ONLY 1,945 MILES TO GO

I hope to never fly commercial again.  The brilliance of RV life is I can change plans and drive in a different direction on a moment’s notice.

I really hate the driving and try to do only 200 miles on any given day.  I was fortunate to be within 260 miles of Bakersfield and got there in time to say goodbye to my favorite Uncle Jim. 

It was strange to turn south and drive back through Palm Springs on my way to Casa Grande, AZ.  I had just spent two months in Palm Spring.  I thought about stopping and playing one last round of golf with Alaska pals David and Susan.  Instead, I drove on to Tucson, AZ, 580 miles with one overnight stop at a San Bernardino county campground in Yucaipa.  That allowed me to break-up the 7-hour drive.

I love having my home behind me.  I was never a good packer for weekends or vacations.  I always brought too much and never had what I really needed.    Everything I own and need is with me in Scout – my 20-foot Airstream.

I will spend a month in Tucson, because I have a ticket to hear the Tedeshcki Truck Band on May 14.  I really have to quit buying tickets.  Because plans change.  Cousin Karen and I were going to spend a week enjoying desert flowers, but Uncle Jim’s life was coming to an end.  It was more important to see and say goodbye to my beloved Uncle Jim. 

I am glad to be back in Tucson for a month of golf, before the cross-country trip to Rachel’s wedding on June 8 at Emerald Island, NC.  Sister Becky (Rachel’s Mother) will marry Chuck the following weekend in Cary, NC.   

Alaska friend Esther at 90 is undergoing hip surgery on Monday, so I will help her in her recovery.  Thankfully Esther has moved into a retirement home in Casa Grande and is no longer living alone out in the boondocks of Arizona, aka Arizona City.  American’s dream of retiring and living in the country, is not one I share.  After the Airstream, I hope to live in a city where I can walk or take public transportation to grocery stores, movie theaters and restaurants.  Not being dependent on a car.

Only 1,945 miles to Emerald Island, NC from Tucson, divided by 200 miles a day I could do it in 10 days, but I plan an extended stay in Austin, TX visiting Ruth, and a couple of days at the Moten Ranch with former colleague Beth and riding my favorite horse Hope. Beth contributed to my decision to retire early.  At a meeting in late November 2015, Beth announced her retirement saying, “she was done”.  I felt the same, I was also done with beating my head against a wall.  Work was no longer fun or satisfying.  Beth told us she and her brother grew-up on a ranch outside of Austin.  She said, they had worked hard to get good grades so they could get away from that ranch.  Now all she and her brother wanted was “go back to the ranch”.  I loved this story and thought to myself, I didn’t have a ranch, but I have a dream of an Airstream.  Visiting Beth has special significance for me.  

Stay tuned for travel log cross-country: golf, campgrounds, horses and best of all dear friends.