5 Things We Hate To Give Up

5 THINGS I’LL HATE TO GIVE UP

I was sitting in my familiar chair, last fall at the stylist who has been cutting my hair for the past 12 years. I had shared my news with her and we were talking as usual about camping, campers, and places we both have or want to visit. She asked me “Is there anything you think you’ll miss when you start living in the camper?’  It was an interesting question.  I have been very focused on giving up time with the grandkids and kids 4-5 months a year and the sense of security and normalcy that comes with owning a brick and mortar home but I hadn’t given much thought to the everyday material things that I may miss.  After thinking about it and living in the camper now for nearly 4 months I came up with a short list of small but important things that I think I will always miss. I’ll give it a year and see if I get used to not having these things.

1. Multi-ply toilet paper. I know it seems weird but we are as Americans very spoiled with the small comfort products. Yes, Scott single ply gets the job done, but the truth is, the quilted, soft, and poufy brands are much more pleasant to use.


2. Garbage Disposal. Everyone asks if I miss having a dishwasher. Not really, there are only two of us. We eat a lot differently and lighter now that we are retired and no longer work 9 hour days. Besides, I need things to fill my time and I don’t mind doing dishes by hand, never have.  However, I really miss having a garbage disposal to chuck the scraps down. It’s not so much the convenience of getting rid of it easily, it is the smell of having the food scraps in the trash.  I’ve look at composing buckets but I don’t have as much need for compost as I used to and counter space is premium real estate. So far, the solution is to simply take the trash out every evening. It kills me to put a ½ full bag in the dumpster.  Of all the things, I’ll miss I think this will be the hardest to give up.


3. Unlimited Wi-Fi at home. Streaming TV and news and all the other things I have become accustomed to doing with little thought about how much data is transferring or bandwidth, has proven to be something tough to give up.  The irony is, the more remote and wild the area, the happier I am. These places are also the hardest to get a reliable signal.  Many of the places we have stayed so far offer ‘free’ Wi-Fi. The hitch is they limit bandwidth, monitor usage and aren’t secure. We are headed to a wild life refuge in the next few days and the cell phone signal there is spotty, so even my hot spot will be temperamental.  It is also a challenge to be mindful about whether I’m using my hot spot (secure) or the free service in my area (not secure).  I caught myself logging into a credit card account to pay the bill the other day, using the free unsecure Wi-Fi. Luckily, I caught myself and immediately logged out, got on my hot spot, and changed the password to the site. When I want to Skype with my kids I may or may not be able to do it from my camper..  In an ever more electronic world Wi-Fi will continue to be a challenge for those living the full-time RV lifestyle.


4. Letting the cats out to run. Let’s face it, they miss it more than I do.  Our cats have spent their entire lives, free to roam about and come and go through the door at will.  Putting them on a collar and line in our campsite is proving to be tough for all of us.  I would love nothing more than to let them run free, but that isn’t possible any longer.  It breaks my heart while I simultaneously fall over laughing when one of them launches after a bird or squirrel only to be reminded that they can only travel about 20 feet before reaching the end of their line. I wonder everyday if they hate us for bringing them along; then in the evening they snuggle up on our laps and watch TV with us and I know they are adjusting along with us.


5. Whirlpool tub and 50-gallon water heater. We are both primarily shower takers but occasionally a hot soak is nice.  There will be no whirlpool soaks unless we go to a nice hotel. What we miss more than that though, is hot water capacity.  Full hook ups allow one to let the shower run as long as one wants but even that is limited by the capacity of the water heater.  A nice hot shower can end abruptly in this lifestyle.  I think I will always miss my whirlpool tub and a water heater larger than 12 gallons from time to time.

I’ll give it a year and put a note on my publishing calendar to revisit this next December.  It will be interesting to see if we become accustomed to living without these things, or maybe some other items will become more desirable than these 5 as we adapt to our new lifestyle.

If you are a full time RV’er reading this let me know, what do you miss?