Twenty Five Years

How do you two live together in such a small space?

That’s one of the most frequent questions we get when folks ask about our fulltime life on the road. On this, our 25th anniversary of marital bliss, we pause to reflect on the fine art of staying happily married on the road.

When the idea of this post was just a spark, I asked Paul what he thought was the key to enjoying wedded life in 400 square feet.

His answer was simple: Marry the right person in the first place.

So, you see, we actually started preparing for our fulltiming journey a quarter century ago. We married the right people! Three years ago, when Paul had this notion of renting an RV and traveling to the Grand Canyon and Zion National Park, I was hesitant but willing to give it a try. (Turned out I loved it. We both did!) On that life-changing trip, we simultaneously hatched the crazy idea of traveling in our own RV fulltime. That’s right, this wild notion wasn’t his or mine. It was our idea. Neither of us had to convince the other. We were both completely on board, and then some. With that, we launched into this mobile lifestyle on a very firm foundation.

My plan with this post was to share some things that help us stay happily married while living in a rolling home. But, truth be told, I’m flat out exhausted from our Anniversary Hike. We did 7.2 rugged miles in Arches National Park today. It’s a candidate for Best Hike Ever, but it did wear me out. So, my creative juices aren’t exactly flowing. So, I’ll just give you the Cliff Notes version.

For us, having the right ingredients to start with has definitely helped. And, the same things that make any marriage work apply to life as a fulltime RVing couple. It’s pretty simple stuff actually: Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much.

There you go! Twenty-five years of marital wisdom in one paragraph! I’m so glad I followed my husband’s advice and married the right person in the first place.

Happy Memorial Day to all of our American friends! Our deepest thanks to our troops past, present and future for their dedication and sacrifice in pursuit of the freedom this couple of old happily marrieds enjoy and never take for granted.

Kicked Out

Now, here's a first. We were kicked out of our RV park today.

Were we loud and obnoxious? No.

Drunk and disorderly? No.

What then? What was it that we did that warranted getting kicked out of the place we've paid $50 a night to call home for two weeks?

Paul asked a question.

You see, when we checked into the place that shall remain nameless (for now, anyway) in the town that shall also remain nameless until we've left the area, the first thing the young woman at the office did was run down the rules. In fact, she quite purposefully highlighted each with a dayglo pink highlighter.

They were pretty standard: Obey the 5 mph speed limit; Observe quiet hours late night to early morning; No street parking and No rig washing. There were a couple of additional rules that are somewhat unique to this ATV-infested town we are staying in. One rule was "No more than 3 vehicles to a site, trailers included." We signed a document that said we understood and agreed to follow said rules. Then, we moved our two (count 'em, TWO) vehicles to our site.

Actually, we moved toward our site. But, we couldn't get there. Two vehicles pulling trailers loaded with ATVs were parked in our way. We waited patiently for them to move and they eventually did. Before we arrived at our site we sized up the neighborhood. Our immediate neighbor's lot looked like an ATV dealership! We started counting. There was a huge RV, an enormous cargo trailer, a Jeep, two flatbed trailers and two ATVs. Any way you look at it, that's more than three! And, our neighbor isn't alone. There are more vehicles and trailers in this park than we've seen anywhere. Of course, like I said, we are in an ATV-infested part of the country. But, these things are scattered everywhere!

We hadn't been parked in our site long when we noticed the average speed is actually more like 30 mph in the park. And, who's among the worst offender? You guessed it. The park manager! We've seen folks hosing down Jeeps and parking all over the street. It's quite obvious that the rules here are meaningless.

This afternoon a cadre of vehicles wedged into the site on our other side. Another huge RV, a horse-trailer looking cargo trailer, three Jeeps, two flatbed trailers and two pickups. The website for this "luxury resort" boasts gigantic sites and shows pictures of happy couples enjoying a barbeque on their jumbo site. Now we know all that room ain't for grilling. It's for parking all your crap!

When the park manager strolled by after this big move in, Paul caught up with him. He just had to ask. "Who are the rules for, anyway?" he inquired. He pointed to the fleet of vehicles on either side of us and the manager had a short reply.

"Come to the office," he said.

Paul did as we was asked and the private meeting was short. After proclaiming that this is the best RV park in the country, he told Paul he didn't want anybody staying here that wasn't happy. He told Paul he'd refund our money and we could leave immediately.

Paul didn't say anything about being unhappy! He simply asked a question. He tried to explain, but the manager would hear nothing of it. Bottom line: We were out.

Paul returned from the office and explained the situation. Of course, this far from outstanding example of customer service had us miffed. (That's putting it mildly.) But, it also put us in a bind. It was Saturday afternoon of the weekend before Memorial Day. (And just a few short hours before the predicted end of the world!) Every park that we can fit into for miles is booked solid. We made these reservations nearly six months ago. We have three sets of friends here with us. Heck, we had a happy hour scheduled for this evening!

We considered our options and decided to try to talk some sense into the guy, or at least have him let us stay. Sandy came with us as our witness and we went to the office for a chat. Our refund had been processed. They were waiting for us to leave. The conversation was relatively short and pretty darn silly. But, apologies were exchanged and we were given permission to stay.

Turns out, the rules don't apply to everybody. The guy next door is a "good customer" and quiet, too. So, the manager lets him do what he wants. That's fine, of course. But, now it's good to know.

We quietly went about our business and readied our jumbo patio for a happy hour for eight. The good customer next door fired up his Peterbilt and let it run for nearly an hour. While it idled he proceeded to wash his rig, trailer and Jeep. The new guy on the other side decided to do some work under his giant Freightliner that required him to fire up his rig, too. There we sat, with our six guests being exposed to more diesel fumes than any person should.

To top things off, the good, quiet customer, backed some kind of rusty ol' hot rod out of his big cargo trailer and decided to fire it up and let it run.

No, the world didn't come to an end today, but at our place it sounded like it came close!!!

Things did quiet down and we enjoyed a delightful early evening with friends. Between laughter and conversation we counted the speeding cargo trailers as they passed. Not one of us will be coming back.

And, I'm just guessing, dear reader, neither will you!

Commencement

We're starting to wonder if folks are stalking us.

Just kidding, of course. But, we discovered today that our newest neighbors on both sides were at Santa Fe Skies while we were there. And, guess where one couple is heading when they leave here? That's right. The same park in Moab we'll be staying in!

Sometimes the wide open road of RVing can get pretty small!

We're wrapping things up here in Cortez. Today was clean, laundry and Walmart stock up day. We didn't mean to schedule that all-important trip on a Sunday afternoon. But, it's such a perfect time to observe the "People of Walmart." I didn't see anybody worth snapping a picture of for that wacky site. But, I had the catchy song from this music video going through my head during our visit. (I don't usually recommend stuff on You Tube, but this is a hoot!)

Today's big news is about Bullwinkle. He was in a graduation ceremony!

Paul's friend Tod teaches at a high school in our native Kansas. When Tod was asked to give his school's commencement speech this year, this super cool teach looked to Facebook for some inspiration. Tod explained his special assignment and asked his friends, many of whom he's known since high school, to share tips that might be valuable to his new graduates.

This afternoon, this 50-something teacher, father and grandfather posted the contents of his very inspiring speech, titled Reflections of an Aging Man.

Here's an excerpt:

My friend Paul made his fortune and is retired, traveling the country in a big RV named Bullwinkle. He said, "I know I sound like an old fart. But, how often do you see a group of teens standing in a circle all looking down at their phones texting, not talking? The best people I ever hired were able to look me in the eyes and carry on a conversation."

Sage advice, indeed. And, who knows? One day one of these newbie grads might be sitting in an office interviewing for an internship, a first real job, or the big gig that will result in making a fortune. Maybe, just maybe, they'll reflect back to high school commencement and the story of the old fart and the moose of an RV. Here's hoping that will inspire a nervous interviewee to confidently look the interviewer in the eye and effectively hold up his or her end of a great conversation.

Wouldn't that be something?

Rock Chalk

You don’t have to hang around here long to figure out that we’re proud alumns of the University of Kansas. In fact, most days, at least one of us can be found wearing some sort of Jayhawk garb.

Such was the case on this brilliantly sunny day as we strolled through the very quaint downtown of Durango, Colorado. Paul was wearing a KU t-shirt. Not long after we stepped onto the sunny side of Main Street, we heard a familiar cry.

“Rock chalk!”

Those two words are the essence of what President Theodore Roosevelt once called “the greatest college chant” he’d ever heard. It’s a universal call known to Jayhawks everywhere. The response is automatic. It’s hard-wired into our DNA. Paul and I chimed in unison.

“Jayhawk!”

We looked around to see the source of this collegiate curiosity. A cheerful couple was standing at the curb. They beamed at our response. He pulled back his jacket to reveal and embroidered Jayhawk on his puffed out chest. Above the mythical bird was the word “Journalism”.

As two graduates of the William Allen White School of Journalism we had found one of our very own flock!

Instantly we were chatting like long lost kin. They graduated in the late 60s, just a decade before us. We compared histories and found common ground. They had started their careers in our native Kansas City and are enjoying retirement in nearby Pagosa Springs.

They were standing with brand-new friends they had only just met, a couple of fellow ham operators from Texas. Like our fellow Jayhawks, these good folks had once called Pagosa Springs home. These days, they’re hanging in Kerrville, Texas, one of favorite spots in the land! They asked where we stayed this winter, and they knew right where that is. And, when we inquired as to the location of their home, it was a familiar spot we passed by several times.

The small world talk continued. But, we kept coming back to ol’ KU. It’s amazing how a shared experience in the same place at a different time can make strangers instant friends. It was really something.

Before long, it was time for this happy group of new friends to break up. We exchanged cards, snapped a few pictures and promised to keep in touch.

Yep. It made our day.

When we lived in Kansas City, we saw folks wearing Jayhawk attire everywhere we looked. Then, it was nothing special. But, once we moved a couple thousand miles away from home spotting a Jayhawk became a special event.

Since we’ve hit the road, we’ve seen Jayhawks here and there. And, everytime, the greeting is the same. It starts with a “Rock Chalk” and ends with a “Jayhawk”.

In between, it seems, we always meet a new friend.

666

Now, that's an interesting number! It's the magic sum, or the sum of all constants. Add up all of the numbers of a roulette wheel and they'll total three sixes. Most notably, it's also the Number of the Beast.

Remember The Exorcist? In modern popular culture, 666 has become the most widely recognized symbol for (take your pick) the Antichrist or the Devil. Any way you look at this number, it ain't good.

But, 666, that's the number we've been sitting on for months. And, that just can't be good. Can it?

You see, for the longest time that's the number of geocaches we've found since we started this obsession several years ago. 666. It's been haunting us for awhile now.

So, today, we set out to change that not-so-auspicious number. We loaded up a few caches on the GPS and set out on a three-hour stroll around Cortez. With four caches on our "radar", we headed to our now favorite Cortez park to pick up a couple. Then, we headed north a bit to score another. Finally, we strolled "downtown" for our fourth find of the day. Then, we checked out the local quilt shop and a nifty grocery store that's just a few steps away from our RV park.

Our four-for-four day resulted in some good finds and a great hike.

Most importantly, we have a new number: 670.

That's so much better!

We like Cortez!

First and foremost, it's not windy here!

Seriously, we know we whined about the wind in Santa Fe. But, last night we got just a bit of validation. We caught the local news from Albuquerque. They reported that this was the windiest April in the last 12 years! See? We weren't kidding!

Making the drive across northwest New Mexico yesterday, we were very glad we waited a day. There were many spots along scenic US-550 where there was fresh snow on either side of the road. Between the wind and snow it would have been more than a bit too adventurous for us. Thankfully, yesterday the drive was mostly sunny, calm and free of precipitation.

We arrived in Cortez yesterday not too far behind our good friends Sandy and John. We hadn't seen these two since Kerrville in January. So, it was great to catch up on each other's doings and travels over burgers at a nearby brewpub last night. John and Sandy are in the middle of a house building project. So, it was especially fun to get the lowdown on that exciting endeavor. We so look forward to seeing the results in person someday!

Our park offers the best of an urban setting and a small mobile community. Tons of essentials, including Walmart, are within walking distance. And, the folks around this simple park are friendly. We've met many of our neighbors, including Hayward and Lydia, a lovely couple with whom John and Sandy and both of us formed an instant bond.

This morning, the four of us donned our walking shoes and set out for an hour of walking around Cortez. Our new friends Hayward and Lydia opted to stay home and see who in the park had a washer and dryer on board.

Just across the street from our park are three of the town's six city parks. Between the three spaces are miles of walking trails, a swimming pool, tennis courts, recreation center, a pond or two, many trees, fantastic views and, among other things, a disc golf course. With plenty of sunshine and absolutely no wind, this was just the kind of place we were eager to explore.

While on our hour-long walk this morning we discovered the disc golf course and all vowed to pick up a frisbee today. With four discs in hand, we wandered back to the park late this afternoon to play six or eight holes. Between the four of us, it had been nearly 80 years since anyone had thrown a Frisbee, so we weren't exactly sure what we had gotten ourselves into. We started at Hole #3 and called it a day on Hole #13. So, no, we didn't exactly follow the rules. But, we had lots of fun.

During our outing, we ran into a couple of disc golf enthusiasts. We explained, as if we really needed to, that we were absolute newbies. They proceeded to provide us welcome tips and encouragement. Turns out one of the two works at the local disc golf supplier. We promised to stop by and do a little shopping.

Yes, folks, we think we might be hooked.

This disc golf thing is actually pretty cool. There are parks everywhere. And, unlike the pricey golf courses we've spent many hours on in our previous life, play is free. All you need are a few nifty discs. With that, you get to enjoy a hike in a beautiful green space...for free.

Sounds good to us!

But, before we turn into card-carrying members of the Professional Disc Golf Association, we have other places to see and explore. Tomorrow, the four of us are planning to tour some cave dwellings and do a little hiking in nearby Mesa Verde.

I wonder if Hayward and Lydia will join us?

May Day

Eager to leave the wild weather of Santa Fe behind, we readied ourselves for a much anticipated travel day. But, it was not to be.

Things didn't look good early. Last night's forecast called for high winds across Northern New Mexico ahead of a cold front that held the promise of snow. Today as much as three inches of snow was anticipated in Santa Fe.

With expectations of howling winds from every which way, we pulled in both slides last night. That made things extra cozy! But, when the winds came, we were sure glad we'd taken that step. Not only did we save wear and tear on our slide toppers, but we managed to get a decent night's sleep.

This morning we were up and checking the forecast early. It still didn't look good. Wind gusts to 60 mph, especially along the first 35 miles or so of our route. Further along our anticipated path, frozen stuff was already falling. For a couple of hours we made periodic radar checks. Then, we made the call. We'd stay over another day.

We braved the cold wind to trek to the office. Lady Luck smiled on us just a bit. Our site was available for just one more night. Tomorrow a seasonal resident arrives for the Summer. (What Summer?) We could stay without having to make a move. We plunked down a few bucks and headed home to hunker down for the day.

With the slides still in, our cats appeared confused. They gave us looks that said, "Are we blowing this pop stand, or not?" As I nested in bed for a day of writing, our girl kitty stood at the big window on patrol for birds, blowing leaves and such. When she heard a chirp behind the back wall, she leaped across the bed to the little window for a better look. I looked over and caught a glimpse of the funniest sight. Our eager kitty was perched at a window at the end of our drawn in slide! She peered into the darkness of the back wall and gave me another look. This one said, "What the what?"

With pillows properly plumped, I spent most of the day on the computer as Paul reclined through a movie or two. As a result of my lazy day efforts, Bullwinkle's Travels is up-to-date. New posts about our day trips to the Petroglyphs, Taos and Los Alamos are now available for your reading pleasure. And, somehow I managed to cram a month's worth of Santa Fe into one post.

The snow has yet to arrive here at our park, but we can see it falling all around. The sky is gray. It's cold. And, have I mentioned lately that it's windy?

It is May Day, isn't it? Well, you sure could have fooled us!

Tomorrow promises to be a better day. After this May Day delay, we're so looking forward to hitting the road!