Full-time With Doug

  It's 61 degrees, getting to 85 today. 95% humidity. The Earth is definitely warming with lots of fog. Spring is only 3 weeks away. I love the fog for many reasons. It's also a warning for me to get out of Texas before it starts hitting 90s. I remember the fog on the lake in Wisconsin where my grandparents lived in the 60s. Early in the morning down on the dock or out fishing in a rowboat. You could hear the loons. The trip to Wisconsin from South Florida in late Spring. Driving through the countryside where there were trees and hills and fog in the morning. I yearned to live there, away from the flat, sandy land I lived on with just pine trees and palm trees. I love what fog does to the view of the landscape. The birds don’t seem to mind it. It's certainly a good excuse to stay in except I'm out of coffee this morning. 3 days til payday. I don’t want want to touch my savings. I have enough food. Beau needs treats. I might make a grocery store run today for a few essen

  I would much rather be living here than in a house. Hands down. After fixing those brakes, I feel like I can do whatever I want to do. I have ideas for making money. First things first. Soon we'll be rolling again and headed for CO. It's always our home regardless of where we are parked. As we gain more experience, surprises come less frequent.

  Today was laundry day. We have a few old machines that don't require quarters. Odd sites use odd days. I tend to just do small loads with it so convenient. Some full-timers have washer and dryer in their rigs. I just don't see the need. Finding laundromats isn't hard. Sometimes you can pull in with the whole rig and lounge while waiting.  Today I took a trip to the little store, 5 miles away. I was looking for syrup but no luck. I just bought ice cream. The brakes are working outstanding! I love having my freedom back. Another nice day. My health is better but still a ways to go. I love my life. I really struggle in the morning but I fight back, take Ibuprofen, and stretch. I gotta keep moving.

 I've been almost totally unplugged from society. I no longer get any input, news, current events, political happenings, celebrity sightings... I don't care about anything other than things and people in my world. No garbage in has to help with my mental being. I choose who to communicate with. No more Facebook or social crap of any kind.  The only input I get are a few commercials on Pluto or Roku but nothing that reveals what's going on in this horseshit world. After 3 weeks, I have to say I feel great. I haven't followed NFL since week 6 after I realized they were promoting gambling. I had no idea who was in the Super Bowl and don't care. I have no desire to plug into any group at this point. However, there are communes in Oregon that I could be part of. One community I checked out says it is 20+ years old, represented by 10 religions. Everyone works everyday and they all eat together. Some work outside and bring their paychecks home. It is run democratically and

Having a Tire Pressure Monitoring System is something I never got around to buying but wish I had. Having a rear Camera is essential too. Lots can happen back there while going down the road. The rear camera was the first thing I had installed. I use a 7" monitor.

  Beau and I were walking along a campground road early in the morning as it was getting light out. It was late September and the air was brisk but not freezing. The sky had turned bright gold, revealing the profile of the 14,000 ft mountain range that stretched from near to far. Our pace was slow as my knees burned with pain. Beau was on his leash and couldn't be trusted without it. The actual sunrise was imminent but seemed unimportant. I had taken several photos of sunrises and sunsets. Photography is for capturing views of places you don’t visit often. This is my home. I never tire of the magnificence of the sunrise but have accepted that I have already caught the best shot here and no need to capture another picture. A camera alone can’t capture the exact experience you are having. It’s not all visual. The vastness of the open blankets of forest before me, the quiet, the crisp, cold air. In order to get a good shot, you must anticipate the limitations of the camera. Walk

  The rear brakes proved to be much harder than the front brakes. Springs, locking washers, 1/4 turn locking washer. Crappy tools. I got one wheel finished then almost finished the other one. I couldn't put the drum over the shoes so I need to adjust something. I'll finish tomorrow. Garage wanted $1,200, I did it for $200. Meghan stopped by and brought me new lug nuts. I fed her. She was sitting a dog in addition to Max so we had dogs everywhere.  I turned the AC on. It feels good and I'm glad it works as it will continue to warm up here. This is Texas.

  We have some light rain this morning. Beau and I walked awhile ago. It's 70 degrees. It says high of 83 today. That's a sign to pay attention to. When that number gets near 90 then I've been here too long.  Payday in 8 days. I should have enough for a transmission but I'll wait a few weeks. I need to be towed as well. Patience.

  The front brakes are finished and tested. They work great! Now it's on to the rear brakes. I need something that Meghan's bringing me tomorrow. I'm in no hurry  Still having great weather here. It's 81 degrees now, 60s at night. Cool breeze. I was watching Andy Griffith Channel. I'm living the good life.

After pulling away from my NC house in Oct, 2020, we stayed at Reidsville Lake for one week. It's not far from the house and I had camped there a few times before. I had reservations for my trip to San Antonio. We arrived at Cedar Creek State Park in WV in Oct, 2020. Nice campground with full hookups. I couldn't get phone, Dish, or antenna. We were scheduled for 10 days but after 6 I had it and needed my Internet and TV. We moved to a KOA nearby for 4 days. I had a schedule with reservations. Then on to Bowling Green then Little Rock then Fort Parker State Park, TX. I was scheduled to arrive in San Antonio on Oct 28 th but it was cold and raining outside. I called the Park office and they approved another night. I pulled into the RV Park in San Antonio on Oct 29 th , 2020. Just in time for my granddaughter’s birthday party. On Monday, 2 nd of November I went to see Dr Wiley Patterson. I scheduled it a few months back. He prescribed Suboxone and helped me off pain meds. In

I worked on my toad front brakes today. No help except YouTube. Used the crappy Toyota jack. All I need is some bolts and a wire brush which Meghan is bringing tomorrow. The bolts are needed to separate the rotor from the hub. Then put on the new rotor, hook it all back up with new pads. Repeat on the other side. Rear will be a little more complicated. I've never done this before in my life. I love conquering something like this. Garage wanted $1,200. I'm doing it for $200.   Personally, I think the service center I went to didn't want to work on my 16 yr old POS. Their descriptions of what they wrote in my inspection used words just short of "icky". For my 2 hour, $65 inspection, they told me I needed new brakes. Duh. But they also had to pop off those rusting wheels and clean out the sand. If I go to a Toyota service center, they'll seize it and force me to get the air bags replaced. I'm trying to be more self reliant. 

June 30 th , 2019 was my last day at work in Highpoint, NC. I wasn’t very productive, and hadn't been for some time. It was time. I had tasks on my list that I had no clue where to start. It seemed like I was running around sticking my fingers in the dam. Rooms were going silent when I'd walk in. Pain preoccupied my mind. I was addicted to pain pills that no longer worked. I was fucked. At my party, a few coworkers sat with me sucking on beers. Some had kind words, most had no idea why I was throwing in the towel.  Nobody knew what was going on, not even my doctors. After many doctors with many opinions, I may be zeroing in on what ails me. I was suffering from severe stress that caused many underlying, existing conditions to exasperate my “illness”. Anxiety cripples me. I said good byes, stayed in touch for a little while. Never went back to say hi. My first weeks retired felt like a vacation. It was good to get that monkey off my back. My mind had flamed out. My depressio

  Got my brake parts. I need to make a list of things I need from the part store to complete the job. Meghan was kind enough to bring it to me with other mail and my grocery order. We had a nice visit.  Life is good now that I'm off Facebook. I recommend this to everyone. I have better uses of my time.

 

  Not a bad place to winter. I like this small RV Park, 10 sites? Regular residential washer and dryer used on odd days. 

  Another gorgeous day here. It's 78 degrees F. February! Tell me how it is I don't know what the fuck I'm doing? I need a kite I think 🤔 . VD is for suckers. 

  Watch out, I have a plan! If the toad brakes turn out to be as simple and cheap .... I could be getting some mobility in a few weeks. I have $3500 credit line and saved $1000 from Feb pay. I should have enough for transmission and 5 days Airbnb (kicked out of my home) in March. That gives me one month to get weighed, registered, tires. I'm pulling out of here for CO on April 18th. We'll see if it sticks to the wall. I plan to hit Gunnison KOA on May 5th then Dinner Station area on May 6th. God Willing!!! I can bank serious $$$ for 5 months. Free campsite on the river, facing 14k mountain range. With the way my plans were altered in November, I'm "cautiously optimistic".  Fuckin A right?

 

  Freedom is hard to describe. It's being able to live a life you don't need a vacation from. Now that I'm chased off Facebook, I am no longer plugged in to anything. Just a few harmless commercials on Roku or Pluto channels. No politics, no current events, no religious hypnotic bs.  Living beneath your means no matter how small. Owing nothing to anybody. Freedom to move around like a vagabond. Days like today make me happy. Just nice weather, good music, getting things done.  I gave up meat some weeks ago. I don't need it. I will eat fish. Many reasons. I gave up NFL because they've started promoting gambling and that just pushed me over a line I was already teetering on. It's just not the same NFL I grew up with. I have no idea who was in the Superbowl. Don't care. It's just another bloated commercial enterprise to take your money. Men, forget this shit on Sundays. Take your kids to a park. Go discover WITH your kids. Find active friends with kids. Liv

    It's 51 degrees, getting to 70 today. Beau acts like he wants out but I think he likes it right there where he's at. I love this weather. If I could just drift from here to Magnolia Beach all season then that would be fucking great. I'm hoping for Meghan to get her house built here. I'm still fine tuning my drifter schedule. I don't go far and don't put on many miles. Taylor Park is 1003 miles from here. I like to drift through NM, head for known places to park for days at a time. Also, exploring new places to add to my list.  I enter CO in the first week of May. By calling ahead to the Trading Post, I can learn if I can dump and get water. If not, I will stop in Gunnison KOA for the night to pump and dump, laundry, good shower. They've always been very kind to me. Good stop to fill propane on the way out, grocery store in town, motorhome packed and stacked. We're heading for the mountains! I am slowly building many friendly relationships along my pa

Depending on your financial position, there are a variety of ways to go full-time or near full-time (snowbirds). If you've done well, then you have more options. Not just the size or price of a rig but also the fuel to travel longer distances. REMEMBER THIS: newer doesn't mean no breaking down, things falling off, etc. I've seen a handful of new rigs with big  issues. The one thing I hear from some is that they are just wandering around, east coast, west coast, State Parks, campgrounds, and RV Parks. They aren't hindered by gas costs or camp fees. They have kayaks, e-bikes, and anything for convenience. The Canadians seem to have a requirement to get back to Canada. US couples have homes they return to for the winter holidays. More are telling me they sold everything. I love that! Being able to sprinkle in a night or two at an RV Park is nice. You can do laundry, dump, water, and propane in one stop. KOA is good because they let anyone in and usually do it with a smile.

  Let's get real about money when full-time living in an RV or van. How cheap can you go? Here's my take based on my experience. I've owned homes and have lived in my RV since November, 2019. If you have an income over $2500/mo with no debt then you can do this, no problem. If you're below $1500 then you need to find work. You need to own your RV.  Money is just another provision to me. Like the water and food. I don't have visions of nice things and exotic places. My eye is on more primal needs like a lithium battery or better solar panels. Nevertheless, you MUST be prepared for an emergency. If in a home, you can put off getting something fixed. On the road and the transmission goes out, you're detoured for sure and need to deal with it NOW. You need access to an emergency fund. Cash or credit.  It's all about your head when you're "out". What makes you happy? A good foundation is security. Having full provisions and access to $10,000 at a mo

 It's 37 degrees, getting up to 64 today. Pretty nice. I slept well. Beau is anxious to go out and he's been fed. I'm sipping coffee, stretching, smoking, now heating pad. I'll take Beau out after my coffee. I'm feeling good about getting out of here and heading to CO soon. I could be in much worse place. I have my home, decent TX weather, and Meghan nearby. All is good.

I got to looking at this estimate and decided to call bullshit. $500 for front, $700 for rear. I'm paying $179 for a kit for everything I need including the separation tool (I watched the video). My friend here says it's a piece of cake and he'll bring the jack and all to help do this. Fuck yeah, going to bed on a positive note. I hope it works out.  

    This is my last thing to conquer in order to become a better steward of our environment. It's actually both poop bags and grocery bags. I always use mostly grocery/retail plastic bags and give them a second use. By purchasing these bags, I can switch to using reusable bags while grocery shopping. I may start actually going into the store. It would be good for me. I got rid of my plastic addition for bottled drinks. Nobody recycles this shit in my journey. We have to stop this! I managed to switch to mio squirt stuff. Lemonade. It's good. Just keep lots of cold water in fridge. The only other thing I feel guilty about is this 8 MPG guzzler MH. I don't drive it nearly as far as most, just migrating from TX to CO. I'm not perfect and only using the technology handed me. I only have the power to change what I can $$$. I'm certainly not one to frown and lecture others unless they are frowning at me. I think Jesus had to have had a frown face huh? The authors weren

If your motorhome doesn't have fancy levelers, you're like me and use different things to ramp up a tire or two. I use those yellow ramp things. You should place those on wood planks so they don't get smashed into the ground. Sometimes you may need to stack some wood planks. You can get 8' 2x6 (wider is better) cut into 2' planks. Any combo. Go to Ace.  

It's 49 degrees, not much warmer than when I woke up. The little electric heater is doing well. I keep the Buddy next to me at night just in case. It shouldn't be needed anytime soon.  I think I'm on par with provisions. It's hard to get paid monthly when you're living paycheck to paycheck. I should be good on everything including weed. I just scored that. Had to drive 2 hours to get it. My toad needs some work so I'm not sure what to do. I was quoted $1250 for brakes, front and back AND I have to wait 3 weeks for the parts. BS. Seems high. I watched a video, it doesn't seem hard. There's a few tools I'll need. Maybe Meghan will help me and we can fix it as a little project. I can buy the entire kit for front and back for $179 and delivered in 3 days. WTF? I'm still looking at a financial plan to get this transmission fixed. I got half in cash and credit cards for the rest. In light of the car fix, I'll wait til first week of April to get it

 Dinner Station CG in Gunnison National Forest is by far my fave. You can camp right on the river with a up close view of the mountains. This is where I'll be hosting this summer. Please come by to visit!

 This is the view from my campsite along the river near Dinner Station.  It's October and the mountains have fresh snow. I'm probably pushing my luck by watching the arrival of snow. In early May, I get snowed on but it's harmless because the weather is warming and the snow won't stick around. In the fall, it's a different story. A huge snow storm could trap me. I carefully watch the forecast and can see the snow slowly working its way down with every storm. I leave around October 10th.   I'm at near 10,000 ft elevation which stays comfortable all summer. While most of the nation is in the 90s and over 100, I'm chilling at high 70s on a warm day and 40s at night. It's one of the many reasons why I come here. The only downside is lack of oxygen so little hikes can wind an old man.

 I'm sure this was someone's dream at one time. They probably had big plans for renovation and travel. Maybe they won the lottery, abandoned it, then traded up. There are old kayaks laying around for rent but doesn't seem to have any business in a long time. Someone's dream. There's got to be a way to make money off all of these people camping on Magnolia Beach. 

 

 

 

 

 It's 49 degrees and not warming up today. Must be February. Beau and I have been on our walk now waiting on coffee.  I'm taking the toad in for brake work and a few tires this morning. She's been a good car for me. I bought it in 2008 when I was struggling to get on my feet. I needed something economical and dependable. I bought a new Yaris in 2014 but kept her. When I sold my house, I sold the newer Yaris to my neighbor and kept this one. I'm getting lots accomplished and looking forward to pulling out of here in 2 months. Colorado waits for me.

 I talked to the transmission guy today. We're on for first week in March. He'll need it for a week so I need to work on planning that. I'll spend the rest of March getting weighed, registered, tires, etc.  Taking toad for brake work tomorrow. Getting tires looked at as well. I'm planning a weed run for Saturday. Life is good.

  It's beautiful this morning. It's 52 degrees, sunny, and warming to 70 today. I feel real good this morning. Beau is outside, we've been on our walk. I've obtained some financing from credit cards. I'm still looking at early April departure. My route to CO won't be carefree and as much wandering as I had hoped. I will stick to known places along the way. I just pray I have no breakdowns. I'm growing tire of that. I need to get the toad's brakes worked on. A new spare is needed as well. I need to renew AAA and weigh MH in order to get er registered. One thing at a time.

 When I was on Facebook I was spending way too much time reading, responding, blocking and creating. A bunch of people from around the world disabled my account, I was frustrated because there was no way to communicate with Facebook. I don't do things that frustrate me. It's an older guy thing. Retired older guy. I like routine and it was part of my day but now I create new realities. I adapt. I survive.  After one hour I realized I was frustrated so decided that Facebook is a big waste of time and there must be a better way to blog. I'm not seeking fame or popularity as I had only organically grown to 2400 followers with no intention to grow or gain money. Polite word that comes to mind is "inefficient". Ads must be too cheap. It's a big part of the problem. I start writing as though it were for the future .... whatever comes to mind that may be of interest. Then I'm suddenly exposed to the public. Uh. I should have known better. My most used phrase. Star

 It's 55 degrees, sprinkling and overcast. It's not warming up today. I took Beau out early. Beau doesn't look good. He's not the same, very lethargic and hesitant to go for walks. I hope he's not dying. Facebook is royally fucking me. Someone hijacked my account and now making charges. No way to contact them. It's turned out to be a POS platform, still widely popular but not for me. I feel bad for those who wanted to follow me. Oh well. I've been out of weed for over a week. I can't find anybody to sell me more. It should be legal. Alcohol is legal. BS I like this blog format. Easy to manage and easily integrated with YouTube and Photos. Google has nice products.

  See camping guide service for help getting the very best camping available. Servicing Gunnison National Forest this year.  CLICK HERE

 Facebook is so stupid. They suspend me then give me a link to disagree. When I click the link, it tries to take me to Facebook. Facebook is a piece of shit. They had a good run. It's littered with crap accounts of people selling themselves or crappy Chinese products. To maintain a blog, you spend all your hours blocking people and hiding their shit they post. Goodbye Facebook.

 Fresh fish for breakfast is the best. Trout doesn't have scales and is easy to clean. After it's cooked, the meat falls off the bones. Leftovers are put into a zip lock bag and refrigerated for protein snacks.