Class of 2017

[IdeLVice]

Checking back in. I love reading all the prepping stories. They give me a sense of comradery and knowing lots of other folks have gone, or are going thru the "stuff" gauntlet. I did a pretty easy one this past weekend. I took all the DVDs out of the entertainment center storage cabinet, put all the regular movies in a CD/DVD zippered binder and threw away nearly 200 empty cases. Had I realized how much space this saved, I may have done it years ago! All those movies in one little binder. And all alphabetized besides! LOL. I ran into movies I forgot I had.

Sunday I started the process of scanning all non-essential documents into our Neat Scanner, and shredding the originals. Got thru three banker boxes of docs from the garage, which is starting to look emptier than it ever has. I've also been telling the kids (adults) that when they come for Christmas this year, they can all pick what decorations they want and when I box the holiday stuff to put away, I will have boxes to drop off or mail in January and no longer store in the basement. Now they are all fighting over the gingerbread house cookie jar. LOL. Wish I could get into their heads to see just what their memories are linked to sometimes.

 

Leslie

[IdeLVice]

Tumbleweed, I just saw your sad post re: your damaged RV. It has to be painful. I hope everything is going to be OK very soon; and all best wishes on a good outcome.

[jamtracy]

BoohHauler Wecome aboard the class of 2017. I like your plans. I hope it all works out. We just got back from another 3 day trip and each and every time it's harder and harder to go back to work. LOL.

 

James

[Tumbleweed]

Idle Vice:

 

There is always a silver lining. The trailer is being repaired. We are also making upgrades.

 

The window to the right of our door was a fixed picture window. It was blown out. We are replacing it with a opening window.

 

I am also adding a satellite radio antenna and cellular boost antenna to the roof. I am planning on changing from 30 amp to 50 amp service and adding a second air conditioner.

 

It will come back a better trailer than we had. However, we probably won't get it back until the end of the season.

 

Wow - scanning three banker boxes in a weekend. You have been busy.

 

Dave

[BoonHauler]

BoohHauler Wecome aboard the class of 2017. I like your plans. I hope it all works out. We just got back from another 3 day trip and each and every time it's harder and harder to go back to work. LOL.

 

James

James:

 

Thank you for welcoming me aboard, that's very kind of you. Yes I hope it all works out as well too. I have to admit at this point in time my whole life is focused on retirement and getting checked out. It's something that consumes 95%, maybe more, of my time. Too say 'I'm on a mission' is putting it lightly.

 

You guys are very lucky, you get to sneak away every now and then (I'm guessing). I'm just suck here in the norcal rat race..... =(

 

So when is your ship sailing?

 

Cee

[Second_Star]

I took all the DVDs out of the entertainment center storage cabinet, put all the regular movies in a CD/DVD zippered binder and threw away nearly 200 empty cases. Had I realized how much space this saved, I may have done it years ago! All those movies in one little binder.

 

Might give some thought to ripping all those movies onto an external hardrive. I've ripped my entire DVD/CD/VHS all to a 2Tb USB drive. I've now got ~40-50 movies and about 4000 songs all on a hard drive about the size of deck of cards. Now when I buy music, I just download it straight to the drive.

 

All those DVDs, CDs, got given to family members and the VHS tapes went into the trash. I'd like to see if I can download audio books to it also, then I could essentially have all my media on one drive. Yes, I back it up every so often.

 

Now I can use my laptop to play the music onto bluetooth and into a cordless bluetooth speaker that I can move wherever I want.

[BoonHauler]

 

Might give some thought to ripping all those movies onto an external hardrive. I've ripped my entire DVD/CD/VHS all to a 2Tb USB drive. I've now got ~40-50 movies and about 4000 songs all on a hard drive about the size of deck of cards. Now when I buy music, I just download it straight to the drive.

 

All those DVDs, CDs, got given to family members and the VHS tapes went into the trash. I'd like to see if I can download audio books to it also, then I could essentially have all my media on one drive. Yes, I back it up every so often.

 

Now I can use my laptop to play the music onto bluetooth and into a cordless bluetooth speaker that I can move wherever I want.

 

X2

 

I've done the same thing. I think I easily have over 200 DVD's ripped to a 2TB drive and I've only use 3/4's of the drive space.

[jamtracy]

James:

 

Thank you for welcoming me aboard, that's very kind of you. Yes I hope it all works out as well too. I have to admit at this point in time my whole life is focused on retirement and getting checked out. It's something that consumes 95%, maybe more, of my time. Too say 'I'm on a mission' is putting it lightly.

 

You guys are very lucky, you get to sneak away every now and then (I'm guessing). I'm just suck here in the norcal rat race..... =(

 

So when is your ship sailing?

 

Cee

Hello Cee,

I'm in the Norcal rat race to. I live in dublin. I'm a retail store manager but I get out as much as I can.

 

James

[BoonHauler]

Hello Cee,

I'm in the Norcal rat race to. I live in dublin. I'm a retail store manager but I get out as much as I can.

 

James

 

If you don't mind me asking, what's your escape plan? ...... that is if you have one.

 

I see by your sig you're retired Navy, thank you for your service to our great country, it's greatly appreciated.

 

Nice truck you have there .....

[jamtracy]

 

If you don't mind me asking, what's your escape plan? ...... that is if you have one.

 

I see by your sig you're retired Navy, thank you for your service to our great country, it's greatly appreciated.

 

Nice truck you have there .....

Thank you for the kind words. I served proud for our great country and I would do it again.

Thanks for the truck compliments. We love it. We are still working on our escapee plan. I will definitely fill you in.

[IdeLVice]

 

Might give some thought to ripping all those movies onto an external hardrive. I've ripped my entire DVD/CD/VHS all to a 2Tb USB drive. I've now got ~40-50 movies and about 4000 songs all on a hard drive about the size of deck of cards. Now when I buy music, I just download it straight to the drive.

 

All those DVDs, CDs, got given to family members and the VHS tapes went into the trash. I'd like to see if I can download audio books to it also, then I could essentially have all my media on one drive. Yes, I back it up every so often.

 

Now I can use my laptop to play the music onto bluetooth and into a cordless bluetooth speaker that I can move wherever I want.

 

 

Might give some thought to ripping all those movies onto an external hardrive. I've ripped my entire DVD/CD/VHS all to a 2Tb USB drive. I've now got ~40-50 movies and about 4000 songs all on a hard drive about the size of deck of cards. Now when I buy music, I just download it straight to the drive.

 

All those DVDs, CDs, got given to family members and the VHS tapes went into the trash. I'd like to see if I can download audio books to it also, then I could essentially have all my media on one drive. Yes, I back it up every so often.

 

Now I can use my laptop to play the music onto bluetooth and into a cordless bluetooth speaker that I can move wherever I want.

Hmmmm. I'm not that advanced in my media storage yet, But would certainly consider looking into it. My question is how to you set it up, or probably more correctly, what software do you use, to quickly get the exact movie or song you are looking for ?

[IdeLVice]

 

 

The window to the right of our door was a fixed picture window. It was blown out. We are replacing it with a opening window.I am also adding a satellite radio antenna and cellular boost antenna to the roof. I am planning on changing from 30 amp to 50 amp service and adding a second air conditioner.

 

It will come back a better trailer than we had. However, we probably won't get it back until the end of the season.

 

 

 

 

So glad to hear things are working out. I am jealous of the new antennas (antenni ?) I am working on trying to get something better for us in the wifi antenna arena. DH needs it for on-call work sometimes when we're out. But on not getting back until the season's over, with the heat, humidity, and humming bird sized mosquitoes around here, our real season doesn't start until September or October. I do hope all goes very well and quickly, and that you are really happy with all your cool new upgrades. Leslie

[IdeLVice]

I just don't have this "quote" thing down yet. * Sigh *

[smb_adventure]

Hi Everyone!

 

New member here. DH and I will hit the road in August 2017 - first stop Borah Peak Idaho (or thereabouts) to catch the total solar eclipse on Aug 21, 2017. After that we'll spend the next 2 years boondocking through NFS, BLM, and USACE/COE land with occasional front country stops for groceries, laundry, Starbucks... and of course preventive medical appointments.

 

We bought our Sportsmobile earlier this year and have already run a couple of shakedown trips--so glad we did! We uncovered a few fairly significant "improvement opportunities" that we're VERY glad to catch at this stage while still straightforward to remedy. Over the next 2 years we will add solar and continue to tweak our interior organization system, but overall the rig is coming together nicely.

 

At launch date DH will be 57 and I'll be 51. At this point we're not totally sure whether we will return to Silicon Valley after our journey or completely relocate (or go fulltime longer!), so we'll hang onto our condo during the trip and rent it out. Between the rental income and DH pension (with cola), we should be able to live comfortably and tap only a little cash without touching actual retirement funds.

 

I might be over-stressing here, but one of my biggest concerns is actually jury duty. We live in a downtown area with a fair amount of crime, so courts are ALWAYS full and one of us gets summoned for jury duty pretty much every year. I will try calling the court to see if there's any way to get a pass for those two years, but everything I've read so far says they're pretty inflexible. I've considered the TX/FL domicile route, but since we might actually return in 2020 it doesn't seem like the right time for that.

 

The other issue is my 80 yo DM. She's in good health now and GM lived to 95, but you never know... however I'll save that whole topic for another post

 

Anyway glad to be here--go class of 2017!!

[Second_Star]

Welcome!!

 

Always glad to see a new face doing the planning and getting ready like the rest of us. Although it sounds like you folks have got it planned pretty well already.

 

For the jury duty, I would contact the court clerks office and explain to them the situation and see what they say. They probably have faced someone being out of town long term and have some way of either deferring or getting removed from the list altogether.

 

For the parents getting on up there, I'm in the same boat. My mom lives alone (her insistence) and I'm concerned that I'll get 'that phone call' someday while on the road. Wish I had a really good answer for you but everyone's situation is different. My particular answer will be to keep a small condominium near her place that I can close up long term, but still be able to open up and make live-able in a day.

 

So welcome to the Class of 2017! We're growing bigger as the jump-off gets closer!

[NJTroy]

Welcome to the Class of 2017!

 

It sounds like you are making excellent progress on the planning front! People have looked at me funny when I said we were prepping for leaving in 2017, but there is a great advantage to planning this far out for such a major life change.

 

On the parents front, we have way more experience than I would wish. My DH & I were primarily responsible for both my parents over the last couple years of their life. They had complications on almost every front, medical, financial and legal. If anyone has any specific questions, I am more than happy to share my experience.

 

I was going to put some information here about managing the elderly parent concerns, but decided it was too long and really was worth starting a separate thread about.

[smb_adventure]

Thanks for the warm welcome!

 

Second_Star: Thanks for the suggestion re jury duty - I plan to call the court on Friday and will report back what I learn.

 

NJTroy: So sorry to hear you've been through the mill on the parent front... seems like a really important thread to start in whatever part of the site makes sense. I'm certain MANY others are facing parent challenges and it would be great to learn from everyone.

[BoonHauler]

Welcome aboard Mates ......

 

WOW, the solar eclipse is news to me, Thanks for the heads up on that one!!

 

Boy, the Bay Area is really getting on my nerves! I'll bet by 2019 things will really suck around here .....

[HSVBamaBob]

Checking back in. I love reading all the prepping stories. They give me a sense of comradery and knowing lots of other folks have gone, or are going thru the "stuff" gauntlet. I did a pretty easy one this past weekend. I took all the DVDs out of the entertainment center storage cabinet, put all the regular movies in a CD/DVD zippered binder and threw away nearly 200 empty cases. Had I realized how much space this saved, I may have done it years ago! All those movies in one little binder. And all alphabetized besides! LOL. I ran into movies I forgot I had.

Sunday I started the process of scanning all non-essential documents into our Neat Scanner, and shredding the originals. Got thru three banker boxes of docs from the garage, which is starting to look emptier than it ever has. I've also been telling the kids (adults) that when they come for Christmas this year, they can all pick what decorations they want and when I box the holiday stuff to put away, I will have boxes to drop off or mail in January and no longer store in the basement. Now they are all fighting over the gingerbread house cookie jar. LOL. Wish I could get into their heads to see just what their memories are linked to sometimes.

 

Leslie

Leslie,

 

Here's a thought - get a DVD Ripping software package (we are on a Mac and iSkySoft iMedia Converter Deluxe is the BEST!) and RIP your DVDs to a Hard Drive - MUCH smaller footprint than a binder with DVDs in it!

[HSVBamaBob]

Hi Everyone!

 

New member here. DH and I will hit the road in August 2017 - first stop Borah Peak Idaho (or thereabouts) to catch the total solar eclipse on Aug 21, 2017. After that we'll spend the next 2 years boondocking through NFS, BLM, and USACE/COE land with occasional front country stops for groceries, laundry, Starbucks... and of course preventive medical appointments.

 

We bought our Sportsmobile earlier this year and have already run a couple of shakedown trips--so glad we did! We uncovered a few fairly significant "improvement opportunities" that we're VERY glad to catch at this stage while still straightforward to remedy. Over the next 2 years we will add solar and continue to tweak our interior organization system, but overall the rig is coming together nicely.

 

At launch date DH will be 57 and I'll be 51. At this point we're not totally sure whether we will return to Silicon Valley after our journey or completely relocate (or go fulltime longer!), so we'll hang onto our condo during the trip and rent it out. Between the rental income and DH pension (with cola), we should be able to live comfortably and tap only a little cash without touching actual retirement funds.

 

I might be over-stressing here, but one of my biggest concerns is actually jury duty. We live in a downtown area with a fair amount of crime, so courts are ALWAYS full and one of us gets summoned for jury duty pretty much every year. I will try calling the court to see if there's any way to get a pass for those two years, but everything I've read so far says they're pretty inflexible. I've considered the TX/FL domicile route, but since we might actually return in 2020 it doesn't seem like the right time for that.

 

The other issue is my 80 yo DM. She's in good health now and GM lived to 95, but you never know... however I'll save that whole topic for another post

 

Anyway glad to be here--go class of 2017!!

Re-think the domicile option - we are doing that (only way DW will let us full-time LOL) Just do it for 5 years and *poof* the Jury Duty goes away

[smb_adventure]

Re-think the domicile option - we are doing that (only way DW will let us full-time LOL) Just do it for 5 years and *poof* the Jury Duty goes away

 

Thanks for the tip! Sounds like we need to keep our options open on this one...

[MilesAndSmiles]

Hi all. We've set a tentative date of September 2017 for retirement at 60/62, and transitioning to full-time RVing. My biggest challenge right now is to live in the present! Headed to the Hershey PA RV show in a few weeks to get some education about what RVs are available and try to figure out what will work best for us. My plan is to start seriously shopping for a used Diesel Class A about this time next year.

 

Looking forward to getting to know you all better!

[HSVBamaBob]

Hi all. We've set a tentative date of September 2017 for retirement at 60/62, and transitioning to full-time RVing. My biggest challenge right now is to live in the present! Headed to the Hershey PA RV show in a few weeks to get some education about what RVs are available and try to figure out what will work best for us. My plan is to start seriously shopping for a used Diesel Class A about this time next year.

 

Looking forward to getting to know you all better!

 

HAHA boy you don't mess around! That's the largest RV Show in the USA! Hope you have multiple days to attend!

 

We thought about a Class A at first but then, as the thought of fulltiming really took hold - for our needs at least - the Class A started looking a little, well, 'cramped'

 

So we started looking at 5th wheels - ahhh bliss! TONS of storage and room. Except...where are we going to put the darn golf bags and bikes? Well, there are all sorts of solutions out there and then we stumbled on the toy hauler class. *Bingo* The "Garage" is perfect for our golf bags, bikes and shoot there is even room for a golf cart if we want one! When you are at a long term camp, move the bikes/ATV/whatever outside and you have an additional 9x14' of living space - which is perfect for my wife. She is a crafter and was wondering where she could set up her sewing machine--if the 6' long table in the garage is not big enough for her, I don't know what would be!

[MilesAndSmiles]

We thought about a Class C at first but then, as the thought of fulltiming really took hold - for our needs at least - the Class A started looking a little, well, 'cramped'

 

 

One factor for us is that I'm somewhat hearing impaired and while hearing aids are great in a quiet environment, they are awful when there's a lot of background noise. That's why we're thinking a Diesel Pusher for the quiet ride so that my wife and I can actually talk with each other on the road.

 

Yep, we've scheduled a couple of days!

[HSVBamaBob]

You guys will have a BLAST at Hershey!

 

Granted I have not ridden in a recent Class A but I recall in 2007 I had a chance to ride with a friend in his Class A. It was summer in New Mexico and he had his generator going so he could run his roof A/Cs - it was pretty noisy! Things may have changed for Class As since then, but I can assure you it is very quiet in our truck cab - even at full load going down the highway. Can't imagine a pickup truck would be noisier that a open air Class A.

 

Hopefully someone on the list will see this post and chime in.