Conversations & Coffee

Lately, I’ve been taking a very hard look at how I use the things around my house and realizing that some of them are just not going to work in an RV. My French press, for example. To those who’ve never used one, you add fresh grounds to the carafe, pour in some boiled water, then let it steep for a bit. Stir the grounds, then use the plunger to press the grounds to the bottom, leaving the drinkable part at the top. The problem that I see with this is that I need to rinse it each time I use it, unlike a coffeepot where I just lift out the filter. Since water will be limited, this won’t work well, especially since I can’t use the rinse-water for anything else. So, I may have to buy a coffeepot in the next several months. I’m hoping that, if that’s what I do, I can find one of the small ones or a percolating kind (stainless steel not aluminum). I did think of giving up coffee, but it’s become such a ritualistic part of my morning that I’m not sure I’d be able to. We’ll see.

Conversations with a friend have left me longing for the desert in a way that grows stronger each time we talk about the southwest. The thunderstorms, the heat, the open land… it all calls out to me. I look at pictures of places I’ve been and wish that I could fly myself to the valleys and hillsides and lay under a Palo Verde tree, looking up at the blue sky. Or wander a dry creek bed, looking for tumbled stones and flakes of mica. I know it will take me a while to get back that direction, but I am really looking forward to it.

As I empty out the house of things I no longer use, it strikes me as odd that I’ve kept some of this stuff for so long. old dressers, bags of clothing, knick-knacks, and so much more. Even the toolboxes that were given to me are long gone as well as most of the tools. I am keeping the ones that I use the most, but I have no use for things like a level (one tube has no oil left) or 3 pipe wrenches. I’m not even going to buy a toolbox for  the ones I’ve kept since they will likely end up in a drawer or one of the storage compartments. I’ll decide later.

Oh! I found a new place to live. It’s not ready to go right now, but I’ll be moving to Leicester at the end of May (sooner, if I can get everything worked out, but I’m not holding my breath on that). It’s a sweet little community and the owner is such a cool woman. The first time I saw her she was wearing the coolest bohemian pants, had beads in her hair, and a ready smile. She and her husband have all kinds of animals: goats, sheep, pigs, chickens, dogs, cats… and probably more that I didn’t see that day. She showed me the lot that I’d be living on and it’s perfect! Lots of early morning sunshine with trees to block the afternoon heat (deciduous, so there will still be sun in the winter), no need for yard work, and a nice, long driveway where I can park the RV when I get it. She told me about a community garden they will be starting once an abandoned barn comes down and I think I will definitely take part in that, if it’s started soon enough. If not, I’ll try to grow a few tomatoes & cucumbers along the south side of the lot.Oh, the place is also $200 less per month than I’m paying now, which will give me more flexibility in renovating the RV and such. That is a huge bonus.

I did buy a new camera recently, but I’ve not had much time to learn about it and to figure out how to use all the options on it. As soon as I can, though, I’ll be sitting down with it and the manual and playing with the different settings. My zoom capabilities range from 18mm-55mm and 70mm-300mm and it will be nice to try them out, too. Yes, I realize that there is a bit in between that I won’t have covered, but I’ll figure that out along the way. After all, I do still have the point & shoot camera that I’ve been using for the yarn pictures, and I’ll have my phone, too.

I’ve been working on some of the ideas for a GoFundMe or IndieGogo account and I’m just about ready to launch that. Self-striping yarn club, embroidered items, and much more will be part of the perks of the donations. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun! And, of course, help raise a little more money for any repairs and such needed for the motor home. Since I already have quite a bit put away, this will be the boost to get me out there, visiting customers & friends, even sooner.