2 Adults 2 Kids » KJ

Day 2 – Finances

KJ — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:15:02 +0000

Even though we spent most our day mulling around camp, we ended up spending quite a bit of money yesterday. Here’s the breakdown:

Groceries for 4 days: $75.76
Portable Grill (and Accessories), Deep Fryer, and a few other items for the RV: $102.22
Gas for the Van: 61.92
Total: $239.90

We are going to have to buy chairs soon. Our camp site has no place to sit.

Day 2 – Do Your Clothes Define You? (KJ)

KJ — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 12:48:57 +0000

I once did a little bit of research on a man named Edward Bernays. He is considered the father of modern public relations. While working on an ad campaign for Macy’s he created and popularized the idea that people should use clothing to define themselves. I think this idea is built in to our society now and people buy clothing to distinguish themselves.

I mention this because CM and I are both having problems reducing our and our children’s clothes and I’m wondering if this might be why. The fact of the matter is that we don’t have enough room for everything. It’s possible we are having a difficult time transitioning from clothing being a statement to clothing being items of utility. It doesn’t help that I keep worrying that I will be wearing the same outfit in all of my photos of this trip which I plan to look at for the rest of my life.

Okay, this is why I love this blog. Once I actually typed that last line out, I realized how stupid it is. It’s not like someone’s going to be looking at my pics saying, “Oh my God, are you wearing the same outfit on Route 66 that you wore in Hawaii??”

Okay, I better go sort through my clothes right now while I’m feeling determined.

Day 1 Part 2 (KJ)

KJ — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 11:00:27 +0000

I think I am going to try and keep track of our finances on this blog. I will admit that after we left Bed-Stuy we parked in Williamsburg for a few hours and I bought some t-shirts for everyone….and some shoes for myself. I spent almost $300, but I’m not including that since we hadn’t officially left NY yet. CM is always on my case for not “including” certain expenses.

Besides that, the majority of our money was spent on food today. We didn’t stop for gas at all, so our numbers are relatively low:

Snacks = $3.87
Dinner and Breakfast groceries = $24.25
1 Dozen Dunkin Donuts (because we went shopping on empty stomachs) = $5.69
Camp site = $20
Total spent today = $53.81

Day 1 Part 1 (KJ)

KJ — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 03:37:26 +0000

We did it. We drove out of Bed-Stuy for the last time. I can’t believe it. CM and I were at our wit’s end last night. Every little thing, be it pictures or clothing, turned into an argument. He just wanted to toss everything and I kept telling him that we could fit it. The biggest fight was over our bikes. He didn’t think there was enough room and I did.

Right now we’re at a campground in New Jersey and what a difference it is.

First off, it really was like the movie “RV”. As we drove up, about six people sitting outside their RV and drinking what appeared to be Margaritas started waving and smiling at us. I can be pretty antisocial at times, so that was a little weird for me. CM asked me would I prefer them to be rude and standoffish or drunk and friendly. I chose the latter and when we walked over and introduced ourselves after we had parked.

CM broke two things on the RV already. (I know he’s going to be mad at me for telling you all this, but I think it’s funny.) He broke the handle you use to extend the TV antenna. Then he broke some rubber weather stripping on the slideout. (A slideout is a part of an RV wall that slides out to make the interior wider.)

Midget and Widget hit the ground running. This campground is more like a glorified parking lot and they had tons of space. In the city we don’t let them get any more than ten feet ahead of us on the sidewalk. Here, there were no cars and nothing blocking our view of them, so we just let them run.

Ummm….there are a lot of bugs. They aren’t too scary, but they’re fast. We opened the door for 30 seconds and 2 huge moths flew in. Also, we think that the bugs were small enough to climb in through the window screens. So now we’ve closed the windows and are running the AC.

Last but not least, I think the bathroom is starting to smell. That could become a big problem, but for now I’m going to be optimistic and hope that a couple of air fresheners will clear the odor right up. I’m sure I’ll be posting more about that later.

It’s 3 a.m. (KJ)

KJ — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 07:38:11 +0000

CM and I have just finished cleaning out the apartment. We have packed our van to the brim and there is hardly any visible floor space in the RV. So much for downsizing. I mean, we definitely got rid of a lot, but now that all of the stuff we want to keep is in here, I realize that we have a long way to go.

Tomorrow after getting the van an oil change and an inspection, we will be heading off to a campground in New Jersey. We’re hanging out there until the 4th. On the 5th we’re meeting my best friend at Sesame place in Pennsylvania for her son’s birthday party.

The adventure begins!!!! I’m sooooo excited!!!!

No, “CCC” Doesn’t Stand For Complain, Complain, Complain (KJ)

KJ — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 11:21:17 +0000

In the beginning CM was very supportive of my purging process. That was 2 weeks ago, and now he’s starting to get a little edgy because I’m dragging my feet. The other day when I asked him if I could bring 3 more books (I admit, they probably weight about 20 lbs by themselves.), CM says, “Sure if you want to destroy the engine.” Destroy? Seriously? I scowl at him and say, “Today the engine, tomorrow the WORLD!!”

CM is REALLY concerned about weight in the RV. There is this thing called Cargo Carrying Capacity or CCC. Basically, it’s how much weight the RV can pull before you start damaging the engine. This measurement has already accounted for full water tanks, gas tanks, 2 people that weigh 150lbs., and everything that comes standard in the RV.

Our CCC is about 800 pounds. It seems like a lot at first, but it goes quickly. I think it’s generally accepted that the clothes on your back weigh about 3 pounds, 5 if you’re wearing denim. We’re big on jeans around here, so with all of us that’s 20 pounds of clothes a day. 140 pounds for a week’s worth of clothes. I’d say that we all have at least 2 weeks worth of clothes. That’s already 1/3 of our CCC.

Books are really eating up our CCC, so the other night CM and I decided that we had to reduce the kids’ books by half because they weighed too much. We randomly picked groups of 2 books and we had to get rid of the one we liked the least in each group. We were going like gangbusters for the first 15 minutes and then we lost our steam. Next thing I know, we were just going through books and not getting rid of any.

How much do you think everything in your house weighs? What if you had to narrow it down to the things that matter?

Midget & Widget: An Update (KJ)

KJ — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 16:00:17 +0000

In the beginning of this endeavor CM & I made the mistake of not thinking about how the transition to the RV would affect the kids. They were both sad to lose our cat, but since then they have been really happy. Midget is more and more affectionate towards me everyday. Don’t get me wrong, she still has her moods when she doesn’t want me to touch her, but usually those happen when we’re in the house trying to pack up. It’s like the RV is some sort of alternate dimension where daddy’s girls love their moms too.

We have done everything we can to make the kids comfy and it shows. They never want to leave the RV and when we do, they are always asking when we are going back in. I’ve noticed that they fight less. I can’t be sure, but I think it’s because they have fewer toys to fight over.

We are getting a lot more face time with the kids and I’m loving it!

Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff (KJ)

KJ — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 10:42:50 +0000

That’s what they say anyway… Do you ever reach the point in a move when you just start throwing everything in boxes and resolve to sort through it later at your new home? Well, that’s the point we’re at now. The only problem is that our new home/RV has pretty much reached capacity.

Yesterday I packed everything in my underwear drawer into a laundry bag and it weighed 19 lbs! I must have had least 20 pairs of white cotton socks alone. Who needs 20 pairs of socks? Apparently, I do.

I’ve decided to get rid of some of them today. But then I wonder, how many pairs of socks does a person need? Just 7 so they can change them every day? Or should I pack 9 pair to get me through the laundry days? What about sock lengths? Should I get rid of all my ankle socks? Toss the knee-highs?

I know, these are highly intellectual questions I’m asking folks, but these things must be considered. Everything takes up space and with so little space I have to put this much thought into every little thing I decide to keep. This is usually not a concern in a house/apartment.

I was going through my jackets and I realized that I have 9 of them! But they all serve different purposes. I have a heavy winter coat, medium-weight trench coat, a rain coat, a windbreaker, a lightweight jacket, and the list goes on.

CM said that when he was homeless he only had one jacket. That makes me feel a little embarrassed. I take so much for granted. I have way more than I need.

Are there any little things that you have way more of than you need?

You know what little things you can’t have too many of? Q-tips. I buy them in packs of 500 and it burns CM up every time….

My Apologies (KJ)

KJ — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 14:02:20 +0000

This blog is getting harder and harder to maintain as the 1st gets closer and closer. We’ve been working pretty steady, but we still have so much crap to get rid of. Not to mention all of the painting we’ve got to do.

I will try to post again this evening. Walking away from everything is not as easy as it sounds…..

Was It Good For You? (KJ)

KJ — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 12:44:51 +0000

I don’t think it was too good for us. About 40 minutes after my last post, CM announced that he was going in because it was too hot. I was a little disappointed at first, but after he left the bunk cooled off quickly. However, I did fall asleep in that short time and after he left I was wide awake.

Throughout the night I was awakened by people singing at the top of their lungs as they walked passed the RV. I think I finally fell asleep for good around 3am.

When I woke up I thought it must be 10 or 11 in the morning. It was so bright in here and there were so many people walking and talking. I almost died when I looked at my watch and it said 7:34am. I didn’t even get 5 hours of sleep! I really need to use the bathroom, but I know if I do the kids will wake up and they’ll be fussy all day because they didn’t get enough sleep.

I wonder what it will be like to sleep in the wilderness….

Overall, I’d give this experience a B-, not bad, but not great. We gotta find a way to make CM comfortable.