Taking a Break

Today I took the day off from house projects and spent the day at the shelter. It's always nice to spend time with the shelter crew, and catch-up on what's been happening. With the help of three volunteers, I was able to trim all of the front showroom cat's nails and check for ear mites. I didn't keep track of how many cats we did, but there are usually about 60 cats in the showroom. Tomorrow it's back to painting :-( Roy has been sick with an achey, tired, stomach flu since yesterday. That hasn't been such a great break from projects!

Friends

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.

Here are two friends enjoying some down time together.

Limbo

We're living life in limbo. Are we staying or are we going? Trying to keep a balance on both possibilities is feeling pretty insane. If the house doesn't sell, staying local is the best financial plan, but of course, we just want to get on with the fun. We're continuing to minimize our belongings. Will it never come to an end!!! There is a big craft show in Brimley on November 7th. If the weather is cooperative, we will take advantage of the traffic that day for our final yard sale. How many final yard sales is that now? The house is looking better each day with the reduced stuff, and fresh paint in almost every room now!

Ice Storm

Monday we awoke in the camper to the sound of a downpour of sleet. While loving the sound of the pounding ice storm, we were sad at what it mean't for our continuing to stay in the camper. We've turned on the heat and are comfy, but will have to move back into the house soon. Yesterday was a morning of heavy frost. Charles moved back into the house as he typically would remain in the camper throughout the day. The rest of us are holding out for as long as we can, but Roy will have to Winterize the camper soon. Yesterday I felt a sadness at this set-back, but have to stay positive that we will make our escape from Winter and begin our adventure. Should our camper life be postponed, we'll get to enjoy another year here with our friends and be closer to their being able to join us on the road.

Roy is nearly done with the bathroom project. I have been freshening up the paint in various rooms. I've done the t.v. room and kitchen. Today I'll do the main bathroom. I'm eyeing the hallway for a new color. We should be ready by next week to really promote the house. If Friday or Saturday permits, one more yard sale will be held, otherwise, it's time to pack it all up and haul it away. We're keeping our chins up and hoping the house will sell, otherwise, it's back to reconsidering our options. It's good to have options!

Travels With Charley

We just completed the classic, "Travels With Charley" by John Steinbeck. It wasn't about the enthusiasm of travel, and the inspiration he found in beautiful places, as we were expecting; but still interesting. He spoke more of people he met and grumbled about many things he saw. He writes in a way that produces vivid images, but also at times is almost incomprehensible. To sum up his findings, on page 207 he says: "I discovered long ago in collecting and classifying marine animals that what I found was closely intermeshed with how I felt at the moment. External reality has a way of being not so external after all. This monster of a land, this mightiest of nations, this spawn of the future, turns out to be the macrocosm of microcosm me." Back to reading about the modern RVing life in our current book, "Complete Guide to Full-Time RVing (Life on the Open Road)" by Bill and Jan Moeller. It's off to a good start!

Officially Moved Into The Camper

Life got busy and we didn't get moved on Saturday as planned, but spent our first night in the camper yesterday evening. Roy fixed a great steak dinner. It was enjoyed by all. Charles, the cat, especially enjoyed it, as steak seems to be his favorite food. The new king size bed was great! Overall the animals settled in pretty well, but a little more adjustment will be needed so that everyone gets just the right sleeping place. The overall feeling through dinner, the night, and morning was one of having adequate space and a sense of togetherness. We were able to imagine the house being sold, and a sense of freedom from responsibilities. We liked the way it felt. We think we could get hooked on the RV lifestyle!

October

It seems with the arrival of October the weather has decided to instantly crash into the 40s and 50s instead of making a gradual decline from the beautiful late September weather we were having. Today for what I think will be our final yard sale, the temperature was 47 degrees! A person stopping by said snow is predicted for next week!!!

A very neat thing happened today at our yard sale. A lady who fosters Sudanese children stopped in. She is connected with an organization that helps Sudanese families get established in America. After talking with her awhile, we decided to donate our yard sale household goods to help these families. She will take it to Grand Rapids, MI to distribute. She will also be taking lots of Christmas decorations for her church. I felt like I should have paid her for helping us clear out a lot of our remaining items. She was extremely thrilled, and what a wonderful feeling for us to have our things go to help others!

This afternoon I worked on organizing the camper, and tomorrow we will move in! With the animals moved out of the house, I'll begin scrubbing carpets. We might just make it out of here before the snow gets too deep!