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Wednesday, March 30, 2016

Lots to Write About Today

I have really been in a Blogger Slump for some time. It has seemed that I just didn't have anything to write about. No disasters nor spectacular events. We have been just "living" our RV dream life. Seeing new places and enjoying new things at a slow and easy pace. I am constantly reminded of how big and diverse our country is. We haven't gotten to know the towns nor the people very well, but we have discovered more of the wonders of the park lands and beaches. If home is where we park it, then all of the USA is our home.

Speaking of "homes" as of today we are members of the SKP Jojoba Hills Resort in Aguanga, California. We have been on the wait list for a few months, and have passed on two other "lot offers" but decided when they called us with this one to say "yes". So now we will have a "home base" where we will spend some months each winter and be close to where our daughter lives. 

I have no desire to buy or live in another house at this time. Becoming members of the Jojoba Cooperative is a perfect solution. No property taxes, no need to worry about it when we are not there, and no humongous financial investment. Since we put our lot in the rental pool, the lot will be cared for while we are gone. So nice.

 "We are ... Seeing the USA" has a great collection of pictures of Jojoba. I found it while Googling Jojoba, and now have a new, wonderful blog to follow! 

We will not be going back to California until next fall. We still consider ourselves full timers. We have several years' worth of places to go to and things to see. But, it is nice to know we have a place waiting for us. 

2+ YEARS: On April 1, it will be two years since the sale of our house in the Santa Cruz Mountains closed and we became free of homeowner responsibilities and expenses! When people ask me how long we have been full timing, I say two and a half, because we lived in the Alfa for more than six months while the house was on the market. 


Rain: The weather has been variable while we have been at Gulf Shores. Heavy rain, light rain, partly cloudy, sunny, rain... etc.  We have gotten out a few days, and stayed cozy and dry at home on others.



Last week on the stormiest day, we went to see the movie "Zootopia". It was delightful. I'm sure everyone will enjoy the cuteness, but older kids and adults will see the anti-profiling message.


Inspired by the name of the movie, we decided to visit the small local zoo in Gulf Shores on one of the sunny days. 

Small is an accurate description. Feeding the goats was a highlight!



The peacock did give us a bit of a show. To bad that rope was in front of him.













I liked the tortoise.

But as zoos go, it was quite old fashioned in that the animals had pens and cages, not simulated habitats. 



Only the pacing tigers seemed to mind.














More Rain:
We had a quiet Easter Sunday at the Alfa. Well, not exactly "quiet" because the waves of hard rain kept pounding down from the skies. I felt bad for the many families of campers around us who were at the park for a vacation weekend. I guess that is one of the advantages of being on this journey full-time. A few rainy days don't ruin our plans. They just delay our outdoor activities by a day or two.

On another, non-rainy day, we went to explore a bit of history just down the road from Gulf Shores.



Fort Morgan is a "Coastal Defense Fort" built after the war of 1812. It sits at the mouth of the Mobile Bay on the Gulf of Mexico. 




The fort was the site of a major battle during the Civil War, was manned during the Spanish-American War, and used as a training base during World War I. 

It was an interesting piece of history and a nice day trip.

To wrap up this post, I just have to end with this picture:



10 comments:

  1. Such a wonderful area to explore there, enjoy !

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  2. We enjoyed Fort Morgan a few years ago. There was a docent in period clothing at that time, that enhanced our tour.

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  3. Jojoba is a nice place to land for sure. I am pretty sure that living there in your Alfa still counts as full time.

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  4. Here is wishing you many more years of Fulltiming and looking forward to reading about it.
    Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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  5. Congratulations to you both on being able to continue full time RVing and having a home base spot. We loved that park!

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  6. Congratulations on your new home base. Everyone seems to especially like that park! I'm glad you are still going to travel, but it will be nice to have a place to land when you feel like it. And you sure won't lose your investment, I like the way Escapees parks work. :)

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  7. Interesting! I am sitting here at Jojoba Hills at this very moment, but leaving later today for our first volunteer position. Alabama is my home state, and Gulf Shores one of my favorite places. Love the white sand beaches. Congrats on your new home base! This is a wonderful place and may very well be in our future.
    Www.yahooramblers.blogspot,com

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  8. I'm a homebody, so having somewhere that I knew would be there when I wanted it would suit me. Lovely not to be tied down by a house and yard chores though! I'm looking forward to reading the next 2 1/2 years (although I think I've been reading you for much longer than that - you were still doing 'heads' when I first signed up)

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  9. Congratulations on getting a lot! We just came back to Jojoba today. We're still deciding but it feels like home whenever we come back here, so it may be in our future.
    Enjoy the Gulf Coast.

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  10. Congrats on your Jojoba homestead. I lived in Wildomar for seven years and it's nice being so close to the desert, mountains and ocean! Glad those Texas storms didn't bother you too much.

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