile of old class materials. We've started to take in the magnitude of this purging project. There's so much to get rid of!!!

We'll just keep moving one bin at a time.

New Q

We love to grill.

(A bit of a detour here. In Boris' world there is a distinct distinction between grillin' and barbeque. Barbeque involves a tomato-y sauce. Grillin' is cookin' over open flame with charcoal or gas.)

We've toted our vintage Weber Smoky Joe for years. It has gone above and beyond the call of duty. After many miles of faithful service, it's on its last leg. It's loaded in Bullwinkle's basement, but we've been shopping for a replacement.

Click, click, click and a replacement was found today.

We're Weber fans from way back. So, we were particularly interested in their line of portable gas grills...the Qs. There's a Baby Q and a full-size Q. And, they seem to be in the middle of a brand transformation, because there's also a Q100 and Q200 and Q300. We did our research and decided the Q220 was for us. It's big enough for tri-tips, pork roasts and turkey breasts, which are among our favorites.

We had a few gift certificates built up at amazon.com. We went there and found the Q220 at a nice price that was even nicer after we applied the gift certificates. So, we bought a cover, too. It'll be here Tuesday.

We can't wait to put our new Q to use.

Accelerating?

On this most auspicious day (08-08-08) we're reflecting on yesterday, when it seemed just about everyone was encouraging us to accelerate our plans to become fulltimers.

Boris had lunch planned with a friend. With pictures of Bullwinkle and our latest adventures in hand, he shared the news of the latest addition to our family and our plans for the future.

I spent time with my hairstylist yesterday. And, as every woman knows, the best hairstylists also provide a listening ear and sage advice.

Back home, Boris and I shared stories of our outings. We were surprised to hear that the friend and the hairstylist had exactly the same thing to say:

"What's keeping you here?"

We both answered that we didn't know for sure. So, being the dutiful friend and stylist, they asked a few more questions and listened attentively to the answers. Then, we reported to each other, they came to the same answer of the big question they had asked:

"Nothing!"

We talked about it together, and agreed that our therapists du jour were absolutely correct. Really, truly, there is nothing keeping us here. (Heck, one of my sticking points was indeed my hairstylist. I told her I wasn't sure what to do about my hair on the road. She had an answer for that, too! So, now it's really nothing!)

Today we are seriously thinking about accelerating our plans. We're not ready to declare a new departure date just yet. But, we might soon. So, stay tuned!

Card Carrying

We feel so official. Our new cards are here.

One of the inspirations sparked from our initial mini-escapes resulted in creating our own "calling cards." Already we've met so many wonderful people. We've exchanged email addresses with a few, and wished we had been able to do that with others. The morning we left our July 4th campsite in Plymouth, we were so pleased that one of our new friends left her business card on our picnic table. She had scribbled personal contact info on the back. With that, we could keep touch. Without it, we never would have connected with them again for a fun weekend in Duncans Mills.

Not wanting to distribute our business cards for a bunch of reasons, we opted to create our own very non-business cards. All it took was a few clicks at Vista Print, a couple of bucks and a relatively short wait for the US Mail. The card includes our names, email address and the web address for Bullwinkle's Travels. We also included Bullwinkle's name, make and model, of course. They look good. We're pleased with the result.

We look forward to using these classy little cards to stay connected with the friends we make on the road.

Guess that makes us "card carrying" RVers. Now, we are official!