In a word: nowhere. Ever since we went off the road in April, we haven’t gotten out much. We were blessed to enjoy some local attractions (beautiful waterfalls), the lake, and spending time with family in the area, but we were itching to get back out on the road. As per my last blog post, we decided it made economical sense to eliminate our camper payment, since we have a mortgage again.
We sold “Bling,” our 2019 Jayco Pinnacle 37MDQS, to a lovely couple who needed more office space for the wife, a realtor. Next to go was the Ram dually, purchased by a young man who had been looking everywhere, for several months. He was thrilled! Finally, we bid adieu to my trusty Chevy Volt; traded it in at a dealership for a 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee. We chose a Jeep because we’re done with traveling separately, and according to all the reviews, Jeeps tow the best behind class-A motorhomes, which is what we bought.
Ken reminded me last week that we have owned three campers in 2020! While we regret only getting to live in Bling for about 6 weeks (she was a beauty), we can now slap a “Don’t Laugh, it’s Paid For” bumper sticker on the back of our 1996 Odessa Industries Overland Lorado, a 42 foot diesel pusher. Thankfully, it was only the second class-A we looked at, after pouring over the classified ads on several sites. The first one was such a disappointment that it really turned us off. The morning after we drove several hours to see it and find it in terrible shape, I told Ken I was discouraged…he said, “Let’s just leave it up to God. He’ll find us something.” Within the day, we had found this (nameless) coach.
How can it be nameless, you may ask. Originally, I wanted to call it Odie, short for Odessa and a throwback to my Garfield-loving days…then we headed south for the winter, our first trip in Odie. We drove from TN to Gulf Shores, AL in one day, Ken driving the ‘bus’ by himself and me following, as we don’t have the tow kit set up on the Jeep yet. Ken started learning of the quirks and bugs, and we seem to keep finding more, so we’re considering calling it Errin’. Middle name is Sbat (Shoulda bought a Tiffin), and last name Smith, of course. Joking…or am I?!
It’s old and imperfect, but E.S.S. is cozy. It has everything we need, including a washer/dryer combo (which doesn’t snag our clothes like the one in Julius did.) We have some upgrades to make, but so far we are enjoying it. After a year that has been anything but normal, it feels good to be back to tiny living, enjoying the sunshine. Gulf Shores is home for the next two months, then we’re heading to Texas for a while. If anything interesting happens (or if any of our faithful readers have questions), I’ll be back, much sooner this time, God-willing. Blessings to you and yours in 2021!
