Like Frankie Said, I Did It My Way....

Oh my gosh!  I just completed my last day of going to work before we really do this!  I can't believe it's really here!!!  I so feel like a kid on the last day of school before summer break.  I can't wait to wash my work clothes and pack them away and complete this purge, finish the RV and hit the road.  Is this really happening??!!

I feel like I have been running a marathon since May and I am just rounding the turn to the final straightaway before the finish line.  Adam has been vlogging and I can hear and see how these last few months have been taking a toll on him.  He sounds and looks so tired.  We both are so ready to finish these last few steps and get to the traveling part.  I will have some work remotely for awhile and hopefully that will give us a chance to get South and settled for a bit.  Tomorrow starts the final sprint to travel day!!  HURRAY!!

I just wanna live while I'm alive..

Too tired to think of a title....maybe later...

Wow, so here I am the last Monday of reporting to work.  Actually I am NOT working today as we are going to try to rubber the RV roof today.  No wait, we ARE rubbering the RV roof today.  We are both so exhausted and chasing good weather.  Thankfully the rain held off Saturday until we got a few solid hours in.  Sunday (yesterday) was GORGEOUS but we were just "off".  Normally we work pretty well together but yesterday we were dropping things and knocking things over.  It's been some time since we have had a day off if you will and honestly I think stress uses way more energy than work.  Still struggle daily to remember God is in control and believe me as I looked up at the sky on Saturday I had to vocally remind myself multiple times. 

So, 4 more days of reporting to work and then I will also be focusing all daytime hours on getting us out of here and heading south.  It just seems so surreal.  This is the longest project I think I have ever taken on and it's been a work in progress since at least May of this year (very actively) but the dream for me started in March. 

I look forward to the next few trips to donate and the big final purge that WILL have to happen and then taking the few remaining items to storage and the load up.  I just cannot WAIT to hit the road :)

We have dinner planned a couple nights this week with friends and family.  I have started Skyping with the nieces and nephew and it's much more satisfying than I worried it might be.  We still act silly and giggle and physical do funny things.  I will be relying heavily on technology to keep me close to my loved ones on this journey and also to maintain my income as I will be working remotely at least some and at least for a awhile which is a blessing. 

Evander, our older boxer is not doing well.  I am unsure whether he will get to make this journey with us.  :(  We are giving him a lot of hugs and treats and trying to make him as
comfortable as possible right now.  Doggy hospice if you will.  I will miss him so much.  We got him when he was 9 weeks old and he is the reason I love boxers now.  He is so full of personality and it breaks my heart to know he won't be with us later but I will never let any of my babies suffer. 

Ok well just a check in and hopefully soon, a solid leave by date :) 

He's an On Time God, YES He IS!!

The bible says that there is a time for everything and a season.

Ecclesiastes 3 [Full Chapter]

[ A Time for Everything ] There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, ...

I have to admit that I have forgotten this recently and tried to take things into my own hands.  And by hands I mean the hour and minute hands of the clock.  We started this leg of our race towards tiny a couple months ago.  We decided we were going to take the RV and head south and find our land and/or stay tiny and mobile.  We originally set a date of December 1 to leave but changed that after realizing that if we winterized the RV then it would be much harder to use.  Also RVs are not put together with wood and nails like a home.  They are primarily constructed with fiberglass, foam board, luaun sheets and 1 by boards.  Therefore, they are glued together and not nailed.   Therefore, you need warm, dry weather for the glue to dry.  Also, because we are replacing our roof and front, we have to keep everything tarped in case of rain or other inclement weather. 

Now, if you are familiar with the weather in Ohio in October, it is very wet and the temperatures vary greatly.  This being said, the glue we use to attach wood to fiberglass also is not the glue that you can use to attach foam board to wood or fiberglass.  The former glue must be ordered online and is very expensive.  Ok so you are getting the idea?
So every day throughout this month, as I am still working, Adam is calling me and giving me progress reports.  The RV is not kept at our home so I cannot just go home and see what he has completed.   This usually means a weather report (it’s windy, it looks like rain), etc.  Then we ran out of glue.  The expensive, can’t buy locally glue.  No biggie.  The first batch came in a few days so he ordered a supply.   We had other items that needed to be done with the other glue so we worked feverishly this past weekend together to do as much as we could.   Then we got to the part where we needed the new glue and it hadn’t come yet.  Adam started tracking it and found it was transferred from UPS or Fedex to the USPS and it was due for delivery.  Nope, no glue.  He tracked it again and said it would be there the next day.  Nope, no glue.  He calls and finds out that it was delivered to the wrong branch of the USPS.  The weather also called for rain 2 days this week and one week he had another obligation that would take him away from the RV work. 

Keep in mind that the sun has been rising later and setting earlier and I swear you could almost hear the clock ticking to the October 30^th mark.  As of this morning, October 21, 2015 still no glue.  I was so wound up this morning.  My chest was tight and I was fretting and so stressed I could hardly breathe.  While walking from the parking garage to my office, one of my coworkers was walking with me and she was asking about my prep and upcoming departure from the company.  I was whining about the glue and weather, wah wah waaah and she said, “There is a reason for everything.  God must have a reason for the delay.”  It was like a much needed slap.  “GOD!  GOD!  I don’t have to figure it out!  GOD has control!”  Why do I always forget this?  How is it, I can preach these very same words to others but forget it when it comes to my own issues?  Why do I always think I HAVE to somehow have control over everything including the USPS and the weather?  I have a God that cares for the sparrows.  He promises he will take care of me and never forsake me.  Sit down self and BE STILL for HE IS GOD! 
WOW isn’t it amazing when God sends the right people into your life at the right time with the right words?

Thank you GOD and p.s. if you could also do something about the amount of work in my in box……. J

All I am saying, is give peace a chance....

                                   “I’m out of control.”  “I’m losing control.”  “I have no self-control.” 

Surprisingly, we hear and use the statement above quite often.  After looking into the dictionary to see exactly what the word “control” meant, I was surprised to see such strong language.  When you read it, it almost makes you think that something that is controlled must be, because it has no ability to control itself.   How many times do you wish you had more control over a situation, or person?  Isn’t that insulting? I mean how would you feel after reading the definition (below), if you knew someone was trying to control you?  It’s something I have been thinking about as I go through this journey.  Webster defines the word control as below:

:to direct the behavior of (a person or animal) : to cause ( a person or animal) to do what you want
:to have power over (something)
:to direct the actions or functions of (something) : to cause (something) to act or function in a certain way
 

Did I purchase all of those unneeded items because I truly lacked the control NOT to?  Once I made the decision to rid myself of most of it, did it now mean I am IN control?  What happens if I lose control again?  How did I ever find the control that apparently I lacked in the beginning and how do I keep from losing it again?  It’s maddening.  I think more than striving for “control”, instead I will try to strive for peace.  That in itself is a WHOLE ‘nother thing.  Obtaining control normally involves giving up what you WANT or doing something you do NOT want (think no more candy bars and more exercising).  Isn’t that what we think of when we think of being “in control”?  I am in no way slamming healthy eating or promoting a diet filled with candy.  The problem, for me at least, is that once I feel like I am depriving myself of something or “making” myself do something I revolt.  I become a stubborn 2 year old.  As soon as I pack a healthy lunch, even if it’s something I really enjoy, come lunchtime I want ANYTHING but what I packed.  That is no way to live; at war with oneself.

Ok so if I tell myself, I am striving for peace; that includes not living in chaos.  You cannot have chaos and peace, peaceful chaos if you will.  At least I cannot.  When I think of when I am at my most peaceful, it’s usually in nature or with my pets or laying in a swimming pool floating.  Remaining in peace is my new “control”.  I believe the more peace I can get into my life, the less chaos, the less messy and cluttered, and hopefully my new tiny existence will play right into that way of being. 

It's the Final Countdown.....

So it’s Mid-October.   Our goal was to be leaving out by the end of October.  I am in my last 2 weeks of working before we leave.  Things are getting REAL UP IN HERE!  I have a little chalkboard in my office that I mark down the dates and I have 2 more weeks written on it.    I am so anxious and excited but there is still so much to do before we leave.  We have so much more to sell and need to find someplace to sell it.  We keep scheduling yard sales but the weather in October is not cooperating :P. 

It’s hard to know just how much to sell at this point.  I mean our plan is to be back in April and hopefully have either found a place we want to build or to decide that being mobile right now is the choice for us.  If we are going to build, we will need our few items we have kept.  Is it worth the price of storing it until then?  We really like the few items we have kept at this point and well, there are a few items we are still using like our washer/dryer, stove and microwave but they will all need to be sold as well.  Sometimes I wish I had a crystal ball and could see what our mindset would be in the Spring so I would know whether storage is an option or just a waste of money.  #Tinyworldproblems 
 

Keeping my mind on work is another struggle.  Checking out mentally is not an option so I am really trying to stay present and busy but my mind gets all (see earlier references to possible ADD/ADHD issues) wandering and zipping around and then I find myself wondering about mail forwarding services, etc.  My husband, Adam is logging in hours on the RV trying to get it ready.  There is SO much work to be done on it but he is plugging along.  It will be so much more improved when he is done and hopefully we won’t have any further leaking issues so it should hold up for some time. 

I am starting to experience “lasts”.  I have already led my last webinar before I leave, etc.  I have started giving out my office decorations, etc.  People are getting more emotional.  It doesn’t help my own growing emotions.  GAH!  My poor cats have no clue what is coming J  The dogs have traveled with us before but the cats always stayed home.  I wonder what they will think being in a box on wheels locked up with 4 crazy dogs J.  Tick Tock Clarice.

 

Big Girls Don't Cry.....YES THEY DO!

I recently saw a post on my FB wall from a young adult female who is struggling a bit in life for the moment.  She is the daughter of someone I went to school with and usually a very strong woman.  She has very valid reasons right now to be especially emotional, however I was still surprised to see her publically reach out for help.  It got me thinking about females in general.  How strong we are. 
 
There are a million movie lines (think Steel Magnolias) and song lyrics (“I am woman hear me roar”), etc. I could refer to but the strength that women have to show in their lives is so amazing.  We often joke that we keep men around to reach the high places and lift the heavy things.  We often talk about how much STRONGER men are then women and for some that is true.  Physically; and sometimes not even physically. 
 
Because of our designed function in life, women are made of so many hormones and chemicals and in our nurturing nature, we give ALL of our love to those in need.  We often put ourselves last and give every last drop of ourselves into the people and projects in our life.   I learned the dangers of this the hard way after giving every bit of myself into something that was failing.  In my stubborn, determined way, I was going to make it work even if it killed me.  Honestly, it almost did.  Thank GOD I found a friend (female of course) who was able to put a mirror in front of my face and see what I was doing to myself.  Not that I became self-preserving by any means.  Not directly.   I just saw a similar circumstance in her and started putting my energy into saving HER and by saving HER I was saving myself because I then helped fill her cup up enough to throw it back on me and finally someone was giving me something instead of all my energy going towards something that didn’t give back. 

Good friendships, good relationships in general work that way.  You be strong when I cannot and I will when you cannot.  However, once 2 people both fall at the same time and when no one has enough strength to lift either of them up, it becomes a spiral.  Unless outside help is rendered it becomes doomed.  Normally my faith has been an ongoing source of strength and my friends the means of delivering the energy and help.  However, if you are removed from all of your support system and repeatedly told your faith is for naught, it leaves you empty handed which is how I ended up where I was years ago.   Again, I believe God sent this new friend to bring me back from the brink of hopelessness.  We brought each other back I believe and still are close to this day. 

I guess I am now headed to the point of this post and how it relates to going “tiny”.  When we pull out in our RV in a few weeks, I leave physically, this special friend behind.  Physically, I leave my friends, family, job, most of my belongings and everything familiar.  Don’t get me wrong, I am not regretting this decision and I am very much looking forward to our new adventures.  I have faith we will find work and somewhere to live even if we end up staying in our RV.  The lack of space and belongings does not scare me.  I have voiced to

my husband that I don’t fear the unknown future part which seems to be everyone ELSE’s fear for me (“but where will you work?”, “where will you live”, “what will you do?” etc.)  The biggest fear I have is what if we don’t get along?  What if there is some crazy falling out of my marriage and then what?  There is no backup plan, no support system nearby, no safety net.  This is a true leap of faith.  Our marriage is strong.  He is truly my best friend and the nicest most wonderful person I have ever met.  But what if????       

"Saying Goodbye is never an easy thing, but we never said, we'd stay forever..."

So my last day of work is scheduled to be October 30^th and our plan is to head South soon after.  It’s funny because that is my older brother’s last day of work before he is retiring and living part time down South as well.  Also October 30 is my younger brother’s birthday.  I was thinking about all of this earlier today then also realized that it was on October 31st of 2002 when we closed on the smaller house we are living in now.  I remember that day so clearly.  Our friends videotaped us coming into the house and spent the night up in the finished attic area.  It was Halloween so we could hear trick-or-treaters out on the streets in the evening and just the feeling of it being OUR house!  I had only lived in apartments after moving out of my childhood house and this was now going to be OUR HOME.

The house had wall to wall carpeting and the entire downstairs was a putting green color.  The house was built in the 1920s and the cracks from the walls settling were all over the walls and ceiling.   We later did a knockdown treatment on the walls and ceilings and tore up the carpet and put down hard wood looking laminate.  I loved having a basement as I have never been a fan of tornados and bad storms and we eventually turned it into a little theatre room.   I loved the little finished attic upstairs.  It has a window facing the backyard and always felt like a little getaway tree house.   We didn’t allow the pets up there and so it was always felt like we snuck away when we would sleep up there.  The temperature was never very stable, so it could only be used in the Spring and Fall, but I would place a space heater up there play Holiday songs and wrap Christmas gifts in December. 

When we got married a couple years later we lived in this house and when I came home and Adam had bought me a little puppy for Christmas, it was in this house.  Even though we only lived in it for 4 years before we started renting it out and have only been back in it for a matter of months, I will truly miss this little house.  It is sturdy and asks for little maintenance.  It has sheltered us through many storms and served as my audience when I was practicing for singing engagements as well as taught me many  home improvement skills as we took steps to give it a face lift.  I cannot even remember how many times I have painted these walls both for us and in between renters.  The yard isn’t big but it’s fenced and has kept my dogs safely enclosed from puppyhood to now old age. 

It’s funny how when we first moved in it, it felt big then it got smaller as we accumulated stuff and after moving back after the largest part of our purge, felt big again.  Even the bathtub which is smaller than standard length but extra deep, used to feel so cramped and now, knowing I am unsure when I will get to take my next bath after we move into the RV, I cherish each moment in the warm bubbly water.

I can only hope the next family who lives here appreciates its understated beauty.  Its sturdy walls that keep you tucked safely inside and the back patio and front covered porch that offer you a nice quiet window on the neighborhood.  I wish you well, little blue house.  I pray you stay standing for a long time and are treated as much love and care as you provided us.

Flush and Chemical and Compost, OH MY!

The first time my husband brought up us using a composting toilet and I mean the “throw a toilet seat on a bucket and cover your business with stuff”, I was adamantly against it.  I, like others, visualized a large litter box and couldn’t imagine how this wouldn’t just REEK!

 My experiences with toilets include regular house flushing toilets, outhouses when I was young (where I was permanently scarred when I realized I had peed on a turtle), and porta-pots.  In our motorhome we have a typical RV chemical, flush toilet with the large black water tank underneath that gets emptied at a dump station.  Like I stated in an earlier post, my husband bought us another chemical toilet for our home to use.  Honestly I thought it was due to the fact I love to take really long baths and he hated holding it that long but looking back, I know he was working me step by step towards other options.

I remember reading once on a TH blog that if the shows about Tiny Houses you saw on TV were truly geared towards people that were going to be living in them they would have a whole season on toilets.  I believe that to be true.  Choosing your toilet and let’s face it, like the book “Everybody poops” is something you have to tackle at one time or another.  We had emptied our RV tanks before we headed South earlier this year and had to empty during our stay as well as upon on return.  Our tanks are not very big so we only get about 3-4 days using our black tank.  If you do not use an effective chemical, this is VERY GROSS AND SMELLY!  We were dumping one day and another RV came up from the other direction and was dropping at the other side.  WOW, I don’t know if you just get used to your own stink or what but when they opened their tank we both about passed out!  We realized they probably had the same reaction to us and also were concerned with how quickly we had to empty. 

We were debating about trying out a pre-made composting toilet and also looking at those that separate the solid from liquids.  We ended up ordering a small toilet seat that snaps onto any large bucket (think Lowe’s, Home Depot, etc.) and Adam ordered some coconut shells for covering.  Apparently there are multiple items you can use including sawdust, coffee grounds (both great smelling if you can get them cheap or free from area businesses), peat moss, and ground up coconut shells.  I am not sure why he did the coconut shells but we got a large 10 lbs. brick shipped to us.  From there, you wet it and then let it dry.  It becomes very easy to crumble and feels soft, almost like a nice potting soil.  You place a bag to line the bucket and put a small amount of the coconut in the bottom.  Then you go and cover with a little.  It’s important that you maintain a good moisture ratio to avoid smells. I was really hoping it would smell like coconut but it doesn’t really have much of a smell at all.  However, it does REALLY WORK!  The bucket is much lower than a standard toilet so we will make adjustments but surprisingly you just go, throw your toilet paper in and cover and no smells!  You can order biodegradable bags to use that you could then just toss the whole bag into a composting pile.  Right now we are using garbage bags and disposing of them in with the trash.  I believe the plan is to go ahead for this leg of our trip and continue with the chemical toilet.  Later we will switch over to a composting bucket but utilizing the raised area where the RV toilet now sits.  Since we want our TH to be built so it can be off grid, this method will allow us to do that and not utilize precious water.

Will He Stay or Will He Go Now....?

Today was Adam’s last day of work.  You would think he would be more excited but not so much.  He has been there almost 9 years so I am sure he will miss his co-workers.  I am jealous as I would love to not be working right now but I am not jealous of all the work he has ahead of him this next month.  Wrecking out the whole roof, bunk sides and floor, and one entire length of the motorhome will be very labor intensive.  Since he replaced the back last year, I know he has the skillset and now after today, he will have the time.  One more milestone REACHED!

There’s No Place Like Home but RV, THOW or THOL?

So once you decide to go tiny, the first step is to determine the type of home you want to live in?  An RV?  (Which for these purposes we will put large vans, actual motorized camping RVs and travel trailers)  A THOW?  (tiny house on wheels) Or a THOL? or (tiny house on land)  Ultimately, we would like to end up on a THOL but first we want to decide where exactly that may be.  I mean if you are going to say ultimately, our dream would be to have 2 THOL.  One in a cooler area and one in a warmer area so we could swap out areas as weather dictated.  Snowbirds if you will but working snowbirds.  We are not ready by any means for retirement and since we have many skills between us, we believe we can find work that still allows us to swap locations with the season change.  Working remotely seems to be the easiest way to do this but even in 2015 this is still a battle against old school thoughts that you must “report to an office” to effectively do your job.  Of course there are pluses and minuses for each of the above choices and while I cannot speak as technically about them as my husband can, I can tell you, with my limited knowledge, how each one differ for my lifestyle so you may find these helpful.  I am not saying any one is better than the other and everyone chooses based on their needs, wants, etc. 

 

RV type structures:

Pluses

A good used RV is fairly affordable

If you are mechanical/handy they are not too expensive to fix up or redecorate

They are normally prebuilt J  unless you have to gut yours and rebuild

They have the generator and amenities to be able to live on or off grid using a generator or solar

They are designed to be moved often

They normally come preloaded with furniture, appliances, bathrooms, etc.

You can find camp grounds or others willing to let you camp in your RV for extended periods

Many have heat and AC built in

You can take your house virtually ANYWHERE you can drive!

If you are in a drivable unit, you can utilize most of your homes amenities while going down the road!

 

Negatives

Many areas have limits on how long you can live in one (if at all) fulltime

Most do not get good gas mileage

Unless you tow a vehicle (or use your tow vehicle) once you get to where you are going you have no choice but to drive your “house” around to the store, etc.

They are not well insulated so heating costs can be expensive

Being prebuilt, most are not “green” and have a lot of chemicals used in their making (if that is important to you)

Finding and paying for somewhere to drop your gray and black tanks

Limits on sizes unless you are willing to obtain your CDL and even then there are limits

 

THOW

Pluses

Normally made more sturdy than an RV

You can go green or personalize your THOW much easier than a pre-built RV

Like an RV can be built for on grid or off grid use

So much cheaper than a standard sized home so less mortgage payments

Your design ideas other than size, weight and need are endless!

They are ADORABLE!

 

Negatives

Depending on how you register it, there can be limits on how long you can live in it

Some areas will only allow you to park in designated RV parks, etc.

Many of the items while building will have to be special ordered or made including windows and doors

Since THOW is a newer concept, they are harder to find new and used and therefore can be pricey

Unlike a drivable RV, like a travel trailer, you cannot enjoy your home while driving as you will remain in your tow vehicle

You need to be very handy or pay for someone else to build

There have maximum size restrictions for transporting

Depending on the size, you may have to have a CDL
If you are going to move it often, you must plan accordingly during your build (e.g. no drywall or other easily cracked material)

While building, weight of all materials has to be in the fore front of your plan

 

THOL

Pluses

You could put a basement under it if you wished

Many areas have minimum size requirements for homes on a foundation

Many companies and the Amish will deliver or make your shell on site for an affordable price

If you are handy you can do most of the work yourself

You can design for on grid or off grid use

Weight does not become an issue so you can use heavier materials and more insulation or reclaimed as you wouldn’t have to be as picky

It’s easier to use standard sized windows and doors as you’re not limited by height restrictions

You can build really tiny then add on as you go

If you need a stable place to call home this could be it!

You can customize your yard or add a deck if you are staying long term

 

Negatives

You cannot take it with you easily

Hard to find prebuilt (other than the shell)

Real Estate Taxes (nuff said)

Requires owning land and staying put for the most part

You don’t have the luxuries that it affords during your travels away from your THOL