When we originally set our sights on full timing, we anticipated that Terry would be retired when we finally hit the road. We would have plenty of time to organize our lives and slip into the new lifestyle gradually. One of the important things we had learned was not to do everything at once, take one step at a time. Get the coach and truck ready, retire, establish our financial goals, sell the ranch and business, adjust to retirement and then hit the road.
Sounded like a plan! We had never really had the opportunity to spend time together without the world intruding. With Terry on call 24 hours a day, the only way we escaped his job was to leave the area, turn the pager and phone off, and not tell the office where we were. Physically, we were able to do this occasionally, but mentally, we could not. We had a retail business and the horse ranch to worry about, so we could never totally relax. If no real problems cropped up, the imagined ones did. Livestock always picks the most inopportune time to do something stupid, or Mother Nature throws a curve, and we can plan for only so much. We felt we needed time to change our mental gears to the neutral mode.
Not only did we have a mental adjustment, we had the physical one to contend with. Terry and I have always been able to escape one another. We had our own interests, hobbies and such, and always had space to maneuver. Some days, even though we were on the ranch at the same time, we wouldn't see each other for hours. On working days, time together was even more scarce. We would need time to get used to a confined space and 24 hours a day together. Terry and I have been best friends since we were kids, but this in no way prepared us for our upcoming change. The plan was that after Terry retired he would come help at the store, and get some much needed maintenance work done on the ranch. There were at least a million things we needed to do before the ranch was sold. He would no longer work for a salary, but would still have plenty to do. I would continue to work at the store. We would have more time together, yet still not 24 hours a day. Once everything was sold, we would be ready to try spending the vast majority of our time with each other, both officially retired.
As luck would have it, our plans were foiled again! Our properties and businesses sold almost immediately, and we were effectively homeless four months prior to Terry retiring. Fortunately, the folks who bought our home wanted us to remain on the property until we were ready to hit the road. We decided to stay until thirty days prior to retirement, and then move to a park near El Cajon where he would work his remaining time in the office. The last month before we left Borrego, we lived fulltime in the coach. That gave us plenty of time to move in and figure out what we would take with us.
When we bought the coach, we bought mostly new things for it. I didn't want to be "schlepping" things back and forth all the time when we took the coach out. It was fun having new things, but when we finally moved in fulltime, we found that we really did want some of our old favorites. Terry was still working when we moved in, so we had to move his office in, too. A fullsized computer, printer, etc. had to come. The coach has a very large desk, so we moved the whole setup in. Our intentions were to eliminate the desktop setup and go to laptops when we left Borrego. We bought one laptop, and I learned to use it. We have a vanity in the bedroom, which became my"office". It has a telephone jack as well, so it works perfectly for me. I got a small printing calculator, lots of pencils and I was set.
The desk in the living room has two full sized file drawers, which became our supply center. I made cardboard dividers for different items, and it works very well for office supplies, paper storage, and files. We bought a compact printer, once Terry was not working from home, and that freed a lot of space on the desktop. Because the monitor sits directly below the lights, they are not effective, so we still needed a desk lamp. The curio cabinets above the desk hold books, videotapes, and odd bits of ham radio equipment. The only item being used for its original purpose is the television!
Our first "real" move was to Lakeside, Ca. It was close enough to the office that Terry could ride his bike to work. We would then move to Chula Vista for the next two months. Being in the big city for his final month proved to be a good decision. He was able to get off the road mentally, and adjust somewhat to life in the coach. To spend the next block of time in the same area proved to be the best one yet! We found out almost immediately that the actual day of retiring was the easy part; the following days were the frustrating ones! Paperwork was started months before, but there was more to do. It took every bit of the time we spent in Chula Vista to get everything done, and more would come later.
It was at this point we decided to keep the big computer. It was no problem to store the monitor under the desk when we moved, and with a few strategically placed pillows, it rode beautifully. Terry had his computer, and I had my very own laptop. With familiar office equipment, kitchen items and tools, we were very comfortable.
In July, we moved to Chula Vista Marina and RV Resort. We had decided to treat ourselves to the best and celebrate Terry's retirement in style. It is a wonderful park, right on the bay, with lots of activities and in the heart of San Diego's tourist attractions. We could be as busy as we wanted, or not! Not only did we make lots of new friends, we met folks we already knew! Such a small world, this is! We had a telephone site, so had access to the Internet, as well as being able to handle last minute items easily. We also were able to fully test our dry camping capability.
During the time we were in the San Diego area, it was undergoing power crisis. Rates had tripled, and many business as well as individuals were in jeopardy. We decided to do our part and totally "unplug". We kept track of all energy usage, and became completely familiar with the solar system. Not only did this benefit us, but also Terry was able to help others in the park with their systems. By nature a helpful guy, he is in his element troubleshooting problems. Eventually he would like to become a certified RV technician and "fixit" person. I will be his "gofer". Not only will it be helpful to have a thorough knowledge of our unit, he will be qualified to go to work if he decides he's had enough of the "bum hood" way of life!
After two months of life on the bay, we moved two hundred miles up the coast to Port Hueneme, Ca. My brother, Art, is a retired Navy Commander and is now a pilot for Delta Airlines. He made arrangements for us to stay at a nice little park at the NCBC Base. Open to military and their family, we found it a very quiet respite from the activity we had become accustomed to. Right on the training base for the construction branch of the Navy, this park was very different from previous parks. It adjoined the golf course, and backed up to the switching yard for a spur of the local railroad. I am fascinated by trains, and thoroughly enjoyed watching the little switching engine move the cars around. We spent a lot of time exploring the area on foot and bicycle, as well as catching up on quality time with my brother and his family. My niece plays on the high school volleyball team and we attended several games. We had forgotten how exciting teenagers could be!
When we got to the base and started to set up the coach, we had a problem with the awning over the main slide. The first indication was the reluctance of the slide to move. Terry then noticed that the awning itself was bowing, and not rolling out with the slide. My brother was with us at the time, thankfully, and it took all three of us to get the slide and awning extended. After contemplating the problem, Terry and Art decided it had something to do with the spring and the best course was to have a repairman out. We tried to retract the awing and couldn't, and did not want to try to take the coach anywhere, knowing that the awing might decide to open on its own. The repairman came and said we definitely had a major problem. He called the manufacturer, and found there was a retrofit kit for that particular awning. He ordered two kits, as we had the same type awning on another slide. The parts were covered, but we would pay the labor. Fortunately we had planned on at least a month in the area, as it took two weeks to get the parts. We set the date for the repair on the day we would be moving to another park in the area.
Moving day saw us up early to trek over to Bills RV Repair in Ventura. The estimated three-hour job took closer to six, but Terry learned a lot. He helped replace the parts, adjust and remount the awnings. We are fortunate that we were in an area that could accommodate us. We then moved to our home for the next two weeks.
Ventura Beach RV Park is at the north end of Ventura right off Highway 101, only a ten-minute walk to the beach and old-town San Buenaventura. Many old buildings have been restored to their elegant Victorian beauty. With wonderful old homes, gardens, parks and trees, as well as a sense of history, time seems to have stepped back to another generation. We spent many hours walking the old streets, dreaming of a quieter time. The beaches stretched for miles, some sandy, but mostly cobblestone and rock. Some dunes and old cypress trees gave variation to the shoreline. These beaches are favorites with the surfing crowd. We watched folks ranging from youngsters to those still living in the sixties, never seeming to have aged other than more wrinkles and less hair. Dedicated to their sport, businessmen in suits, carrying cell phones and pagers watched the surf, waiting for their time to don wetsuits and carry boards to the water. Wistfully watching the waves, they spent their lunch hours studying the sets, scooping out their next ride.
We took several long bike rides while we were in the area. One of my favorites was from Ventura to Ojai and back. A paved bike path took us fourteen miles up a grade into the town of Ojai. Once known as the "home" of television's Million Dollar Woman, it is now better recognized as the "center of the crystal universe". If you are a believer in the power of the crystal, Ojai is the place to be! The ride back down the hill to Ventura was definitely easier, but overall it was a great trip. Another was from Ventura up Highway 1 to Carpenteria. Most of the ride was on a paved path, but some was on the highway. The road at that point is wide, with a bike lane, so it was fairly comfortable riding. This area of California is a bicycle rider's dream.
While we were in Ventura, we took a drive to the next stop on our itinerary. We had heard of a small county park right on the ocean, and were looking forward to going there. This trip turned out to be a blessing. We would have been in a world of hurt if we had gone with the coach. Not only was the park 14 miles off the main road, over hills, through woods and dales, there was only one site that would accommodate our rig, and even that was questionable! The park did not accept reservations, and we could not be sure of a suitable site being available. A beautiful area, not meant for large rigs, but we did learn another lesson. What is one person's idea of suitability, is not necessarily another's! We checked out several more beach campgrounds, but none were what we wanted. We returned home, emailed everyone about the change in plans, and headed north the next day on another hunting trip. Our goal this time was Buellton, gateway to Solvang, a quaint Danish tourist area in Central California. There was a large, well-advertised park that we hoped would be suitable for a week or so. It was now October, and we should have no trouble getting reservations, right? WRONG. We had not taken into account that the shoulder seasons are when clubs and groups do their campouts. There was no room at the inn for us in Buellton, other than dry camping. We were actually more impressed with the dry camp than the hookup area. It was a nice park, but very "busy".
On we went to the Pismo Beach area. What a beautiful drive. Rolling hills studded with oaks. Farms, ranches and vineyards were the only developments for miles. When we got to the coast, we pulled out our trusty Trailer Life Directory and started checking out parks. Again, no room at the inn! Being the carefree retirees that we are, we had not taken into consideration that we were changing locations just before the Veteran's Day weekend. Most of the large parks were booked. We drove by one park several times before turning in. It was small and unassuming. As a last ditch effort we would give it a look.
Le Sage Riviera RV Park is located one block from the mighty Pacific Ocean in Grover Beach California, and is part of a 150-acre family owned complex. No flashy signs, no eye-catching entry, no line-up of RVs of every description waiting to register at the five-person entry kiosk. Just a short street, with the dunes and white sand beach one block away, a small office, sixty graveled spaces with hookups, and clean restrooms with showers. Overlooking the ocean, this little gem includes a 9-hole par three golf course and 77-space mobile home park. Absolutely spotless, with no "glitz" whatsoever, it is a refreshing change from the mega-parks we are all so familiar with. Who needs a pool when there are miles of white sand beach only a five-minute walk away? Or a planned event when you can look out your window a see a small grove of trees where thousands of Monarch butterflies return each year to winter?
Best of all, the nicest people you could meet. Pat, the resident manager, made us feel so welcome. She graciously assured us that we would have a suitable space, and told us to check it out. We did and reserved the spot that day.
Our one-week stay turned into two weeks. We explored the beaches and numerous small towns in the area. One day we drove up the coast to Morro Bay and decided to change our plans again. We found the Morro Bay State Park Campground, one of the nicest State campgrounds we have seen. They have an area with hook ups and a large dry camp. The weather up until now had been great and we felt we could stay two weeks with the solar and the generator. The park had restrooms and hot showers, a dump station and water. We could dump and replenish the water if we needed to. We made reservations for the next two weeks in the dry camp area, and then headed back to Pismo Beach.
Three days later we were on our way, fresh water tank full, holding tanks empty, ready to meet the challenges of the wilds in the piney woods! The site we chose was fairly open, within a grove of very large pine and eucalyptus trees.
We set up camp to take advantage of every bit of sun we could. The weather had been great, but it was now late fall, the sun was dropping low and we would not have many hours each day to replenish the batteries. Cool weather was the norm, and we would have to run the furnace. It is propane, but needs electric to run the blower. We quickly found that the angle of the sun and placement of trees was not going to enable us to charge the batteries without using the generator. We ended up using the generator one to two hours daily. We used the camp showers only one time, preferring our own. We did use the restrooms during the day. With conservation, we had plenty of water and holding for the full two weeks.
Our time in Morro Bay proved to be the best yet. Beautiful country, delightful people, great weather. It passed far too swiftly and it was time to head south for the Holidays. We have spent more than six months as real fulltimers, and are constantly asked if we like it. The answer is a resounding "WE LOVE IT!!!!!!!l"