I finally began my RV inventory list.

I knew that this would be an excruciatingly anal process because absolutely everything needs to be accounted for, from me to the lowliest paper clip, because I’ll have no carrying capacity to play with.

In order to do so, I turned to my favourite electronic tool, Excel. I made tabs for all the areas in the RV.

Living room is the the room where I’ll live; surfing the web, watching a DVD, or reading a book. Dining room is where the dinette is located and refers to the overhead storage in that area. Basement is the bays under the RV. No matter what RV I get, these areas will exist in it, albeit in different forms and locations.

The ‘total’ worksheet is a grand total of the totals from all the other sheets.

The ‘extra’ worksheet is for the stuff I feel guilty about not taking or that have sentimental value but no practical value or that I’d miss terribly. In this, I’m putting a lot of the recent kitchen stuff my mothers gave me as well, toys handcrafted just for me by my late uncle, and just about the entirety of my kitchen. It’s the worksheet for all the things I’d like to bring should I end up having extra carrying capacity (ha ha ha).

Finally, the ‘give’ worksheet is for keeping track of what I need to get rid of and who has dibs on these items.

This is proving to be extremely illuminating… and terrifying. The only amounts I have so far are for a few items in the living room and basement… and I’m already at 269lbs. That’s more than a third of the lowest number I calculated for the class C I’m eying and doesn’t include additional batteries, solar panels, or a satellite dish. It does, however, include at least part of a trailer hitch as well as a generator.

What amazes me as I go through my house is just how much stuff I have that doesn’t really have a purpose; how much is there ‘in case I ever need it.’ Sometimes, I have wound up needing it, but, in a lot of cases, I’ve just been dragging it around for a decade. This RV plan is going to force me to really identify what’s important and needs to come, eliminating a lot of what I call the ‘flotsam and jetsam’ of a life. That said, I’ve budgeted for one crate of ‘miscellaneous junk.’ 🙂

What I’ve envisioned doing at the end of the summer is to hold a giant sale during which I would invite people to just walk through my home and offer me whatever they thing is fair for anything that strikes their fancy. I would have, by this point, transferred the stuff I definitely want to bring into the RV and given away furniture and sundries to family and friends. I’d hold that over a day and the following week hold a ‘just come and take it’ event for anything left over. After that, I’m pretty sure that anything left would be trash. It’s unbelievably difficult to get rid of things that aren’t trash, don’t have monetary value, and aren’t of interest to charity shops.

I continue to be amazed and astounding that this is where my Path has taken me. So much of the past few years make sense to me now.

The more I look at buses and class As for sale, the more I ache for a Class C model. Even though they are smaller (although some do go up to 30′), the ones with a rear bedroom layout are much better suited to my lifestyle. I could sleep in the cab-over bunk and dedicate the bedroom to being my study. With the buses and class As, there would be a huge chunk of living space that I wouldn’t use much. I mean, how often do you go into your bedroom for the day if it’s a place dedicated to sleeping?

Some people do full-time in class Cs, but weight and towing capability is such an issue. I did get wind of diesel Cs and that’s what I’m investigating now. I could probably get a nearly new class C diesel for the price I’m willing to pay for a very used A or bus.

A friend offered me a corner of her basement for storage if I want it and I’m beginning to think that I’d be best to take her up on her offer. What I’d have to store is going to sound silly since it’s made up of items one would not associate with sentimentality: dishes, mixing bowls, serving utensils, and the like. These are items that have been passed down through several generations on both sides of my family and are not replaceable. Whether I got a C or an A (or a bus), I’d still have to divest myself of these items. So…

Going through the house, I see so much that I use daily or that I would use daily that I’m not sure would fit in a light A, much less a class C–tools, the iMac, the laser printer, the artwork, the two cases of DVDs… I know it’s just ‘stuff’, but it’s the 20% of my life that means something to me, that is me, that I am not willing to give up.

The coach isn’t a definite ‘no’, but it certainly doesn’t scream ‘buy me, buy me!’ It’s filthy, the carpet needs to go, and the wallpaper is peeling. Otherwise, it seems in fine shape. The single pane windows are the biggest issue I saw. I got some data about the weight, but I’m not sure how much use it will be without having an actual weight for the empty vehicle.

The owner actually let me take it out for a test drive. He was fantastic, giving me little hints and showing complete trust in my potential to drive a 40′ behemoth.

The end result was that I came out looking like a natural!

He took me to a fairly empty industrial area where I was able to practise both left and right hand turns, as well as reversing. Not even ten minutes into the test drive, I found myself facing a right hand turn with lots of traffic coming from the left, with no stop sign on their side. I assessed the various windows of space between the cars and smoothly and confidently turned onto the busy street, accelerating quickly enough that the car behind me didn’t even need to slow down. I’m not ready to face Montreal traffic, but I’m not scared anymore. I can drive a 40′ RV.

Now, I just need to know if I can drive a 40′ RV with a toad. 😀

At any rate, upward and onward. I have a few more candidates to assess!

I’m going to view the coach tonight. Can’t wait. There would be exclamation points if it weren’t for the fact that I’m under the weather and bone tired. 😀

My only real concern with this coach is carrying capacity; ie. how much stuff I can pile into it once it’s loaded with gas, propane, and water. This issue, more than anything else, is going to be the deal breaker or maker for me.

I toured a family friend’s 30 footer this weekend, which convinced me that I want at least 35 feet and that I’m really not nuts about the pass-through bathrooms.

I’ve decided to apply for ‘proper’ RV financing as this could end up opening up extra options for me. I’m not looking to get the maximum amount of RV a lender is willing to give me, but rather to make sure I don’t pass a great deal because I’m 5K short on cash.

Later this week, once I’ve had time to gather my thoughts about the Tiffin and calculate its carrying capacity, I’ll contact two other sellers about their coaches, one a bus, the other a diesel pusher.

The fact that the Tiffin I’m seeing tonight is not a DP really bugs me, although knowing the carrying capacity might assuage some of these misgivings. I have to say that the Tiffin has been the only RV I’ve seen so far with a floor plan I can immediately recognize as being suitable for full-timing. Hopefully, its carrying capacity will be equal to its fantastic layout.

Yup, the guy wants to sell. He emailed me earlier to say that if I’m still interested in the coach on Monday he’ll take it in for a QC inspection and not to worry myself about getting any information on that. Since the inspection results in paperwork he’ll need to hand me, I am comfortable with pawing off this task on him. He’s going to cry when I make my offer, but I won’t be surprised if he comes crawling back to me in a month or two begging to sell. In the meantime, I’d keep looking for something else. Anyway, I need to keep taking this one step at a time. Soon as I saw the cost for a satellite system and the work involved in setting up solar panel, I realised that I need to slow down and breathe, LOL!!!

While I’m telling people that I’m hitting the road for a year, I know that’s not true. I’m aiming for this change to be a permanent one. My biggest goal for the year is to prove to myself that I can make a very good and reliable living without having to rely on an 8-4 job. So, I want to find a good balance between taking time for my (currently shamefully neglected) online business and outside work.

I’ve always wanted to learn self-sufficiency of the off-grid kind. How often have I said that I dream of a home that’s off the grid? I want to be able to ‘boondock’ for weeks at a time so I don’t have to rely on pricey parks with hookups. My goal for my trek to BC is to only pay for accommodations once per week, and only if needed to recharge my batteries and/or empty and fill tanks. If I do this, then my only major expense for the trek will be gas. I can already see myself outside the big store with the red, white, and blue sign going “Home, sweet Wal-mart.” *ggl*

Life is a marvelous thing, is it not?