Two months!

First I will tell about the last two days and then I will try to describe my feelings at this point - two months into the trip. Yesterday it was pretty cold in the morning. We got a very slow start. Bob has been feeling more and more like he wanted to get a bigger trailer. We were sitting on the bed talking about options and drinking our morning coffee. There really is not very much room and we work very hard at putting things on the very limited counter space in a way that we will not knock them over. I have already knocked over a full glass of wine and had to clean up quite a mess. But at least the wine was room temperature. Hot coffee is something else. Bob was making a point and using his hands and hit his cup full of HOT coffee. It fell right down the front of him. I did not think he could move so quickly. He pulled down his jamas and dried himself off and started putting burn ointment on- which happened to be right on top of the counter for some reason that I do not remember. I sat absolutely still until I was sure that he was safe - partly because from the back of the bed there was nothing I could do. When he looked okay - not great but okay, we examined the damage. Pretty good burns, but no blisters. I then started drying out the bed and the blankets and the sheets and the pillows. It was quickly clear that we would have to wash everything. So I did. Bob was too uncomfortable to do much so I decided to do the rest of the laundry and just take it easy.

There was a trailer sales place about a mile away. Bob and I stopped there and found one that we sort of liked. We talked about it all day. We drove into downtown Asheville and talked about it while looking at everything. This is a very interesting town. It reminds me a little of the Haight during the 60s. Lots of weirdly dressed young people. They gathered in a square in the middle of town and were playing chess and singing and playing various instruments. Farther down the block was a group of folks demonstrating against US immigration policies. Bob and I walked around, went to a museum on geology and the weather, had a drink in an outside cafe, and then drove home. By the time we got home, Bob had decided that the trailer we saw was nice, but not the right one.

This morning it was warmer and we were very careful about the coffee. However, when we weighed in (we weigh every morning) it was clear that we were both putting on weight. This was distrubing because we really had not been eating very much for the last few days. I said what I always do when this happens - I need to exercise more. Bob and I agreed and this time we actually got the weights out and did our morning routine. We then walked over to the dumpster together for a short walk. It is hard walking here because the hills are pretty steep and the road is narrow. There is no safe place to walk alongside the road. When we were walking back I saw the owner and started talking to him. Bob mentioned that we might be looking for another trailer. The owner sent us to a place about 20 miles away. So we drove there. But it is closed on Sunday. We walked around and found one that looked pretty good from the outside. But we couldn't contact anyone to see inside.

So we went for a picnic to the Nature Center. This is sort of like a zoo. It has a great nature trail. On the trail there are markers showing the number of steps from the beginning. We had a good walk. Then we came back and Bob did some online research into a trailer we saw. It looks pretty good. So we decided to stay here another day and go look at it tomorrow. Who knows? Maybe we will get a new trailer. I prefer the small size of Fanny but this is getting harder on Bob and the burns on his thighs did not help.

So, how do I feel after two months? The newness has definitely worn off. There is a routine to our lives that is very basic and slow. We spend more time on essentials than we do at home. We spend a lot of time reading and talking. But I am very rested and relaxed (that does not count the harrowing ride up the Great Smokey Mountain in the pouring rain). I am not thinking great thoughts or anything. I am just going with the flow. That is very unusual for me. I did not know if I would be able to do so little each day, but I can.

I find that I am not particularly interested in big cities. They are mostly the same - big buildings and busy streets and too many tourists. I love looking at the lay of the land, even when it is not dramatic. For example, this rv park is build like a public campground. Looking out my window right now I see lots of trees and can hear the wonderful sound of the stream a few feet from our campsite. It is very quiet - with the sound of a train several miles in the distance. I like that. I also like the fact that sitting here on the bed in my trailer I can feel the slight breeze on my face. It is about 75 degrees and very comfortable.

I also like history when it is real history. Fort Sumter was real - the Alamo was not. I don't like history or culture when it becomes too touristy. Tombstone was too touristy. Cherokee nation at the gate of the Great Smokey Mountain park was too touristy. But St. Augustine was not.

I wish that Bob were more interested in cultural things - like trying to see whatever plays or concerts are in the various cities that we visit. But he is not interested. That is not the kind of thing that you do alone.

I also have to work harder on my resolutions about staying in shape. It is very easy to just sit and enjoy and not take my morning walk or force Bob to do our exercises. But I think both of us will be a lot happier if we can make sure that we get the exercise.

For the rest of the trip we will undoubtedly avoid big cities (with the exception of Washington DC and visiting family). We will try to stay in state parks as much as possible and see the natural wonders of the country rather than the cities. And we will walk and talk and read. All in all, not a bad way to live for a while. I will be happy to get home in a few months, but for now this is a good life.