Wandering Spirit

Spring, always a new beginning and time of renewal even here on the desert.

Not in the forest anymore, but it’s still green here!

Our dog walk this morning was in a wash rather like a tiny canyon…peaceful with bunnies and birdsong and blooms all around us….

But it was our last dog walk together…at least for now… an ending.   Kerry has other obligations to attend to and it’s time for her to move on.

We first met at the Quartzsite dog park in late November and except for the holidays, have been hanging out together since then.

We have hopes of getting together again, but no solid plans at this time.  Full time RVing plans can be so jello-ish….

Annabelle, Joy, and Shiloh, along with Kerry and I have been ‘the pack’.  My part of the pack watch Kerry and Annabelle pull away this morning.  I  hope that having them witness the leaving will help Joy and Shiloh understand about the separation.  I think they do.

Joy and Shiloh watch Kerry’s RV disappear down the road.

Pack members feeling mopey later in the day.

Annabelle smiling earlier this morning.  Wanted to close the blog in a more positive way!

Bye Kerry and Annabelle.  We miss you already!

I enjoy just ‘being’.  Just being here, now, in our second week at White Spar Campground in the Prescott National Forest.  “Forest” being a key word here.

I feel laid back and peaceful…mostly.  Enjoying the sound of wind in the trees and watching the slender giants sway in the breeze.  We walk in the morning and the evening.  We visit with Kerry and Annabelle.  (Leaving them soon will be hard.)

Dare I ask you to read another tree poem?  Apparently trees inspire my poetic side…simple as it is.  But how could they not?  Trees are such amazing life forms, with so many variations, and I know some will scoff, but I feel that their vibration is peace, and patience, and protection.

PONDEROSA PINE FOREST

Long needles.

Tall and slender.

Swaying gracefully in the breeze.

Magnificent life in slow motion.

Oh….beautiful trees!

Strong and straight,

But bending, and being…

Skyward bound.

Never look down.

The wind, high in your branches

Speaks mysteries….

And histories….

And stories of wonder…

Storms of lightening….thunder.

Of fairies that flutter…

On gossamer wings…

And other magical, mystical, things.

Your language is love.

Your presence is peace and patience and protection.

I lean against your red-brown skin

And sense the gentle giant within.

A living spirit

Emanates…

Radiates…

Touches my heart.  Brings a tear.

Such a privilege to walk among you here!

Feel your joy abound.

Hear your singing sound.

Smell your fragrance all around.

Such beauty to be found.

Neighbors….

I had some lousy ones.  I won’t go into great detail except to say…excessive LOUD profanity, excessive LOUD drunkenness, excessive LOUD boombox, and WAY excessive LOUD generator.  (Please note, I’m not anti-generator.  I have one, and I use it sometimes,  and I am not against other people using theirs, within reason…).

Out here in the beautiful Ponderosa Pine woods, can you say GROSS!

So I pack up and move.

I find a nice site at the end of a road and begin the backing in process.  Kerry volunteers to help and I thank her and tell her I want to see if I can do this myself this time.  I’m absorbed in my task, and doing quite well I might add, when I realize….well DUH….this site is set up so my door is facing away from the picnic table and camp site area.  This won’t work!

Mind you, there are two pull-through sites that I choose not to take for various reasons.  The only other site I feel good about happens to be next to Kerry.  It’s a long back up but it’s a straight back up.  “A piece of cake” you say?

NOT.

But thanks to a tip from Sharron, whom I met in Quartzsite, I’m willing to attempt it.

Graciously, Kerry goes into her house and promises not to watch.  I begin backing up.  Slowly.  And the tip from Sharron:  Watch your side mirrors and the instant you see the trailer begin to turn one way or the other, adjust the steering wheel to correct it.

I know.  That’s just common sense right?  Yes, but I need simple statements like this because common sense flees when I even think the words “back in”.

Here is another tip.  Talk to yourself out loud.  I learned this from Kerry when she was directing me into my last site.  “I want the trailer to turn left, so I turn the steering wheel to the right.  Ok.  Now I’m going a little too far to the left.  I want the trailer to go to the right so I will turn the steering wheel to the left.”  It becomes a long conversation with myself because I’m going slowly, and getting out to check frequently.  If I get panicky enough to forget which is left and which is right (and yes, this happens to me), I look at my hands.  Somehow I know my right hand from my left hand.  🙂

One more tip!  Don’t assume my front tires are straight.  Check them.  I have often been so irritated because I believe my steering wheel is centered, therefore my front tires should be straight, yet when I start backing up, the trailer is turning like crazy.  I need to open the door and peer out at the front tires to make sure.  I find I can easily be a whole steering wheel turn off from center and not realize it.

Ok folks, these are tips from a worst case scenario backer-upper, who is actually beginning to learn, after a year and a half.

See the long back in?  I was able to pull forward enough though, to make it almost a straight back in.

See how straight! 🙂  And it only took maybe 10-12 minutes.

Kerry and I discuss the back up issue…she has trouble too, yet we both feel we are reasonably intelligent people.  We figure it makes sense to start in kindergarten.  If backing up is an issue, or you seem to be missing the back up gene like me, don’t try to start learning by attempting 90 degree back ins.  Start by learning to back up straight, with plenty of space.  Go slowly and make tiny adjustments.

Our new campsite.  Annabelle is visiting.

One more thing.  The ‘place your hand at the bottom of the steering wheel and turn the wheel in the direction that you want the trailer to go’ advice makes sense and works for some, but it only serves to confuse me further, I find.

We stay at the Point Of Rocks RV Park for a week.  I do laundry, get a hair cut, go shopping for food and essentials….and not so essentials too, I guess you would say.  Half way through the week Kerry and Annabelle join us here.  This RV park was Kerry’s find, but she has  some other commitments that kept her from leaving Quartzsite when I do.

This RV Park is right up against Watson Lake, and is surrounded by many trails.  It’s a 10 minute walk to the lake and a nice city park, from our front door.

Joy views the lake thoughtfully.

And then they both take a dip with….

the ducks and the geese, who don’t seem to mind too much. Do they understand the concept of extendable leashes??

Rolling in the dry grass after a dip in the lake.

Then Kerry and Annabelle join us and you will never know how hard we worked to get this picture, with all three of the kids sitting, and facing in one direction!

Kerry was able to get this picture of the full moon reflecting on Watson Lake.

After a week by the lake and the park we move on to the forest….Prescott National Forest. Kerry and I caravan to White Spar Campground, only a few miles from town.  We find ourselves in a pine forest with towering, slender trees all around us.

And guess what!  I backed into this campsite….with much guidance and direction from Kerry, but I DID IT!

When I sit in my chair by WS and look up, this is what I see.

There are no hook-ups here and the water in the campground is turned off for the winter so the price is $10 a night, and $5 a night with my senior pass.  The sites are paved, and there is a picnic table and a fire pit with a grill over it at each one.  Pit potties are available. Time limit to stay here is 14 days.  If the weather holds I plan to stay the limit, but just in case, I pay for one week for now…$35.00.

Trees everywhere!  I must say, I have missed trees.

Last night the temperature went down to 25 degrees.  Casita’s have an excellent propane furnace but I’ve always limited my use of it to when I’m awake.  Last night I warmed us up before bed, woke at 3am and warmed us up again (it was 42 degrees inside at that point), and at 6am I turned on the furnace again.  Many people set the thermostat and let the furnace run on and off during the night and there is nothing wrong with that, it’s a very safe furnace, and you just need to keep a window and/or the vent open a bit.  There are two reasons I don’t set the thermostat.  I’m always thinking about the battery because the furnace fan uses a fair amount of power, AND, well, just the idea of propane when I’m sleeping, even though I just wrote about how safe it is.

So….today at Walmart I purchased a Little Buddy.  Yes, still propane, so I won’t run it when I’m sleeping, but at least I won’t worry about running WS’s battery down.  The Little Buddy can sit on the table when I need it.

The Little Buddy throws a lot of heat!

But this is the little buddy I see watching and waiting for me when I approach my truck from where ever I happen to be shopping.  He helps keep me warm too.

That is the question…

The name of my Casita (means ‘little home’) is Wandering Spirit, but it’s her name because I have a wandering spirit.  I’m the wanderer, who is a home-body.  Big contrast.  Bringing home along with me works.  Home is where I park it.  Home is here.  Cozy.  Safe.

So why wander…she wondered?

I was born in Ohio and we moved to Michigan when I was 5, where I remained for 30 years. Since I’ve been an adult I’ve lived in Michigan, California, New Hampshire, California, Michigan, California….and then I left on this journey.  Military had nothing to do with any moves in my life, and reasons for moving have changed over the years, but I’ve always had a ‘reason’ or ‘need’ or…’excuse?’ to travel.  It’s been about searching and seeking various things like peace and love and security and beauty and….place.  My place.

For someone who started out wanting to be a wife and mom…and nothing more, it’s all been quite a surprise.  I was a wife.  I am a mom.  But as it turned out, there was a lot more in there…in my heart.

I can’t say I understand it all. I certainly have some thoughts on it!  I’m asking the question that titles the blog today.  Why Wander?

Why leave family, friends and most ‘stuff’ behind and tow my tiny home behind me in a seemingly purposeless venture….in a relatively insecure and unstable lifestyle?  I contemplate this.  A lot!

My thoughts on it are varied.

I’m still searching and seeking and experiencing and exploring the beauty and idiosyncrasies of this land, the people, the fauna and flora that inhabit it.  Sometimes I feel like I’ll never get enough!  The land is big, and amazing and beautiful and changing and inviting.  Then I have moments of wanting to find my own spot, and feeling very insecure!  Mostly, I want to see what is around the next bend in the road.  For now at least.

Contrasts.  Loving home and loving wandering.  Loving the Big Sur coast:

The sentinel Saguaros:

The lakeside with golden Aspen:

Snow peaked mountains:

Ancient homes:

Closer…

Endless praire, winding rivers with swamp beds and willows,

Gorgeous sunsets:

and foggy mornings:

Flowers by the side of the road

Colorful canyon gorges below blue sky with fluffy white clouds above….I could go on and on….there is SO much!  I feel this compelling need to experience it….to be a part of it…within physical, financial and emotional limits.

This Wandering Spirit…I don’t know where it came from or why I have it, but it’s deep and real and strong.  Once, despite my moves, I was a responsible, stable, consistent person.  I took care of my children, I did my job to the best of my ability, I was never late for work!  I worked hard.  I stayed strong.  Mostly.

Now I’m…FREE.  A bird uncaged.  Flying.  My commitments are minimal, and there is little stress in my life.  I’m learning to relax and enjoy in ways I never knew before.  I’m learning to let go and enjoy the ride.  And what a ride….Joy Ride….it is!

So we moved!

The weather was perfect for the rally, and 185 fiberglass RV’s were registered, which makes this the largest fiberglass rally anywhere, ever.  I met lots of nice people, and  made a few budding friendships.

Sunday it was over and folks started moving out…while the heat and the wind moved in.  I decided to go to Riveria RV Park in Blythe on the Colorado River.  They have a great dog ‘peninsula’ where the kids…I mean dogs…can run free and swim.  I thought after that I might head south to Caballo Loco Ranch where I spent some time last year and really enjoyed it.

Our last sunset in Quartzsite…for awhile at least.

But then I changed my mind!  Kerry and I walked the dogs and talked on Sunday afternoon and as a result of our conversation I decided to head for the hills.  Well the mountains actually, and in a northerly direction.  Normally this time of year it would be cold around Prescott, but as you may have noticed, the weather doesn’t behave normally these days.  For the next 10 days at least, Prescott will be sporting 60’s and 70’s during the day, and 30’s and 40’s at night while the Quartzsite/Blythe area is going into the high 80’s.  (I wish I could ship some of that desert heat back east) I’d like to avoid that kind of heat whenever possible, so here we are at an elevation of about 5000 feet.  There was snow alongside the road as we approached town.  I was thrilled to see it.

While here near Prescott for a yet unknown length of time, I plan to check out the National Forest campgrounds that are nearby…the ones that are open that is.  I also am looking forward to a haircut, and Oh My Gosh, there is a Whole Foods in town, not to mention Costco…

This is our campsite near Prescott.

The view from under our awning.

Meanwhile,  last Friday Joy had her third vet visit.  This time she needed a blood test to see if her thyroid level has been corrected by the medication she is on.  Yikes now it’s twice as high as it should be!  Her dose of med has been cut in half and her level will need to be checked again in 6-8 weeks, by some other vet in some other place…

Fifty years ago, when I was 16, if you told me that I’d be excited about going to a ‘fiberglass rally’, I’d have told you ‘you’re insane!’  Life can be kinda funny.

All the same, Saturday morning I arrive at the Fiberglass Rally and I am greeted by Sharron, who was parked next to me at The Scenic Road, and ‘Arizona Eileen’, who is well known among the Casita crowd.  They help me get situated in a spot that is perfectly side to side level.  Who woulda thunk there was such a spot out here at Dome Rock.

Meet “Dome Rock”!

We become part of a small village of fiberglass trailers, heavy on Casitas and friendly folks.  People walk around greeting whomever they find, and sometimes lengthy conversations result.  When I walk the dogs, I follow suit, so our walks are punctuated with friend-making.  I have to say that Joy and Shiloh are easy conversation starters.

Saturday night Sharron and I have our own campfire, and Sunday night we are invited to a propane campfire (!) in Arizona Eileen’s large size Clam.  Lance the Pie Guy is there and he brings a lovely Dutch apple pie to share.  He’s from Julian, CA, known for it’s perfect climate for growing apples, and it’s apple pies.

Monday evening I use to prepare for my excursion into Mexico the next morning for my trip to the dentist.

Tuesday morning dawns and Kerry and Mirabel arrive early .  Thank you so much Kerry!  This means I can leave for the day with complete peace of mind about Joy and Shiloh.  That is HUGE for me.

From Q to the Quechan parking lot at the boarder is about a 90 minute drive mostly on Hwy 95.  At the lot I park under the light pole marked “H” so I can find JR again when I come back…this parking lot is huge.

Walking into Mexico, I’m feeling anxious, hoping I can find “Dental Betel”.  I’m walking into a different world.  Narrow streets in bright colors (“The Purple Pharmacy” is first) lined with drug stores, dentists offices, optometrists offices and curio shops, along with restaurants, is what lies before me.  I either must walk on the street or on the narrow sidewalk which is actually sales area.  The walkway is crowded with people….there are tourists, vendors carrying their wares, and the most annoying are the hawkers, working for the various businesses….mostly dentists….trying to lure me into their offices.

I walk quickly, and with purpose, looking straight ahead, ignoring it all, and hoping to heck that I don’t get lost.  The office I want is only a tad over 3 blocks from the boarder and I’ve studied the route on Google Maps.  Within minutes I see “Frida’s Curios”on the corner and I am relieved to know the office is around that corner and 2 doors down.  It’s just off the beaten path so the street is more calm, and this dentist does not promote business by sending guys out to lure folks in.  She has all the business she needs from repeat clients and referrals.

Long story short:  there is nothing wrong with my tooth, at least not anything that can be found by exam or ex-rays at this time.  It has stopped hurting too.  A complete set of ex-rays is done for $50.  Now this dentist has a baseline, and I have a dentist in Mexico.  I am able to get my teeth cleaned by a very gentle hygienist for $30.  I leave the office glad that I came.  I feel like I can safely recommend this dentist’s office.  Everything was exquisitely clean and there are various dentists there with different specialties.

After a quickie stop at a pharmacy, I go back and line up to come back into the USA.  It’s just before noon and the wait is between 20-25 minutes long.  Finally I show my passport and cross.

People in line behind me at the boarder crossing back into the USA.

I quickly find JR and after a couple of stops for shopping in Yuma, I come back to my little home where I happily greet my babies.  Kerry has kindly kept me posted with texts and a picture of how the kids were doing while I was away, too.  🙂

Home Sweet Home!

Now to get ready for the party tonight! A party at my house no less.  Some of the solo women are getting together tonight and WS has been nominated as the location.  I’m happy to comply because that means Joy and Shiloh will be on the guest list.  Ten or 11 women show up along with 6 or 7 dogs….that includes me and mine.  There is plenty of wine and snacks and we have a great time chatting and getting to know each other.

The ladies all consented to have their pictures on the blog, but requested no names please!

Honestly, we didn’t drink all this!

This morning as we take our walk, I look back down the hill at the little fiberglass village….wait….what’s this?  It’s become a fiberglass  metropolis!

This isn’t all…they are spread out in all directions!

And last but not least, ‘morning has broken, like the first morning…’

Guess it’s strange to put sunrise at the end of the post.  But it’s just a reminder, to be thankful for every  single sunrise we see…every new day we have.  Beautiful.  Just beautiful.

Well, not far.  Fourteen miles to be exact, to Dome Rock BLM, where the “Fiberglass Rally” will be held.  There will be many Casitas, along with Scamps, Escapes, Olivers, among others.  After a month here at The Scenic Road, after our walk in the wash this morning, I’ll be packing up and hitching up.

Morning walks in the wash cast long shadows!

Joy and Shiloh had another playdate with Annabelle in Blythe yesterday.  Much romping and rolling was done by all.

Joy and Annabelle want the stick.

Oops.  Now Shiloh wants it too.

Joy getting tuckered out.

Shiloh.  Water play makes happy campers!

Since the last blog, Sharron and I  share 3 happy hours.  The first at her ‘house’, the second at mine, and by the third, the weather is nice enough to sit outside and enjoy an afternoon glass of wine.  Yesterday Sharron leaves The Scenic Road in her Casita to join the Dome Rock group.

In the midst of all the fun, a tooth starts to bother me, and I think an old filling may be crumbling.  One tooth has become suddenly cold sensitive.  OUCH.  Kerry gives me the name of the dentist she saw in Aldogones, Mexico a couple of weeks ago, and I call to make an appointment.  I’ll be crossing the boarder on Tuesday morning.  I realize that  sometimes a cold sensitive tooth gets better with time, but I do feel the need to get things checked out while I’m in a convenient spot fairly close to Mexico, AND I have a babysitter.  Kerry volunteers to watch Joy and Shiloh for me!  This is as good as it can get since Joy and Shiloh know and like Kerry and are good buddies with Annabelle, AND Kerry even offers to come to our ‘house’ to babysit.  SO glad that I’ll have peace of mind about the fur-kids.

If you are reading this wondering why I would want to go to the dentist in a Mexican boarder town, it’s because excellent dental care in modern offices is available there for a fraction of the cost we pay in the states.  I’ll be parking the truck in Winterhaven, CA, and walking across the boarder, then about 3 blocks to this particular dentists office.  Just need to remember to bring my passport so I can come back home again!

I plan to erect the Joel Pole later today to get internet reception at Dome Rock.  (The Joel Pole is my internet antenna, crafted and created by…Joel, of course:-)  Hopefully that will go well and you will hear from me again soon.

So here we go….onward to another adventure!

Days pass so quickly!  And not just days, but weeks and even months.

It never fails to amaze me how quickly Monday rolls around, and Tuesday, and Wednesday, etc.  This retirement thing is supposed to be ‘life in the slow lane’, but instead it seems to speed by faster than ever, like all those big semi’s that roar past me on the freeway.  Time passes now faster than when I was working.  Perhaps that is age related?  Or is it just that time flies when you’re having fun?

I’ll go with the second thought!

So here we are into our last week at The Scenic Road RV Park.  While here I’ve met Glenda,  with her Casita, Wendy, with her Casita and Rose, with her Casita.  Now as of yesterday, in the site right next to me sits Sharon, with her Casita!  All solo women with pets, and we are all gathering for the Fiberglass Rally that starts next week at Dome Rock.

Rose, though she was staying here at this park for 2 nights, actually lives in Parker.  Before she leaves, she invites me out to visit her.  I drive to her home and we have a nice visit while Joy and Shiloh play in her fenced yard.  She tells me that not to far from her is a place called The Desert Bar, which is a ‘must see’ when in this neck of the woods.  It’s only open on week ends from noon to 6pm.  She suggests we get together and go there on Sunday.  I bring Glenda and we head to Roses house to follow her.  I drive JR because I have the dogs with me.  Not far past her house we take a dirt road.  We travel maybe 6 or 7 miles on a terrible, rocky dirt road.  I’m feeling anxious because of all the tire problems I seem to be prone to.

This place is literally way out in the middle of nowhere!

Area of the desert near The Desert Bar

There are quite a few people there when we arrive and a live band is playing, mostly Country & Western music.  The seating is 98% outside and mostly covered.  Yay!  Dogs are allowed!  Shiloh comes in with me but Joy chooses to take a snooze in the truck.  Shiloh -behaves impeccably perfect!

I’m pleasantly surprised with the veggie wrap that I order, which turns out to be a tasty lunch.

Pictures from The Desert Bar, which includes a church-like steeple. ?

Clouds begin to roll in big time, and the already windy day is becoming even more windy. Time to go!  We bumpily-bump back to Hwy 95 and then to Rose’s home for a little while.  The sky is beginning to look ominous.  After a quickie stop at Walmart for Glenda, we high-tail it 35 miles back to Q.  We hit a dust storm on the way which reduces visibility to two cars ahead of me and two cars behind me.  The only other thing I can see is blowing dust and sand.  This is the worst dust I’ve ever driven in.

In Q there isn’t as much blowing…yet.  I drop off Glenda at her place in La Posa and head back to my own Little House.

Now backtracking at bit to Saturday….we visit the vet again in Blythe.  I am concerned about a mole on Joy’s face.  Recently it seems to have changed a bit.  “Changes in a wart or mole” is a reason for humans to visit a doctor, so I figure the same must be true for dogs.  However the changes seem to have been more pronounced a couple of weeks ago when I made the appointment.  I wonder if they were the the result of Joy scratching her face or rubbing it on the ground like she does when she rolls around.

The vet takes a brief look at the mole and pronounces it benign.  Very common he says, and not cancer.  Good to know, though I will always be watching it.

I also want to follow up on her cough.  It’s soooo much better, in fact back to like it used to be, only occurring when she gets excited, like when we are getting ready to go for a walk.  But, another symptom she has is a hoarse bark.  Researching on Google, I’ve begun to suspect a condition called laryngeal paralysis. The risk factors for it are older dogs, large dogs, Golden Retrievers, and dogs with hypothyroidism. Joy has ALL of the risk factors. The hoarse bark is one of the prime symptoms.  I want to discuss that with the vet.

The vet says that laryngeal paralysis is a strong possibility, but it can only be diagnosed with an exam during anesthesia.  There is no need to diagnose it since symptoms are mild and now that she is taking thyroid medication,  it may get better on it’s own.

It’s too early to do a blood test to see if her thyroid med dose is correct, so I make an appointment for that test on February 12, which will be a month after she started taking the medication.

While in Blythe, besides stopping at Albertsons, I take a drive out to Midland LTVA to see what it’s like.  It’s not far from town, which is nice, and it has a dump and trash containers.  It’s a future possibility.  While there I text Kerry, checking the AT&T cellular, and to find out if she wants to join me in a dog walk later in the day.  We’ve been walking together every other day or so and have become a bit of a ‘pack’ for the dogs.  We all enjoy each others company.  Shortly I hear back from her and she tells me she has moved to Blythe for the time being because of the upcoming weather predictions.  She isn’t feeling up to facing the dust and rain and wind on the BLM where she has been camping.  She’s staying at an RV park right on the Colorado River and she invites us to come for a visit and a swim, right now, since I’m conveniently in Blythe too.  (a dog swim to be more precise!)

At this RV Park (where I stayed last year as well) there is a peninsula of land where dogs are allowed off leash and there is plenty of water access.

Oh what a treat for the fur kids!  The water play and grass rolling goes on and on.  It’s so much fun to see them all having such a good time!  Kerry and I get our share of laughs and entertainment out of all this!

Three dogs wearing ‘river water’ fragrance.

Rolling in dry grass and getting it all stuck in your fur is a very important part of the routine.

Into the water they go, then they tear out, shake, and roll….over and over.  Finally we end up with three happy but tired and smelly pupsters.

I’m tired too, just watching them.

Fast forward to Monday morning….today.  We had heavy rain last night, with lightening and thunder.  This morning there is NO sign that it has rained at all, due to the huge winds, that have dried up all the water.  Even the ground looks as dry as always.  Was I dreaming in rained??    (no:-)

This cool morning I spend some time visiting with Sharon from the Casita next door to us.

We make a wine date for later!

This should be fun!

Is mostly what I’ve been doing lately.  Oh sure, I went to the big tent here in Q, and spent one hour inside and around the perimeter.  Inside, everyone is calling you over to present their sales pitch and I don’t like that, so I pretty much walked right through.  Outside, where they leave you alone, I bought a collapsible bucket.  I came home and gave my big orange plastic bucket to a neighbor.  That leaves a little more space in the back of JR.  Oh did I mention yet that I finally parted with my anti-gravity chair?  I rarely use it because it’s so hard to get out of the back of the truck, so it was mainly just taking up space and adding weight.  I did like it, but….I’ll survive without it!

Wandering Spirit is gleaming!  She’s so shiny the glare hurts ones eyes in the sunshine!      🙂  I’ve been working on her for an hour or two for days now.  I borrowed a neighbors ladder so I could get to the very top.  I’m embarrassed to say that this is the first time I have attended to the top, other than to squirt water up there and use an extension handle soft brush.

Most RV parks don’t allow owners to wash their RV on the premises.  It’s ok to hire someone else to do it because they bring their own water along.  (This particular park has an area where you can wash your vehicle for $3….or your dog for $1.)  Since I wanted to do it myself rather than hire it done, I found a waterless wash on Amazon called “Aero Cosmetics Wash Wax All”.  The only water required is enough to soak a rag.  It works surprisingly well!

As you see by the name it’s a wax as well as a wash, but I want more protection than that for WS so I am waxing with Mequiars Flagship Premium Marine Wax which works well on fiberglass.

WS looks beautiful!

Hard to see the shine in the pictures but take my word for it.  🙂

All areas have two coats now except the area under the ‘belly band’, and I’ll be putting the second coat on there over the next day or so.

Then it’s on to JR, who is looking quite forlorn right now, next to her spiffy toad.  Towed? Except….for those fancy new shoes she’s wearing.

We’ve been experiencing some amazing sunsets here recently.