Rally Thursday April 14

Warning, this is a forgot our cameras only one picture day

THURSDAY

We were up and out for
the 9:00 discussion of
“Buying an RV”. 

I wanted to hear again their thorough discussion
of the points to consider. 

I’ve already made my choice
and more and more realize
that she is perfect "for me".
 

Even the newest models at the RV shows don’t tempt me. 

They just are too dark, or too long,
or feel too “cheaply” made. 

Each seminar has a lengthy handout of everything talked about. 

This one would be GREAT to take along to a show to
remind you of what to consider. 

The first choice for full timers is

Motorhome or 5^th Wheel?? 

By a show of hands it appears there is a nearly 50/50 split

in the folks here at the rally in terms of Motor home or 5er.

At 10:15 we learned about
"Selecting a Home Base and Insurance Considerations". 

This is one of the areas we are still dealing with. 

Do we want to keep Virginia as our “state of legal residence”

 – where we vote, register our vehicles, have our driver’s license –

or would we benefit from moving it

to one of the more popular states for Full Timers,

South Dakota, Texas or Florida?
  

There is a lot to consider here in terms of

taxes and health and auto insurance

all of which are based on your state
and in some cases your county. 

Again

Howard and Linda had the experience,

the research

and lots of information and “facts” to share.

It was all on an EIGHT page handout.  

Mine is covered in the notes I took. 

We’ll be looking at it all much more closely

after the rally is over.

Last seminar of the morning was “Working on the Road”. 

I’m amazed at how many full timers got smart much sooner than we
and did not wait until they could retire to full time.

Or like us, retire with less than full retirement and social security.

There appear to be plenty of jobs of many types out there. 

Some are paid,
some are volunteer in exchange for a campsite and hook ups. 
Some might even be both.

National Parks,

State Parks,

Theme Parks,

Amazon.com warehouses

all have jobs.

 It seems they are pretty easy to come by

and you can apply through numerous websites. 

One couple said they put their application out

on Workamping News and had 10 offers.  

They took a job they were offered from an application on CoolWorks

and will be working on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon this summer

from May through mid October.  

Sounds pretty fine doesn’t it!!

Another will be at Yellowstone from June to September

and another couple is going right down the road to work at Dollywood.  

I think we will wait until we have

 a year or two of traveling under our belts

before considering taking a job

and staying in one place from 3 to 6 months. 

But who knows what the economy may have in store for us.
 

One of my favorite parts of full timing
is the ability to change your mind

at the drop of a hat.

The information provided here would have taken me

HOURS

to accumulate. 
And the suggestions of what to consider

before taking a job,
how to interview your employer,

 and the tax implications of the various types of work
will be really helpful.

LUNCHTIME!

We got our signals crossed for the last seminar of the day,

“TV Options for RVers”.  

I was out talking to folks about a surprise

a four of us hoped to put together

for Howard and Linda. 

David was making lunch. 

I thought he’d eat lunch and go to the seminar. 

He thought I’d be back for lunch before he went.  

RESULT: 

neither of us went. 
 

Wish one of us had since we heard it was great information

but since we watch so little TV

and still have analog sets in the Rig,

it probably was the best one for us to have missed.  

Gave us extra time to digest what we’d covered in the morning

which was a BIG benefit.

Dinner this evening was a potluck. 

I have NEVER seen so much delicious food and

DESSERTS

in one place.  

I made a blackberry cobbler

and by the time I went back to get a dessert,

I got the next to the last bite

I’ve already gained 4 pounds (and it’s only Thursday)

 with all this eating in spite of the running.  

Can’t afford to keep this up or I won’t have any clothes I can wear.  

Just take a look at this dessert table.  

AND guess what

Table #3 was called THIRD tonight.  

(this is out of 22 tables mind you) 

Luck is holding but I think being in the first groups

may be contributing to my overly full plate

as my eyes make decisions my stomach later regrets.

The evening gatherering was an

RV version of the Family Feud. 

The RV-Dreams forum was polled on questions

concerning RVing and full timing. 

Those questions were asked to the rally group
which had been divided up into teams

and seated two at a time on chairs in the front of the room.  

Just like the TV show

there were buzzers, our host Howard,

and “The Survey Said”.  

It was a riot! 

We laughed and laughed.
 

Each team had a number and gave themselves a name.

Like Dreamin’ Dozen, We Won and Fine Nines. 
The Fine Nines were the overall winners

but team Cheaper by the Dozen launched a protest over

the question "what would you find on the roof of an RV".
"The survey said...."   WHAT????
Bird Poop??   People??  Things on the roof??

But my favorite team name had to be Bill Mill’s team ForePlay.

Tomorrow is a free day so we can catch our breath!!