On the Other Hand

  Ya'll Qaeda .  Ok, I really can't leave this alone.  This term was coined by somebody else.  Seems with the coming of the 13th anniversary of 911, there is a bit of hysteria in the air.  Nothing to be made fun of, other than this term, which I thought a bit humorous with the reports of our border threats.  I saw excerpts that the Adults, meaning the military, Homeland Security etc. have issued statements indicating that there are no " Credible Threats" but there is a whole lot of tightening the security belt it seems. Well I guess the upside of having every conversation, email etc monitored by the NSA is that the US has gotten real good at catching these folks. 


“Today as always, men fall into two groups: slaves and free men. Whoever does not have two-thirds of his day for himself, is a slave, whatever he may be: a statesman, a businessman, an official, or a scholar.” 
― Friedrich Nietzsche


Taking stock of things.

It's been nearly two years since we set off in a popup camper to parts unknown.  And nearly a year since we began Gate Guarding.  One of the lowest paid in the Oil business, our paychecks are still several times what they would be had we stayed in Twin Falls and sought out conventional post retirement jobs.  Before we left,  I had befriended a couple of Old Coots who had worked at Walmart.  Guys that had previously lived successful lives and needed something to do.  And old guys being what they had always been, ever striving.for more responsibility.  To climb the corporate ladder and earn more.   And it was no different now that they were at Walmart. Thus when I went back and discovered one of these guys heading a Dept. and watching him struggling with the computerized retail equipment,  I chuckled a bit.  Knowing that he was probably making, Oh, like .23 more an hour than before. Certainly not worth the aggravation this was causing on the old guy's heart.  Just another dump on the Taxpayer by Walmart I guess, by having to pay for his Cardiologist. But these old guys just can't think or behave any different than that.  It's always ever upwards and  how they might "better themselves" and that they are likely to live forever.  And I also get that some folks  need something to do.  I  get that a lot of folks love their homes and need that base, that routine and surrounded by their "stuff" that they have collected their whole lives.  And then ther are the "In Betweeners".  The folks that do what we do several months a year but return home each year for the more pleasant summer's that the Northern states have in comparison to whatever they call this hell in Texas during the months of June through September. 

"The latest survey indicates three out of four people make up 75% of the population"

But our life, well, is a bit more interesting.  It is a full time gig.  Lisa and I have decided for better or for worse, the constant change of scenery, good or bad is worth it.  The RV lifestyle.  I have always leaned towards what my Dad always said "poor people have poor ways".    I've reflected on this and I see it a bit different. I seem to be a little more partial to older stuff.  Stuff that I need to maintain.  Make's it mine I guess.  Took me a year to learn the irrascable  and moody nature of my twenty year old three way RV fridge.  That the RV has to be perfectly level before turning it on.  To blow out the vents on a regular basis because of the dirty dusty Caliche roads we have been living on with countless trucks driving by each day.  The satisfaction that investing in a special vent and solar powered fan would have such big payoffs.  That little fridge runs like a racehorse and keeps the Chicken Breasts and Ice Cream rock hard frozen.  Water and pop ice cold, despite the hundred plus heat index outside. The satisfaction that I have replaced so many seals that we are finally water tight in the most terrific monsoon rains we have had.  I have torn down the twenty year air conditioner a couple of times for maintainance because failure of that life preserving machine in this climate is unthinkable.  Taking stock of the jobs I need to complete during our break next week.  Drain tanks and clean check valves.  Replace covers and fogg to get rid of these pesky tiny ants.  And when we finally upgrade and lose the Bronco (Sniff).  

And to appreciate the ruggedness and tenacity of Lisa.  That she would enjoy running outside into the heat sometimes as many as fifty times a day to meticulously record each entrant.  To socialize placate, and entertain the more demanding natures of some of the higher ups and landowners who drop by during the day.  A task that I am so poorly suited that we would have likely been thrown off several previous leases.  Nuff said on that point. And still retain after twenty five years that element that drew me to her in the first place. (Sexy Gramma) That she could be the perfect mate and still be fearless to the unexpected challenges and the first to say "Let's do it" to some of my most romantic far fetched ideas.  We have to move every couple of days.  Sometimes I'll work 30 to sixty nights in a row. And when we move I get to labor in the hot sun after a staying up all night and sometimes it being twenty four hours before I fall exhausted and dirty into bed.  Even though I work nights, the sun is wreaking some havoc and I have noticed more and more wrinkles and we both show the signs of this lifestyle. That part in no unmistakeable terms sucks at sixty years old. 

Ahhhh, but the payoffs.  A healthier savings account.  We now have health insurance. This time next week I should be sitting in a comfortable chair on the grass under my awning.  Sipping an adult beverage watching my fishing pole while huge barges chug by not 75 yards from shore.  Enjoying the sea breeze and looking at the seagulls and palm trees. With the weather getting cooler daily, I will get back to riding my bicycle and we will go Ghost Shrimp hunting with my two year old grand daughter on the beach. In a bit I will be looking to purchase a boat to get offshore.  I'm going to catch a damn shark before I die. We have gotten use to living in the close confines of our small Castle and look forward to hauling it to the four corners of the country.  While touring the keyes in Florida, we discovered the only way to affordably visit that area is in an RV.  Motel rooms costing upwards starting at $200 bucks a night.  There are so many organizations of nice folks doing the exact same thing we are who provide a wealth of knowledge who we run into sometimes daily. And with increasing discounts, I talked with one older guy in a pricey RV with two AC's and he said "I run those 24 hours a day.  I move to another one every couple of weeks and I pay $7.50 a day. No power, water or garbage bills. 

“I cook with wine, sometimes I even add it to the food.”
                                                                     Unknown



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