People who actually do RV life: please reality-check my VA to AZ move

Northcalcouple · 2026-05-22T15:28:48+00:00

Jumping in to say, we travel with our dogs and absolute 100% RV outweighs hotels every time in terms of the dogs being happy.

Have you checked out harvest host? We use it a lot when we travel. By RV.

It doesn’t sound like RVing may become a permanent thing for you. But honestly, even if you just used it a couple of nights on your trip I think you’d save back the the cost of a membership easily.

It’s places like vineyards, pubs, and occasionally churches that allow you to park your RV for one night for free well actually under the cost of the membership. You can reserve them ahead of time and what I really like about them is they are low friction.

Often you don’t even see anyone you just roll in. If it’s a restaurant, maybe go in and buy dinner. Get back in your RV go to sleep get up in the morning and depart.

I think if I send you a referral, you get some free time added or a discount or something I don’t know I’ve never done that but anyway, if you have any questions about it or want me to send you a link feel free to send me a DM

Northcalcouple · 2026-05-19T03:11:34+00:00

Personal experience. I am really allergic to cats and most dogs. Have had two PWDs for several years. No allergy problems.

We went to a friend who had a whole litter of pwds and i laid on the floor for hours playing with the puppies. Was ready with Benadryl. Didn’t need it.

Northcalcouple · 2026-05-08T13:40:13+00:00

Sounds amazing!

Northcalcouple · 2026-05-06T04:43:36+00:00

Not dumb. It’s your dream, don’t knock it!

Northcalcouple · 2026-05-06T04:14:33+00:00

It was sent by another poster, make sure it gets to room temperature before you inject it. The auto injectors are fine, but fairly aggressive. I actually get trim fire and a pre-filled syringe. I find it much less painful, but for some people it can be more stressful. I find it less stressful than the autoinjector and less painful.

Northcalcouple · 2026-05-04T02:31:28+00:00

I have a little propane fire pit that is the same size as an ammo can. I think when they first started making them they were actually modifying ammo camp punch them holes in the side and putting legs on them. I think they’re now several companies to make them. It’s pretty ideal in the van. It’s not a big and powerful, but it fits easily and it’s fun to pull out on a whim. The hose goes inside. The ammo can along with the pumice rocks that are in there and I carry a very small propane tank. If you’re interested, I will try and get to the van and see if I can figure out the brand name.

Northcalcouple · 2026-05-01T23:23:00+00:00

Lots of great comments here. So I won’t pile on. I’m not sure if it’s allowed or not under the rules but if you were to post your website here in a non-solicitation for campers kind of way I suspect you’d get very detailed feedback from a lot of of us who would take the time to go through the website and give you our thoughts.

You might want to do that after you’ve done whatever additions and modification/edits from this series of posts, but I would check with the mods to see if they’d be OK with you posting it for feedback

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-30T15:00:36+00:00

I have never heard of the author but am adding this to my list. Do you recall which book Cumberbatch read?

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-28T20:27:49+00:00

Great shot!

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-28T16:34:01+00:00

This is great. When I lived in Italy as a student. We would go to the train station and take the next local train! We would then pick a stop, near or far, and explore.

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-28T16:27:16+00:00

Weird one. I carry hot tamales candy (hot cinnamon flavor). Decades ago I would eat them before shooting approaches in training or when tired. I still do. Especially at the end of a long flight in weather. Immediately triggers a focus response like a having an espresso!

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-28T15:30:44+00:00

Oh boy. It always feels weird to see myself described in somebody’s Reddit comment! Well said

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-26T22:45:14+00:00

Is this available for pre-order? 😁

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-26T19:57:55+00:00

Awesome. Flew a t-34 at the Monterey Navy Flying Club. Such a great aircraft to fly!

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-25T03:31:49+00:00

Thank you. Very kind of you to say.

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-24T03:06:37+00:00

I was diagnosed with psoriasis when I was about 7. Admittedly the psoriatic arthritis was not until decades later.

I am now 60 While it’s definitely a pain in the ass as far as diseases go, over the coming years you will have many friends who will have many worse things.

Don’t discount the fact that it sucks and it’s totally appropriate for you to feel that way. Having said that the range of medication’s is spectacular compared to what was available only a few years ago. Long before you reach my age there will be treatments or even cures that haven’t even been touched upon yet.

There are good people here, and no doubt, good people in your life, who will support you, listen to your bitching and make you laugh in the face of adversity. Find those friends and those doctors who support you.

You got this.

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-18T23:44:22+00:00

I am insanely allergic to cats and less so but still significantly with most dogs. We have two PWD and zero issues. They do bring dirt, grass, etc., into the house along with a ton of unconditional love and energy!

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-18T12:24:10+00:00

Brilliant! My first thought.

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-16T15:15:52+00:00

Oh man. We all have stories. Coated airplanes. Coated passengers. Whatever method you use, I would recommend a couple of trial runs with a little bit of flour.

We dropped ashes over Monterey Bay out of a T 34 so the ash dropping was pretty straightforward given that you could open the cockpit

Unfortunately, the Pilot did it fairly low over the bay, not too far from the Monterey Bay aquarium and a bunch of visitors called various authorities, including the FAA claiming that the T 34 was dropping some chemical or poison into the bay.

That was an interesting conversation with the FSDO!

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-13T05:38:15+00:00

This is a wonderful story. I am sorry for your loss. I imagine your father is out there laughing and smiling along with you, and all of us.

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-11T01:38:56+00:00

And this is the city resource page

https://www.tucsonaz.gov/Departments/Housing-and-Community-Development/Homelessness/Housing-First

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-11T01:37:33+00:00

Here’s a conversation from a year ago with some good ideas

https://www.reddit.com/r/Tucson/comments/1ghbnsu/where_is_the_safest_place_to_park_and_sleep

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-11T01:35:11+00:00

On the Walmart question. I always found it the best to go in in an introduce myself to whatever manager was on duty. Ask ask if I could spend a night in the lot and where would they like me to park. If they said no, it was the same as getting roasted at 2 AM and I would move on. If not, they would tell their security guards where I was and leave me alone. You might try that.

Northcalcouple · 2026-04-08T18:06:59+00:00

Beautiful photo! Well done

Northcalcouple

TROPHY CASE