Trailer

When we were kids, we did a lot of camping. We used a heavy green canvas tent that I would love to have again. It was big enough for five kids and two parents. I think Bruce would sleep in his own tent, being the eldest. It was rectangular with a layer of vents like windows on two sides that you could let down with ties. I remember the special smell that tent had; green, outdoorsy, canvas.

Then we graduated to a Shasta trailer which I also loved (but not as much as the tent). My sleeping spot was small and squished but I only have one split second memory of that; the rest of my memories include Dad telling campfire ghost stories (remember the one about Sam?) while roasting marshmallows and counting the stars, swimming, tubing, eating off paper plates, sunburns, mosquitos, running in the wilderness, endlessly washing my hands in the spickets at campgrounds. I don't know what fascination that held for me but I still have it although now I think about germs in the water, having a filter so nothing illicit escapes into our water supply to foul our pipes, has anybody hooked up a dirty hose to the source, etc.

As an adult, my friend Eric and I fixed up a '78 Chevy and I put a cap on that and travelled around. I found an old heavy cab over camper out in Wyoming and put that on. Then I graduated to an '88 Scamper camper found in MA, 16' feet long, newer, safer, with a Fantastic Fan, and used that delightfully, gloriously for years.

I kept thinking about traveling on the road with the animals (Pak, fine; Larkin, unknown) and how much more comfortable it would be to have our house with us. Lots of places don't like cats and cats don't like to be carried in and out which we owners like to do for the safety of our beloved pets. At least none of mine have ever liked it.

On the eve of my departure from 790 Ten Rod Rod, all three cats mutinied and spent a night and a day in the swamp behind the house on a slim log sticking up out of the water. Annie, the decision maker, finally came back and the other two followed. I promised them they would never have to travel in pet carriers again and I have tried to stick to that. Larkin is only three and wasn't on this journey. He loves our big 3000 sq foot house and his independence. He isn't hugely adventurous (that I know of) as cats go, and often will not go out if he feels a threat. Anyway, I want this to be as nonstressful as possible and it will already be noisy for him being in the trailer.

We had decided we probably couldn't afford a camper but found ourselves looking online (okay, it was really me that did this). We thought we wanted a Subaru Forester to travel in as I thought a truck would be limiting and bad on gas.

One fateful Saturday we went down to Mekkelsen's RV in East Montpelier, talked to the friendly folks there, and looked at Forest River R-pods which are well-made, shorter travel trailers, round, and colorful, with higher end options that come standard. They had all kinds: those with the wall that pushed out so you could sleep in tent-like fashion and be open to the air and vulnerable to bear attacks which can break through windows on a hard-sided RV anyway and those with slideouts and different floorplans. Bill, low-key, showed us a Forest River RBXL and we fell in love with it. Space. The bathroom was huge, which is good for the Irish lad who is tall and has big feet that don't always stop where they are supposed to. We put a hold on it.

On the way home I kept thinking about a passage in Full Time RV'ing. One should get the things one wants and not be regretful. Also, I kept thinking about Auntie Honey who likes to pull over and bake her rising bread in the RV oven. I bake bread too and we don't use the microwave much and we are not sure how long we are going to be in it. Because this is their busy season, they couldn't put the oven in, so I found another trailer online.

It was of course more money. A Dutchman 25F Sport. We figured out we could manage it and the rest is history! Not only does it have that oven, it also has a converter, couch, bathtub, A/C (which I have never had), and a microwave, along with a TV/DVD combo, and nice stereo system. The bathroom isn't quite as big, but the Irish lad can live with it. In fact, it has everything imaginable including a washer and dryer because we bought a portable mini washer, non-electric from one of our favorite catalog stores (Lehman's non-electric store), and a spinner to spin small amounts of clothes dry. We haven't tried the washer yet but the spinner spins clothes almost dry. They are both in the bathtub at the moment. We bought the cadillac of hitches and it towed beautifully back to our town on VT's bumpy, hilly, frost-heaved roads.

We have been, as time permits (which it doesn't but we're doing it anyway), taking the animals in to get used to it. Pak can't fit under the table because there are two posts holding it up, unlike the Scamper, but she is happy as long as she is with us. Larkin will ask to be let in. He slowly will get used to it. So we are holding our breath on that score.

And the truck. I am very happy with it. Today's trucks are more upscale than many cars. It is really Tom's truck of course. A Chevy (always a good thing), with a back seat for Pak. It is quiet inside (unlike my Legacy) and I feel very safe in it and I like being up high once again. It has Onstar which we will hook up just before we leave and the truck is still under warranty.

So it is a little like putting the cart before the horse (no job, big things still left to sell) but we did it anyway! I am starting to enjoy this.