Laundromat With a View

The RV lifestyle is a blend of liberation and compromise.

In many respects, Airstreaming is liberating vis-à-vis owning a home. When I'm in my actual house, instead of enjoying the property, I tend to see what's wrong with it. I see floors that need cleaning, walls that need painting, and landscaping that needs planting. With real estate ownership, there's a neverending desire to maintain and improve (this is what keeps Home Depot in business). Our house is always a work in progress, so it never feels complete.

In the Airstream, the stresses associated with home ownership melt away. RVs are complete as delivered from the factory. Sure, you can make changes and improvements to your RV. And some things will break. But everything happens on a much smaller, more manageable scale. And there’s no neighborhood association or architectural review committee breathing down your neck. If you don't like your neighborhood, or your view, you hitch and move!

But there are compromises. Not many people fantasize about visiting scenic laundromats on their honeymoon, but that's part of our deal.

For the record, I’d be perfectly happy doing our laundry myself. But Kristy usually keeps me at least 30-feet away from the job. I have a tendency to accidentally slip bright red clothing into loads of white--which is why I’m so often seen wearing pale fuchsia.

We Love LA

Los Angeles is one of my favorite cities. There’s no other town in the world that rewards creativity like LA. In discussing his landmark film Gladiator, the great director Ridley Scott said, “Ancient Rome was the LA of its time.” Which is another way of saying that Los Angeles is the Rome of our time. Around the globe, all entertainment roads lead here.

So for today’s blog entry, something DIFFERENT. It’s a music video! The song is Randy Newman’s ironic anthem, “I Love LA.” But our film is inspired by a 1929 silent Russian flick called Man with a Movie Camera. That groundbreaking film documented a day in the life of communist-era Mother Russia. Our little movie presents a day in the life of Los Angeles; or at least, a day in the life of one Hawaiian-shirt wearing LA resident.

Our Airstream is presently parked in scenic Malibu. Probably the most high profile Airstreamer in the country, Matthew McConaughey lives full-time in his trailer in this same park. But we haven’t seen Ol’ Washboard Abs just yet. His Airstream's here, but I think he may be off shooting a movie somewhere.

Since we both enjoy this area, we will stay in Los Angeles for a while.

California Streamin'

Capturing San Francisco in a blog entry is kind of like summarizing the works of Shakespeare in 60 seconds. You just can’t do it.

Flattened

Time is perhaps the greatest luxury of extended RV travel. It goes hand-in-hand with this nomadic lifestyle. Whenever life tosses you a curveball – for example, a flat tire in the middle of a redwood forest – you can always drop anchor and ride out the storm.

Of course Kristy and I really do have a honeymoon “schedule” of sorts. But it is blessedly vague and subject to change depending on which way the wind (or the tire) blows.

Myers Flat (Is Where It's At)

God has a sense of humor.

We’ve traveled more than 7000 miles, towing our Airstream over towering mountain highways, perilous unpaved roads, and hazard-filled construction zones. We’ve rolled past hundreds (if not thousands) of towns, big and small. And where do we get our first flat tire? In Myers Flat, California.

We awoke this morning to a flat tire on our Airstream. After making an attempt to fill the thing with air, it became quite clear that reinflation was not an option. This tire was wheezing like a chain-smoker on a 10-mile hike.

Next step: call AAA! For many years, we’ve traveled with the supreme confidence of loyal AAA members. Although we never actually made a call, it just felt good to know that AAA had our back. Now, at last, after paying dues for all these years, we FINALLY had a reason to call roadside assistance. I found a pay phone (since cellphones don't work here in Myers Flat), and dialed AAA.

Here’s an artist’s interpretation of our conversation:

AAA Representative: “Hello, this is AAA. We’re here to help!”

Me: “Great! We’ve got a flat tire. It’s on our Airstream travel trailer.”

AAA Representative: “What? The flat tire is on your Airstream?”

Me: “That’s right.”

AAA Representative: "..."

Me: "Hello?"

AAA Representative: “Piss off.”

Click.

Me: “Hello? … Anybody there? ... Help?”

Dial tone.

Of course, the actual conversation was marginally more polite. The AAA representative informed me that our AAA coverage does not extend to our Airstream. So much for their oft-repeated blather about AAA covering “the driver, not the vehicle.”

Looks like we're on our own. Thanks, AAA!

Then we plan to head south towards San Francisco. Stay tuned!

They Might Be Giants

As human beings, we tend to think about time in terms of the average human lifespan. It’s therefore interesting to encounter ancient beings that are living by a COMPLETELY different set of rules. Like… Hugh Hefner. And redwood trees.

Many of these trees are older than the United States. Some of them are over a thousand years old. And a few proud geezers reach the 2000-year mark!

Viewing redwoods make you feel like you’ve stepped back in time. These trees would be totally appropriate in the age of the dinosaurs. Long after everyone currently alive on earth has died, the same redwoods will still be here.

The message I take from these majestic trees is carpe diem. Seize the day, and pursue your dreams while you are here. Our time on earth is short – let’s make the most of it!

Coasting

When we departed on our long, long honeymoon a couple of months ago, we speculated that we’d return when pigskins fly -- in late August around the time of "the first college football kickoff." This weekend, collegiate pigskins are flying -- and we still find ourselves 3000 miles from home.

We’ve been meandering along the Oregon coast for the past couple of days, enjoying the cool weather and awesome views. We’re now heading south through California, with plans to visit San Francisco. Then we'll turn towards the Deep South and tailgating Nirvana!