That's IT!

Two weeks ago, everything I owned fit into my van. Now I have an apartment full of furniture. Granted, I haven't spent a lot of money, but it all came together rather easily and quickly. The next door neighbor moved out and left me her ugly floral sofa and loveseat, and a large television, old style. Great location...she even helped me move it into my living room. So I ditched the ghetto sofa, and left it on the curb for the Salvation Army. I picked up the coffee table a few nights ago for $15. Solid wood, and huge. I love it. I also picked up the dresser/tv stand a few days back too, free, curbside after a tip was phoned in, ha ha. I painted it deep pink, ran out of paint, will finish another day. Now THAT IS IT. I don't want any more furniture. It will start to look like my mother's if I try to squeeze anything else in here.

I am enjoying life outside the van. I no longer have to go to another building to use the bathroom. There is very little traffic on my street, and my bedroom is set way back from the street. One of the things I hated most about the RV parks was the huge pick-up trucks people rumbled through the parks with day and night, and had them idling while they tried painfully to park their beast. The bathroom is much appreciated. Most of the private park bathrooms, particularly in the states were hideously filthy and run down, if they worked at all. The state parks were in better condition, but their campgrounds also did not have power, which I needed, so I stayed mostly in RV parks. I'm finding it much warmer in the apartment though, to sleep. It always cooled off quite nicely in the van, but my apartment holds more heat I reckon. I have the bedroom window open all the time, but can't leave the living room window open - it's ground floor with no fixed screen, just a slider I put in to keep the bugs out.

Aside from the bathroom joys, I am also enjoying cooking in my own kitchen again. I could cook in my friend's kitchens along the way, but to be honest, there's nothing like your own kitchen, your own space, and cleaning things up at your own pace. My new kitchen is so small, I can usually reach everything from one spot, ha ha.

I really enjoy being able to jump in the van and take off at a moment's notice, without having to dread packing up the camper and then later unpacking again when I parked for the night. I do try to walk somewhere every day, but when errands come up that are too far to walk, or involve carrying very heavy things such as furniture, I take Karma out. Sometimes I forget how much she stands out. People talk to me every single time I take Karma out. Today I was stopped in traffic when a couple of guys in a pick-up truck stopped next to me in the turn lane. One guy was half hanging out of the truck window, commenting on the van and informing me he was really drunk...it was 12:30pm. I still get lots of thumbs up, peace signs, honks, remarks, whistles, hoots, you name it. Karma soaks it all up...go Karma