Mama Human's heartbreak

After talking with the vet this morning, we decided to leave our boys at home. The vet said it's pretty much a wash - familiar Humans in moving unfamiliar home vs unfamiliar Human in familiar home. But since our friend Tom is actually going to live at our place, not just drop by occasionally, the vet said that in his mind, that tips the scales to leaving the boys here at home.

It makes me want to cry... it really does... I don't have a problem leaving them for a couple weeks, but a few months?? But there really are dangers on the road, and it could take up to two weeks for them to get used to their new home, so is it really worth the trauma to them just so I can have them with me for those few months?

I know they'll be ok, but I'm sure they won't get the loving that they're used to from Mama Human. And that makes me sad. And I will miss them so much - I just love the adoring look on Henry's face and the way Alex just has to be nearby all the time. My boys are so full of sweetness and love. ok... yes, they're full of mischief too, but aren't all cats?!

the rig

I see that I haven't posted an update re: our rig yet.

When Greg arrived in Florida to pick up the RV we bought on ebay, the dealership gave him the grand tour. He noticed a few little problems, but nothing major, so he drove it home. We took it to a local shop that works on campers - they inspected everything and said that it's all in great shape. Well, except the awnings have dry rot. I really don't know how bad of a thing that is - they aren't repairable, we'd have to replace them, so we're just going to let it be and not worry about it for now.

The RV really does look like the pictures. It's very neutral in color - a good thing for us. There are very few cosmetic problems, and they're all minor. When we open the slideout, it actually seems spacious. Even with the slideout NOT out, it's decent sized and we can get around and do what we need/want. And we have lots of storage, so there is a chance, just a chance so far, that I may actually be able to bring some scrapping supplies along. That'll be the last stuff to go in - totally unnecessary, but it would be nice for those rainy days I know we'll encounter!

So when are we leaving?? The plan is to leave this Wed. We still have a lot to do before then... but we are planning to be in Denver Friday, so we gotta haul butt. We finally started packing the RV today - I have the kitchen stuff pretty much in place. I have lists, pages of lists, of stuff to pack, buy and do, so hopefully we won't forget too much!

And what about the boys? Well, the kitties are still a matter of debate. We took the big guys into the RV for the first time today. Henry howled, as expected. They both slunk around, checked it out, then they hid. I stayed in there with them for quite a while, and neither one was very happy. So tomorrow (actually later this morning!) when we take them to the vet for their yearly and some shots, I'll ask the vet what he thinks. Most pet owners seem to think that it's best to take pets if you're going to be gone for several months. But it's hard. Will they be better off with their Humans in a different and MOVING home, or in their known home with a stranger (they haven't met our friend who's moving in while we're gone) who has never had cats?!

new life, new look

ok, so it isn't really a new life, just a new chapter of life...

and ok, it probably isn't really a new look either... I'm sure I've had a similar 'do sometime in my past.

But yes, this is a new look for me right now. I figured since I'd be out in the sun and on the bike lots, I'd need a sun-kissed easy care look. Most of the time my hair won't look this punked out, but I think it's kind of fun!!

back to cruisin'

I was so busy with "things" - with life - that I didn't finish blogging about our cruise(s).

Here are some more pics... first the end of cruise one...

These are from Tortola. My fave cruisin' website cruisecritic.com had no real recommendations for tour guides in Tortola, so we hopped on an open air taxi. Tortola is a pretty island, hilly, curvy roads, beautiful water.

During a previous trip to the Bahamas, we did a lot of sightseeing. So we didn't do much this time - we just walked around town, did a little shopping. It was amazing how close we came to the reef as we sailed in - and it was neat seeing Atlantis (a mega-resort) and the cruiseships all lined up.


Now the ship...

Wow - we must be rich... We had the ship to ourselves! Funny gal I am. Most of my ship pictures were taken while we were between sailings, after the week one folks got off the ship and before the week two folks got on.

The Lido (buffet) restaurant area is themed "Freedom" - with the obvious decor.

The Victoriana Theater is a three deck showroom. The "big shows" in there were really good; for effects they had laser lights, fog, confetti and even open BIG flames.

This is one of the two main restaurants. This one is at the aft (back) of the ship. We ate our dinners here the first week, back by the windows.

Love the barstools in the Habana Bar. And yes, it's a cigar bar! :-)

Scott's Piano Bar has some major wild decor going... too bad the sing-a-long piano dude wasn't major wild to match. Ho hum boring.

This picture is taken from the third deck of the main atrium - I believe it's a total of 9 decks high. If you notice how the walls are red at the bottom, then become more pinkish purple towards the top of this picture - the walls changed colors! Well, ok, the lighting changed color. Through most of the colors of the rainbow. COOL.

Our cabin was a little smaller than I'm used to from Carnival. They have shifted things around a bit, so it's still workable. There is a chair instead of a couch, and it's in an awkward place. And the vanity/bar area is about half the size it used to be, so less drawers too. I would venture a guess that Carnival still has the largest standard inside cabins of the mainstream cruiselines, but I was disappointed that they have shrunk things a bit.

Do you notice that stuff hanging from the wall on the left? I bought a cheap hanging thingie from the dollar store to use onboard. And omg, I loved it!! Since I generally get ready in the main part of the cabin, versus in the bathroom, it was nice having a place for my stuff. Everything had its place and I felt so organized.


So now I will try to post pictures from the second week of our cruise soon. But don't hold your breath... there is just way too much to do for the upcoming extended vacation. Or is it home away from home?

this would be why...

The timing works well for Greg and I to do a little "dress rehearsal" for retirement. We've talked numerous times about retirement... getting an RV, driving it around North America towing the motorcycle... park the RV at a nice campground, do day trips on the bike, then when we are "done" with that area, we'll move the RV. Just taking it nice and easy, traveling, seeing the beautiful U.S. (and Canada?).

So we decided to do a trial run this spring. Maybe summer too. We bought the RV on ebay and Greg is flying down this Wednesday to pick it up. We really don't have any set plans yet as to where we'll go - no schedules. We hope to leave around April 1, if we're ready by then. Greg has been thinking of going first to Colorado to do some spring skiing with his brother Tim and perhaps our friends Dave and Judy who recently moved to Denver. We could also visit Greg's aunt and cousins. There's a mini family reunion (Greg's side) in Tennessee the third weekend in April, so we may aim there. I'm hoping to head to Texas, work our way through New Mexico, Arizona, over to the California coast and then up the Pacific Coast Highway, as we were supposed to do on our ill-fated bike trip last year.

So now if you're wondering - why don't we just ride the bike and tow the trailer (like last year) and stay at hotels and/or tent camp? Well, we're thinking this will be a more extended timeframe. And don't ask what that is, because we really don't know yet. :-) So it'll be nice to have a "home" with us, so we don't have to unpack and pack every night, deal with tents in rainy weather. Setup and takedown will be lots easier with an RV; we just have to pull in to our spot, level the RV, connect a few tubes and cords. When it rains, we aren't stuck in a hotel room bored silly, we'll be in our own home, with things to do (I'm SO looking forward to more time for reading!). And we won't have to eat out every meal - we have an almost full kitchen with us, plus a grill and the campfire.... speaking of which... s'mores. NUM!

Oh, and yes, we're taking the boys. And THAT will be quite the adventure. They aren't exactly fond of moving vehicles. Henry howls, Alex cries. But I have a plan... hopefully they'll quickly learn to love their new temporary home. I hope that being with their Mama Human will keep them happy.

So there you have it. This is the big news. And no, we haven't been hiding this for months. We only started thinking about it maybe two - three weeks ago. Yes... when we make a decision, we move quick!

what do you think of this one?

Fancier than expected? Bigger than expected?

Actually, there are some really super duper fancy RVs out there, for a price. We won't pay that price. And we don't need a super fancy place that is not comfy and homey.

And yes, pictures can make these things look bigger than they are IRL (in real life).

It's a 33 foot Class A 2005 Fleetwood Fiesta. It's in Florida. Should we get it?

But wait... WHY would we buy a big RV??

wondering why so few posts?

My spare time (and most of Greg's time, since he's not working) is being spent researching RVs...

Stay tuned...

March 2nd

March 2nd should be a lovely day, shouldn’t it? First off – it’s my birthday. Although I really don’t “celebrate” at all; I’m just getting older. Ok... I'm getting better too. LOL And secondly – it’s the beginning of March, and should be the beginning of warmer weather.

HA! Not this year. I woke up to this:

We measured 11 inches of snow at 9am, and it was still coming down strong.


I took a couple more pictures mid-afternoon, as it still pounded us, averaging an inch of snow an hour.


Mitchell Airport (just up the road) claimed a total of 14.4 inches for the day, and I’m guessing we were about the same. It broke the prior March 2nd record which was 9.4 inches! Now the weird thing – this snowstorm was very localized. It was lake effect snow, but in a larger quantity than typical. A few miles away from the lake there was no snow, or maybe just a dusting. North of downtown had no snow either.