I haven't made a post to this blog since February but then at this point that shouldn't be unusual. We'll be in preflight for a while still. "We'll", as in we. My first two posts were "I" as in I. Coincidentally just days after those first few posts I ended up meeting the person who will share this adventure with me. I knew Margo for a few months before that. She was always the attractive woman in my spin class at the YMCA until Feb 29th when the spin class got together for a night of bowling. Having only seen Margo on a spin bike in class with the music pumped up really load we didn't have much to say to each other. We each felt that neither was "our type". My shyness probably had a lot to do with it too. Anyway, at bowling we were chatting. I told her about my plan to travel the country in an Airstream. A conversation topic by the way not conducive to developing a relationship but amazingly she was even more turned on by the idea than I was. Long but glorious story short, first impressions, and who you think is and is not your "type" are not what they seem.
It's been six months now and we truly have found in each other a partnership that is extraordinary. The dream has become so much more important to achieve then when it was just me. The adventure with Margo is well underway. It's an incredible ride and we haven't even left town yet. We'll work our jobs, mark time and get my daughter through high school. We'll grow and by the time this comes to be we'll be ready. Oh yes, We is much nicer than I.
So, preflight is still preflight but it's a team getting ready, not just me. We took a trip to Bates RV in Tampa, home of the Airstream Ranch, and looked around. She got really excited about the 31 foot Classic so that part is settled. A Classic it will be. This woman has style. Now just to get the kid through high school. Again, probably not too many posts in the near future but once we start firming up plans and getting into the nuts and bolts of things I'll start updating. Look in the "fun stuff" section of my flicker page here for a look at the Airstream Ranch.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Why an Airstream
When I was first running all this through my head I felt that a class C motor home would be ideal. I knew that a big class A would be too expensive but a class C (that's the one with the van front) would be affordable. I never even considered a trailer. Too small. I'd have to buy a big pick up truck to go with it plus I just envisioned myself in a totally self contained set up.
Then I went to the Ocala RV show. I had never been to one and as a matter of fact had never really had that much exposure to RV's at all. I wanted to look at the class C motor homes and maybe have a little fun and tour the big class A's. As I walked through the place and went into a few class C's I would picture myself living in one. I realized that they were just too small. Not practical for what I wanted to do. I had to have room for an office to be able to work on the road and with every floor plan I saw it just wasn't working. Oh sure there was a huge thing built on a heavy duty Chevy truck chassis that had plenty of room but it was over $100,000. The class A's, as I knew, were way out of my price range.
I toured some trailers and wasn't impressed. They looked cheaply constructed. The slide outs were cool but for what I wanted to be doing I wouldn't always be in a situation where I would be able to deploy them. When they were in everything was cramped. Not only that but all I could see was the day the thing broke and wouldn't slide, in or out. I felt they were great for people who wanted to go camping for vacation but I was going to be doing this full-time. I needed something built a little better than that.
As I walked around I came to the Airstream display. I didn't even know they were still making the things. I went into a 31 foot Classic and it just hit me. This was it. It looked so well constructed and for the first time I could actually see myself doing this. I toured all the models. They had a few smaller Bambi's and I think an International. I didn't talk to a salesman or anything, just took notes in my head.
After that show I started doing some research on the Internet about Airstreams and found that it was all coming together. Not only do they still make them there's a huge following, especially for vintage. In a nutshell. A SOB (some other brand) is ready for trade in five years while an Airstream at five years is barely broken in. More on my research later included some praise for The VAP. Stay tuned.
Then I went to the Ocala RV show. I had never been to one and as a matter of fact had never really had that much exposure to RV's at all. I wanted to look at the class C motor homes and maybe have a little fun and tour the big class A's. As I walked through the place and went into a few class C's I would picture myself living in one. I realized that they were just too small. Not practical for what I wanted to do. I had to have room for an office to be able to work on the road and with every floor plan I saw it just wasn't working. Oh sure there was a huge thing built on a heavy duty Chevy truck chassis that had plenty of room but it was over $100,000. The class A's, as I knew, were way out of my price range.
I toured some trailers and wasn't impressed. They looked cheaply constructed. The slide outs were cool but for what I wanted to be doing I wouldn't always be in a situation where I would be able to deploy them. When they were in everything was cramped. Not only that but all I could see was the day the thing broke and wouldn't slide, in or out. I felt they were great for people who wanted to go camping for vacation but I was going to be doing this full-time. I needed something built a little better than that.
As I walked around I came to the Airstream display. I didn't even know they were still making the things. I went into a 31 foot Classic and it just hit me. This was it. It looked so well constructed and for the first time I could actually see myself doing this. I toured all the models. They had a few smaller Bambi's and I think an International. I didn't talk to a salesman or anything, just took notes in my head.
After that show I started doing some research on the Internet about Airstreams and found that it was all coming together. Not only do they still make them there's a huge following, especially for vintage. In a nutshell. A SOB (some other brand) is ready for trade in five years while an Airstream at five years is barely broken in. More on my research later included some praise for The VAP. Stay tuned.
First post
The first post and a short explanation of why I'm doing this. Like every major step in your life it starts with a dream. This is the birth of the dream and as time goes by it will be a chronicle. A travelogue, literally, of my life.
I'm 45 years old. Single. Two daughters, one grown and on her own and another 14 years old. I've been thinking a lot lately about what I'm going to do the rest of my life. I have a long time to go here and really can't see myself staying in one place and languishing it away. I've always loved to travel and want to see everything there is to see out there - especially while I can enjoy it. While I'm young and healthy.
The question was how to do this and still work to support myself. I'm a medical transcriptionist and I work from home. As long as I have an Internet connection I can work. Okay, next step. If "home" can travel then I can travel. Simple really. Get an RV, put a satellite dish on it and hit the road.
So that's where I am. I don't see myself actually hitting the road for a few years. I have to get the 14 year old grown up a bit more but once she is in good shape I can put the plan in motion. The blog for now will chronicle the preparation and from there I hope it turns into a true travelogue. I have no clue how long it will go on. Hopefully until I see everything there is to see then go back and revisit the places I liked. In my old age I'll settle down in my favorite place.
I'm 45 years old. Single. Two daughters, one grown and on her own and another 14 years old. I've been thinking a lot lately about what I'm going to do the rest of my life. I have a long time to go here and really can't see myself staying in one place and languishing it away. I've always loved to travel and want to see everything there is to see out there - especially while I can enjoy it. While I'm young and healthy.
The question was how to do this and still work to support myself. I'm a medical transcriptionist and I work from home. As long as I have an Internet connection I can work. Okay, next step. If "home" can travel then I can travel. Simple really. Get an RV, put a satellite dish on it and hit the road.
So that's where I am. I don't see myself actually hitting the road for a few years. I have to get the 14 year old grown up a bit more but once she is in good shape I can put the plan in motion. The blog for now will chronicle the preparation and from there I hope it turns into a true travelogue. I have no clue how long it will go on. Hopefully until I see everything there is to see then go back and revisit the places I liked. In my old age I'll settle down in my favorite place.
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