I'm a newbie stuck in time

[RamblinRose]

Hello, I have watched YT all of you for some time now. Really wanting to get out on the road and
meet up with folks and just do whats in my heart for a long time.

I am a 73 year old grandma in WY right now but moving back to Idaho next April. I have an
SUV right now. I moved up here to be close to my daughter, her husband and my one grandson. I have nothing
in common with any of them. The one I did have closeness with was my grandson Christian. We went Fishing,
and loved the outdoors. He passed away at 24 years old of Cystic Fibrosis. I have been sad and lost ever since.

I am pushed into to the stereotype of being old, incapable of being far on my own. I found since they moved me 
here, I am already on my own. Its a tiny town and no one comes over. My "out" has been watching all of you. I actually
lived In Parker Az, Lake Havasu, Quartszite and Ehrenberg. My daughter was born in Blythe, Ca.

Hope I didn't rattle too much, I need to live in my suv I guess until i get a little money to get a van. My big question
is How do you give up the things like family photos on the wall. mementos of my grandson, few dolls I have had forever
or antiques that were my mom's.
 
 I do have to keep my sculpting tools because I sculpt tiny dolls that look like real babies and have ton of sewing stuff 
and machine to make and sell the clothes too on Ebay. That s my added income. But don't know how to give up these mementos.

Fancy bedroom set, washer dryer.ugh the thought. but I am so sick of paying rent, Utl, car Ins and have 70.00 amonth
left. I am so impressed with the older ladies doing this driving far over the hwys. Since I'll buy an older Van It terrifies me to 
get on the road & break down & not enough money to fix it. 

Only thing I really like about WY is starting about 2 weeks from now we will have herds of Deer & Huge Bucks through our 
neighborhood, drive ways and carports even with people sitting outside or driving in and out. They don't come close to
people but just walk down the middle of the road and yards to houses they know leaves feed. I put Apples and Antler Mix
made just for them. I have a tiny baby spent almost all day under my carport and I'd go out several times a day & throw
lettuce & apples. You have to be so careful what you give them You can kill them overnight. Corn will. It will be exciting
to see how she has grown over winter, hoping she made it.

So how did you give up these things, Is it advised to put them in storage for awhile? 

Thanks everyone

 

[tx2sturgis]

Wow....well welcome to the next phase....I sure hope you are traveling by January...you can camp near our group in Quartzsite if you like.....

Good luck to you!

 

[Dennis]

I think it would be great if you could store your things for a while and try what you are talking about first and see how it works out.
Same here though, if I make it to RTR this time I wouldn't mind being a neighbor. Sounds like you need some friends and there would be help there for you. Lot warmer than a WY winter also I believe.

 

[Moxadox]

So, I think I can address this, since I'm in the middle of it.

I grew up with two artists for parents. Collecting things of beauty, sentiment, and value was our way of life. When I first moved out, in a 1967 Volvo, my rule was never to have more possessions than could fit in my car (and on top). That worked until I got married and had a family! Then the "stuff bomb" dropped.

Long story extremely short, I left for an extended road trip on March 4, 2015. My stuff has been in storage since then, and to tell you the truth, it may as well be in outer space for all I miss it. The maximum space it takes up in my brain is when I start thinking about how annoyed my son will be when I ship him the 25 cubic feet of baby pictures that are sitting in there collecting spiders! Every once in a while I miss my kitchen and gourmet cookware, but not often enough to be distressing. None of it is worth giving up this lifestyle.

Hope this helps...believe me, I'd much rather enjoy my "golden years" doing what I enjoy and what keeps me young, than sitting around waiting for the ingrate kid to give a hoot. The family always knows where to find me if they want to come visit....But they don't, so they can do whatever makes them happy, and I'll do the same, thank you very much.

Take good care, Miss Rose. See you down the road!

The Dire Wolfess

 

[highdesertranger]

Welcome RamblinRose to the CRVL forums! To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you. highdesertranger

 

[JuliaAnne2018]

Thanks for the share.

Sent from my RS500 using Tapatalk

 

[Kyz1]

 How do you give up the things like family photos on the wall

My plan for photos (and school memories of kids/grandkids) is to scan them into a digital file and hand the hardcopies over to my kids. I'm hoping to find a "portable scanner wand" (I haven't decided which one, but hoping to keep it around $50) in hopes that it will be easier/faster to scan. Best wishes on your journey.

 

[1oleman]

Now days it seems that children are just waiting for us to hoping that we will leave every thing we own to them. Never gonna happen from me, I live my life and they seem happy to live their's . When I pass my will states that my six children get nothing except the minimum the law allows. They don't see me now and don't need to see me then. Box closed, the end !!!!!

 

[RamblinRose]

Thanks for the welcome and all the stories and advice. Sometime I think it would be great to just "walkaway" and let the
family worry about it all. Then when I look around and see my great grandmothers old carved desk, antiques and collectibles,
very old dolls and things its hard to let go. I think putting them in storage for awhile is a good idea until I decide.

Its hard when you attach alot of sentiment to things but then they are "just things". Going from a houseful of furniture to
a class B (I hope) is a challenge.

Thanks all, Enjoy my nice AZ weather. I spent 35 years in Phx and 6 years right along the path of Parker to Ehrenberg. I love my
desert heat. Except the year it hit 122 degrees and killed all my huge Koa in the horse trough

 

[QinReno]

Ramblin ... just a thought: put a minimal part in storage (like family photos, etc), give some things to Goodwill, then tell the kids you're leaving tomorrow and they can come and get grandma's antiques.

Or else sell the antiques and home furnishings on craigslist and buy a van. In other words, store the mementos and get rid of the "stuff" that's tying you down. (now, if "I" could just get rid of the 3000-4000 books that I accumulated to read in retirement, I'd have very little left that couldn't be given away, LOL).

 

[QinReno]

RR, another option, which is the one I chose on retirement, is to find a relatively inexpensive place to live, and use as a homebase for travels. Then you don't need the fancy and expensive RV - at least initially. Rental apartments are cheaper outside of major cities, and I should imagine WY is relatively low living cost by any standard. Since you're looking at this sort of lifestyle at all, you're thinking of downsizing already, so you can proceed along those lines and still start enjoying travels. Bob Wells has videos of women who are living in their SUVs, so check those out too.

 

[Gardenias]

Hello, I can relate to some of your concerns since I continue to downsize in preparation for possibly being on the road.
I started sorting the photographs, and will continue to distribute them to the children, and anyone concerned.
The mementos are not your grandson, so a picture of them will do. Also, you'll find comfort in knowing that you hold the memories of your closeness forever in your head.
Imagine the joy of those that would love your dolls, antiques, bedroom set, washer and dryer.
Storage can be pricey (especially with procrastination), though it will buy you some time until you're ready to let go.