Today is the official 365th day of being on the road. It's crazy to think about all we have done in the last 365 days, and even crazier that we haven't nearly done everything we set out to do. Day 1 is still fresh in my head with a horrible motel, Shakira needing work done and us staying in a hotel for the first three nights of our adventure. The highlights are probably an epic ski season with Dad and Dana joining us, outdoor rock climbing, Alanna playing Roller Derby, a fun vacation with Aunt Mary, and much more. What haven't we done? A LOT! What have we learned? Even more! First, a quick recap of July.
Alanna was still in Buffalo until July 12. She went to the Ed Sheeran concert with her friend in PA, hung out with her aunt for the 4th of July, went to Darien Lake, and saw her sisters. Alexis and Ariana visited Buffalo for a few days while Alanna was still there. It really made her happy! Then she came back, and that made us really happy! On the drive home Alanna said, "Oh I've missed the mountains". I can't blame her; they are breathtaking from afar and up close. Since Alanna has been home we have hung out with Titi Dana (duh), and just been chilling. Alanna went to work with Brandon one day for zipline adventures. She rode out with him on the motorcycle, and after ziplining she hung out with puppies! This kid has a rough life. We also went to the beach in the park with a couple of Dana's friends. My cousin came out with her son for a beach day, too. We had fun splashing, playing in the sand, and hanging out.
Alanna and I went skating today in the park. We started uphill skating, then had fun going downhill on the way back. Alanna has also been practicing driving. Seeing how we are no longer spoiled by garbage pickup we have to take our garbage to the dumpsters. The employee loop doesn't have any dumpsters, so we drive over to other loops that have them. She has been doing really well driving, and even drove a standard in a parking lot!
The wildlife has been quiet around here with the heat. We did finally see a Doe and her Fawn. Bruce was outside sunning himself when they walked right past him. Bruce just laid there like it was normal. Bruce has also aged quite a bit. His autoimmune disease is taking a toll on his body. He still plays and turns into a puppy, but it is short spurts. This is the first animal that we are watching turn grey and old as a family. Who knows how long he has left. As long as he is not in pain, we are rallying to keep him around as long as possible. He's a cute grandpa old pup still full of love and cuddles. He is still well enough to jump up on the bed and take Brandon's spot if Brandon doesn't come to bed quick enough, so I think we have some time!
Adventure wise it has been quiet around here. I did meet Dana for a hike that was about 1.2 miles with an elevation increase of 1000+ feet (essentially straight up). It was NOT easy, but I did it. I knew Dana could do it, I'm the wild card. Will Andrea make it? Will she log roll down? Will there be snacks at the top? All valid questions while hiking with me! I did in fact make it, and there were snacks at the top! We even opted for the long way down, which Dana said always feels longer than she remembers, and I experienced why! It was a great hike; you just wouldn't have guessed it from my commentary on the way up. There was this big Vulture on the power tower, and I could feel him eyeing me up and down. If I kicked the bucket him and his friends and family would have a nice buffet! It didn't happen though! Not that day!
We have had some crazy skies in July. Between 3pm and 5 pm daily there is a small rainstorm, then it clears up. It's reminding me of what it was like living in South Floriday. I swear, the same thing happened daily there!
The colors the sky is providing along with the mountain backgrounds is just breathtaking. Pictures don't do it justice!
What has changed in the past year? A lot, and nothing all at the same time. There have been many epiphanies reveling things that were always there, just ignored. If our pandemic lockdown and mandates have taught me anything it is that you cannot put trust in the government. There are all these departments set up to tell us what is good, right, and healthy. This past year has been one of research for me. I always knew big pharma is nothing but a money-making scam; it's not about making people healthy because healthy people don't make big pharma money. I've been on a natural, holistic, toxin free journey. Once you start looking into what is actually in products that are deemed "safe" by the FDA, you realize they are anything but. Products jam packed with carcinogens, dyes, preservatives, unnecessary toxins when there are natural options. I have also been researching natural remedies for healing yourself. A couple products that have become a staple in my house is Castor oil, Oil of Oregano, and Cayenne Pepper. I could probably go on and on about it, but I won't. It has truly been eye opening going down the holistic rabbit hole.
Another aspect of what has changed or been revealed is people. You see or hear a lot of people talking about "if he wanted to, he would" in regard to men dating women. The same goes for friendships and families. If people wanted to visit us, they would. We have been to some pretty awesome places where it would be fairly economical for others to see the area by staying with us. Few have taken us up on that offer. We have heard many excuses like "flights are expensive"; yet those same people are spending money on random things. Our mindset has always been more focused on experiences than materialistic things, and it will continue to be. Those of you that have visited us, we loved every minute of it! Those that keep making excuses as to why they can't, your window of opportunity is closing.
Brandon and I are "yes" people. Need help? Yes, we are there. What to go do something? Yes, we are there. Can you? Yes, we can. I would have to say 99% of the time we are there to do whatever it is, for whoever it is. This last year of being there for us has been a new experience for us. We have taken better care of ourselves, physically and mentally. We are eating whole foods (mostly, it's hard), working out 5-6 days a week, talking to each other (Alanna as well), and all around living fairly stress free. We do have some stressors, but they are far and few between. Our major stressors are maintaining the RV and vehicles, which always leads to spending more money than we want to.
Has this been less expensive than living in a stick-n-brick house? I would say no. Not for us, at least. We did go down a full-time steady salary when we left Buffalo. Brandon is working, but there has been time off between seasons and moving (which is why we have stayed stationary from January to May, then moved and will be stationary until October). We bought Alexis a car ($), the van ($), van repairs ($), truck repairs ($), RV repairs ($), etc. However, I wouldn't change it for the world! My thought was we were going to save money, stack it up, and when we come back to Buffalo have that money for a downpayment on a house. The way the economy is going I don't think we will ever be able to afford another house (ok, that's a bit dramatic). It's just money, we will always make more. We are doing well; we are fortunate that we can pay for all of these unexpected expenses, and we are doing it while still having our experiences.
We are planning on heading back to the Northeast at the end of June, after Alexis' graduation. Alanna would like to go to High School back in Buffalo, so we are going to do that for her. If it were just Brandon and me, we would probably never set roots down anywhere again. We haven't even scratched the surface of places we want to see. We have the next 10 months roughly planned out. After Colorado we are going to go to Arizona to see the Grand Canyon and (hopefully) Waves. We applied for a permit for waves and will find out if we got any of our dates. We are due in Utah from November 4th until April 19th. After that we are going to take about four weeks to make it down to Florida for Alexis' graduation! Then, head back up to park the RV for some time. 10 months of adventures left (for now!). Hopefully in August Brandon and I will start climbing on Sundays, maybe Alanna will even want to join us! We also have a couple visitors coming out in August, and maybe some more in September and October.
Things we have learned:
- If they wanted to, they would.
- This isn't less expensive; it's just spending differently.
- Adventure over materialistic things.
- Life doesn't have to be that stressful. You literally have control over that.
- Laying in a hammock is where it's at!
Much Love and Happy Times,
The Blackshires
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