I want to leave now - but I can't

As bad as I want to leave now, the financial numbers and the "to do" list prevent my impulsive, exciting departure.  A HUGE blow to the left side of my brain....HUGE!  On top of this, I haven't bought my RV yet!  Throughout the day at work today I was ready to pack and go. Job stress was not causing this thinking because there isn't any job stress in my life. It was just the continuous thought of living in the pictures I am seeing in the different blogs that I follow. When I make my 12 mile commute every morning through farm lands, trees, hills etc, with the sun coming up I can relate to my past experiences driving down the highway at that time of day while on a trip of some kind and YOU driving your RV or just getting outside at your campground with a cup of coffee as the sun is coming up. I have always loved driving long distance.

So my day started by answering a the few emails I had in my inbox, did about an hour of work, then got online and started looking at different kinds of RV's. Read a few blogs, checked the forums for new posts, then back to looking at RV's. I looked at different National and State Parks I like and know of (ie: San Clemente State Park) and checked for maximum length.  At San Clemente, it was 30ft. Others I checked up through the Pacific Northwest, near Whidbey Island was set up for any length.

Now the day starts getting interesting. A co-worker of mine that kind of lit my RVing flame last spring was at work today. I had not seen him for a few months. I figured he was traveling. We start talking and catching up on our interests when I told him my "new addiction" is RVing.  He asked if I was going to buy one, a 5th wheel or a motorhome. I answer motorhome, probably a Class C, around 30' max so I can get into some of the state parks. He mentioned that he wished he would have known that limit before he spent money on his 40' 5th wheel last spring. He said he did do a lot of research on what manufacturer to buy from but not much more than that.  He is 59 can retire anytime from his previous employer retirement plan but has been waiting for his wife to retire from work in 2 1/2 years. Last spring, they sold their house with plans of living in their 5th wheel until she retires. Which they have been doing. Plus they spent some time this summer traveling and finding out somethings they didn't expect or didn't know about.

He said "there were just a lot of places I wanted to go but couldn't get into because of the length of my 5th wheel.  He has bought space at an RV park in Florida and is thinking of just leaving his 5th wheel down there and live in a smaller RV up here until his wife retires.  (Indiana winters???).  Anyway, the "bomb" hit suddenly in his conversation.

The wife wants to buy a house and stay in the area permanently and RV part time.  Last April it was full-time after selling their "dream home".  I just listened but was surprised. He would prefer to RV full-time. We then started talking about retiring from our work positions instead of waiting. That got me thinking that I needed to take another look at my analysis I have on an Excel spreadsheet and make sure the numbers are good.

So when I got home, finished the daily walk through a 15 acre hay field with my 3 hounds, I sat down and went through my numbers again.  I then made a "no holes barred" pros and cons list.  The list surprised me! I guess I found out that I have a lot of likes living where I do, that I really hadn't paid attention to. This then led me to wonder if I should ever sell the house? When I looked at the numbers....I CAN'T quit today, unless I pay my mortgage off or sell the house. I do have some people interested in buying this house and I believe I could price it right for a quick sell and good profit. That list put a little bug of confusion if I should sell everything or not.

My financial analysis showed it would be best for me to work another 2-1/2 years, instead of retiring now and yes that is a valid option.

So it feels almost like it did the first time I started this RV thinking.....like what to do?  That is somewhat disappointing after the emotional high I spoke of last night. So, I guess it is back to my original plan of taking this next couple of years of downsizing (selling my cars, my house), then picking out an RV. Still, with the economy the way it is, it seems to me it would be a great time to buy the RV now. Then take it out on weekend trips (I rarely take vacations from work) for the next couple of years to "sharpen my RV skills".

My plan LAST YEAR was to keep this house as my base camp and spend most of my time traveling and camping in an old, mint condition, VW camper. With 3 dogs that would change from VW CAMPer to VW CRAMPed.  So that vehicle is a dead issue.

This whole thing is like mental torcher.

So an interesting day.....the RVing co-worker story, my pros and cons list, my number analysis and possibly a dab of doubt wondering if I am making the right choice.

I saw that google visited my blog today, which was kind of cool. It usually takes google 3-5 weeks to show up to "crawl" your blog or site and it took less than a week to pay me a visit. For those that don't understand what I am saying, anytime you have a blog or website, google "spiders" will crawl your space automatically gathering keywords so you can be found in their google search engines when other people type in keywords that can lead them to your site. This is advantageous for those here with an adsense account and make some money with their google advertising on their blog or if they were selling something on a website like I use to do.

After the day I had, I still thought it was pretty nice that google showed up.

Now.....back to looking at of those RV's for sale online !!  (laughing as I open my sales site)

I Can't Believe How Ready I Am to Leave

As I read more information and look at different motor homes, my desire increases to sell everything and hit the road. Ive been able to read how everything works. I have a clearer understanding of the plumbing, the electrical hook up, generators, tire pressure warning systems, the black and grey tanks, RV parks or boondocking. The most important feature....the time you have to choose where you want to be and what you want to do., is the best.

I wish I could pack up and leave tomorrow and beat the cold Midwest winter that feels like it is right around the corner. As I decide when to retire and what RV to buy, I am going to start downsizing my things immediately. Actually I started that last spring and try to clean out things not used annually. Now it's a little bit different...before putting the house up for sale (already local interest in the house) I need to fix a couple of things I was planning on doing before winter.

What is interesting, based on my Excel spreadsheet comparison of expenses I have now and what I would have on the road, the totals are pretty close but a little less on the road. I have monthly income from my military retirement, no debt except my small mortgage and social security just 2 years and 7 mos away. (savings).  Its very tempting to start the process now and not wait until I am 62 to be on the road. I have a long list of places I want to see. I know where I want to be in the winter and where I want to be during the spring and summer. From all of your blogs Ive read, the notes I have taken and the blogs you read that I looked at.....plus the forums people have suggested, I have sites bookmarked and notes a mile long on what I need to start this journey. The picture is a lot clearer now than it was 2 weeks ago when I read Glen's article on Yahoo.

It's all very exciting!!

My mindset is already focused on what I want to happen.

To all the people I am following and all the blogs I am reading...you have taken some great pictures of places you have been.  Yet there are just as many more places not seen yet and that is what I am looking forward to.

The hounds will be ok, because they love to ride and by their nature, really laidback dogs. Even today when I walked over to my old pickup truck to check inside, all the dogs were following, barking, talking, ready to jump in the truck because they thought they were going to "go" in the truck.  Not only do they like to ride, they like to sleep and ride. So I don't see an issue there.

To all on the road....be safe!

A short note

After some new information, and sorting of notes on my iPad,  I have changed my focus to a C, 29-31', a couple of slides. I feel pretty confident that is the direction I am going to go. It feels good to get that past me and I can move to other things on my checklist. I plan to test drive some C's on November 10 or 11. Do any of you have laminate flooring in your rigs instead of carpet?  If so, do you notice more road noise or any additional noises not heard when you had carpet?

I do not consider myself a pack-rat but looking around this small house....I have a ton of stuff to get rid of. I think I am going to start a Craig's List account and go that direction. I use to sell full time on eBay so I am familiar with that system but it just takes too much time to ship and pack things. Otherwise, local ads. Living on a highway makes it dangerous to try having a garage sale.

On to the next step....still I can't stop looking at rigs and reading information. I have to force my self to sleep.

How many of you use solar panels for your electrical needs?

I am just curious on this last question, if you would rather email the answer instead of commenting is fine....What is the worst thing that has happened to you in your travels?

RV Sizes and House Thoughts

With each day I find more information from the comments people make here, emails, and information from other blogs / forums. The picture is possibly a little more clearer on what I want to use as an RV fulltime. With plans of doing more boondocking than staying at rv parks, and living with my dogs, I am beginning to think a 30'-32' MH will be the best. Leaning more towards a Class A than C and a shorter length so I can stay at National Forest Parks sometime. To help me sort out this confusion, I plan on going to Indianapolis within the next few weeks and looking at and hopefully test drive a Class A and C.  I need to walk, stand inside each type to get a good feel of what I want.

I admit the dogs change my whole thought process. If it were just I, I would buy a Class C, 26' and be done with it. Still, I would never trade my dogs for an RV lifestyle, or for anything. So they are in part of my analysis of this move.

I spent a lot of time this weekend, reading all the information at RVforum  (great info), thinking of what each of your comments and emails were telling me and looking at pictures of different A's & C's with different lengths. The one's I like I am saving for picture purposes only.

Today it hit me that even if I end up loving RVing full time eventually there would be a stopping point. Possibly a point where I would want to RV part-time. Would I rent in a location different than I have now?  Or keep the home I have now, empty  (no renters) so if there was ever a point in time I could not RV, then I would have a place with no mortgage payment. Still I would be paying annual property taxes, house insurance and any upkeep while I was on the road. Added expenses that I don't want.

Then different times of the day or night I think I would sell every asset I have and hit the road for good.  I know full-time RVers reading this have gone through the same "mental game" as I am going through now. I have plenty of time to make my decision, no pressure to make a decision soon but I am the type of person that as soon as I finish my analysis, I am ready to make a decision and go with it. I already know a lot of places I want to see, routes to take and how I want to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer.  I cannot do that in a house in Indiana, even if I use that as a base address and travel a lot.

Basically I want to downsize more than I am now and hit the road.....dogs and all.

I think you can see that I have been thinking a lot this past weekend. Almost to the point of "information overload".

Some New RV Questions

I'm typing this live and its pretty late, still have college football on (Arizona at UDub) and its 1:17am .... yes, college football could be an addiction for me.

Thanks for all the comments today and the new people following. For those following, remember that I am still not really sure when this change in careers is going to happen. It would be within months or not until I retire from my job in a couple of years. I know when I would like to leave but I have some work to do to downsize, decide what to sell, or if I should rent out my house at first to see if the full time RVing is going to work with me and my 3 hounds. Anyway, I have some new RV questions today.

1.  Is there a disadvantage in staying at RV parks if your RV is older than 10 yrs old?
2.  What would be the differences in a 30' Class C or a 30' Class A?
3.  If you had the same amount of money available to by any kind of RV, would you buy an older model for the same amount of money as a newer one?
4.  I plan on spend more time boondocking than staying in RV parks.....is that why a Class C would be better than a Class A?
5.  Best to buy locally or in those no humidity states in the southwest?
6.  I know it would be based on condition of the RV but if a Class A and Class C are the same price and have less than 25,000 miles on them, which is a better RV?

Some of these questions are based on some comments and others are ones I had as I was looking at ads for RVs while watching my football games. I have decided with the hounds I really need at least one slideout, I would prefer a bed in back. I have an iMac at home but also a large monitor attached to it. I would prefer to keep the larger screen set up rather than going to a full time laptop. I have an iPad that I will be taking. I am also going to google on ideas of mounting or installing a 46" HD tv someway the RV I buy.  If any of you have an answer for those two (computer & tv) it is much appreciated.

I decided against my friends bus. Its a great design but I am not really keen on a diesel and a 4 speed stick at that. Yet, I keep going back to a Class A that is 32-36' long. Would I need that room being single?  Probably not but with the dogs it would be more room and more storage.

I have a pretty good idea in my head when I want to make the move but do not want to announce it yet. I still want to test drive different RVs, Ill do that locally and as many different A's and C's as possible.

Can anyone suggest a good RV Guide I could buy where I would have information on what are the best RVs before I buy one. I guess I could probably look on the internet for reviews but thought someone here might have one that they really liked.

Good night everyone and for those on the road and a full-timer.....I envy you.

Can't Stop Thinking of RVing Full Time

Well it is Saturday morning here in Indiana and so far I haven't accomplished anything planned today. I am needing to install a new storm door but it was in the 30s this morning when the hounds and I went outside for the first time of many today. (They think I am their doorman on Weekends) So without being motivated enough to start that installation and complete before my addiction of college football that starts at noon, local time....it looks like it might be a multiple day job.

Thanks for all the new followers, comments and emails.  It is certainly nice to hear from those that have gone through similar thoughts I have had when first thoughts of RVing full time start to appear on a daily basis. As you see I have added some new blogs from the ones you listed and I liked. Also my favorite links is increasing and you will notice that is also becoming longer.  

I figured out the process of uploading photos to blogger from iPhoto. I have also renewed my little knowledge of HTML to where I can manipulate the way I want things.....except staring this post to the right of the photo above instead of below it.

That picture is across the highway from my house, looking from my drive.  It is a July picture but looks much better than what is there now, since the farmer spent last Thursday picking his corn before it rained. Is the view a reason I am hesitant in selling my soon to be paid for small house in rural america? 

Like I said yesterday, I have about decided what I need is a Class C - 25-29', 1 or 2 slide outs, and something around the $50K range or lower. After reading some blogs last night and then at different RVs pictured online I was feeling pretty good about what I wanted.

That is until I called my friend Dennis in Alamogordo NM who has converted an older passenger bus into a 40' beautiful RV.  Here is a picture of it:

That paint job is a vinyl application like you see on cars for NASCAR. The dome in front is the TV Satalite with 2 AC. So you see where I am going with this story?  Scrambles the brain cells doesn't it. Yet I would be limited in where I could park, what RV parks I could get into. Yet it is built with added features to boondock for quite a long time.

These pictures will give you some idea what is inside but they were taken during installation.  He is about finished wrapping everything up and will take finished photos then. He and his wife bought all top of the line stuff.

With the amount of generators, propane tanks, fresh -gray-black water tanks, staying somewhere solo for a while is possible. Tires have been changed to be able to get off and on pavement. Everything inside is new, from the laminate flooring to the custom made kitchen cabinets. You might be wondering why is he selling this after doing all the work???  Health reasons.

It is so tempting, it's within my price range, I know he has done quality work with long term RVing in mind. Gets 10-12 mpg cruising at 55-60 mph. Still it's HUGE! It might be too much to drive for a first timer like myself. I was really beginning to like those Class C's 25'-29' long.

So there you have it.  It's a lazy Saturday morning so far, good coffee, the hounds have been out and are all sleeping for most of the day and I sit here and read new information, new blogs and look at different vehicles.....and my storm door is still in the box leaning up against the wall waiting to be tackled.

The converted 40' Bus or the Class C RV ?????

RV Sizes and Types

First of all thanks for all the comments and new followers after my first post. I am not new to blogging, just to this niche and it was nice to see that some people decided to hang around and see what I end up doing. I will read all the comments and will answer emails as soon as I can.

Well it was a pretty productive day and some answers are starting to surface. With my 3 dogs that I am going to travel with, I am thinking a 27'-29', Class C with a sideout is what I am going to need. It is tempting to buy the older 35+ Class A but from most of the blogs that I am reading, they are able to get into some spots where a smaller RV has it's advantages. I am going to want to stay out in the open more than parks. There is a huge selection but I have narrowed my search to the Southwestern part of the USA. I found in my VW Bus buying day, the southwest had dry metal and very little rust if any.

Which brings up the question, is it better to buy from a private party or a dealer?

Even the Class C 28' with no sideouts looks to have enough room for my hounds to sleep (their favorite hobby) while driving or even after parked and set up for a month stay. I walk the dogs daily using retractable leashes. They can go out 25' while we walk but I can control that with a push of a button. Their only problem is, they love people and always seem to move that direct to be able to sniff them a little or sit to be petted.

These blogs are really a great source of information for someone that has traveled but NEVER by RV.

So, before I head out to do some work on my blog, I guess I am looking for a Class C, 1 sideout, 27'-29', Gas Fuel, from either a dealer or private owner located in the Southwestern USA.

In the mean time I am going to try to get some pages up and filled in. Then give you some pictures and history of the hounds so you know will be taking this adventure with me. Also I tried many times to get a profile picture up but Blogspot didn't like them and kept having "internal errors", yet they didn't seem to mind adding the same picture to when I was following a blog.....go figure.

I am also finding that adding photos from iPhoto on my iMac is not a smooth friendship. As soon as I figure out how to keep Picasa from importing ALL (1,000s) of my photos from my hard drive, I will then load them into the blog from Picasa. I am computer literate, worked online at home from '05-'09, so it should not take to long to figure out what I want to do.

Can I follow these blogs of other people if I am using a WordPress blog instead of Blogger?  My frustration trying to use Blogspot is the same as it was years ago when I decided to move to WordPress.

Anyway, wherever you are, have a great Friday night and weekend.

Yes, my mind is still going a thousand mph with all this new exciting information.