live. work. dream.

We’re done with workamping and back on the road this week. And now that our wheels are turning again, so is my stomach every time we fill up that tank. Today, the cost of B20 biodiesel in Santa Fe, NM is $4.46 a gallon. Regular diesel: anywhere from $4.17 to $4.34.

Like always, we swipe the card, fill the tank, and forget about it until the bill comes (it’s the American way!). While it’s painful, I try really hard to look at it as a cost of doing business; the business of living our life, seeing things we’ve never seen before, and having a good time. In light of the chaos happening in the world, I know that sounds like a truly schmucky thing to say. But for now, what else can we do except live our lives, one day at a time.

Without further adoo, here is our Live Work Dream Expense Report for April 2008.

If anyone follows our adventures close enough to actually check for new photos on our gallery page, I truly wonder why. But they might have noticed some big changes there a little while back. I gave the galleries an overhaul, but didn’t announce it because we went for a while there without a camera. And what fun would new galleries be without new photos?

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Have you seen the May issue of RV Life yet? It just came out, but we’ve already received some visitors who clicked they way over here from the online edition. Why?

We were featured once again in Mike Ward’s “First Glance” column. Why? Mike wanted to update his readers since he first wrote about us back in October.

We thought Mike wanted a Blurb from us for a feature he was doing on Phil and Carol White’s new Road Trip Tream book. But we’re a bit embarrassed – and honored – to see it nearly the other way around.

We were also happy to see, however, that we got our plug in for NURVers.com which is quickly growing to be the hip place for full-timers who break the stereotype. Are you Nü?

Time for another reality check.

Ten years ago, Jim and I moved to Eureka on a whim. I knew it was rainy there, but I thought I could tolerate it, because I’d lived in San Francisco. But after a while, the rain forest was getting to me. The endless cold gray days, coastal winds and thick fog was wearing down my psyche. I constantly griped about what I knew I could not change; the weather.

So I started to have these fantasies about living in the desert. I wanted to feel the warm sun. Munch on chips and hot salsa and wash it down with cold beer. Sit next to a saguaro cactus and play my guitar. Go out at night wearing a summer dress, flip flops and a tan.

I thought that workamping here in T or C would convince Jim that living in the desert was a good idea. But after just one month, I’ve discovered that I’m too much of a wuss for this kind of environment.

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“The difference between whether you can make it happen or whether you can’t is not how many obstacles you have, it is how badly do you want to do something totally life-changing—totally for yourself.

We will give you the tools to change your dream into reality, but the implementation is yours to enjoy.”

— Phil and Carol White, authors of “Live Your Road Trip Dream”

And enjoy we have. When we first entertained the thought of taking a sabbatical, my search on the topic came up with Phil and Carol White’s book, “Live Your Road Trip Dream: Travel for a Year for the Cost of Staying Home”

I bought the book because I wanted to figure out how we could take some time off without going broke, and Road Trip Dream succeeded in helping us do just that. With the release of its second edition, the Whites’ book is as vital as ever when it comes to considering every critical aspect of how to plan, execute and live your own road trip dream. Don’t even think of embarking on a journey without reading and following the advice laid out by these two seasoned road trippers.

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Sadly, we will not be hearing any more comments from our dear friend Spoonie.

Cause And Effect
by Charles Bukowski

The best often die by their own hand
just to get away,
and those left behind
can never quite understand
why anybody
would ever want to
get away
from
them

Kris (Spoonie G) Krall
Feb 22, 1961 - April 3, 2008

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Our workamping gigs just keep getting better. We arrived at Riverbend Hot Springs resort in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico two weeks ago, to begin our new assignment that will carry us through mid-May. Like the other workamping arrangements we’ve taken on, we are here because we want to learn more about an industry that we think we want to get into someday.

We’ve always thought about running some kind of resort, something outdoorsy with low key accommodations, like yurts or fancy tents, so Riverbend is right up our alley. There’s only nine funky motel rooms, some RV spots, and a parking lot for dry camping. But you don’t come here for the accommodations, you come here for soaking. The place is lucky enough to be located on top of some riverside hot spring pools, so through the years, the owners have built some lovely outdoor hot spring pools with fantastic views of the surrounding desert.

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Everything happens for a reason. If we hadn’t have gone back to Los Angeles, we never would have learned that our beloved Jerry’s cancer has made another ugly appearance. You can’t tell by looking at him; he’s as playful and spry as ever. We only took him to the vet for a new heartworm medication, but left knowing we had to get him into oncology treatment, fast. So, we hightailed it back here to New Mexico, to visit a wonderful clinic in Santa Fe, the Veterinary Cancer Care clinic.

We always wanted to see Santa Fe, just not under these circumstances. The closest, most cost-effective RV lodging we found was at Cochiti Lake campground, about 30 minutes south. It’s an Army Corps of Engineers lake, and a bargain at $12 a night.

Our trip into the city was quick; just enough to see the vet, walk around the plaza, and get a good feeling about the place. This joke that a local told us, says it all:

Question: Why did the Santa Fe’an cross the road?
Answer: Because she was channeling a chicken.

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We haven’t lived the typical office life for nearly a year now, since selling our business.

And I must say, we don’t miss it one bit.

We got a pleasant reminder of running your own business, however, while in Los Angeles.

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Friday, we pointed ourselves westward, right into New Orleans (NOLA), where we’ve met up with an old friend from Humboldt, Mr. Gordon Soderberg. As one of the founding members of the Redwood Technology Consortium, Gordon is one of the reasons why we fled San Francisco in ‘98 and moved up to the sticks. He was a geek like us, and we figured if he could make a living in the trees, so could we. In 2005, Gordon left Humboldt to join the Veterans For Peace wagon train that was supporting Cindy Sheehan, and found himself in NOLA two days after Katrina, to help with the rescue, cleanup, and now, grassroots rebuilding efforts (because the government hasn’t done crap. More later).

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