This post is all Pam's.... June 24

June 24, 2013 - I just looked back at my post from June 24, 2012 and decided that I needed to do a post all my own!  It has been a year since I left our home in Houston, PA and started on the "weekend that never ends"!  Last June 24, I was sitting on my porch in Rodanthe, NC, listening to the ocean, waiting for Mike to officially retire and join me.  Most of all, I was thinking about what the future would hold for us.  Would we be able to tolerate each other 24/7?  Would we be able to tolerate living in our rolling tin can?  Would we be able to tolerate wondering around like gypsies?  Well, I can now answer those questions.  First of all, I can't believe it's been a year since I left home!  We did spend 7 days back in Houston, PA just a few weeks ago after my mother-in-law passed away.  It was a very bitter sweet time.  It was wonderful to see our neighbors, our children and grandchildren and my Dad (love you Daddy!), but it didn't really feel like our home anymore!  Our rolling, 42', 4 slide tin can is our home.  We have a shelf with family photos, and a shelf with small treasures collected on our travels (owl feather, rocks, etc.).  We have learned to live in a compact, efficient manner.  I am still travelling with my flowers (after all, it is my home!)  Wandering like gypsies is a very non-stressful way of living.  It maybe more problematic this summer (especially around the 4th) when we just show up at a campground near a National Park with all the tourists, but we will see!

Most of all, we have rediscovered each other.  In our previous lives, we were so busy working, we hardly saw each other.  Now we get to hike, bike, wander, raft, etc. together! Sharing all this cool stuff with the love of my life is the way to go!  Is this a life for everyone?  Probably not.  Is it a life for us?  Most definitely!  As we meet and talk to people, I tell them that I am now attending the University of Retirement!  We have learned SO MUCH about our country in the past year!  Our vocabulary has increased, we have learned so much about the Native Americans, and most of all, we have discovered our country like we never imagined!  I highly recommend coming out west and wandering through our National Parks.  After all, we own them!  They belong to us!

I hope I didn't bore you too much, but I just felt that I needed to say something after a year on the road!
Pam