THE RV

    Never in a million zillion forevers did I imagine myself as EVER being homeless.  I think that's probably been crystal clear from my past few posts.  I never saw it coming, never dreamed it would happen and then it did.  And that was that.  Here we were thankful for the kindness of many good friends. 
   And again, I never in a million zillion forevers did I imagine myself living in an RV and again, here I am........................
     It all started with a peaceful morning and my husband and I snuggling on the terrace of the Scottland families monstrous home.  My husband asked what we should do next.  We'd ruled out a nice riverfront parcel we were looking at that had pre-existing RV's in place.  Every other property and possible home was going to take time and energy to make livable.  It seemed logical that an RV would be a good next step.  It would give privacy to anybody we stayed with and stability to the kids of having our own "temporary" home.
   We scoped out a lot of deals.  I had my heart set on a burn orange carpeted beaut from the 1970s.  There was one for half that price that I figured I should probably settle with and the main thing I liked about that one was the picture of the kangaroo on the front.  All in all, in my mind, this was temporary and we should find the cheapest thing possible.  We were just about to head out to decide between the two when the Scottland family awakened.  They didn't have a lot to say about either of those models, but reminded me that if we wanted to resell it, burnt orange carpet would not be a strong selling point.  Then they pulled up some RVs on Craigslist about double the most expensive one we were considering.  I panicked!!  Spending that much would really delve into our house fund.  My husband hadn't considered spending that much, but liked the idea of a diesel engine saying we could actually drive it some place.  He started looking and looking. 
   The more he looked the harder I breathed.  Fear constricted my mind and rationality began to lose its hold on me.  The next thing I knew, we had spent an insane amount of money on "The Executive".  This was no ordinary RV.  Though an older model, she came fully loaded.  "The Executive" in her day booked at $130,000.  Of course years have gone by and she is old hat to todays quarter of a mil models.  She roared onto the Scottland Ranch in all her glory.  My husband grinned from ear to ear.  I worried about the things on her that wasn't working.  Buttons and levers can be seen everywhere.  The front drivers seat looks like something out of star trek.  Immediately the boys began playing space ship inside her.  Then one boy accidentally ripped off her door hatch (whoops). 
    She's equipped with an ice maker, coffee maker, hot water spigot.  Pull a handle and a checker board pops up from no where.  Lift a panel and wha la - A wine rack.  Miss Moonbeam was especially pleased and proud with the "secret bed" of hers that comes when the table is taken down for the night.  Open a door in the heavily mirrored back bedroom and a stereo system emerges - Groovy.  There is an alarm clock in the wall.  2 - older version TVs also grace her interior.  I am only scratching the surface of what "The Executive" can do.  Last night I discovered that the door handle was lit up with "The Executive" extravagantly showing through the clear lighting.  Did I mention all the real wood and leather interior?  Anyway, she's real fancy, and for sure not what I had in mind at all.  I guess God figured she was right for the time.
   What I dubbed my "Thankfulness Journey" has been very helpful to my mental health.  Instead of despairing, every morning with my devotions, I write an entire page of things I am thankful for.  It is so amazing how it has changed me.  I am finding so very many things to be truly thankful for.
   One of the things I'm so thankful for is the Scottland family.  They truly don't mind that we're staying here.  They have given us more than we could possibly ever give back to them.  Saphira and I laughed and laughed about it the other day.  Normal people don't want some families possessions cluttering up their buildings.  Normal people would mind that there are over a half a dozen junky vehicles sitting on different spots on their property not belonging to them.  Normal people would not tell you to pull your monstrosity of an RV directly in front of their home about 6 feet from the front door.  They wouldn't let you use their central vacuuming system to clean its carpets.  Normal people would hope for a time frame of how long they have to see you every morning when they first wake up.  None of these items seem to pertain to this wealthy rancher and his wife.  They seem to be taking it all in stride and not minding at all.  This never ceases to make my mind reel.  How can they not mind all of that?  Then I have to rest in Gods Grace and accept where I am and be thankful.

"Between Homes"

"Between Homes" is the polite way of saying that we are more or less officially homeless. "Between Homes" maybe just sounds better to somebody wanting to keep their plummeting pride a bit more intact................

It all started out with a lot of tantrums on my part, which you can read about in my last post. Then it was followed by a whirlwind of packing up not one but TWO homes. Both of the homes, I cried many tears over. When it was all said and done, with the help and kindness of MANY MANY friends, we were out of both in a short time.  Hurry and Scurry to a strange kind of nothingness.........
   
   The first time I felt any joy at all during the past week was when I met the family moving into our house in the Yaak.  It was a crazy day because we only had the weekend left to get out of the other one.  The Spicy Oklahoman home schooling mother of 8 was in a home where rocks from the highway hit her family on the way to the chicken coop.  Due to all the poisons from weed killers, all their trees had died.  They were desperate to get away from the hot, polluted climate and after seeing The Mountain man from Yaak on t.v., they were convinced that Yaak was the place for them.  After a lot of frustrated searching, she found an ad for our place on survival properties.  Since she didn't find our name or number, her husband told her "why don't you pray and ask God".  The next day, she found our ad on craigslist.  She was thrilled and offered cash close to asking price contingent on the closing of their home.
  
   A week and a half of delays with their closing put her at her wits end.  Moving trucks sat with all the family possessions hanging in the balance.  With sheer determination, a large caravan of vehicles eventually made their way here. 

   We met them at the grocery store in Troy and I couldn't help feeling the providence of God.  We both wondered what they must be thinking as we drove the long desolate roads to and of the Yaak.  When they got out, I didn't care any more about losing my home to them.  They were plain dressed, backwoods, country folk with no snooty attributes whatsoever.  They were all plumb overjoyed.  The kids bolted up the hill homeward, and the mom and dad just nodded and nodded and nodded some more.  There was a lot of communication barriers what with our differences in dialect/accents/etc, but we understood that every last one of them was overjoyed to be home and that it was everything they hoped for.  Included in the caravan was an elderly neighbor couple of theirs, movers and their mother in law whom is a part of the immediate family.  She smiled like a ray of sunshine every time I talked to her.  With that, I left feeling hopeful and knowing that God had truly ordained their destiny in this wild place.

   After that, I started getting overwhelmed.  Earlier that week, I'd driven 130 miles that day and as I pulled in the driveway my ball bearing broke and the front tire came off.  It was scary, but I knew God spared me and the kids that day.  Miss Moonbeam somehow developed "nursemaids elbow" and couldn't use her arm.  During her exam in the ED, the Dr. popped it back into joint almost effortlessly.  I developed a strange pocket of fluid in the joint of my elbow.  We began the great migration of house to house to house.  People fed us REALLY GOOD and the pounds began to settle on my wayward hips.

   At first I felt really very thankful for the generosity of so many good people.  Then panic started to take over and I began waking up terrified with the strong urge to run away somewhere, but knowing there was really no place to run.  I wanted to go home, but there was really no "going home" in site.  Despair took me in a way I couldn't have foresaw.  Thankfully on one of those days Elastawoman spent a lot of  time praying for my mental health ;-) 

   The loss of control is a funny thing.  I don't like being dependent on anybody, but truthfully, I'm in a position where I have to just say "thank you" and accept the help.  Our stuff is stored with many kind people, which is a blessing because we don't have to pay for storage and everything is safer.  It is a bit confusing because just making sure everybody has a toothbrush takes forethought.  After my lapse of temporary insanity at Elastawoman's place she has convinced me to keep a journal of things to be thankful for.  I began that today.  It helped me put things in perspective.  She reminded me that when things are at their worst, we are on the verge of a breakthrough.

   Here are a few of the things on my list :

- I am typing this blogpost from someone's HOT TUB.
- Ali cat and Archer gave us food for dinner.
- I felt peace today about my husband's decisions and I am no longer afraid.
- My husband is bringing in income working on welding projects right now.
- All my needs are taken care of today..... even my desperation for chocolate.
- We have money to do SOMETHING and live SOMEWHERE even if its not as much as we would like to have.  Many people in our nation today are homeless without selling, instead they were evicted with no end in sight and no friends to help them.
- Elastawoman and Matthew are keeping our chickens for us.  They fed and housed us the past several days.
- Scottland family are keeping a lot of our stuff, letting us stay here, feeding us, even letting my hubby weld in the shop.  They are generous beyond comprehension.
- Matthew and another man spent their time giving us an estimate on a house and after an hour or more told us "walk away from it".  It would have been a real money pit for us.
- Survival Gal opened her place to us and Saphira has been there for the past week.  Its another place we can stay.
- There is a 5th wheel somebody knows about we might get a good deal on.
- We have trusted friends who are builders and they are ready to build or finish for us if we decide to do any of that.
- So many people have been so much more gracious to us that I could possibly have ever hoped for.  The drone family spent DAYS volunteering their time to help us.
- DID I MENTION I'M TYPING THIS FROM A HOT TUB?