10/10/10 = 356 Days Until Retirement

We are now in our last year before retirement. It is finally beginning to seem real. Still lots of items to get rid of after the first of the year and will list the house for sale March 01, 2011. So, if you want a place in Columbia or you know someone who does, just drop on by and take a look and/or make an offer. Must be 55 or older to reside in this magnificent location however.

We celebrated Sharon's birthday yesterday and are going to Mexico to eat with her mom and dad this afternoon. Then, on to Lazy Day RV Park to get the fifth wheel. We are going to keep it at the fairgrounds this winter so it will be closer to us. Will take some things out of it and put some things in it that we think we can't live without. If the house sells quickly, we will move into the RV next spring so we need to have it ready.

It is certainly beautiful here in Missouri today. My favorite season of the year.  Daylight time ends November 07, so we know what is to come. We are thinking it will be our last winter here so surely we can get through it. I'm trying to really "baby" my cavalier. It has 244,454 miles on it.........needs to endure about 35,000 more and I'll sell it to the highest bidder! You may want to submit your bid to me early-on so I can contact you as soon as it is available.

Will post more as our status changes.......Lon

Can't We Live Anywhere We Want Too in These United States??

Rumblings from South Dakota could affect some fulltime RV folkJuly 14th, 2010 Russ & Tiña DeMaris Posted in Legal Issues in Fulltiming South Dakota is one of the states popular with fulltime RVers. Not so much for making visits there, but with no state income tax and low fees on vehicle registrations, some fulltimers make the Mount Rushmore State their legal domicile. Now, according to a local paper, state authorities are asking questions that are making some RVers uncomfortable.[Image]The Argus Leader says that state officials recently sent a memo to county treasurers throughout the state, mandating more information from folks renewing or applying for vehicle registrations. “The goal,” says Debra Hillmer, chief of the state’s Motor Vehicle Department, “is to discourage falsified applications and collect information on where people really reside. Ultimately, that information could be used by other states to crack down on their residents who license cars, boats and motor homes here.”Apparently this information swapping has already started. Witness a 2007 information exchange between Nebraska, Iowa, and South Dakota. Comparing Nebraska driver license data to South Dakota and Iowa motorvehicle registrations yielded some 13,000 matches–8,000 alone from South Dakota. Nebraska’s DMV was not pleased, figuring the crossovers cost Nebraska plenty of tax money.But it’s one thing for neighboring state residents to try and cheat on taxes; the issue for full time RVers is a whole different matter. It’s often held fulltimers can choose any state they want to call “home,” from a legal perspective. South Dakota doesn’t disagree with that, but the requirements to ‘prove up’ your domicile status can be a bit of a pinch.  While “nomads” as the official state jargon calls fulltimers, are welcome to register vehicles in South Dakota, those who use a mail-forwarding service address must sear out an affidavit that they have no other address outside of South Dakota.That could prove problematic for those who own a deeded RV lot in say, Texas or Arizona, but chose to only visit the place occasionally, or never touch tire there, and simply rent it out to others. Or what about the snowbird who maintains a post office box in a snowbird town for the convenience of receiving that mail forwarded from South Dakota. Lie on the affidavit and you’ll set yourself up for a possible felony charge.The issue is one that’s emotionally, and politically charged. Some point the finger at pressure put on popular fulltime domicile states by neighbors jealous of the revenues made. Others say that the increasing noose of US Homeland Security regulations are at the base of the controversy. Regardless of the cause, it must give something for those fellows up on Mount Rushmore to discuss when the subject of freedom is raised.

TOILET TISSUE ISSUE by Joe Kieva

Toilet Tissue Issue

Dear Joe and Vicki: What kind of toilet paper should we use in our RV?

Joe: When we were RVing novices we never gave a thought to the toilet tissue issue. Then we heard someone say they disposed of their used toilet paper in a plastic trash bag rather than flush it down their RV's commode. Seems they were concerned the toilet paper would clog their holding tank. I haven't gone dumpster diving in a campground ever since.

When campfire conversation gets around to toilet paper (as it occasionally does), someone is bound to mention the "toilet paper test". You re not considered a "real" RVer until you have conducted , or at least witnessed, a toilet paper test. The test is conducted by placing a couple of squares of toilet paper in a container of water to see how long it takes for them to dissolve. Generally, two or more brands or types of toilet tissue are placed in separate containers and submitted to the same treatment at the same time. One of the brands in the comparison test is usually one that is advertised as "RV safe" and has been purchased at an RV accessory store. A lot of "RV safe" toilet paper gets sold just for comparison test purposes.

There are no scientific controls or guidelines for conducting the toilet tissue test. You just put the squares in a container of water and see how long it takes them to dissolve, if ever.

Some folks will try to simulate actual RVing conditions. They put the toilet tissue in secure containers and shake them for a minute or so. These folks apparently drive over a lot of rough roads (I-10 across Louisiana, for example). Others will just let the containers sit for a given amount of time. Their RVs, I suppose, have a tendency not to go anywhere. Our RV lifestyle keeps us on the go. We placed our test containers on the shower floor of our RV and drove from one campground to another. That was as close as I wanted to come to simulating actual holding tank conditions.

The results of our toilet tissue tests (yes, we've done more than one) indicated that the relatively inexpensive toilet tissue we normally use dissolves just as quickly as the one advertised as "RV safe". So, you can imagine our joy when, some time ago, Scott Toilet Tissue (our single-ply tissue of choice) not only advertised itself as acceptable for RV use but put money-saving coupons in the RV magazines. Now, we take a lot of RV magazines and Vicki is an avid coupon clipper; it didn't take long before our supply of toilet tissue far exceeded the demand.

We have never had a problem with toilet paper (or anything else) clogging the outlet of our RV's holding tank. After flushing the toilet our habit is to fill the bowl with water and flush again. The valve of our black-water holding tank remains closed until the tank is at least half full. After dumping the black-water holding tank and closing the valve, we add a few gallons of water to the tank. My guess is that all that liquid combined with the agitation of our frequent travels has a tendency to liquify the contents of our holding tank and prevent clogs from occurring. Or maybe we have just been lucky.

In any case, we will continue to flush our toilet tissue down the commode and if the "right" toilet paper is not available, we'll use whatever is handy. But that's us.

How you handle the toilet tissue issue in your RV is a judgment call. And if you choose to dispose of your used toilet paper in the campground dumpster – well, I don't want to go there.

IS THIS OUR LAST TRIP???

As we visited at Paul & Brenda's house during our pre-trip "Happy Hour", Brenda asked, "Is this really our last trip together? What about next summer?" Well, we certainly hope it is not our last trip together. However, we aren't sure about next summer. It is still our intention to list the house about March 01, 2011. If it should sell quickly, we will be living in the RV next summer. (Three mobile homes in our park have sold very quickly recently.) I guess we still might be able to go on a trip. We will just have to cross that bridge when we get to it. We will probably need to go to South Dakota to establish residency.......Paul maybe we could knock out North Dakota on our travel map. Wish we could have gotten to Oregon and Washington.

We really enjoy traveling with Brenda & Paul. We enjoy many of the same things and it is easy to  adapt to situations when we want to do something different. We have pretty much covered the USA together. The first trip was to Biloxi, MS in July.......never do that! Myrtle Beach, Gulf Shores, Wisconsin Dells, Upper Michigan, the southwest trip to New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado, then Glacier Park in Montana, Yellowstone and Jackson Hole, WY, and this recent trip to the Smoky Mountains including, Pigeon Forge & Gatlinburg. Brenda likes the beach and Lon likes the mountains and staying away from people and traffic (except for Albuquerque, Paul ) is much easier in the western states. Paul & Sharon seem to like it all.

We both wish our co-travelers were ready to retire so they could go with us on some of our adventures. We are happy though that they are still "young".  It seems on every trip, Paul has helped me with some mechanical issue and often times I will have some hose, cord, sewer adapter, or something he needs. We share food and drink first in one RV, then the other. We often do lunches on the road in their RV because we can get to their table without putting a slide out. We take turns leading and following. We have stayed in some really nice parks and then.........there was Clarksville, TN........what a dump! We will miss you guys SO MUCH! We love you both and value your friendship and company. Again, we certainly hope we have many more miles to travel together and many more "Happy Hours" to share.

FULLTIME RV LIVING--HAVE WE REALLY LOST OUR MINDS?

THOUGHT THIS ARTICLE MIGHT BE PERTINENT!?!?!????

Fulltime RV living–have we really lost our minds?

May 19th, 2010 Russ & Tiña DeMaris Posted in Editorial, Full Time RVer Blog, Full Time RVer Newsletter |

One of the best days of this former-property owner was the day we closed the door on our sticks and bricks house, and I sent the lawn mower to the garbage dump. I haven’t touched one of those things since.

So it’s with wry amusement we found an article in Canada’s Globe and Mailentitled, “Sell the house to buy an RV? Are my parents nuts?” In a plaintive request to the paper’s auto columnist, a “Concerned Daughter,” writes:

“My parents, who are retired, sold their house. They’re putting some of the money in the bank, and buying an RV with the rest. It’s been their life-long dream. I’m worried my kids and I won’t see them as much. I realize this is selfish but we’ve always been a very close family. I’m also worried that they’re making a big mistake, and have tried, unsuccessfully, to discuss the financial repercussions of their decision. How can I get them to listen?”

If you’ve been exposed to the whining cries of offspring who appear (on the surface) to be soooo very concerned about your financial future you know the routine: “Think of how expensive fuel is!” “Those costly RV resorts!” “You’ll break down somewhere in the middle of nowhere.” “A house is so much less costly in terms of maintenance.”

What do fulltimers have to say?

‘That ‘hazard tree’ in the yard that cost us $1,200 to have removed.  Or the time the blacktop driveway needed $4,000 worth of attention?’

What else do fulltimers miss? Weekly experiences with lumbago from mowing the grass, pulling the weeds, raking the leaves. Huge bills from the oil-delivery man when winter winds blow. Washing windows–especially those nice dormer windows two floors up, wherein you had to hang on to the window frame with one hand, while manipulating the squeegy–all the while wondering how it would feel to hit the ground if you slipped.

We don’t miss those months when we had to set out pots to catch drips when nobody could figure out where the dickens the leak in the roof was from. True, we do inspect our RV roof once a year, caulking seams to keep out the wet. But hey, it takes an hour out of our lives, and $10 worth of sealant.

No more do fulltimers worry about the “Valentine Card” they’ll receive from thelocal tax assessor, reminding them how much money they’ll have to dig up forproperty taxes this year. Yeah, there are those pesky RV registration fees, but for many, they aren’t even close to the costs of what they “useta” pay for property taxes.

Yep, I know plenty of northern plains folks who really miss that snow shovel

April Update--545 Days & Counting

Lots to do in the next few months.....we are making a little progress. The boys are making decisions on things they would like. Sharon is dividing up heirlooms she would like them to keep. I am parting with my firearms....one of the difficult things for me, even though I haven't used them for several years. Sharon is concerned that they won't still work.........you guys may have not gotten such a great deal after all!!! The boys are taking all of them. I am happy about that and glad I didn't have to die for them to get the guns or the heirlooms. It is fun to pass things on while we are still here.

We spent the last two weekends cleaning the Hitchhiker. Had a dirty family move in over the winter. Mickey, Minne, and all the children were there for a while we think. They left messes all over. Dirty critters!!!! We have done some "deep" cleaning which probably needed to be done. Now it is the "Lady Bugs" and they don't want to leave either............Looking forward to keeping only one small home and we don't want to share it with these other families! (Oh, we are trying peppermint oil for the mice. Will let you know how it works. At least we smell good.)

FYI: Sharon is planning on bringing some items to the "Dodge, Jones, James" Reunion. We will do a family flea market for you. DO NOT feel obligated to purchase things you don't want. We just want to give you guys the first opportunity. We hope to have most of our "stuff" gone or spoken for by this fall. One more winter in Columbia and we will list the house in February 2011. Should it sell quickly, our home will be wherever it is parked.

SOUTH DAKOTA: The more I read, I am thinking we will be residents of Sioux Falls,South Dakota when we retire. Low taxes, low insurance rates, NO vehicle inspection, don't have to be there to get license plates, easy to establish residency, good mail forwarding service, and the full-time rver parked next to us this weekend said all he had to do was trade his driver's license in.........NO written exam, NO driving exam!! Sound too good to be true?? We sure hope it isn't one of those deals. http://www.mydakotaaddress.com/

Well, we wish some of you could go with us on this adventure. I'm sure it won't be fun all the time but we are looking forward to no schedule, no pressure, visiting new and different places, and drinking lots of coffee when we get up at 8:00 a.m. Please don't spend any time worrying about us. Whatever trials and tribulations we have, may be no worse than if we were right where we are now. We just hope you will follow your dreams and, as us, do what you want to do!

Sharon and I have been married 45 years and we are looking forward to fulltiming. We have been working for 50 years and think it is about time to do something different. Sharon's parents did the RV thing for a long time and so we just naturally fell into it. We have been seasonal RVer's for several years now and have had five fifth-wheel RV's. We have done lots of research and feel confident about our ability to make fulltiming work for us. We know many in our family probably wonder about our sanity.

PREPARING TO FULLTIME

Today, 02/14/2010, Valentines Day, we are planning to retire October 01, 2011. We are getting rid of "stuff" in preparation of hitting the road shortly thereafter. We will celebrate Christmas early with the family and head for warmer states. Will come back to Missouri during the spring of 2012, see family and say goodbye. We are then headed for Canada and Alaska. We plan to spend that summer in Alaska and head back this way in late August or September. Again, we will spend time with family, and then head south again. Hopefully, we can find a workamper job to help support our lifestyle. During the summer of 2013 we would like to work in Yellowstone, Glacier, or similar location.