Jerry’s Take

Hello and welcome back to another blog! This week, we wanted to do something a bit different and instead of me telling you another thrilling tale, Jerry is going to take the reins! It’s not that he doesn’t appreciate all of the hard work and dedication I have put into these blogs, I promise. Without further ado, my husband, Jerry! 

Jerry speaking here. I have the honor of guest writing the blog this week. I have a feeling you all have been waiting for this day. Well have no fear, the chief is here! Only joking, I am a retired Chief of Engineers at a hospital in Northern California. But I left all that behind to join my lovely wife on the road. Now I am just Head of Maintenance and Repairs of the great state of Madge. 

Who is Madge you ask? She is the name I have lovingly given our RV. It’s origin? My nickname for Susan. So mushy I know. I might as well also tell you Susan named our Dodge Ram truck Hunky (after her nickname for me). Family, stop gagging. You will be fine. 

Now that we have gotten all the gushy stuff out of the way, I wanted to tell you more about my experience these last two months. In fact, as of this writing, we have been on the road for exactly 64 days. That is crazy to think about. We have been to California, Oregon, Idaho and now Montana in our RV.  Prior to picking up our RV, we were in Nevada, Utah and South Dakota.

Every day is an adventure and we have loved every minute of it. Even through all of the ups and downs. And I mean that literally. Just because we bought a brand new RV, doesn’t mean it is not without its issues. Luckily I take my role as Head of Maintenance and Repairs very seriously and have been able to fix almost everything that has broken. Special thanks to Amazon for shipping me all the tools I need. You’re a real champ. And a huge thank you to our https://www.granddesignrv.com/  Customer Service Rep, Michelle, who has helped me diagnose every issue and helped with parts and specialists if needed. 

To go along with our new RV with issues, we are also very new to full-time RVing. And we are learning every day. One incident in particular that comes to mind is a few weeks ago when I was uncoupling (detaching the rig from the truck), and I didn’t put chocks behind the RV’s wheels. The RV  is meant to only be towed and without the chocks, it moved about an inch when I uncoupled. Thank God we were on a flat surface and the rig didn’t go very far. Did scare the shit out of me. And you know what? I never made that mistake again. Mistakes make for the best lessons! 

We have also had to get used to sharing 500 square feet. Now, our RV is 42 feet long. It is gigantic in RV terms but compared to the house we used to live in, it is a bit of a downsize. As many married couples can probably attest to, it is not always the best idea to spend all day every day in small quarters together. I’m not saying these conditions lead to arguments/tension, but I’m not not saying that there is a reason why the quarantine led to so many breakups/divorces. So we have learned the importance of having our own space and activities, even in 500 square feet. I enjoy working on projects around the rig and Susan loves decorating and organizing inside the rig. We also enjoy solo walks, separate TV time, and as of this week, electric bike rides! We obviously do plenty of things together, but it’s vital for us to have some alone time as well. 

One of my favorite parts of becoming full-time RVers has been the people we have met. Everyone has been a wealth of knowledge and eager to share their expertise, give advice, and tell us about their own adventures. They are so excited for our adventures as well. Susan loves to show off our rig and how we have set it up and in turn, goes into other RVs to see how they have set up and designed it. Every day we learn something new about RVing. It has been a pleasure to meet and bond with people from so many different places. 

On the whole, the last 64 days have been so memorable and we are so excited for the upcoming adventures, including this month in Darby, Montana. Stay tuned for some super flattering pictures of Susan in full fishing get up. I know I can’t wait. 

Speaking of Montana, on our drive into Darby, as Susan discussed in our last blog, the road was steep, downhill, and windy. A bit of a death trap for 29,000 pounds on wheels. Not to brag, I got us there safely with Susan only grabbing the “Oh Shit” handle 8 or 9 times.  I also have pictures of that. You are welcome. It was a wild road trip and made me appreciate the flat, open roads they sing about in country songs. 

Thanks for letting me guest write today. It has been a pleasure. Next week things will be back to regularly scheduled programming with my lovely wife. 

Just One More… Tool. Susan says we have too many, but I don’t believe there is such a thing.