Our full time life so far

[dvfreelancer]

Hard to believe it was only January when we started thinking about full timing. When we started we had a house, two small cars, and an old Class C that was way too small for anything but overnight trips and too expensive to drive for those.

And here we are. Sold the house, traded the cars for an F-350 and the Class C for a Heartland Big Horn and still full time for five months already.

It was a little rocky at first. We were doing a lot of traveling and, in a 5th wheel, that gets to be a bit stressful. We call our camper The Whale and it's a chore to haul that beast around.

Tried work-camping in the Florida park system, but that was not a good experience. The park we were at was disorganized, the campground was old, cramped and run down. And the staff didn't really value their volunteers. We were frequently lumped in with the people working off their community service time. The cherry on top was a mandatory evacuation for a tropical depression that came in the middle of the storm. Throwing us out of the park in the middle of a storm with 30 minutes notice. We didn't go back.

Instead we landed in a nice commercial RV resort in central FL and just decided to winter here. Then I got a job, so now it looks like we may be here a while.

Once we got settled I started work on the documentary. Here are some clips from the test shots I ran last week:

http://www.dangercollie.com/interviewTest/interview_test.html<a name="video test"></a></p>

My video buddies have given me suggestions for getting the video and audio up to commercial standards and the real shooting starts this week. </p>

What we discovered is once you find the right park with the right people, RV living rocks. It suits us very well. There are adjustments but, overall, quite manageable. When my coworkers complain about doing yard work all weekend I can tell them about splashing around in the pool, playing cards, and having a cookout with the neighbors. </p>

We may yet build our off-grid concrete dome dream house, but we're not in any hurry. This lifestyle is low maintenance. Our RV gets dirty fast but it's easy to keep a small space clean. There are things to think about like UV treatments for the roof, buffing out water and black marks and maintenance, but it's a lot less work than a house. Things are going to break, it's inevitable. We put a new converter in this one already. But, like I said, manageable. My mobile repair guy is a fellow firefighter and good buddy. Relationships like that help a lot. </p>

Few of the bad things I was worried about developed. You get bad neighbors once in a while, but they are usually weeded out pretty fast. This park is gated, plus we all look out for one another. The wife feels perfectly comfortable here alone.
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I think in many ways, RV living may be the housing of the future. The housing market may be in the toilet many more years and may never be like it was. This is just so much easier and less stress. And liberating in many ways. If the neighborhood goes downhill, if the park gets sold to new owners we don't like, we can be on our way in a couple hours. It's really quite nice. </p>

If you're a full timer in FL and want to be considered for the documentary, just drop me a PM here or chris (at) dangercollie (dot) com.
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[try2findus]

dvfreelancer, It sounds as though y'all have been busy over the past 5 months and enjoying every minute of it! Sorry for your experience in your first workamping gig but the bad ones must really make you appreciate the good ones.

Randy and I were really anxious to hit the road full-time but changes in circumstances may delay that move longer than we had anticipated. Good luck on your video. I liked it. Be sure to post a link for us all to enjoy once it is completed and thanks for your travel updates. We all enjoy hearing about your adventures!

[C Nash]

Chris, Great to hear that ya'll are enjoying the rv lifestyle. We also did the workcamping and did enjoy it but we just did not want to be tied down. Great to be able to just move if the neighbor bugs you. Leave if the grass needs mowing. Park near the sites you want to see. Keep us posted on your adventures and thanks.

[anamarie]

This is just what im looking for, since i am considering full-time in the future, and workcamping is such a GReat idea, i love the idea of working different jobs,meeting different people.
I do have one concern with this, since i am a single woman (not really worried bout self-defense, security matters,
got some good street sense, and an 'equalizer at the ready).
But... i cant help but wonder... Are single women 'looked down upon by others?
Is there any prejudice?
Its not that i would let this deter me... i would just like to know... what i may be headed into...
So that i can steer away from potential pitfalls. Has anyone noticed this type of situation in thier travels?

I am not planning this venture for another year (aprox)... but... i can hear my mothers voice and all of her forebearings,etc ... Even tho she knows that i am a very strong woman (And yes, i am a grown woman,
but ya know how a mother can be... God luv her) ... I would like to be able to re-assure her if possible, when the time comes. Sure would appreciate any and all feed-back (good,bad,ugly) so i can better prepare myself. Thanks Much!

[TexasClodhopper]

Workcamping is not for everyone. There are downsides. You might agree to a job 2000 miles away, get there and the owners have canceled the job. Mostly, my research (several years old) found that most complaints about workcamping revolved around the competition between workers and complaints about supervisors.

There's an organization for workcampers called: workamper.com

[anamarie]

I cant get the video link to work... for dangercollie...any tips?

[TexasClodhopper]

Try this: http://www.dangercollie.com/

[anamarie]

Try this: http://www.dangercollie.com/

Thanks for the link I clicked around that page... couldnt find anything related to the above post (dvfreelancer)... I dont know if it is still there? Or if im not doing something correctly... the page shows a picture of a collie, with video links on the side... i cant see a search box anywhere? I kinda feel like it might be 'right in front of my face... but im not seeing it

[anamarie]

Workcamping is not for everyone. There are downsides. You might agree to a job 2000 miles away, get there and the owners have canceled the job. Mostly, my research (several years old) found that most complaints about workcamping revolved around the competition between workers and complaints about supervisors.

There's an organization for workcampers called: workamper.com

I forgot to say thank you... for the link for workamper... havent had time to check it out yet... but did save it as a favorite