A Month of Anniversaries

Hard to believe that one year ago today we left Pensacola to begin this little adventure. It has been a great year, we’ve visited some spectacular places and met lots of nice people along the way. This is a huge country, and we feel like we’ve barely scratched the surface of places we want to see, so we have no plans to put down roots anytime soon. This is a picture of our first night in Alabama on October 6, 2008. I can still remember how excited we were and how hard it was to believe that we were full time RVers.

We will celebrate our 27th wedding anniversary on October 9th. If we can still be happily married after a year in a 30’ RV then the sky’s the limit!

2 years ago on October 11 we flew to Denver to pick up our new- to -us Lazy Daze, which is what really got us motivated to hit the road. On our 3 day drive back to Florida, we decided we had to figure out a way to quit work and travel while we were still young and healthy enough to really enjoy it. And a year later we did it!

Jim’s 60th birthday is October 16th. Only 2 more years before he qualifies for the “geezer” card, so we, too, can pay half price for campsites in national parks and forests.

One year ago today we had no idea we would be in Oregon in a year.  And we have no idea where we’ll be a year from now. How exciting is that!   A few pictures of where we are today (for 3 more weeks).

Looks like we have quite a few excuses to go out for pizza and beer this month. If only Jim is able to chew after his dental work!

I thought it appropriate to include the following quote. It is taken from the autobiography of Sterling Hayden entitled Wanderer. It pretty much sums up our feelings of what we would aspire to.

“To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise, you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen who play with their boats at sea... cruising, it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about. "I've always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can't afford it." What these men can't afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of security. And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine - and before we know it our lives are gone. What does a man need - really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in - and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That's all - in the material sense, and we know it. But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention for the sheer idiocy of the charade. The years thunder by, the dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed. Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life?”