Baja Prep: Dog Vac's. Mexican Auto Insurance. Waiting...

Prepping for Baja has a lot of little stages and all of them cost money. I'll have to sit down when all is said and done to write up a "Baja Budget", so you can see how we made it work.

Photo: Google

In the last post, you read how we were able to fit everything, we didn't want to take to Mexico, into a storage unit.

We took another trip to drop some last minute items off and feel we may have one more trip for things we are using now, but don't need to take with us.

Messy, but we're getting there!

We spent a couple of days calling banks, insurance companies, Verizon, Veterinarians, mail places, doctors, among other companies I can't think of right now, to get everything squared away for our 2 month vacation. There were some things we didn't want to pay while we were gone, especially since we wouldn't be able to use them in Mexico, like our Verizon and our American auto insurance...so we put these on hold/suspension/vacation. This way we'll actually save money, woo hoo!

We were able to get Mexican Auto Insurance through Lewis and Lewis, http://www.mexicanautoinsurance.com/ 

they seemed to be the cheapest and our friend goes through them every year, so we felt comfortable with them.

We did our big shopping trip to Walmart to get the major stuff in bulk; TP, Paper towels, medicine as well as the U.S. food that we love and don't want to pay an arm and a leg for down there; granola, Chai, coffee, creamer, etc.

We filled up all of our water jugs, dumped trash, refueled, got some mail and made an appointment for the girls to get shots and a health certificate.

The Vet was able to get us in the very next day of making our appointment, so that was really helpful before the weekend. We went to Valley Veterinarian Hospital, the staff and doctor were all very nice, informative and even got us in 25 minutes early!

 The dogs were happy to be able to accompany us into a building....until they smelled the fear within the walls, then they just wanted out!! haha

They both did exceptionally well! 

Chili Moon was her usual nervous energy~wiggle worm self, but I was a very proud mommy, for it only took three times and two different people to get her temperature!!

Savannah was awesome! She knew something was going down but she just watched and sat very still for everything and didn't growl one single time! She even nuzzled up with me to get me to pick her up and hold her close....awww, she does love mommy!

 We left there $110 less in our pockets but with updated shots and Certifications of Health for both girls. 

Check that huge one off the list!

Now....we wait until the week starts again.

We have a couple more packages to pick up and a couple of little things to gather and drop off before we head South.

Our internet will most likely be turned off tonight around midnight, until April. We will be finding internet cafes to check in with friends and family.

So for the rest of tonight, we will wait out this wind and maybe by the time we roll out, it'll be nice and pleasant and perfect!

Have a great rest of your Winter and start to your Spring!

Adiós por ahora

PAZ 

Off to Florida we go...

We took off for the weekend to go visit our lil' hoot (our daughter, Brittney). Her & her boyfriend just bought a house in Central Florida as well as bringing home the newest addition to their family... a gorgeous Doberman Pinscher named Dash.

We just had to make a trek to go visit them and enjoy all of these firsts with them, plus it was nice to get on the road again, even if it was just for a short weekend trip.

We wanted to leave the house no later than 7 on Friday morning and ended up leaving the gas station at 6:35 a.m., so we were happy about that. It's about a 9-9.5 hour drive, and we were sure driving through Atlanta on the 4th of July would probably put us in some traffic. The great part? We were wrong about the traffic AND Atlanta and never hit either one! woo hoo...Nothing worse than driving through a major city on a holiday!

The drive, for the most part, was nice & easy. During the last two hours of our drive, we endured some pretty heavy rains accompanied by BIG thunder & lightning storms. We finally arrived at a restaurant-bar I used to work at, at around 5:15 p.m., to meet our lil' Owlings for dinner & drinks. It was so great seeing them!

At Jax, we had some wings, beer, hugs and great conversation. Daddy got to meet B's boyfriend for the first time and they hit it off, talking up a storm about technology, sports and technology!! (Did I say technology?) Brittney & I talked about our usual stuff, giggling and loving just being together again!

After dinner we headed to their new house. It's in a quiet, cute neighborhood centrally located to their town and Orlando...not too shabby!

We went out back to play with the dogs, all 4 of them, Savannah & Chili and their two Roscoe (Dachshund) and the newest baby of the family Dash (Dobie). The initial playtime was interesting because Dash is full of spunk and tons of energy and Chili is so small and kept getting stepped on, Savannah has to play referee and Roscoe just wants to play with everyone! It was funny to watch and their backyard is HUGE so it made it a little more enjoyable to run around, throw balls and just be goofy! They were all running around like crazy dogs so the only actual picture I could get was of Roscoe, he is thee sweetest boy ever!

We settled in for the night a couple of hours later, after deciding that tomorrow we will go on a Casino Cruise. JP & Brittney had done it once before and said it was a full day of fun...so heck, why not!

It's good to be with our girl again and we are so proud of how her family is growing as she becomes more of a young woman. We just love JP, the dogs, the house, everything that they have worked hard for, they seem very very happy and I think, as parents, that's all we really want for our babies!

Off to the snoozer ...

PEACE

My Cup Runneth Over with Boredom

Been having quite the time with motivation lately....I have none.zip.squat.  All of this time on my hands and I don't feel like doing an-y-thing! Someone told me about a year ago, that I should NEVER be bored...I'm too young to be bored.

Okay. So....

I read (within a page)...I'm bored.

I listen to music...I'm bored.

I meditate...I'm bored.

I write...I'm bored.

I do Yoga and stretching...I'm bored.

I practice my guitar or Ukulele...I'm bored.

I get online...I'm bored.

I play games...I'm bored.

I TRY to be artistic....I get frustrated, then bored.

I go on a walk...I'm bored.

I eat...I get bored and don't want to finish my meal.

I turn on the tube to take away the boredom...now I'm raunchily bored.

I try new things....bored.

I try old things....bored.

My dogs are sleeping...even they are bored.

It's windy outside...I'm bored.

I'm breathing...I'm bored.

Even taking pictures lately makes me dreadfully bored.

So....as you can see....I'm bored.

Where does this incessant boredom come from? And where is my motivation to change it?

Growing up my mom always used to say to me, "Life isn't always about fun, you can't just have fun ALL the time."

Well, why not dammit!?

Do I feel like I'm missing out on things, on stuff, on fun, on life...probably.

In our lifestyle, we have all of this freedom (on a pretty tight budget) so there is a LOT of down time. We are still working towards goals to make our budget a little bigger, but there still feels like something is missing.

On our biggest boring days, we find ourselves scouring the internet for bigger rigs...ooing & ahhing, giving us something to look forward to. Living in our van is great...for now, but some days, especially the super windy, cold & dreary days, it's exciting to think about what life would be like in something a little bigger. Something we could stand up in, to be able to put our pants on all the way...inside, to stand up and stretch...inside, to cook...on a table...standing up...inside. What a concept, huh! It's just nice to have something to look forward to.

I mean, right now it's like a dream to imagine this: Get out of bed in the morning, Jamie could sleep in, I'll walk the dogs, come back, put on a pot of coffee and start making breakfast. He gets out of bed, stands up...stretches and we sit down and have our morning rituals together. All of this is going on and we DON'T have to wait until the other one gets up, to make the bed to be able to roll the bed up together (NOT a one person job), so we can start doing anything at all!!!

The thought of moving about a space without having to get the bed out of the way....THIS is what excites me!

I love the fact that we have total teamwork living together in Joon van, but the days that we're NOT on the same page...well, let's just say I want to go back to bed, before the bed even gets deflated.

At least I'm blessed with a mate that can put a different spin on things, that I can talk to, that can make me laugh, that will put me on the back of the dirt bike and take me into town for something different to do. Who also lets me know that I'm not alone...in boredom or in life. Plus, he's SUPER fun to be with!

So, maybe (right now) we aren't having the time of our lives every second, of every minute of every day, but we have one another and if we can keep that in mind and keep on truckin' to follow those dreams, the fun will start to follow us around!

How do you get yourself out of a (looooong) motivational slump? Out of endless boredom? Please tell me I'm not the only one!!!

[caption id="attachment_5335" align="aligncenter" width="200"] ...[/caption]

Here's to a less boring day and the motivation to change it!

PEACE

Catch me if you can

I'm not going to lie...it's really easy to find other things to do than sit down and write a post for this blog. I guess I only have myself to blame, along with my new computer (and my other lame excuses)...which has taken up a good majority of my time with the screen jumping back and forth, back and forth...I swear you breathe on the mouse and the screen jumps to another screen. I had made the excuse (to myself) that I can't write a post without all of my pictures, so I finally got all of my pictures on the computer. Then, I made the excuse that I don't have anything to write about (an excuse I've been making for about 7 months now...oops). Then, I was making the excuse that no one is interested in this blog anyway....then I went to the RTR and people kept telling me they WERE reading the blog up until about 3 months ago when they realized I wasn't updating anymore. So I was excited to start writing again but now that it's been so long, I feel like I've lost my verve for tha' word.

[caption id="attachment_5207" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Feeling Flat[/caption]

So bear with me peeps, while I try to get my groove back. I may ramble and I will try not to vent too much, for there are things that have happened within the last couple of months that have really irked me and I'm trying to keep the negatives out...negative thoughts AND negative people.

There is a ton of awesome in the here and now though and on the horizon for us. For example, we have found a great spot to camp for a couple of months (hopefully), with solitude and amazing views and pretty good weather. Chili Moon is doing amazingly well in this lifestyle, she never ventures away from the van and loves to smell the air in the wind and feeling the sunshine on her skin (she has very little fur). She has been an amazing little addition to our tribe, I love her so much! And yes, Savannah is still a brat!

[caption id="attachment_5206" align="aligncenter" width="350"] Fun in the Sun[/caption]

I will be selling my Claramae soon...that's my guitar for those of you that are just joining us. I found out, from two people that I trust (and know what they're talking about) that there is too much wrong with it to be a good learning instrument or a good instrument period. I knew there had to be something else going on there, I just knew it couldn't be that hard!! So, while Claramae was my first, she's not worth the save, and the money will go back into other funds. I am a little sad to sell her, but it's for the greater good of my tribe (& their ears) & my poor little fingers. You will be missed Claramae..you're so purty!

[caption id="attachment_5208" align="aligncenter" width="224"] Ya ole stinker[/caption]

On the other hand, I was able to play a friends' Ukulele at the RTR and fell instantaneously in love with it.... so I am awaiting the arrival of my Anuenue Akua (pronounced AA-Nuw-eh-Nuw-eh-aa-KUW-aa)...I am very very excited!

I'm afraid that's all you'll be getting out of me this time, but I figured if I didn't just sit down and put some words on my "paper screen", I never would.

I hope all of you that are dealing with horrible weather are keeping safe and warm and those of you in the better weather...Wear your sunscreen, wear your hats and have fun keeping the sunshine out of your face and the sand out of your van!

Until next time my peeps

Much Love & Peace

 

 

Cookies! Cookies! Bulldog?? Cookies!

I'm not really a political kinda gal...plus we haven't been around T.V. or radio for the past week, so waking up (turning the tube on) and seeing the 2nd Inauguration of Barack Obama was a little unexpected.

[caption id="attachment_3520" align="alignleft" width="150"] Where are the bathrooms?[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3521" align="alignright" width="150"] Another Four Years...[/caption]

We laid in bed and watched for about an hour, then decided we'd be here all day if we kept on with this business and finally turned the tele off and got out of the fort. Today we would be driving back over to Quartzsite. The final outcome of the games yesterday decided that the San Francisco 49'ers and the Baltimore Ravens (Beth~ J's moms' team) will be going to the Superbowl. May the best team win!

As we were driving back in, we definitely saw a huge difference from the landscape of last week to this moment. I think this was the time to say...Welcome to Quartzsite! This was the sight that was in our minds that we had not seen yet: Hundreds if not thousands of RV's off in the distance, like a sea of white...the brown specks being the buildings, polka-dotted in between. Just for fun, we drove around town like we were just arriving for the very first time.

[gallery ids="3525,3529,3526,3527,3528,3530,3531,3532,3533"]

[caption id="attachment_3534" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Quartzsite[/caption]

 The energy was high in town, we threw the idea around of going to the big tent today but after sitting in traffic for 35 minutes only to drive a couple of miles, we decided to just drive back to the R.T.R. camp.

[caption id="attachment_3536" align="alignleft" width="150"] A week ago[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3535" align="alignright" width="150"] B.L.M. Today[/caption]

Even on B.L.M. there was a definite difference in the amount of people that were here. Before we started living this way, we had no idea that living/camping/parking (whatever you want to call it) like this, even existed. It's a lifestyle that is good to know about (and how to do it) and it's been super easy and seems to just keep getting easier, for us anyway! And just to reiterate how easy it is...we got back just in time for Happy Hour! Although, most of our hours are happy!

When it started getting dark, we walked to Joon to get some warmer clothes on (I was still wearing my cool new pants, oh pics at the end, with my flops and a pull-over)...my tootsies were freezing! We got in the van, Savannah followed and then Rain (Jenn & Johnny's pup) jumped in the van, (I thought, "Sweet, "slumber party", although we were just layering)...then this Bulldog, whom I had never met before jumped in after Rain. Oh My Gosh!! I was laughing soooooo hard. He was snorting and climbing on me, trying to give me kisses...he blended right into the mix. It was the funniest frickin' thing I had seen all day...I couldn't stop laughing. It was just so random! Later, I would find out this 10 month old Bulldog's name is Bruce! Ohhhh, Bruce.

[caption id="attachment_3542" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Who are you?[/caption]

We layered up and walked over to a dinner invite from Lees & Bernie. Bernie was a good man and 'spoiled my dinner' with Oreo's before the main course! He's a true friend, haha. We had a scrumptious dinner together, ending with Lesa turning me onto a totally different type of cookie. It was like a caramel cookie crisp, we came to the conclusion that they were a crispy, flaky, flattened waffle cone! Yummers! After dinner, we walked over to  the campfire. We met a couple of new faces, laughed about the U.F.O.'s (Japanese Lanterns) flying through the sky and ate about 6 different types of cookies. The next thing I know Joey brings out some chocolate chip cookies and some chocolate wafer things.

[caption id="attachment_3543" align="alignleft" width="150"] Elephant
Lion
Seal[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3550" align="alignright" width="150"] I'm spoiled[/caption]

It must have been National Cookie Day...well it was where we were! I can't pass up a cookie, haha!

I think tonight was really great. The R.T.R. 'ends' tomorrow, some people will be staying and some people will be leaving. It has been so great getting to know the people we have been able to meet and creating new friendships. This time will always be remembered, for us, as well as many others that joined this group, for however long they were able to. We have learned from others as we have been told others even learned from us! It's fun to meet up with like-minded individuals, see how they do things, get great ideas and even find a travel partner or two along the way. What a great event this R.T.R. is. A special thank you to Bob for pulling everyone together whether it was for teaching, learning, creating masterpieces, living spaces or friendships, comfort, exercise or just to do something you've never done before. I know we have our 'things' that we are taking away from it and I know everyone else does too. I can't say how it is in other group settings (with campers/dwellers) but it has been a pleasure camping amongst this group. I think we have a pretty sweet gang and am happy to be able to call you friends...never thought I'd find so many friends in the desert!

I wish every one of you safe travels.

Here's to our paths crossing again

hoping it's sooner (rather) than later

my traveling friend.

...and here are the pics of my new pants!!

[caption id="attachment_3524" align="alignleft" width="150"] New nails & pants[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_3522" align="alignright" width="150"] Nuevo Pantalones[/caption]

Aren't they rockin'!?

PEACE

Navigating North

Now that it's getting closer to 'going home time', we thought we would start heading North, maybe do some drive-by's of past memories and then just keep going. We drove up through Tampa & Orlando.

[caption id="attachment_1837" align="aligncenter" width="300"] What up O-town?[/caption]

Always good to see O-town! We decided to stop for lunch at a place I used to work at, for shits & giggles of course. We ate our signature salads and kept on down the road.

[caption id="attachment_1848" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Happy to be sitting & not working[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1838" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Stretching from all of her hard work of sleeping[/caption]

While we were still around Sarasota we called a few campgrounds up North. When we lived in this area we used to camp for nothing in the regular season so we thought we'd give a few places a call. After calling some places, we were left scratching our heads because we happened to be in town the same week as all of the big car races as well as the Daytona 500! 

Go figure. 

[caption id="attachment_1846" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Captivated[/caption]

So prices were a lot higher than we were expecting. Just one more lesson of things to watch for: Big Events = more money, everywhere!! We did finally get a good price over the phone and that's what made the final push to drive up North. After a little bit of haggling, (bc the lady didn't want to give us the rate that we were told over the phone), we ended up paying for a week for a spot there. We took a walk around and set-up the van in our spot. We had spot #2 @ Clark's!

[caption id="attachment_1844" align="aligncenter" width="300"] # 2[/caption]

They had a pool, that wasn't working, but I was told (by the lady that worked there) that I wouldn't want to get in it anyway, it would be too cold. I thought that was somewhat rude, how does she know what I like? They also have goats there for your ears' pleasure and squirrels that have never seen/eaten peanut butter before...pure-natured squirrels! I'll keep ya posted on how it goes the rest of the week.

[caption id="attachment_1839" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Give me food[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1840" align="aligncenter" width="300"] I don't think that squirrel knows what it's getting into![/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1843" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Ello[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1845" align="aligncenter" width="300"] “The Sleep-away Camp” Bathroom….scarrrry[/caption]

PEACE

66- Checking out Clark's Campground by Ayevangabond