Am I Bored? And a few thoughts about staying put for the winter.

By the time we leave Jojoba we will have spent almost six months in one place. I have to say that some weeks, the time seems to fly by and others drag.

One of our pretty little ponds

 I guess it has had to do with how active I have been. In the first three months we spent numerous nights in San Diego with our daughter and family for the holidays and just visits, but this month we were only down once, since she had work and travel commitments. Our younger grandson is going on a week long eighth-grade trip to Costa Rica, and then the family will be taking a "look at colleges" trip for our older grandson. They are not coming home until late Easter night. So, we have decided to visit one last time on the Monday after Easter.

Although just being together is reason enough for the visit, I have come up with another project to do while there. My daughter got a Food Saver for Christmas this year and uses it frequently. I am going to buy an extra large Honey Baked Ham for our dinner, and package up the leftovers into lunch-sized portions to take along for our travels north. I always make sandwiches to eat while we drive, and Honey Baked Ham will be a special treat!

I was also more social during the first few months. Although I like the concept of large gatherings and community dinners, the reality turns out less interesting.

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Jojoba image from web

he bad weather kept me out of the pool in February, and it was closed for a renovation project for most of March. It is open again now, and I plan on going for a swim later today!




I am surprised that I did not feel confined by the small dimensions of a 35' motorhome during our long winter.  Craig and I don't seem to get into each other's way. We each have our own TV preferences, and the arrangement of the Alfa easily accommodates our needs. Sometimes he closes off the bedroom, and sometimes I do. And, of course we often watch movies or shows together. He often sits at the table with his computer, iPad, or Kindle, and I spend time at the little table behind the passenger seat which is just right for my coloring projects.

The only time I really feel troubled by the small space is when I'm cooking. I really have to be very organized to manage multiple ingredients and multiple dishes. I prefer cooking from scratch, so using prepackaged foods is not as much of an option as it could be. But I manage, and I think we eat pretty well. 

A pretty bouquet Craig brought home from Trader Joe's one day

Storage space? This winter I went through the cupboards and reviewed their contents. I tossed some things that have not been used in three years, and emptied some of the canister jars that contained expired flour, flax meal, wheat germ, etc., that I had used to make healthier bread. I'm still hanging onto the bread maker, but I find I am more inclined to buy fresh Artisan breads than to bake them.  The last loaf I baked tasted somewhat stale, which prompted the purge of the cupboard contents. Besides, I am once again trying to lose a few pounds by cutting out bread and other "white" foods.

A financial glitch caused by being full time RVers: Craig and I live a fairly modest life. We have no debt, use our credit cards all of the time but pay them in full every month, and have a substantial amount in investment and retirement savings. Yesterday we went shopping for a new comforter for our bed. Many of the stores were having good sales of 40% — 50% off. We found one we liked at a Macy's, but their sale was only 20% off. They did have an additional offer for another 20% off if we opened a Macy's account. We don't need a Macy's account, but with sheets and all we were looking at a savings of over $100. So, Craig applied.  Surprise! He was denied!  Why? Because we do not have a RESIDENTIAL address. It seems our Sioux Falls mailing service is not acceptable for Macy's credit applications requirements. We could have used one of our other cards, but would not have gotten the extra 20% off. Instead we walked. 

We had no problems getting a new credit account from Sam's Club last spring, nor one from Camping World. (The Camping World one gets us 4% off any commercial RV park in addition to the 10% GS discount, and the Sam's Club Mastercard gets us 5% of gas at any station.)

Craig thinks it is because banks are changing their credit card requirements, I think it is because the CW and SC cards are associated with memberships.

Has anyone else run into this?