Uncertainty and satisfaction

Ivan’s uncertain approach, with the latest NOAA projection putting its eye right through the center of Georgia Tuesday night, leaves us wondering where to go next. Back to Florida would put us in harm’s way along with all the people still trying to recover from Frances’ devastation. Staying put for too long could leave us susceptible to hurricane force winds – something I don’t intend to try in a motorhome. We will probably stay until Sunday morning then head west. It’s a wait-and-see game now. We’d rather not venture too far from Florida on the chance Ivan will divert to Mexico or the Atlantic and give Floridians a much needed breather.

Having lived full-time aboard our rolling home for more than a week, I’m very satisfied and pleased with the experience. Even though this rig is 15 years old, the quality is evident as the on-board systems are performing well. I’m learning about the ins and outs of everything and sharing much of it with Gera so she will eventually be able to handle it all herself in case I have a massive fibro flare-up somewhere along the way. Ed is also gaining some good knowledge of the systems and how they are different from a fixed home. This is definitely the right age for him to have this adventure. Any younger he may not have been able to handle some of the responsibilities involved. It’s a challenge for him now but in a healthy and educational way.

Unfortunately, we haven’t spent much time on this trip just enjoying the adventure. While not dealing with the hurricane uncertainties, we’ve been trying to organize the RV and purchase necessary items to make living aboard as comfortable and convenient as possible. In our mad rush to leave we forgot some things we need but there are other things that just don’t translate well from a stationery house to an RV. We’ve bought two vacuum cleaners at the Super Walmart here in Perry. The first one is a compact Eureka that has a folding handle and self-contained storage of its attachments. The second is a one-gallon, 12 volt wet/dry vac. We have full size equivalents of both at home but they are just too unwieldy and space-consuming for the RV.

I also bought a satellite dish and small tripod mount while here. Unfortunately, the tripod is too low to the ground to clear the trees in the campground. It’s going back to the RV parts place tomorrow. I’d like to get a taller tripod or even a ladder mount for the dish but the dealers are sold out of many such item. Lots of evacuees brought their RVs here. We can live without satellite (the campground has limited cable TV). We were just hoping to get the weather channel to watch Ivan’s progress. However, having that on all the time would probably just stress us out too much. Gera got pretty upset reading Florida Today online this morning. The pictures and stories are overwhelming. People there are still without power which means no air conditioning or refrigeration, not that there’s all that much fresh food available. I hope to God hurricane Ivan passes them by or it’s going to be awful.

Gera heard from Mimi by email so she gave her a call. Charley caused some roof damage to her house in Ormond but she is facing a bigger problem – her electric storm shutters broke as she attempted to open them without power after Frances. Since there’s no A/C, she needed open windows but now she may not be able to close the shutters for hurricane Ivan. Mimi also told us about their co-worker from Bank of America, Sue. Her house in Melbourne Beach was completely destroyed by a small tornado during Frances. The roof was ripped off and the entire house flooded. There is nothing left of the fence but splinters! What a tragedy. We’re going to have to get in touch with the other B of A folks if they are reachable.

Living almost a week in middle Georgia has given me some relief from the fatigue and windedness I usually face in Satellite Beach. I still have the other FM symptoms but the CF seems less. Perhaps in the long term, with the CF symptoms subsided, the FM symptoms will lessen too. I’m investigating mail forwarding services and other things that will allow us to stay permanently out of Florida if necessary. I don’t mind beginning our cross-country journey early as long as we can tidy up the loose ends remotely. It may only require a plane trip back for a short stay next month. Stay tuned…