Back in the saddle again

[aadler]

I knew it had been some time since I posted, but genuinely hadn’t realized the last time I did so was in January. As usual after a hiatus (though they’re usually not this long), I feel like I have more stuff I should post to catch up than I can fully remember or properly present. (Not that there’s much likelihood of anyone actually being particularly interested.) So I’ll just put out things as they occur to me, and try to get back into a regular habit of putting something up no later than every few days.

So, the biggest thing I haven’t mentioned over the past five months:

Susan and I bought a motorhome.

And not just for general recreation, either. We sold our home so we could move overseas, either to China directly or to Malaysia, either one intended to make it possible to see our granddaughter more often. Well, after a year of waiting, we’re still in a situation where any kind of international move is chancy because governments keep changing their minds about Covid restrictions, particularly those involving non-citizens. So one day I mused to Susan, “We were planning to retire anyway to make the move. If we can’t go on over, I used to wish I could spend at least some of our retirement years traveling the country in an RV, just going wherever we felt like going.”

I had no notion that my wife would find that an appealing idea; I said it with a kind if wistfulness, because I didn’t think it would be possible. Within a month we were owners of a 24-foot Itasca Navion.

We know it might be a mistake, but we have some background experience that helps to reassure on some of the major points.

I’m already drawing Social Security, in addition to my current work-pay, and Susan has her VA pension (and will do her own SS application nine months from now). We should have enough basic income to afford that kind of lifestyle.

We both have experience living in small spaces, out of what we could carry with us; for me it was overseas deployments, for Susan it was the mission trip she took to Africa (plus she spent the first few months of her California stint in an extended-stay motel room). More recently, the two of us spent two months in an extended-stay room together last year while finalizing the sale of our home and waiting for an apartment to come available, and it didn’t pose any particular stress.

Additionally, we’ve done two short trips in the motorhome already: one an overnight to a nearby state park (a ‘shakedown cruise’ to catch any unexpected glitches), followed by a three-day trip to the Dallas area. In both instances, we didn’t get antsy or testy or stir-crazy occupying the same confined space all day long. Not a definitive answer, but reassuring.

I’m wanting to keep working till the beginning of October, both to complete five years at my current job (no bonuses there, just a milestone for myself) and to stack up some more savings to help with various unplanned expenses that we know will crop up, just not what or when. So, after years of planning to make some substantial lifestyle changes ‘someday’, the current schedule has us doing it in a little over three months.

It may not work out, we may discover it was a bad idea from the get-go. If so, we’ll learn soon enough, because we’re set to give it a try.

Comments

[gillo]

This sounds really exciting - I wish you the very best of luck with all your plans!

[aadler]

It may turn out to be a terrible idea. We’re aware of the possibility. We’re getting ready to find out, though. At the very least, we’ll know we gave it a real try.

[texanfan.livejournal.com]

That is a bold move but I'm so glad y'all are able to make it. There are several couples in our church who do this at least half the year and they love it. I hope you have the same experience.

[aadler]

My expectation is that — like the Army, like my time as a long-haul truck driver — there will be disadvantages and benefits. I know there are people who love the RV life; Susan and I will be determining whether we have less tolerance for the disadvantages than appreciation of the opportunities. (The base statement of RVers is, “Yeah, we live in a small space, but our front yard is HUGE.”) We won’t know till we’ve done it for a while, but we’re really looking forward to the experience.