#14 The Good Life

I'm finding it rather strange, having nothing to do.  We have been retired since 2004 and I think this is truly the first time I have felt truly retired.  It's always been something or someone dictating what we should do and when we should do it.  Not that we cared.  It was life, right?  Trips to plan, places to be, houses to take care of.  How refreshing, for the most part, to really have none of that.   True, we do have to be in Twin Falls on 8/16 for trailer stuff.  And true we do have to be in Reno the week of the 21st for some appointments.  But other than that we are free as a bird.

We both have found it incredibly relaxing to sleep as late as we want.  When we do get up, we enjoy a quiet breakfast, sit outside enjoying the day, then read or play games on the ol iPad.  We will always have some responsibilities.  Had a minor issue with a breaker LJ had to take care of.  Had to go to Walmart and stock up on food.  But in the big scheme of things, that's nothing.

We don't have to worry about what's going on at home. Don't care if the weeds are growing or the sprinklers quit working.  Not our problem any more.  No longer have to worry if that bill got paid or if we took care of this or that.  I asked LJ today if he thought he could do this for two years.  He just smiled and said, "gee, I dunno. It's just so darn stressful". lol

We have been together for over 38 years.  I truly believe this is the first time we have both been relaxed and at ease with our lives.  We talk more, laugh more.  Sure we get irritated with each other still, but then one of us usually makes a face at the other and we laugh it off.  I think this is going to be a wonderful thing for our relationship.  Are we going to get bored?  Probably.  But then it's up to us to find something to do.

Yesterday we went into town (Twin Falls) to have a dinner out.  Afterwards we walked over to the bridge and watched base jumpers for awhile and took in the view.  No where to be...no timeline.  This is exactly what we were hoping for when we started this journey.  I think it's finally sinking in.

Basejumpers are nuts....

It is beautiful here, though

#13. Finally!

Well, we did it.  We finally hit the road.  After the move from hell, we spent a couple weeks at the Sparks Marina RV park.  Gave us a chance to get some things done before hitting the road.  It never really felt different than living at home...seemed pretty routine actually.  I spent my usual days gambling because that's what I do when I'm bored.  I won 90% of the time, which pays for the other 10% lol.

We talked about getting a new truck, but really don't need one.  LJ decided to drag me along on a test drive of a 1 ton dually.  He had never driven one and was curious.  He knew he wanted a GMC after talking to some guys who had Fords..no way he'd buy a Dodge, so GM it was.  Besides..he's had Fords and his last few trucks were GMCs and he loved them.  So off we went..test drive.  Nice truck.  Wrong color.  Denali which we wanted but had a lot of stuff we didn't want.  He didn't seem too interested.  We talked about it later and decided to wait and order a 2018 exactly like we want it.  Sounds like a plan.

I happened to be gambling a couple days later when we decided to hook up with Patty and Alan for dinner.  LJ was supposed to pick up Alan at 5:30, since Patty was held up at work, and meet us at Western Village at Poncho and Willies.  Fearing he fell asleep or lost track of time, I gave him a call.  Kinda went like this:
Hey, don't forget to pick up Alan.
I can't.  
Why not.
I'm at car max.  
Why?  I have my car so you're not getting that appraised.
Getting a price on my truck.  
I'm confused.
I'm just curious what they will give me for it.  
Ok, but you need to pick up Alan.
I can't.  
And you can't becausssssse...
I'm going to the GMC dealer after this and buying that truck.  
Silence...um, I'm sorry? you're what?
I searched the entire US and talked to different dealers getting bottom line prices.  Only other dealer had what I am looking for is in Utah and Idaho.  The only color available on those trucks are Black and White, neither of which I like.  I like the one here in town and they beat every one else.  
Thought you were waiting til the 2018s come out.  
I thought about it and I like this one.  It'll be cheaper than the 18s and I made a deal over the phone.  After I get an appraisal from carmax I'm going to the dealer see what they'll do.  I've already blue booked it. 
Well.... alrighty then.  Let me know how it goes.

So I go get Alan and the three of us have dinner...no LJ.  I give him a call after.  Yep, he bought it.  Bringing it home.  First time he's ever done that!  The dealer gave him a bit more than he thought he was going to get so he was happy.  Got a great price on the truck, too.  The internet and research is a wonderful thing.  So it looks like LJ got a new truck for MY birthday.  Can't wait to see what I get for his lol.  Paid cash, too.  His other truck was paid for so that helped.  It is our goal to maintain a high balance in the bank, and have no bills.  Felt good to simply write a check for the difference.

August 3rd...Now it's my actual birthday.  What do I get to do?  Pick up LJ who went to get his new hitch put in his truck.  And, whoopee!!  I get to take my car to Carmax to sell it.  We don't have the time to sell it outright and we have done our research.  I was kind of surprised LJ didn't trade it in too, but he didn't think about it.  So they make us an offer and it's close to what we would have sold it for anyway so we take it.  I have to say.  It's weird not having my own car to do what I want when I want.  But it's just crazy to follow each other around the country.  Some people do it, but that's not for us.  So..for my 62nd birthday I am officially carless and homeless...a true transient, lol.

August 5th, new trailer, new truck, new journey...we are ready to go.


Finally starting our adventure.  Hot though.  Hope we are going somewhere cooler.  OH LOOK!  cooled seats!  ahhhhhh...I like this truck lol.

Headed toward Idaho since we have to get the trailer stuff done.  Little stuff, but the dealer needs to fix it.  That appointment isn't until the 16th.  No reservations.  Friends have suggested we might have difficulty finding a park...If we do we will just keep going till we don't.  That's what Walmart parking lots are for lol.  First night we decided to drive allllll the way to Winnemucca.  Why push it lol.  We stayed at a newer place, Frontier RV Park.  Very nice.  All gravel and pavement, but it did have some grassy areas down by the dog run.  I was able to take Scooter down there to play ball.  He was a happy dog.  There was hardly anyone there.  It's too bad they don't have artificial grass at the sites, but at least it's not dusty.  All the sites are large.  They had no pull throughs available so we had to take a back in slot.  PLENTY big enough and LJ got to play with the trailer back-up camera.  We'll be back for a few days on our return trip to Reno at the end of August.  (Dr appointments and such)

Went to dinner at a local Winnemucca hotel restaurant...I want to say the Red Lion Inn, but I am most probably wrong lol.  I am so observant.  Actually a very nice dinner.  I was pleasantly surprised.

Had a great night's sleep.  Talked about staying a day or two but decided to go on into Idaho.  Besides, it looks like rain is coming.  Don't want to get the truck dirty, lol.  Weather app says no rain in Idaho or east of Winnemucca.  So lets go.
They lied.   Aw shucks .. his truck is getting dirty and he juuuust washed it.  You know if we hadn't stopped to eat Taco Bell in Elko, we probably would have missed it.

Did someone say Taco Bell?  Yes.. and you can't have any.  OK.. you can have a bite of the bean burrito..you spoiled little guy.  But we must eat in the trailer, because no food in the truck...this week.





Drove through Jackpot NV and thought about staying there for the night, but decided to check out an RV park near the dealership, do on we went.  Drove another 40 miles to the Highway 93 RV park in Filer, ID just outside Twin Falls.  The further north we got, the smokier it was.  Learned later that the Boise and Pocatello areas are even worse.  Of the four sister dealerships in Idaho, we luckily picked the one in the least smoky area.  Pure luck.

Got to the RV park around 3 Idaho time...uh oh.  They are full.  Guy even called around and no one had spots.  We were warned by FB friends, but we're good.  No worries.  Guess we'll go back to Jackpot.  We were able to reserve a spot for the week we need, so we are good.  But where to go in the meantime.  Worse case scenario we drive back to Wells.  No biggie.  We have nothing but time.

You know, we passed a sign coming into town for a Mineral Pool and Spa and RV park...Nat-Soo-Pah, whatever that means.  Lets try there.  I call while we are enroute and yippee!  They have room for us! It's midway between this place and Jackpot.  Well off the beaten path, about 3 miles off the highway, but all paved road.  It's at the dead end.  Kind of a cool place.  But they call it a resort on line so heaven knows how much they are going to charge.  Turns out they only have a few full hookups, the rest being none or electric-water only.  But they have one we can take...$25.  Park on the grass.

view from the RV window

Mature trees, grassy spots.  I like it.  It has no facilities, like a restaurant or laundry, but I don't care.  I just did laundry so we are good for 10 days and the other place we are going does.  Which reminds me...I still want to get that Washer Dryer...this is a prime example of a place I would stay a long time if I had that.  We have food and Twin Falls is close by.  Walmart is only 20 miles away.  But LJ says we will only stay one night then go back to civilization.

Next morning we both decide...nope.  Staying here until we need to move on the 13th.  It's pretty.  It's quiet.  It's shady.  We like it.  LJ admits he misjudged it at first glance.  And Scooter and I got to play ball with him off the leash because the park was pretty much empty.  I try to do that with him whenever I can.  It is just so peaceful here.  I think I'd like to put it on the list of places to come back to.

Of course we are parked next to Chatty Cathy and her husband.  They just bought the motorhome from Hell and love to tell you all about it.  Poor people didn't have a 50-30 amp reducer so had to run their generator all night.  LJ told them to ck out Walmart or the dealership and managed to get them on the right track.  This evening they are all hooked up.  I think LJ is their new best friend lol.  He goes outside and they come talk..and talk..and talk..and talk.  Deep down he enjoys it.  They have two little yorkies so Scooter made friends.

Made a Walmart run for a few little things.  Had gourmet TV dinners since neither of us was very hungry.  Now just relaxing.  It's the perfect spot, so far, for us to begin our travels.  LJ seems more relaxed than ever.  I think our freedom is finally sinking in.

Someone else seems relaxed too 💕

#12 geez louise

OMG what a month we have had.  Finally made it through all the inspections.  Passed the Pest with flying colors so that was good.  I was beginning to think the end would never come.  Then I was afraid it was coming too fast.  Thank God for neighbors and friends.  There is absolutely no way I would have been able to complete the moving task without them.  We can never show our full appreciation to Keith, Linda, Patty and Alan.  You are angels sent from moving heaven.

LJ finally made it home from his adventure....yea.  We were literally busting ass to get out of that house.  I had never done such a quick escrow before so wasn't prepared for just how fast it would fly by.  One day confident, the next day wondering if we'd make it.  It made a big difference having LJ home.  Sure wish he would have been there the first 10 days, but it is what it is.  And he will hear about it the rest of his living days.

One doesn't realize just how much crap one has after 40 years.  And really that's what it is...crap.  But you've gotta do something with it, so a lot of what we owned was given away or sent to charity or the dump.  Of course two days after doing that there was the "hey, do you know where that doomaflochit is?"  or "damn, wish I would have held on to that for a few days".  Oh well... that what happens when you are under pressure.

Then the buyer wants to do her walk through, which was after she had signed the papers so seemed moot to me, but she's entitled to it.  So while I wanted the place presentable, I also had a lot of stuff to get done.  Fortunately she is very nice.  She brought her entire family with her and a lovely basket from a local wine store.  What a nice gesture.  Her son in law is in the same profession we retired from so we had a nice chat.  But after she left it was get to work!  You only have three days!!!

So pack like maniacs we did.  Again, we were saved by the help from our friends and neighbors.  There was no time for my usual label this, label that.  It was keep pile, charity pile, give away pile and throw away pile.   While I had been working my ass off for two weeks, it seemed like we just weren't going to make it on time.  LJ hadn't even touched his garage yet. OMG.  YOU HAVEN"T TOUCHED THE GARAGE YET!!  It's Sunday!! It closes tomorrow!

So we enlisted the help of our realtor/friend, Patty, and her husband, Alan, to help LJ get it done.  Of course it's 105 that day.  Why not.  But they worked their collective butt off while I finished up what little was left inside.  I had left the office intact until the last possible moment.  No worries.  House closes late on Monday so we will be fine.

Monday morning.  Some final tear down of the office, cleaning and we are out of here.  Should have no problem being done by noon.  SON OF A BITCH!!!! I forgot to clean out the fridge!!!!  Trying to clean, trying to clean out the fridge.  Geez Louise.  At least we have three more hours.  I know we can do it.  So I clean out the fridge, putting everything in my car.  I have to run it over to the trailer so nothing spoils.  That's going to take an hour.  UGH.  Okay, boys.  It's your job to mop, vacuum and clean the bathrooms and all the counters.  I am off to the trailer.  Be back to help soon.  WHY IS MY PHONE CONTINUALLY BUZZING.  WHAAAAAAAAT?  I pull over... omg... it's Patty, our realtor and very good friend.  And I quote the text:  "THE HOUSE CLOSED EARLY!  It's no longer yours... GET OUT!!  GET OUT NOW!"  But we're not done cleaning!!!!! Doesn't matter... get out.  R U F K M.... so I call the boys...pass along the message.  They literally got out.  Left behind my mops, brooms, probably the vacuum too, who the hell knows.  All I know is a note was left with an apology and two bottles of wine, the note explaining why we left like we did.  I hope she understands.  I know I understand I'll never do a short escrow again.

In the midst of all of this, there's Scooter.  Poor little guy.  He has no clue why all of his stuff is being taken out of the house.  He lost his big bed and room, so no looking out the window.  He just looked so sad. and it's not like you can explain it to him.

But...It's done.  We are out.  The money is in the bank.  We survived.  Now we just need to get the trailer ready to live in.  This all would have been so much easier if the trailer and Lj would have been here from the beginning...(for the rest of his life)....but move forward we must.  So I spend the rest of Monday and Tuesday morning trying to put things away that are stacked up in bins outside the trailer.  We look like the Clampetts for heaven's sake.  But.. I have planned three days of rest FOR ME at the Atlantis, so the hell with the stuff.  It will wait.  So at 11 am on Tuesday, I tell LJ I'm off for my 3 days (not ten days like he did) of rest and recovery.  He needs to pretend I don't even exist.  I am sleeping, going to the spa, gambling and drinking.  Again..pretend I don't exist.  So after running errands he insisted needed to be done, I made it to the hotel by 4...UGH.   But I'm there.  And I fall asleep immediately lol.  I didn't really have a lot of time alone before HE calls because HE is hungry and wants to join ME for dinner.  Apparently I exist.  So we have a meal, chit chat a little then off I go to rest and recover.  Kandi joins me the next day so we can have a girls weekend.  And so does LJ....  .....   .......  he's hungry, so he wants to eat with us.  Yep, contrary to popular belief, I exist.

For the next two days of rest and relaxation I am called every 15 minutes..do you know where this is. Can you tell me where to find that.  Kandi is laughing her ass off as are all the people around us.  My phone rings and the collective crowd chants.. IS THAT YOUR HUSBAND AGAIN?!  hysterical laughter on their part.   I'm trying not to kill him through the air waves.  Then BAM..my time alone is over.  Seems like it never started.  Oh well.   At least I wasn't packing or unpacking.

Patty says "And you two are going to live in a 350SF house for two years" hahahahahaha.  Yes..we will be fine.  We actually enjoy each others company...usually.  And for those times we don't, there's always outside lol.

I guess the upside to all of this is we made it.  We managed to get it done with help.  We managed to make more money on the house than I ever thought we would.  Being 100% debt free is now a reality, not just a dream.  I actually enjoy the trailer.  Took me 15 minutes to dust, vacuum, clean the bathrooms etc.  I am finally relaxing, and so is LJ and Scooter.   The three of us sit out in the evenings watching the stars, talking, waving at our transient neighbors.  Saw a weed the other day.  Didn't care.  Not my problem to pick it lol.

We are truly living in the trailer.  Everything we need is here.  I have had the opportunity to go off and gamble whenever I want.  That will change in 7 days when we leave Reno and head off to the north.  Need to go to Idaho to get some minor repairs done on the trailer.  Easier to go to the dealer than try to get a local place to do the warranty work.  All you hear from them is..Did you buy it from us?  If you did we will see you in a couple days.  If not... next December...Asswipes.  But, where else do we have to be.

We are free to be wherever we want to be.  So we choose Idaho for the next couple weeks, then back to Reno for a week, then who knows.  I know we will be in Utah for ATV riding sometime in September or October but don't know for sure when.  Doesn't matter.  I go where the trailer goes lol.

That's all for now.  At least from now on the blog will be where we are and what we are doing.  We are FINALLY ON OUR BIG ADVENTURE!!!!  and searching for a new truck... because, you know, this one doesn't match 😆😆😆😆😆

#11 A Little at a time

17 days (now 13 days) flies by.  I am so thankful I started purging a little at a time while the house was on the market.  Makes this so much easier...since I'm alone...oh so alone..while someone is off galavanting around the Idaho countryside.. but I digress.

HVAC inspection yesterday.  Passed with flying colors.  Structural inspection today.  Few minor things that need to be addressed.  But he said it was a well maintained house so no worries.  The buyer's daughter came by and saw the house in person for the first time.  I felt sorry for her.  She said her mom lost her little dog today.  She was accidentally run over.  That makes me so very sad.  I think it was just her and the little dog.  At least the daughter lives close and she is excited her mom is buying it, so that's a good sign.  She said it will be perfect for her mom and she can't wait to move in.

Pest inspection is next then all done with that part.  Be glad when it's over and we know what we need to do.  As we learned when selling our last house, here in Nevada a buyer can walk away for any reason up to the time of closing.  Yea!... not.  So I will be on edge a bit til the money is in our hands.

Yesterday I totally cleaned out the clothes in our closet.  Four large garbage bags and three little garbage bags.  Really?  Why.  Why do we have so many clothes when we don't wear any of them.  Daughter asked if I kept anything nice in case we were invited to a dress up event.  No.. if I can't wear levis and a nice shirt, I don't go.  After all, I am trailer trash now and plan to live up to the reputation.


I sure hope LJ wasn't keeping this or that because it be gone baby gone.  Thank goodness he wasn't here to stop me from getting rid of those ridiculous 70's track pants.  UGLY but gone.  Now there is no chance he will "accidentally" put them on.  As for my things I never wear, some fat lady is going to be so happy to get all those 50 cent shirts from Goodwill lol.  I even got rid of all my "when I lose weight" pants.  Somehow that's really motivated me to lose weight.  Go figure.

Went through the safe since Jeff is taking that.  Gonna pass on to the kids all their elementary report cards because, you know, storage.  Making progress.  Moving right along.

I'm actually not stressed today, which is surprising since I stress about every little thing.  Maybe that's a bad sign.  Great.  Now I'm stressed.

So I have moved on to the office.  Making a Welcome to Your Home binder for the buyer with all the manuals and what not.  Making a Binder for Jeff with all the manuals for the stuff he is taking.  Making a binder for the new trailer with all it's manuals.  I really like making binders.  I have a binder for everything.  Oh yea.. I need to go through all the binders and eliminate what we don't need.

When that's done, packing up the rest of the office.  Crafty stuff in one bin...office stuff for the trailer set aside.  Save that.  Give away this.  Throw away that.  So much to go through.  So much to do.  Think I'll take a nap because packing under the influence of vodka is probably not recommended. LOL

But ALLLLLL worth it in the end.  13 and counting!

#10.5 Wow, that was fast! Part 2

So we finally get home, sleep, get up, get the dog.  Dammit.. I can't load the trailer yet.  I have to go to an appointment.  A two hour massage appointment 😏.  Being a passenger was stressful and tiring and well... anyway, let's move on.

We get a message that someone wants to see the house.  REALLY?  Today???  You couldn't see it yesterday when we were gone.  You have to see it today when we have a million things to do.  Fiiiiine.   See you at 2pm.  Thank goodness it was already in showing condition.  Only a few little things to do.

But, it figures.  I mean after all.  LJ has an atv trip planned.  We leave on Saturday for 12 days.  The trailer has nothing in it.  I have to load it with stuff plus food, plus figure out the appliances. OMG people!

 9:30 and LJ is still sleeping.  Hey, get up.  You have things to do.  People are coming to see the house and I have to go...to that thing I need to do.

Then a phone call.  The people want to cancel....they are no longer interested.  THANK YOU THANK YOU!  So now I go to my appointment with no pressure (well except for the massage part hahahaha).  I get home at one and LJ had loaded his portion of the trailer.  (The crap that goes in the underbelly.)  Did you open up the trailer to get some air in there?....no? Hey, thanks,  babe.  I'll take the dog to the groomer and go get lunch for us while you do that, I said with no sarcasm what so ever.

I get back with lunch and we discuss exactly what we are going to load now and load after we get back from the trip. It's sooooooo hot in the trailer and we don't have a hookup to be able to use the AC.  Can't work under those conditions.  This is going to take forever.  I'm a sweaty grumpy woman.  I don't see how I'm going to get this done in one day.  Did I mention that I have a dentist appointment for a crown smack dab in the middle of the day tomorrow???  How's that for timing.  I need a drink.  Geesh... what's next.

 A phone call is next. The people who cancelled want to un-cancel.  They didn't see anything they liked so decided to look at ours... in ten minutes.  Wow, that's awsome, thank you!...again, no sarcasm.  😛  On the upside, they know it's last minute and we are busy so we don't need to leave.  In fact they prefer we are there in case they have questions.  Well alrighty then.

I'm in the 95 degree trailer, sweating when they show up.  LJ greets them.  Nice older lady (71 yrs), her brother and her son.  It was too hot to work in the trailer still, so while they looked at the house we did tours of the trailer for our neighbors.  I know.. I know.  But it was too hot to work, not too hot for me to be proud of it and show it off lol.

Two... yes two hours later the people were done looking and decided to leave.  While they were there, though, we had a lovely conversation with her and her family.  They asked questions we answered best we could.  She was fascinating.  Here she is, 71, a widow.  She lost her husband last year.  She just sold her expensive home and her expensive motor home.  Bought herself a new truck and fifth wheel.  She needs a place she can put her fifth wheel, her hunting trailer (yes she is an avid hunter), her kids trailer and she just hasn't found the right place yet.  It's just her and her dog, now, so she doesn't want a big house.  Ours is over 3000sf, so probably too big I"m thinking.  She was very sweet.  But now they are off and I have work to do.  Still too hot....so ... no.  I'll do it tonight or tomorrow.  And I'll hope there are no more showings until we are gone on the trip.

Our neighbor across the street, Jerry, comes over to show the trailer to his wife.  We get to talking and it seems he knows the lady who looked at the house!  He knows her.. knew her husband.  Her son works for his old business.  Small world.  He thought it would be great if she bought the place.  At least they knew they'd be getting a good neighbor.  They sweetly ask us to dinner, but we have too much to do.  After all, we leave on Saturday, and it's already Thursday night and I have procrastinated long enough.

Fifteen minutes later, LJ decides it's dinner time.  Really?  Fiiiiiine.  Still too hot.  I give up.  We have a free Atlantis buffet, so off we go.  I look at LJ and say.. I bet it sells.  I bet she buys it now because of your atv trip. He laughs.  I laugh.  But deep down I'm thinking I better prepare myself.

And then, there it was.  The phone call...lady made a fabulous cash offer on the house.  Not full price but a helluva lot more than I thought we were going to get for it!  And higher than the price I was thinking of lowering it to.  Patty was right all along.  Be patient...Is it a good offer?   Start packing, she says.  OMG  Are you flippin' kidding me?

So we look at the offer and it's perfect.   All cash, quick close.  It sinks in...Quick Close.  17 days.  OMFG unbelievable.  LJ's atv trip!  I knew it.  He looks at me with those big blue eyes...and he has the "but this might be my last atv trip" and "I've never ridden the Idaho trails" look.  But he says.."I'll cancel my trip".  I feel guilty.  Noooo you go.  I mean we only have 17 days to get EVERYTHING done, but you go ahead, sweetheart.  I know how much you have been looking forward to this trip.  I wouldn't want you to miss it.  But you will owe me...because you happened to have an atv trip when we moved into the rental, moving from Sacramento, so I handled it all.  You happened to have an atv trip when we moved from the rental to our last house, so I packed/unpacked alone.  You, again, irony of all ironies, happend to have an atv trip when we moved out of that house, so I packed alone. Granted, all those time were prepaid, pre-scheduled trips, but R U F K M?  But, I love him, so I smile and say, sure babe... go on your trip.  I'll manage.  But you have to leave here a day later and leave there two days earlier.  It's called compromise.  And... you owe me....big time.

So.. papers are signed.  We accepted the offer.  We just wait for the inspections and usual BS that goes along with selling.  He camps and rides the beautiful Idaho countryside...I pack, sort and disperse of our wordly possessions.

Good thing we got the trailer when we did!  Because there is no way we could have fit in a 3 day trip to Idaho Falls to pick it up.  Timing was perfect.

So it looks like in 17 days we're gonna be debt free, transient trailer trash.  We have finally reached our potential lol.

Truthfully...........I can't wait!!  But, Wow, that was fast!!!

#10 Wow, that was fast! Part 1

It's crazy how things work.  I was all ready to write about how excited I was our Fuzion Toy Hauler sold.  That meant we could go out and find our full time RV.  I had half the blog update written about how we were going to take our time searching.  Then I got side tracked by the actual search for the ultimate trailer.

We managed to find what we think will be a perfect place for us.  We must have looked at a hundred floorplans and brands, on line and in person.  We finally settled on a Keystone Montana.  We found three we liked but only one was available in town.  After a lot of research, we found all three floor plans in Fresno....6 hours away....one way.  So off we went.

It was hotter than Hades that day.  We made it to the dealership and got driven around in a golf cart.  The dealership was huge.. They must have had every trailer brand ever made.  Too big for me, but I digress.  They opened up the three trailers.  Number one: nice but the bathroom was just too small.  Number two:  Very nice, but missing the 1/2 bath I wanted.  It did have a lounge area off the MBedroom which was cool.  Then we went in number three.  Problem solved.  I want this one.  Surprisingly, so did hubby.  Will wonders never cease! lol

We were only in the trailers minutes because they didn't have them hooked up and INSIDE the trailer was 105.  Too hot to look around.  Fortunately we had been shopping for awhile so we didn't need long.  We were literally at the dealership for one hour, then drove six hours back home.  Bless his heart, Scooter went along for the ride.  He did great, although he wasn't happy I left him outside in the shade with the breeze in his stroller.  But there was no way I was subjecting him to that ridiculous heat.  You would think on a 105 degree day the dealership (they knew we were coming) would have had them hooked up for review.....but nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

yes... it has a bathtub and on demand water heater... sweeeeeeeeeeeet!

the infamous bathub

So now the search was on for the proper model at the right price.  I found a 2017 in Grants Pass with full body paint; beautiful unit, but the interior was too light.  But I could be persuaded if the price was right.  I pretended to be LJ because we all know they deal with men better than women.  I talked via email with the dealership.  Got them down quite a bit.  Was just about ready to take the leap when I looked one more time on line.

Voila!  There was a unit that had just come in at a dealership in Idaho Falls with full body paint and the right interior and it was a 2018.  So the negotiations began.  I convinced LJ to deal with Idaho Falls, while I dealt with Grants Pass (pretending to be LJ).  After a lot of back and forth, pitting one against the other, the Grants Pass folks said what their absolute bottom line was.  We were able to get the Idaho Falls dealership within a few hundred of the older unit.  Since it was the right interior and exterior and a year newer it was worth it to us to pay the extra few hundred.  We still got a screamin' deal on it.  It pays to research and negotiate...negotiate...negotiate.
So.... Road trip to Idaho Falls!!!

Dropped the dog off at Patty's since we knew we would be driving a long time with few stops.  She was kind enough to keep him for three nights.

Then at 3 AM on Tuesday 6/27, we were off.  Brief stop for breakfast then on the road... the long and lonely road...east on 80, north on 93 (booooooring), turn here, turn there and 10 hours later we are there.  Another huge dealership, but a bit more folksy than Fresno.  It is Idaho after all.  Did the paperwork, checked over the unit.. prettier in person!  It's great... uh oh.........water heater doesn't work...well it works, but the on demand control panel doesn't.  Oh no... techs have gone home.  Must wait til morning.  We had planned on driving part way home tonite.  Oh well.  The dealership had hookups and water for each and every unit on their lot.   (Maybe Fresno should think about this).  They were more than happy to let us stay there.  We said... well, thanks, I mean, watcha gonna do.  Can't leave with it not working, so okay, we'll stay...Put the stuff we brought with us in the trailer then left to get dinner.  Decided to get a hotel for the night..mama must shower every morning and we really didn't want to deal with the tanks just yet.  Need to get on the road early. Plus we were just too exhausted from the ridiculously long day to deal with making up the bed and all the other stuff.  It was a smart move.  Immediately went to bed and had a good nights sleep.

Woke up, went to Denny's ( I know, but it was the closest restaurant)...that was an adventure in itself. Waitress was new.  Her name was Mystery.  Apparently it was her goal in life to be mysterious.  It was a mystery if she would take our order, get it right, serve it, then give us the check.  That whole experience is a story in itself lol.  FINALLY we were off to the dealership.

Longer story short...after 2 hours they found the problem.  An obscure fuse had gone out.  Not in the fuse box, but behind the water heater.  OMG.... well at least we will never forget about that should it happen again.  But I still don't know why manufacturers put fuses in hidden places.

So by noon we were off.  Noon...12 pm in the afternoon... sigh..  So as the song says we "drove all night" and made it home after pee stops, food stops, gas stops and damn my butt hurts stops.  We pulled up at exactly midnight.  On a fun note, we did wave at OJ Simpson as we drove by the prison in Lovelock NV.  😜 But the drive was worth it.  Saw some great country that I had only seen while riding Harleys.. get to see more riding bitch in a GMC with AC and a radio lol.


But this isn't where this adventure ends.....

#9 Finally Some Progress!

I was beginning to wonder if we would ever make a step forward to begin this journey of ours.  Well, finally we have.

Bye Bye Fuzion

LJ sold the toy hauler yesterday so Yippee skippy!  Cash is in the bank! That's one major thing down.  Now we can actively look for our new home on wheels.  I think we have altered our plans.  We originally were going to get another toy hauler, but LJ thinks we should get a regular fifth wheel instead.  As he puts it...we are going to be living in this thing and he only goes atv riding a few weeks out of the year.  So, it makes sense to live comfortably the rest of the time.  He will make the sacrifice and either skip an atv trip or simply go out of his way to pick it up.  He's also considering connecting a dbl hitched trailer to the rear of the fifth wheel to pull his atv.  Who knows..it's a guy thing.  It does dictate what kind of fifth wheel we buy, though.  I'll do the inside thing.  He can worry about the other stuff. It's not like we have anything else to do, lol.  After perusing a few regular fifth wheels, I have to say it would be very hard for him to convince me to buy a toy hauler.  After all, a princess needs her castle to be pretty lol.

Still no action on the sticks and bricks, but I think when we bring the price down it will go quickly.  I just have to convince the world (meaning our agent and LJ) that it's too high.  Although everyone keeps telling me to be patient.  It's not too high.  I just wanna get on the road.

This weekend was the community garage sale.  I filled up the driveway with all the stuff I need to get rid of, well not decor stuff.  House still has to show.   I figured I'd sell each item for $1...no matter what it cost, lol.  That way it alllll goes.  And it did.  Only a small amount went to charity.  ALLLL my excess Christmas stuff I had to let go.  A friend and a neighbor pretty much cleaned me out of all of my holiday decor.  I'm glad.  Means it's going to a good home.  I also sold all my little beanie babies to the neighbor, who's a teacher.  I gave her a great deal.  She plans on giving them as rewards to her kindergarten kids.  I always gave a grandkid one when they came to visit.  It's why I had so many.  But, alas, they have all outgrown them.  But knowing some kid gets to earn one puts a smile on my face!  I still have "collectable" ones, in cases, meaning oh crap, what do I do with these.  They really aren't worth much, but they are collectibles.   I wonder where you can donate the good bears to?  It's amazing how much ridiculous stuff I have (working on had).

Irony of ironies.... garage sale over...close garage door...garage door spring breaks, so half the money earned at the garage sale goes to fix the garage door.   Ya can't make this up, lol.

But I digress...

So...... ATV side by side... sold
           ATV trailer............. sold
           Fuzion trailer..........sold
           40 years of crap......sold

Still to go....... HOUSE....the biggest and most important of all.  So while progress is made... we wait.

In the mean time, we get to go trailer shopping!  And y'all know how I love to shop!