Now that I am officially an unemployed hobo, I was getting the trailer ready to roll towards Georgia. I couldn’t help but think back to when it all began. We were selling everything we owned and moving from a 1500 square foot or so house into a less than 400 square foot RV. We had to be very objective and practical when deciding what to keep. We had to think about whether or not we wanted to put a lot of stuff into one of those big storage units, or if we wanted to just get rid of everything and not look back. For us, the answer was simple. While the things we owned had a lot of sentimental value for us, they certainly weren’t priceless things that couldn’t be replaced.
What was right for us, though, may not be right for everyone. We have met several people along the way who did opt for storing their things with a self storage company, but the things they had were things that they couldn’t replace. They had antiques, grandma’s silverware and china, and large tools they didn’t want to get rid of but certainly wouldn’t fit in their RV.
Now that we are looking at buying another house this winter, we’ll be looking for things to furnish it with. We won’t be buying new stuff for the house, except for a couple of matching recliners and a mattress for the bed. (some things just hafta be new, ya know?) We’ll be going to estate sales, thrift stores, yard sales, and places like that, looking for just the right piece to make our new home livable but recycled. Can’t wait to start looking!
Lori Layne says
October 16, 2011 at 12:47 pmThat sounds like so much fun! I love estate sales! Hope you find a wonderful house and have a blast filling it with goodies!
Fab Grandma says
October 16, 2011 at 1:08 pmI know! I can hardly wait to start!
jeanine peterson says
October 16, 2011 at 1:50 pmSounds so exciting ! We are getting to the stage that we want to sell / store everything and never look back. I have a lot of “keeper of the crap” stuff . Grandmas china , Mom’s china, Aunt Lucy’s China … I’m the “keeper of the crap” I just can’t get rid of it. I wonder how much it would be to store it and go mobile?
http://icoulduseadeal.com/
Jeanine
Fab Grandma says
October 16, 2011 at 2:08 pmEach person has to decide for themselves whether to store or sell. How attached are you to grandma’s china? Could you live with just 2 cups or plates? Or is it more important to you to have it later when you get another place after RVing for a number of years? For us, our stuff was like dime store crap, so it was better for us to sell. But if you have really nice china, and antiques that can’t be replaced, then it would probably be better to store.
Virginia from That Bald Chick says
October 16, 2011 at 1:50 pmI don’t know if I could sell everything. I would probably opt for the storage unit!
Fab Grandma says
October 16, 2011 at 2:09 pmThere were several things I wept over, but in the long run, I have been more than recouped my losses by replacing them with memories of places I’ve been and lived in the last 11.5 years.
Gaelyn says
October 16, 2011 at 2:23 pmYou did it again. 😉 Glad I have a “little storage unit” in Yarnell. You can also shop at storage unit sales.
Colleen Shibley says
October 16, 2011 at 2:50 pmI hope you find some good sales, how adventurous you are. I don’t know if I could ever give up my house and live in an RV but I think the adventure sounds amazing.
Rachel says
October 16, 2011 at 3:30 pmI am sure downsizing like that makes you really look at what is important.
With our upcoming move we may have to do a storage until for awhile.
Bethany Larrabee says
October 16, 2011 at 3:41 pmWe had to put a lot of our stuff in storage when we moved…I just couldn’t part with some things! I hope to be able to get a big house in a year or so so we can have all our things under one roof again.
Susie says
October 16, 2011 at 8:52 pmI take it you didn’t care for living full-time?
Fab Grandma says
October 16, 2011 at 11:29 pmSusie, we love living the fulltime RV life. We have been full timers for more than 11 years. If we didn’t love it, we wouldn’t be out here doing it. It’s just the right time to buy a house because the price of houses in Georgia right now is good and we need a place for when we are too old to do this.
Marilyn Register says
October 16, 2011 at 9:31 pmDrive safe and enjoy the sights on the way east. I finally found your e-mail address and will send you some pictures from Vogel SP. We started back south from Washington DC on 9/25. The plan was to follow the fall color change as it moved south. Well that is what we did.We have lots of pics and mental memories from VA, WV, TN, NC and GA so far. I hear the leaves in Atlanta are just starting to change. Your aspen pictures were beautiful. Maybe there will still be some fall leaves when you get here.
Susan Adcox says
October 17, 2011 at 5:51 pmI guess I missed the announcement, because I didn’t know that you had decided to buy a house. I guess that characterizing yourself as an “unemployed hobo” means that you’re giving up your park work. Well, I’ve loved following you on your adventures, but we all have a little inner clock that tells us when it’s time to make a change!