A recent thread got me thinking...

[cpaharley2008]

Some people while trying to simplify their lives end up with more! I started to think back when movies were watched in movie theaters. Now we can watch a movie in our hand. Homes only had 30 amp service with fuses since our needs for electric wasn't that great. Then after the war, appliances proliferated and 100 amp service became the norm. Nowadays we need 200 amp service to keep up with our demands. When televisions first came out, you were lucky to know someone who had a set. Now, we have a tv set in almost every room of our house. Early telephones were shared with a party line, now we have a cordless phone in every room. Then came mobile phones, about the size of a brick, normally used in business. Now we each have our own mobile device that seems to become an appendage to our body. Computers took up whole city blocks, now they are the size of an 8x10 writing pad of paper that we used to use in school to practice our writing skills, which is no longer being taught because everyone now communicates via cryptic messages on their mobile device, sometimes while in the same room?
How did we get here, as I sit in my room typing on my computer, surrounded by my television, my cordless phone, my mobile phone and my laptop sitting in the corner? George Carlin had it right

George Carlin Talks About "Stuff" - YouTube

[Carol H]

ROFL - George always put it all in perspective. :-))

[rabbit]

I was just reading one of those "Double Duty" threads in which the goal is to find items that do everything reasonably well (3G cell phones) and eliminate larger single-purpose items. I myself faced this challenge when my wife decided we would try a couple days in the trailer at Thanksgiving. Nites are near freezing range now and the water lines are blown out and antifreeze in the traps.

So I'm thinking about the 2 1/2" gallon collapsible water bag I'll put on the counter as a fresh water tank and the two dishpans I'll use for dishes and how I'll dump that in my 15 gallon auxilliary grey tank which, even if it skims over with ice inside, won't crack any fittings or burst any lines.

My wife's on the puter and I sense from the look on her face that she's in the "Amazone". She tells me she's looking at a small portable toilet. $48. Also looking at the liners for it. 6 for 12$.

What I'm thinking is I don't want to go camping if I have to haul this "blue room" special; in fact I don't know where I would haul it. I remember we already have that Valterra in the throne room. Light bulb! What if I find a liner for it; sort of the old bedpan idea. So I try a ForceFLex trash bag. Very strong but mouth too narrow to encompass the top of the commode.

Off I go to Dollar Tree and discover these molded plastic oval tubs with handles which look like the galvanized oval washtubs of yestermillenium. Buy one. Fits the bowl perfect but needs an inch trimmed off to allow seat fully down. Get the scissors and a minute later I have 1$ potty liner. I call it the Double Doodie.

It is a bit shallow so may have to add some absorbant cat litter to avoid splash. For the same reasons, pointers may have to use the setter protocol. All this presupposes use only at nite and no solid deposits except RVTP. If the saniftation proves to be a transfer and contamination nitemare, I may try to find another suitable heavy duty plastic bag as a liner, either with or without the plastic tub.

jack

"A raindance will be held, weather permitting." --Geo. Carlin

[John Fazio]

Jack, that's a lot of work... don't you have a shovel?

-John

[rabbit]

. . . depending on the percolation rate I'M good; don't know about the bride.

jack

[John Fazio]

Just say it's practice for 12/21/2012... the end of days.

-John

[rabbit]

Urine not Mayan.

jack

[cpaharley2008]

Jack,
We found for Thanksgiving a c/g open up near Rochester, POA discount and warm showers. There is a neat restaurant 2 miles down where we will eat our meals. Leave the trailer winterized and use as is. here is restaurant Welcome to the D & R Depot, c/g Frost Ridge Campground - Le Roy NY - Fun Family Camping

[rabbit]

Due to the overwhelming interest in this subject, an update is in order. I have revised my approach to retaining ForceFlex trash bags atop the throne (the seat holds them down in back where they cannot overlap the stool) and my sense of this is that transfer to dump station or park latrines should be less trouble. At one bag per nite, outlay won't be too painful.

jack

[rabbit]

Too long a hike for us, Jim. Going to Trapp Pond St Pk in DE. Try out the LC 25-00 maybe. Had Greg fill it at Burnt Cabins. Believe it will fit OK in my bracket.

jack

[cpaharley2008]

Enjoy...

[rabbit]

LeRoy is not that far south of the Erie Canal. Been all the way from the head of Seneca Lake to Tonawanda and back on the canal. Enjoy that restaurant!

jack

[cpaharley2008]

So it is nice up there in the area? Never been there before, thanx

[honda03842]

Our little trailer has taught us a lot about stuff and space, how little we need to be happy.

Today we went out to lunch with four other couples, all Bounder owners, typically 35 foot motorhomes with multiple slideouts. Part of the discussion was about our 315 day trip in our 92 square foot trailer. Hardly anyone could imagine that we had a fun time.

One lady said she had a bed bigger than our trailer... another asked what we do on rainy days...hmmm... that she gets twitchy after a rainy day in her multi slideout motorhome. Another person commented that she needed more space...what did we do for space.

We told her we had limitless space, the space of our minds, books and the Internet when it rains.... or maybe visits to local museums or ...

Of course we realize that people can't be convinced or changed but they do recognize our happiness but can't imagine having it for themselves, at least not in the same way but maybe in no way.

And of course the 315 days 'away' was also a concern. What do you do? ...

All very interesting. I'm sure heard by many of you long range travelers.

Some stuff is nice to have, particularly a small fiberglass trailer and the time travel about. After that we don't seem to need much. When you consider our trailer and it's stuff the total dollar value is probably about $10,000. Our tow vehicle new was about $22,000, after 8 years it's probably worth about $8,000. Our trailer and tow vehicle are really enough stuff... together they kept us extremely happy for 10 1/2 months on the road.

I guess it amounts to the right stuff, a little trailer, a good tow vehicle, time and a little money. Soon we'll be back out there with our minimal stuff traveling to Florida and possibly Texas and then home before Newfoundland for two months. Love that trailer, love my wife and love our life on the road.

[Bob Miller]

Whats all the fuss about "Winter Camping", trash bags for saving stuff in and going down the road for dinner????

We are taking our entire fleet to a Wilderness Camp just west of San Juan Capistrano, CA for the Thanksgiving weekend. Lows in the 50's are forcast, but the mid 70's during the day should help us thaw out while preparing dinner for about 18 peeps.

BTW: CA stands for California, not Canada.....

[rabbit]

Oh, I ain't gonna save it, Bob.

[mary and bob]

Going to Trapp Pond St Pk in DE.

jack[/QUOTE]

We've been there a couple times. Been thinking of overnighting there on our way south, but unless we get an early start we won't make it there the first day. Want to do a stop at First Landing in VA too.

[rabbit]

I haven't camped at Trap Pond since the mid-seventies. I think it has the northernmost Baldcypress swamp in the east, or Conus, or the Milky Way, can't remember.

[Mike Magee]

I would like to sell some stuff and raise money to buy more stuff, but I'm too busy enjoying my other stuff to get around to selling off any stuff.

[Raz]

Originally Posted by rabbit

I haven't camped at Trap Pond since the mid-seventies. I think it has the northernmost Baldcypress swamp in the east, or Conus, or the Milky Way, can't remember.

Cyprus knees and Thanksgiving, a good combination. I'm envious.

Originally Posted by mary and bob

Want to do a stop at First Landing in VA too.

Went to First Landing once. Too much traffic for us. We liked Kiptopeke at the northern end of the bridge tunnel better. Both are pricey. Raz