Saturday 11 February 2017

We went camping!

The house had been on the market for 9 months. We had gotten one really low ball offer early on and nothing else. Winter finally ended and the very short camping season was upon us. So we went camping with our very best friends in the world. Rich and Del. They continued to try to convince us that we didn't really want to move to a developing nation.  We continued to try to convince them that they should come with us.
 This was part of the weaning away from friends and family that we hadn't really thought about.


And the things that we would miss

 The Lido Deck

The worlds neatest wine shop.

Road Trips

And the stuff. Right after we got home from our first trip to Belize and before the housing market crashed we had gone through our house and picked out everything that we wanted to give to our son Tom. For Christmas we packed it all into a U-Haul truck and and drove to California. Fortunately he had just bought his first house.  Little did we know that we would have a lot more minimalist decor for years. It really made house cleaning a lot easier. Everything that we thought we would need in Belize we started packing away in the 5th wheel camper.
There was a whole new plan developing. Now, as soon as the house sold, we were going to start road tripping through Mexico in our big camper. I gave away all of our dishes and glassware. Did you know that every state in Mexico has its own traditional pattern of pottery? How cool would that be to buy one place setting from each state and all new hand blown glassware from our travels? This was going to be perfect!
And then we started seeing the occasional report from Mexico about gang warfare between cartels. And the reports became less occasional and more regular and the crimes more violent and we started thinking, Awww its just the press blowing things out of proportion. As they do. If they don't have enough to report they lose readers, viewers, whatever.
And then we started getting warnings from our new friends in Belize and their friends in Mexico. Don't even think about driving to Belize.  Curses, foiled again.  No problem, lets go to Florida!
Time goes by, so slowly. And time can do so much. Three and a half years have passed. Our finances are straight. Our heads are  straight. And then it happens. Hubby, Bruce turns the magic 65. And turns in his intent to retire. Being the good guy that he is he agrees to hang around and train his replacement before he leaves. Spring passes and no replacement is in sight. Summer comes on again,still no newbie in sight. So we go camping. Its getting a little crowded in the camper what with all of the little things the we are sure we cant live with out that are getting squirreled away in every nook and cranny. And then it happens. A replacement is hired. Training begins. And it hits me that this is really going to happen. And there is a whole lot to get done before the target retirement date of December 20th. So I quit my job.
Now the heavy work begins. As anyone who has ever emptied out a house can tell you, its like the biblical story of the loaves and the fishes. No matter how much you get rid of there is always more! Its like its breeding overnight. I'm getting more and more hard hearted by the day. Things that had sentimental value a few years ago are now getting in the way of my house emptying progress. And a 30' 5th wheel trailer can only hold so much and still have room for 2 adults, 2 dogs and a really old cat.
We have yard sales and cheap sales. Tag sales and fire sales. The local charities are on speed dial and friends start avoiding us after adopting as much of our junk as they can stand. But on the morning of departure, we are packed. Mostly.
Morning dawns. December 20, 2010. The truck and trailer spent the night at the truck stop on the edge of the interstate pointed south.  And it is snowing. Fairly heavily. By east coast standards we are in blizzard conditions. In Idaho its just another winter day. Besides, we are heading south. St Augustine, here we come!

5 comments:

  1. I'm loving this tale of two adventurist!!

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    1. Thanks for hanging in there. This is supposed to be about building in Belize. Eventually.

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    2. Thanks for hanging in there. This is supposed to be about building in Belize. Eventually.

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  2. "So I quit my job." That and the paragraphs below it describe my November last year. We drove off from northern VA (no snow) on 11 December and from southern VA (where we visited family) on 13 December (again, no snow).

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    1. You have to have totally emptied a house to have to really feel it. I know you do.

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