Let's Get Acquainted !

Welcome to my RV Travel Diary!  This is a long, first post…getting all the introductory stuff out of the way!

Let’s put everything in reverse first….we’re not rollin’  quite yet!   I haven’t actually started my adventure so you will have your foot on the pedal with me from the starting line!

First, some background:  My name is Tiffany (well, my given name is Jeanne, but that’s all a different story!)  I’m “over 40″…that’s being REALLY, REALLY kind to myself! I am not a wealthy retiree nor have a won a lottery nor was I great at “saving”.  I’m your average hardworking gal albeit I’ve had an interesting life.  I’m an artist, a photographer and a personal chef – right now, that is.  At a relatively young age, I owned the first mortgage banking company in Connecticut, then became a Corporate Credit Manager, then a Sales/Marketing Manager, then a Production Manager.  And I’ve also been a waitress, an executive secretary, a hotel restaurant hostess, and a landscaper at a country club (where I got 100 wasp stings and came very close to saying  ”goodbye” to the world!).  I’m sure I’ve had other jobs that I just don’t remember at this point!  I’m an Advanced Certified SCUBA diver and also enjoy classic rock (ok — I was a hippy-type!), hiking, perusing antiques, interior design….most anything artsy and creative!

I have relocated 39 times within four different states (OH, CT, NC and AZ) over the past 40 years so my wanderlust personality was carved in stone long ago!  I’ve been back in the small Ohio college town where I grew up for the past [almost] four years.  It’s been fun to meet up with old friends from high school and others I knew here after 38 years away, but my time here has come to and end.  Time to hit the road!  And you’re going with me!  I’ve decided to head back to Arizona, but instead of Route 40 straight across the U.S., then turning left in Flagstaff to Phoenix (really, it’s that simple!), I’m going to RV my way through hills, valleys, mountains, forests, by lakes and rivers, in rain and sun as a full-time RVer.  By ‘full time’ I mean, even when I arrive in Arizona, I’m not going to be thinking “house” or “apartment”!  Get the idea?  (Actually, I’ll need to be thinking “JOB”!)

To be serious for a moment….frankly, I’m tired of “stuff”.  I believe stuff creates stress, messy or not.  Why do we think we need so much stuff?  This is my thinking of late. I’ve always loved my stuff….and I’ve had a lot of it!  I should know after moving it 39 times!  But I’m not going to particularly “miss” much of anything I have, eventho’ I really like it.  I want simplicity…less of everything to deal with.  Trust me, learning everything about RV life is enough right now!  Anyway, the stuff will be going to those who love it and/or truly need it.  Auctions are good that way!  Even my very trustworthy Saturn VUE…it’s not the “towable” model.   I’m saying, “au revoir” to stuff and “bonjour” to whatever lies ahead in about two months when we (you and I!) start the engine!  VROOOOOOM!

Signing off now.  I won’t post every day at this point.  Just wanted to introduce myself and set the pace for the journey ahead with the steps (and mis-steps!) I’m taking to get this crazy adventure started  – in case any of you are thinking about totally cleaning house and starting on a new adventure yourself!  From there, until the adventure ends (whenever that is!) I’ll be posting everything from organizing my stuff in the RV, to figuring out all the batteries, hoses, dials, etc., to thinking about the general route to take, to where I stay overnight, expenses….what culinary delights I’m creating outside on the grill at my campsite or inside when I’m parked at a Walmart for the night!  The more free spots and less RV parks (just not my style), the better……..and everything in between.  Get this —  I haven’t even driven the Tiff Mobile one inch yet so we’re in for a wild ride west, my friends!

Stay tuned and thanks for joining me!  Let’s get rollin’!