Roaming About

A Life Less Ordinary

Tag: Florida (page 1 of 2)

Clearwater, Florida – Global Headquarters of Scientology

A walk through Clearwater, FL reveals fancy signs, magnificent buildings, and a certain amount of secrecy. If you wouldn’t know better, the reason for these appearances stays forever hidden. Take a stroll through town with us and read the captions by hovering over or clicking on the images of this photo story.

We had no idea when we parked Zesty along the street, next to this imposing white building in Clearwater.

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Boondocking Behind the Scenes – Ten Free Campsites Turned Awry

“A picture says more than a thousand words” is an expression I’m not fond of. Rather, I believe a photo instills certain words, telling only part of the story. Understandably, most people want to capture the beauty of a place. It is often possible to cut out less desirable factors, like hordes of people, piles of garbage, incessant bugs, signage obstructing the view, and so on. Personal moods, climate, noise, and other external factors are invisible. There is a lot more to the actual scene than meets the eye…

Locks WMA campground in Fort McCoy

I’ve played with the idea of taking “as it is” shots in sync with the attractive scenes and posting them next to each other. Yet, I too succumb to blue skies and beautiful scenery. So, this post does not quite display that juxtaposition, but it reveals the truth behind some of our camping experiences in Florida that might look “perfect” at first sight.

Dupuis Water Management District

1) Lake Panasoffkee WMD

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Human Encounters in Florida – Meeting Friends before COVID-19

Karmen and Tom in Marineland

I’ve mentioned it before, 2020 couldn’t have been off to a better start for us – at which point, it did cross my mind that it could only go downhill from there. But the first week of January comprised good times with our old boating friends Tom and Karmen, who finished renovating a new-to-them catamaran. We met many years ago sailing in the Bahamas and stayed in touch, crossing paths throughout the country. They swung by twice in their converted camper van while we house sat (in Santa Fe, NM and San Diego, CA) and we visited them in Monmouth, Oregon to learn first-hand and with all our senses how they created the successful and innovative pizza restaurant, Yeasty Beasty. Don’t you love that name?

We also met up with communal sailing friends Dan and Jaye.

Going out for drinks and tacos with sailing friends Dan and Jaye

Marian and Cliff in Jacksonville

Also in January, I finally met blogging and memoirist friend Marian Beaman. She and her husband Cliff graciously invited us into their home for a yummy chili lunch and hours of conversation. Marian, a Mennonite until age 24, blogs at Plain and Fancy and recently published her heartfelt, well-written memoir Mennonite Daughter – The Story of a Plain Girl, which offers a glimpse into 20th century Mennonite life and documents her experiences and life-altering decisions as Marian Longenecker.

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Monthly Expenses – March 2020

Expenses - image

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast.

How did the outbreak of the Coronavirus affect our expenses? Less than you might think. The only category that spiked is groceries. I think that happened because of our “constant” topping up of the fridge and cupboards, each time we anticipated self-isolating in the woods of Florida. But, as I wrote about previously, most of those attempts failed, so we kept buying more provisions and – in the beginning – our only choices were name brands instead of the cheaper generic brands we usually buy.

We drove a lot during our quick circle down and around and back up Florida. If we would have been able to sightsee, we would have driven more, but we would have traveled slower. We boogied north quicker than expected, because of our rising discomfort with heat, humidity, and bugs and not so much COVID-19. Therefore, our monthly fuel expenses are pretty much what they would have been otherwise. The diesel price was as low as we’ve ever seen it!

If it wasn’t for the recent pandemic, our entertainment and camping categories would be higher (I really wanted to visit the Dali Museum in St. Petersburg and spend time with the manatees while camping at Manatee State Park), the health topic would have popped up as I urgently needed a haircut, and doing laundry might have cost twice as much. Instead, Mark cut everyone’s hair and we did a load of laundry by hand.

The drinking and eating out expenses can be blamed on hanging out with friends and Mark’s birthday (a self-proclaimed brewery tour) before social distancing took effect. Since then, I have been able to keep in touch with friends and family via email, social media, Skype, and Zoom!

All in all, March was not a bad month under the circumstances, but it is the most expensive one this year so far.

March 2020 Overview:

Groceries:

Camper (diesel: $187; registration: $12; tolls: $4):

Bank charge (annual credit card fee):

Alcohol:

Drinking out:

Dining out:

Dog (food):

Utilities (phone):

Postage:

Entertainment (dog beach @ state park):

Laundry:

Miscellaneous (printing taxes):

Camping:

 

TOTAL:

 

$433

$203

$150

$90

$66

$63

$35

$35

$11

$5

$5

$3

$0

———

$ 1099

To find out what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blog of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Coronavirus vs. Camping Nomads

As travel plans from friends and family are canceled due to the Coronavirus, international borders are closing, and almost everyone on this planet is affected – logistically, financially, and some medically, I figured it’s time to provide an update about how this situation influences the nomadic lives of Mark, Maya, and me in our camper van Zesty.

The positivist in me likes to declare that it doesn’t affect us at all. As you know, we are frugal travelers and that means we never go on vacations or excursions and rarely stay at pay campgrounds or dine out; all sectors that have recently become obsolete in Florida. We live in a self-contained vehicle and are flexible and resourceful. We’re experts at boondocking (free camping), feel relatively young (despite the decades swooshing by), and love being alone in nature (no social distancing needed). What do we have to worry about?

The negativist in me thinks about our older parents, the disappointed people with canceled vacations, our own bypassing of sights and cities in Florida, and – most importantly – the employees without a job and small business owners suffering. The financial impact (and travel attitude) will take years to recover. I hope people will LEARN through and from this pandemic. Selfishness seems to thrive in situations like these.

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Monthly Expenses – February 2020

Expenses - image

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups, we both return to the East Coast.

February was a good month and the cheapest one since April 2019. That makes two months in a row under $1,000. Let’s see how long we can keep this up. 🙂

We did spend a little bit of money on camping – happy to stay somewhere multiple nights in a row WITH smooth, groomed, comfortable grass. You know, the kind on which you walk barefoot and Maya relaxes bug-free, rolling around without picking up leaves, branches, needles, or burrs. The kind that is quite rare, especially boondocking. The surrounding area offered nice hiking trails as well.

Extra costs in February went to a new bike cover and the annual Massachusetts tax  for our van (both under “camper”) and to internet, propane, and dump stations in the “utilities” category. Our monthly AT& T internet (phone) bill is usually $35. Except, this amount actually gets paid every four weeks. Last month is where this caught up with us and we had to pay twice. Darn leap day!

Our shiny new bike bag – they seem to last about one year in the elements and cost $15 more than last year!

In Florida – as opposed to other states we have visited – it’s difficult to find free dump stations, so we look for the cheapest options. Once, we used a free one and decided to support this RV center’s “generosity” and buy their propane, not even researching the competition. Ha! It was the most expensive propane we ever bought in the US: $4 per gallon. In a way, we paid for this free dump and water fill-up as well.

And, for the loyal expense report follower, who scrutinizes our monthly numbers: guess which category is missing in February? It’s something that was always present, but we really tried hard to keep it at zero this month (I cheated a tad by buying Mark a little bit as part of his birthday gift) …

February 2020 Overview:

Groceries:

Camper (fuel: $43; tax: $77; bike bag: $65):

Utilities (phone: $70; propane: $21; dump: $16):

Dining out:

Health & Fitness:

Drinking out:

Computer Software (Quicken):

Dog (supplies):

Gifts:

Camping:

Laundry:

Household:

 

TOTAL:

 

$270

$185

$107

$100

$34

$30

$25

$22

$21

$11

$5

$3

———

$ 813

Happy Cows – A Walk in the Field

Join us for one of our walks near the Lake Panasoffkee Water Management District (WMD) campground, where we stayed for ten days – without ever seeing the lake. 🙂 The cows occupied the field two days before we left.

Our free campground for ten days!

Oh, hello!

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The Villages, FL: December 15th – December 29th, 2015

Hanging out with the pups

Hanging out with the pups

This blog is for our list “Completed house sits”, as a record of all the positions we have taken house and pet sitting all throughout the US and possibly internationally in the future. These are quick overviews of our particular house sit experiences.

While being snuggled up with a whole bunch of clothes on in cold Connecticut, it is hard to imagine that a month ago, we were enjoying the pleasant Florida weather during our two week house sit in The Villages. Two weeks is on the shorter side – for us – to house sit, especially when it is so far away from our base in New England, but we wanted to soak up the warmer weather and meet our friends Sim and Rosie from SV Wandering Star over the holidays, while visiting Florida by car. Continue reading

The Villages – An Unprecedented Retirement Community!

The Villages. It is a weird name for a town, when you first hear it or talk about it. But, you get used to that quickly, just like to living in it. Or, is it in them? The Villages in Central Florida is the biggest retirement community in the world and the fastest growing “city” in the United States. Why is it so popular?

A friendly collection of villages

A friendly collection of villages

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The Villages – What’s the Story?

It is a friendly place!

I had seen a few house sits listed in an area called The Villages over the past months. Until recently, I thought it was just another town in central Florida, nothing special about it. I was wrong. This place is special, and in more than one way!

Mark and I took this two-week house and pet sitting assignment, because the ad sounded attractive and we wanted a break from the New England scene and its cold-ish weather. When we started telling people that we would be going to The Villages, the reactions were interesting and made our venture more exciting. Statements like “I didn’t know you guys played golf.” “Make sure you don’t get in trouble!” “I hear that people show their marital status and sexual desires with certain flags displayed on their golf cart.” “There is a black market for Viagra, and STDs are widespread.” “Did you know children are not allowed?” and “Watch out for those old men, they might try to steal you away from Mark!” peaked our curiosity… Continue reading

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