Why the Wait? Worth the Weight?

There hasn’t been a post here since early April, over two months. Why the wait, do you ask? I’ll tell you. 

It’s been due to weight. I mentioned that at the end of the Escapade in March, I had my rig weighed and found it to be one thousand pounds overweight. That’s a real safety issue, especially in a sudden stop! 

During the weigh-in, I was told that many times RV manufacturers add heavier-than-necessary design elements such as wood, countertops, fabrics and so on that make the rig look wonderful but leave little leeway to allow the owner to pack much more than a toothbrush and a bathing suit! For the occasional vacationer, that’s not much of a problem. 

But I’m a full-timer and I need many of the same things I needed while in the condo. So I’ve been very busy reducing the weight on the rig and tracking what comes and goes and how much it weighs. The spreadsheet I’m using helps me to maintain a safer weight going forward and, wait for it, helps me remember what I did with stuff!

It has turned into quite a project as when something comes off, generally something else must take its place. For example, the mirrored closet doors and all related hardware were removed, saving 24 pounds. 

In their place are two PVC poles and brackets that hold two lace curtain panels and a twistable shower curtain pole to hold things in place when I’m moving. As the panels were in the rig when it was weighed, I only needed to add back one pound for the curtain poles and brackets, a net loss of 23 pounds. 

And it’s very pretty, as far as I’m concerned. 

That change was one of the simpler ones. Some changes take a lot more time because they are done to take advantage of a situation even when the follow up decisions have yet to be made.

Take, for example, those closet doors. I had planned to donate things to the Salvation Army. They have a bin at the campground I frequent in Menifee, but it’s too small for the doors and the other pieces I was taking out. As I was calling to see if they would drive the truck to my site to pick up the bigger items, a fellow camper asked if he could have them. 

As the Salvation Army was unable to commit to a time to pick up, which would have involved waiting around, I told him he could have them and casually asked if he might be interested in a sofa. He took one look at it and said he wanted it, not at all surprising as everything is in excellent shape. He went to get a friend and a truck and by the time he got back, I had more parts of the rig ready to go, all of which he could use. 

Why not sell, you may ask. I had given that some consideration but found that there are several weighty issues involved. My location changes often, I’d have to wait around for people to show up, or not. I’m leery about dealing with Craig’s List, the prices I found on eBay weren’t all that enticing and the key issue remained. I had to get rid of the weight so it made no sense to me to haul it around anymore.

Also, the person who took everything had a real need, the details of which I won’t mention here to protect his privacy.

But I haven’t decided what to do to replace the sofa so right now there isn’t one. I’ve had my eye on a particular style of wicker loveseat, many of which are currently on display at Lowe’s, OSH and even Kohl’s. They have beautiful lines and rolled arms and are actually quite comfortable. They also fit much better as they are not as deep as a regular couch. 

And they’ll be going on sale right after Independence Day, so I’m going to wait.

Of course, if I needed to sleep a bunch of people, I would not be able to get rid of the sofa, or the dinette table that folds down to make a sleeping surface, or the second twin bed that was removed long ago to accommodate my desk. 

But that’s not the case, as it rarely is with us NüRVers.

I’m not sure if I mentioned that term before. What follows are excerpts from their description from their facebook group page:

NüRVers is a group for the next wave of RVers. The NüRVer breaks the mold of the traditional RVer stereotype and sets out on the road to fun & adventure in a slightly different way. Many have found Nü and inventive ways to make a living while living our dream.

NüRVers describes more of the spirit and less of a specific thing. The NüRVer is bold, adventurous, and not afraid to do things that others don't find "normal". You don't have to be a young RVer to be Nü; you only have to think Nü.

The NüRVer is a free-spirited traveler who seeks fun and adventure their own way. Instead of waiting for that "someday" that may never come, we've decided to hit the road now before it's too late. Many of us have found Nü and inventive ways of making a living while pursuing our passion for adventure.

The NüRVer is open-minded and unafraid to step away from convention. We create our own path in life, and celebrate our uniqueness with other like-minded vagabonds.

That pretty much sums it up and hopefully helps to explain why I’ve made some of the changes I’ve made to this motor home. Conventional isn’t part of my vocabulary when it comes to redecorating; unique is. And functional.

But wait, we were talking about weight, and I can’t wait to tell you where things stand at this point.

But first, a surprise! A lot of my time has also been taken up with making sure the rig is properly maintained. Some of these issues will be showing up in future posts but one recent issue involved replacing the converter charger that is located under the refrigerator. 

The part was original to the rig, making it over 20 years old as far as we can tell, so it’s not too surprising that it needed to be replaced. What did turn out to be a surprise is that the new part is at least fifteen pounds lighter! 

So, along with part removal, and part replacement, and the usual decisions that go along with moving into a new space i.e. this stays, this goes, this works, this doesn't, etc., I’ve reduced the one thousand pound overage by about 850 pounds. 

The end is in sight. I can’t wait.