It appears I’m not the trooper Mitch wished I was; I still have some trooper-isms to learn. My can-do attitude and packing skills need a bit of adjustment. But, within two weeks, I morphed from not a KanVan RV happy camper to occasionally happy camper to mostly happy camper. 

GEAR?

Packing is the bane of our travel. A pre-trip conversation overheard by no one is about Gear! Not the kind that moves engines – we are talking sports – Mitch is concerned about his tremendous amount of sporting equipment: fishing, hiking, e-bike stuff, golf, and tennis equipment. He asked me what Gear I am bringing?” Um, just sneakers?” I hope he doesn’t ask how many purses? 

Our trip started off well. We were about two minutes into the travel when Mitch asked if I closed the garage, and my reply of “I think so” was not satisfying. So back we went to check the garage that, of course, was closed. (We need to buy the garage app, but that’s for another blog)

Are We There Yet?

The first stop of our adventure was one of our favorite overnight campsites. Camp Creek State Park is a clean site right off the highway in West Virginia and a mere 10-hour drive. 

Not a Happy Camper

Night one started poorly. It was frigid, and we could not get the heat to work. Nor was the water heater working. Was it us, “maybe?” Poor Daniel, our Italian Greyhound, has no body fat and was cuddled under our blankets. Perhaps he thinks boarding at the kennel is preferable; at least it’s warm! 

The following day, I opened the door to walk Daniel, and the automatic steps automatically stopped working! What! Fortunately, we were able to jump down and pull ourselves back in, but a significant fear was Mitch and I forgetting the steps weren’t working in the dark and plummeting to the ground. 

As the morning progressed, it was not even 8:00 A.M. yet; Mitch opened the bathroom window, which fell off the track! (Reminder, this is a brand new RV) He was able to get it back on track with a temporary fix. Meaning we could not open that window for the remainder of our trip.

For those of you who have read our truck camper stories, you will remember that our bathroom consisted of a bucket in our previous RV. So a broken window is a minor annoyance, considering I have a whole bathroom!

Who Needs to Shower, Anyway!

Did I mention we were unable to use the shower? Yeah, there was a recall, and without boring you with details, the problem will be fixed after our trip. 

My late mother often comes to mind while navigating life on the road. Mom was adventurous but not in the RV kind of way, and her adventures usually started and ended with beautiful hotels and amenities. I hope she looks down on our adventures and chuckles rather than lament where she went wrong!

There were other issues, enough of them that I insisted on turning around and canceling our trip to Florida. This was the not a happy camper portion of the journey. 

We called Winnebago, and although they were accommodating and understanding as they tried to troubleshoot over the phone, nothing was solved. At one point, they sent Mitch outside to look at complicated wires and fuses. And that is when Mitch had an epiphany.

Epiphany

He said, “We are going to make this work – we don’t need heat in Florida, we will find cinderblocks for our steps, we can shower at the campsites. We were KanVanStrong!” (Ok, I added the KanVan strong – that’s not a mitch thing) Unfortunately, I did not share this epiphany – But Mitch is a great salesman. And we continued our travels to Florida.

Oddly enough, the next day, we fixed the water heater. How? Well, I turned it on, and it worked – all fixed.

We eventually arrived in Boca Raton, Florida. My dad lives in one of MANY the Boca Golf Club locations, and RVs are definitely a no-no. We received special permission to drop off our stuff, as long as we were quick and spoke to nobody and gave no eye contact. Ok, that’s an exaggeration. In truth, security gave us one-hour to unload MITCH’s Gear and my purses for our two-night stay.

Hi, Dad from a Happy Camper!

Once we arrived at my dad’s house, I thanked Mitch for his epiphany – I was so happy to see dad after many months. What was I thinking? I should not have let – no shower, no steps, no hot water, no heat, no bathroom window get in the way of visiting family. Thank you, Mitch!

 

_______________________________________________________________

(Personal Note – I wrote this blog several weeks ago and questioned if I should post it today. I decided to post, hoping that I could offer a brief respite from the tragedy unfolding in our community. Buffalo, NY, has changed significantly in the past week. Senseless, horrific devastation in #Buffalo on May 14, 2022. If you can’t feel safe shopping for milk and bread on a beautiful May day, where can one feel safe? TEN PEOPLE DEAD. My heart goes out to all the families and our community. For more information on how you can help the East Side Community, click here. )

BACK TO SCHOOL

Attention Special Educators, Therapists, and  Professionals working with families. Back To School with a new Perspective! If You haven’t already purchased, Raising Jess: A Story of Hope – Please consider a copy for yourself, a friend, a teacher, a therapist, a mom, a sibling, or a book lover…

“As a professional in the field of developmental disabilities for over 40 years, I learned things I didn’t know. I encourage others in the field to read Raising Jess a Story of Hope to help understand the families and individuals you work with.” (Amazon)

“This book is a must-read for anyone looking to learn more about special needs families and their day-to-day challenges and triumphs or simply wants to immerse themselves in a compassionate and celebratory world.” (Amazon)

Amazon link and Barnes & Noble Link.