It’s official: the media has run out of “recession victim” angles.

Time Magazine’s half-assed reporting about the Slabs gave us a good laugh today, just in time for happy hour.

Need a good chuckle? Here it is:

Slab City, Here We Come: Living Life Off the Grid in California’s Badlands

One would think that Time could afford to hire a reporter capable of uncovering a different angle, or talking to people who haven’t been interviewed several times over by NPR or CBS.

If you want some laughter therapy, read the full story here. But if your Time is more valuable, here are the hilarious highlights:

“a squatters’ camp deep in the badlands of California’s poorest county, where the road ends”

“dropouts and fugitives of all stripes”

“recession refugees”

“a former drug addict turned born-again Christian”

“tribes have emerged”

“soul-searching Gypsy Kids who arrive by train with little more than the ragged clothes on their back”

“the rowdy bikers who pass through, or the meth-addled loners on the outer edges inclined to greet a trespasser with a gunshot”

“disappearances, mysterious drownings in the mud baths, the man who showed up in camp with his finger apparently bitten off”

“The border patrol keeps a visible presence, searching for illegal immigrants that ply the region.”

Yeah, that pretty much sums up most of us, like Jim and I, or our super friendly, squeaky clean neighbors, the Bayfield Bunch, or the Canadian politician who was here last week.

Can you say “Sensationalism”? Remember kids, The Media Lies.

Which can be a good thing, I guess.

Long live the Slabs!

With thanks to Rhodester, who shared this on my Facebook page today.

The Slabs are a hotbed of serendipitous blogger meet-ups lately. Not only are we camped across from The Bayfield Bunch, down the road from HiTek Homeless and across from Tumbleweeds and Lemonade, but this morning we had the unexpected surprise of running into Kimberly, Renee, Darla and the kids from Fulltime Families!

As the enterprising founder behind FtF, Kimberly Travaglino recently published “How to Hit the Road,” a terrific guide to help aspiring families learn everything about the road tripping lifestyle with kids. We can’t recommend it enough!

The Fulltime Families group is a membership-based community of like-minded non-retired parents and kids who’ve made the courageous leap to living life on the road. Fulltime Families is also a terrific resource for dreamers who want to learn all they can about the lifestyle.

Are the Slabs Kid-Friendly?

Kimberly wanted to know the lowdown on the Slabs. Her tribe is camped on the perimeter near Salvation Mountain for the night, and was scouting around to feel around for a kid-friendly vibe. While we wouldn’t exactly call the Slabs kid-friendly, there are a few living here, probably year-round.

But as far as whether or not this place is a good place to bring little humans, our NuRVer friend Sam, who has a grown family of his own, put it best:

“Would I bring kids here and stay a while? Definitely not.”

This wacky, offbeat community with its somewhat seedy-underbelly isn’t the best environment for kids.

“Would I come here for a few days to see it with kids? Definitely!” he said.

Families can skip the local watering holes like the Oasis Club, but taking a trip out to the East Jesus art installations, the mud pots and of course Salvation Mountain, are a one-of-a-kind, eye-opening, unforgettable experience found only here at the Slabs.

Are the Slabs on Your Snowbird Itinerary?

What a hoot to finally meet Kimberly in person after meeting online last year.

We are so impressed with the FtF community she and her husband Chris have built, especially because Jim and I know much time and energy it takes to manage a busy online support group.

So, who else is coming this way in February? If you’re a fellow blogger pointed in this direction, be sure to stop by our encampment and say hello!

Sometimes you meet the nicest lurkers in the most interesting places. Take Slab City, for example.

Saturday afternoon we packed up from our quiet little spot in Borrego Springs and headed east to our favorite free wacky camping destination, Slab City USA.

Slab City Goes Upscale

OK maybe it’s just me, but it seems that the Slabs have gone upscale. There seems to be a real sense of ownership and pride around here that we’ve never seen before.

Trash piles are getting cleaned up, “No dumping” signs have sprung up, people are putting more artwork around the community, and a new Slab City Calendar of Events sign welcomes visitors. You no longer have to be in the know to find out what’s happening every day.

This Lurker Walks Into a Camp . . .

Yesterday I walked outside our rig and a stranger on an ATV pulls up, turns off his motor and says “You must be Rene.”

Huh?

“You don’t know me but I’ve been following your blog for a long time, since you first started.”

Whoooah.

I asked him his name, but didn’t know it. And there’s no reason I should have: in the five years since Jim and I started writing about our travels, he’s never once commented or contacted us. But he’s been a loyal reader and he could recall nearly everything we’ve been through on the road.

“You’re a lurker!” I said to him. But he didn’t like that term, he said it sounded too creepy. I’m not sure what to call him, other than a really jolly, adventurous, respected Canadian politico who’s now living his own road trip dream.

Although his wife isn’t thrilled about this place, I reassured him that despite the cleaned up appearance, the Slabs is still a great, safe dry camping spot, especially when you’re surrounded by dozens of other Canadian snowbirds here off Canal Road, in what we call “Canada Camp.”

A Lilliputlian Universe

What a thrill to know our blog actually has a reader! We never know if anyone’s paying attention to what we’re writing (even our family members usually don’t know what we’re up to because most of them don’t follow us!).

To meet a total stranger who’s been loyally reading our blog for years, really made our day.

Mr. “I”m-Not-a-Lurker” doesn’t have his own blog, otherwise I’d reveal his identity. I guess we’ll have to convince him to start his own RV Blog.

The Interwebs have shrunk our world so much. Now, only three degrees separates each and every one of us. And in the full-time traveler’s universe, it’s turned our world into that of Lilliputlian proportions.

As we boondock here in the Anza Borrego desert with our small 35 gallon freshwater tank and some extra jugs of water, washing my long hair seems like such a waste of perfectly good drinking water.

But after four days without shampooing, I couldn’t take the oily, gritty feel of my locks and surrendered to the ‘poo.

Using about a gallon of water to wash and rinse, I couldn’t help but think there has to be a better way to keep my hair clean.

My question to you, long-haired RV boondocking gals, is: when you dry camp, how do you keep your locks looking (and smelling) good?

When I had a cute pixie ‘do like my RVing friend Tracy (in the pic below) washing my hair wasn’t such an ordeal. But now that I’ve reached my goal of big Texas hair, washing hair when boondocking requires serious water usage.

No ‘Poo Alternatives?

Now before you say “What about joining the “no ‘poo’ movement?” I’ll just say it: the thought of not shampooing my hair regularly seriously grosses me out.

I realize that way back, people used to only wash their hair once a year or so, but I’ll bet if you caught a whiff of their mane you’d be hightailing it back to the future for a long hot shower.

While I would never consider ditching my shampoo, I thought I heard something about how dry shampoos work great in-between washings. Thinking that maybe I could use less water this way, I  searched the web for “dry shampoo recipes” and was surprised to see that something as cheap and simple as a dusting of cornstarch is supposed to suck up the grease and make your hair look nice again. Later this week I’ll test this idea.

Have you tried homemade dry shampoo? If so, what did you think?

Boondocking has a few drawbacks like this, but overall it’s our favorite way to camp. We’re loving it here in the Southern California desert as we buckle down on work, listen to the coyotes yip and yowl and soak in the sun. Free RV camping doesn’t get any better than this!

RVing is one of the cheapest ways to enjoy prime real estate, especially in California where astronomical coastal properties are out of reach of most ordinary people. We found that one way to experience the best of California beach camping without the hefty price tag is through our Passport America camping club membership.

Once again our $44 yearly Passport America membership has paid for itself. Last Tuesday after a sad goodbye to my family in Los Angeles, we headed south to San Diego to see Tripawds friends.

Our destination was Mission Bay RV Resort, which offers 50 percent savings to Passport members during winter. This coastal campground is normally $50 a night for a bare bones back-in RV site, but with our Passport America membership we got our sweet spot for half off!

Many of Passport’s affiliated RV parks are located in smaller towns that want to attract more tourists, but oftentimes you’ll find gems like these in major destinations.

We’re always super frugal about paying for campgrounds, but since joining Passport in 2008, we’ve never once regretted spending the money on this membership. It always seems to come in handy whenever we need full hookups.

If you’re on the road and haven’t joined this club, do it today. I guarantee you a Passport America membership will pay for itself the very first time you use it!

We usually avoid interstate highway driving, but last week we endured the I-10 haul between Austin and Los Angeles to be here in time for Christmas.

Along the way, we made time for one attraction that’s been on our bucket list, the Alley Oop Fantasy Land and Museum of Iraan Texas.

If you’re stuck on I-10 between El Paso and Austin, don’t miss this quirky little roadside attraction!

Iraan Texas Museum: a Big Gem in a Small Town

When you find yourself driving one of the loneliest stretches of I-10 between El Paso and Ozona, take a few hours to go 13 miles north on Texas Highway 349.

Here you’ll find one of the Lone Star State’s most rustic old towns featuring an abundance of dinosaur-era fossils and a larger-than-life monolith tribute to Alley Oop, that popular caveman comic from the 1930s.

And just as entertaining is the Iraan Texas Museum’s curator Edna “Snooks” Collett, an 85-year-young cowgirl dynamo.

Here’s a short video about this off-the-beaten path West Texas attraction that shows some of the highlights that make this offbeat spot so much fun. The park is always open but the museum hours are from 1 to 5 pm (closed Mondays and through Christmas to March).

 Ira-Ann, Not Iran

Iraan sits atop one of the richest oil field deposits in North America. During the early 20th century, oil was discovered on land belonging to Ira and Ann Yates. When a contest was held to name this newly formed town, the winning result was “Iraan,” a play on the couple’s first names.

During the late 1920s, local artist VT Hamlin was fascinated by the bounty of prehistoric dinosaur-era artifacts found in the Permian Basin lands surrounding Iraan. This was during a time when fossils were dug up and discarded without any real regard for preservation.

In 1932, Hamlin gained worldwide fame when his comic strip Alley Oop caught the eye of newspapers around the country. The comic chronicled the time-traveling adventures of Oop, a burly, axe-wielding caveman, his curvaceous girlfriend Oola, a pet dinosaur Dinny and their kingdom, Moo.

To honor VT Hamlin’s contribution to putting Iraan on the map, locals created the 7-acre Alley Oop Fantasy Land Park, featuring ginormous statues of Alley Oop characters Oop, Dinny, oola, Dr. Wonmug and Oscar Boom.

Snooks’ Museum Walks You Through Time

In keeping with the time-traveling spirit of Alley Oop’s adventures, longtime notable resident Snooks Collett created the Iraan Texas Museum.

This free attraction features hundreds of local artifacts from prehistoric times to the town’s oil boom heyday to the modern era of alternative energy development.

You can spend hours examining these treasures and learning about the region, but you’ll want to reserve even more time to chat with Snooks, who at her advanced age is still running the museum and going on field digs for local artifacts. This rugged but charming western cowgirl who actually lived on the ranch where oil was discovered in Iraan, can tell you endless stories about the region’s rich western history.

If you don’t have enough time to get to know the museum, you can spend the night in your RV. Iraan has two city parks (one located adjacent to the museum) with full hookups for just $12.00 a night. Visit in the springtime, and Snooks, along with the local archaeological association, will welcome you to come along on a real fossil dig.

Our visit to the Alley Oop Fantasy Land and Iraan Museum was too fast, since we were booking it west to California while trying to beat an oncoming winter storm. But we’ll definitely return; this little western outpost is too entertaining to miss whenever we’re on I-10.

Get off the interstate and see the real Texas. Don’t miss this one-of-a-kind attraction.

Recommended Reading

Caveman: VT Hamlin and Alley Oop
Roadside America: Alley Oop Land
Texas Escapes: Iraan, Texas
Texas State Historical Assn.: Iraan, Texas

It’s hard to believe our time in the south is almost over.

Our workamping gig at Hill Shade RV Park in Gonzales, Texas has come to an end. Yesterday we said goodbye to owners Michael and Christine Moers and their awesome family. If you’re ever between Houston and San Antonio, stop by and say hello. You’ll love their park.

We can’t thank the Moers enough for being so good to us. They are two of the most genuine, funny and down-to-earth people we know, and we hope to be back at their quiet little retreat again in spring.

Today we’re at lovely Landa RV Park in New Braunfels to hang out with NuRVers.  Oh how we missed the serenade of the train that runs through the back of the park. Despite how dissed it pretty hard in this blog post during our last visit, it’s not a bad place to be. Compared to some of the dumps we’ve been in, this one is first-class!

Tomorrow we’ll be boot scootin’ in Luckenbach for their annual Christmas Ball. Then Sunday, we’ll be blazing across I-10 out to the coast, for some sunshine, warm temperatures and family.

If you’re also traveling somewhere to see your families for the holidays, hoppy travels!  Where ya headed?

If you’re a fulltime RVer or just thinking about it, be sure to visit Work for RVers and Campers, one of the premiere websites for RVers to visit when looking for ideas about how to make a living on the road.

Work for RVers and Campers is for RVers who want to earn money to support a traveling lifestyle. You’ll find free paid employment and volunteer workamper positions along with work-at-home business tips for travelers. Coleen’s newsletter also has inspirational tips and workamping ideas.

We found this resource during our early days of researching the road tripping lifestyle and we continue to pop in whenever we’re looking for new ways to generate income. Now, we’re thrilled to be featured on the Worker’s Profiles page!

Coleen and Bob are a real source of inspiration to us and if you’re thinking about this lifestyle, their story will inspire you too. They’re one of the web’s most well-known experts on making a living from the road. After all, they know a lot; they’ve been fulltiming since 1992! Here’s a little bit about this inspirational couple:

Bob and I spent over a decade living in a recreational vehicle of some kind or another. They included several travel trailers, a pickup camper, a park model trailer, and a motorhome. Along the way, we worked and supported ourselves. We are proof that it is not only possible, but practical, to earn a living while full-time RVing.

Much of what I write is based on our experience. Some of it comes from corresponding with thousands of campers and RVers. I also share what I’ve gleaned from employers and managers who hire and work with work campers and other RV workers.

If you’re dreaming of the fulltime RVing lifestyle or actively looking for work, we can’t recommend Work for RVers and Campers’s Resources enough. Visit today!

Unlike many things in life, Jim and I found that RV road tripping is all that it’s cracked up to be (for us, anyhow). On this Thanksgiving holiday, here are a few RV-related things we are thankful for. Now, if you’re a RVer, what are you thankful for?

RVers are Thankful For:

Adventure. From far-reaching corners of North America, like Big Bend National Park to the coast of Maine, traveling by RV allows us to see so much more of this country than we ever thought possible.

Escapees Days End Directory. One way we can afford to live this lifestyle is by finding free camping spots. Our preferred method: this $10 Days End Directory that you can only get through Escapees. We’ve literally saved hundreds of dollars with this guide.

Experience. Each year our lives become richer because of everything we experience on the road. It’s not always perfect, but even when things have sucked, we learned better ways to handle adversity. When you live in 200 square feet, you’re forced to roll with the punches instead of punching each other out!

Freedom. We live life on our terms, outside of the box and far away from mainstream ideas about how adults are “supposed” to live their lives. We are grateful for the freedom to choose this path.

Free Public Lands. The West is definitely the best when it comes to free camping in America. With so much free camping to choose from, you could spend a lifetime boondocking west of the Mississippi and not camp in the same spot twice.

Friendship. RVers really are some of the nicest, most social people around! We’ve met more people since hitting the road than we ever did by living in one spot, and most of them have been great. It’s so much fun to randomly meet members of your own tribe when you’re traveling.

Internet Connectivity. With the Internet available anywhere you go (especially if you have a Motosat dish), your office view can change every day when you make a living on the road.

Pull-Thru Campsites.  Our little 24′ fifth wheel can fit just about anywhere, but let’s face it, pull-throughs are so much easier to park in, especially after a long day on the road.

Being Debt Free. Everything we enjoy about living on the road wouldn’t be possible without a simple, debt-free RVing lifestyle.

Staying out of debt gives us the fearlessness we need to explore new ways of making a living, like our newest business venture that we’re so crazy about!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tomorrow as we sit down to dinner in Austin with our RVing friends, we’ll raise a glass to these perks of living the road tripping lifestyle. Now, what will you toast to on Thanksgiving?

Until recently, full-time RVing with kids was uncharted territory for all but a handful of courageous families. But now for the first time ever there’s a comprehensive how-to book that can assist you in making this life changing decision.

Written by Full Time Families founder Kimberly Travaglino, “How to Hit the Road: Making Your Family’s Full Time RV Dreams a Reality,” explains how to start making your family’s RV dreams happen!

Get Your Family Full-Timing Faster

If you’re unsure about embarking on a full time RV adventure, fear not: How to Hit the Road takes you from the earliest stages of envisioning your ideal road tripping lifestyle with kids.

From sharing your RVing dreams with loved ones, to selecting the RV that works for your family, to finding ways to afford this unique lifestyle. Along the way you’ll read real-life testimonials from families who are creating unforgettable memories as they experience these joys together.

How to Hit the Road addresses everything your family should consider before you roll away. As a fellow Dave Ramsey follower, we love her advice to eliminate all debt prior to leaving.

While some aspects of How to Hit the Road doesn’t dive deep enough into important topics like budgeting and choosing a domicile, it provides resources for learning more. Overall, How to Hit the Road is a perfect place to begin planning your family’s full time RV adventure.

Make Your Dreams Happen
Buy How to Hit the Road Today!

Join Fearless Families Across the Country

Travalgino’s group, Full Time Families, is a support group for courageous parents who are living the full-timing dream. Check out FtF’s magazine, rallies and discussion forums for endless ways to make your dream happen.

Why wait? In our four years of traveling, we haven’t met one family who’s regretted their decision to fulfill their RV road trip dreams!