Ramblin’ Road: Rainy days and Mondays in a camper

by Phyllis McCrossin

Yesterday was the two-week mark for being back in Michigan. I’m guessing that means we made the cross-country trip from California unscathed. King and I subscribe to the “this is real and this is dangerous” line of thought when it comes to COVID-19, so two weeks is presumably the safety zone.

When David Young and I discussed my writing a weekly column I told him I would keep politics to a minimum. But it is rather difficult to talk about daily life without mentioning social distancing and face masks. It’s a change for everyone. Mostly

While face masks are obviously not within our normal purview, social distancing is something King and I have been practicing for years.

We have never been social creatures. While I truly enjoy going out to lunch or dinner – it’s mostly because I’m tired of cooking — King does not like going out to eat. At all. Period. The end.

When an anniversary or birthday rolls around, our daughter has to remind King that he should take me out to eat. She used to say, “That doesn’t mean McDonald’s or Burger King. It means a sit-down restaurant.” She now has to add, “It doesn’t mean Big Boy, either. Take her someplace where she can order a Bloody Mary.”

But we don’t have to worry so much about that now. Even with some restaurants opening, I don’t see us going out any time soon.

Now golf… Well, that’s another story. King was quite concerned about being able to hit the links. It looks as though his concern was unwarranted. Courses have opened.

So for us, life has pretty much continued as it was before COVID-19. There are a few changes the observant person might find interesting. Today I had to stand outside the grocery store with other masked strangers and wait my turn to enter. Who would have thought? As I was standing there I had the opportunity to observe people as they left. It would seem “Have a nice day,” has been replaced with “Stay safe.” I rather like that. But again, who would have thought?

And I don’t mean to trivialize the impact the shutdown has had on people. I understand the need to get back to work, the frustration with unemployment applications and the worry of trying to pay bills with no income. Been there.

And life goes on.

Since we got back we’ve been able to visit with our Michigan grandchildren. One son lives in Paw Paw and the other in Grand Haven. We’ve visited both families but remained outside for both visits. I have to add in this instance the social distancing thing does have its advantages. There is no longer that awkward moment when saying hello or goodbye that you have to wonder, “Does this pre-teen really want me hugging him/her?” The more shy grandchildren no longer have to slink out of the room when we say good-bye.

So after the excitement of visiting grandchildren, today was another in a long line of quiet days.

It’s been raining all day and the weather has driven King and I inside. These are the days when one really notices the togetherness of living in 192 square feet. King is lying in the bedroom watching the first season of Yellowstone on DVD. I’m sitting 10 feet away in the dining room – your typical small camper with bench seats and a table between them. I have folded the table down into a bed so I can sit with my feet up.

Cindy, our senior dog, is snoring next to me. Separating the front of the trailer where I’m sitting and the back of the trailer where King is watching TV is the galley on the left and the bathroom on the right. That’s it. That’s our house. It’s not for everyone.

Even the best of friends don’t always like one another 24 hours a day. We simply make it work because if it doesn’t, friends and family can say, “See I told you living in a travel trailer was a dumb idea.”

While there are those who shake their heads and make disparaging remarks under their breath, there are others who often tell me, “I’ve always wanted to live in a trailer and just travel. It sounds like so much fun.”

Yes, we ARE having fun. But it’s not as if you can just sell off all your possessions, hook up the trailer and go. There is a lot of behind the scenes planning. Things like auto insurance, health insurance, mailing addresses, annual physicals, emergency dental visits, or even just carrying around an extra prescription for glasses (in case you accidently drive over your only pair because you left them on the tailgate while hooking up the trailer in the rain).

There is a learning curve for shopping when your refrigerator is not much bigger than a dorm refrigerator and your cupboard is 24 x 24 (inches). And probably one of the biggest learning curves is learning to ignore snarky comments; learning to say snarky comments quietly enough so your deaf partner can’t hear you and learning to point your head in the other directions when saying quiet, snarky comments just in case your partner can see your lips moving – it’s an exhaustive list.

It mostly works for us.