RV-Dreams Journal

2009 Six Month Review - (Chester, CA)

While doing the June Financial Summary today, I noticed a few things in the 2009 numbers.  Mostly, we just continue to confirm our prior numbers.  :)

With our combination of workamping/volunteering some months and just traveling the rest of the time, we have consistently averaged $28,000 per year in Basic Living Expenses.  For the first six months of 2009, with three full months of workamping/volunteering, two months of just traveling, and one month of half-and-half, our total for Basic Living Expenses was $14,000.

That's basically four years on the road with a combination of approximately half a year workamping and half a year not workamping each year, and we keep coming back to that $28,000 per year, $2,333 per month, and $77 per day averages.

If we don't workamp at all and travel throughout the year, the trend is that we will spend about $33,000 per year, $2,750 per month, and $90 per day.

If we workamp year round, the trend is that we will spend about $21,000 per year, $1,750 per month, and $58 per day.

I'm telling you we have this down to a science.  And, by keeping track of every single penny (many people didn't think we would keep that up over the years), our numbers are not only accurate, but they provide us great comfort.  We can adjust quickly, and it doesn't take much for us to survive and live a moderate, comfortable life.

And that brings me back to my often-repeated point.  Full-time RVing for us is as much about living a simple life together as it is about traveling.

Of course, we would love to be completely retired and have enough fixed income to do nothing but travel.  We don't particularly care to be stuck in one place for several months at a time.  We don't particularly care to have to "work".

But, since we don't have a fixed income and we don't want "careers" anymore, and we don't have enough in investments to sustain us, we have to weigh our options and we have to generate income - a premise we knew from the beginning.

Let's see.  We can quit RVing, go back to a sticks and bricks, get our careers back, have lots of money, travel only a couple weeks a year, put up with the fast pace and high pressure, and allow our marriage to go back to the disconnected state it was in.  I can tell you right now, that ain't gonna happen.  :)

Or we can live in our RV in one location and get jobs.  We could earn lots of money and still live the simple life.  But there is still that potential for a fast pace and pressure and still a pretty good risk of disconnectedness.  Plus, travel would still be limited.

Or we can live in our RV, move from job to job year round, and enjoy the travel in between.  We wouldn't make much money, but more than enough to survive.  Our travel would be limited, but we would still be living the simple life and staying connected as a couple.  But we wouldn't have the spiritual and mental boost that nature and travel provides as often as we'd like.

Or we can live in our RV, work half the time and travel half the time.  We can volunteer to keep expenses down, or we can workamp to keep expenses down and earn income to cover some expenses.  This is sort of where we are now.  We don't make enough money to cover expenses, but we aren't completely tied down, and we get to be picky about when and where we work.  The downside is we still have to work to keep from depleting our limited investments/savings too quickly (especially in rough economic times), making decent money requires working more hours than we'd like, we do get stuck in one place for a few months of the year, and writing about our experiences (which I love) becomes cumbersome.

Or we can live in our RV and just travel.  The problem with that is our investment income can't cover us, and we still need to come up with income to cover expenses and keep from depleting investments/savings.  Can we just grow our own businesses and creat the necessary income?  We think we can, but we're not sure.  Even though we love doing the website and rallies and selling jewelry, etc., will the effort it requires and the commitment it requires be worth it?  Will we find the income-producing pressure takes all the fun out of it?  Will we find we will be on more of a schedule and have less flexibility than we do now in order to generate the income we need?  Will we have the discipline to spend the time we are obligated to "work" in our workamping now on our own businesses if we give up the workamping?  That's a big question.  :)

So, at this point in our adventure, we're deciding what the next chapter will look like.  The current chapter includes a half-year of volunteering/workamping with a half-year of travel, and a daily, although sort of passive, dose of working on our businesses.  We are on our sixth workamping/volunteering stint.  They have ranged from two-month to four-and-a-half-month commitments.  We have worked three days a week to five days a week.  We have volunteered for our site and perks, and we have workamped for our site, perks, and cash.  We prefer the three day a week volunteering, but we need the cash.  :)

I'm thinking it is time to transition to more concentration on our own businesses:  more seminars, more rallies, more public speaking, more aggressive web promotion, maybe a book or two, maybe videos, etc.  Linda and I have kicked around so many possibilities.  But we believe it's time to make some decisions and go forward.

Through this winter, we will still be looking at volunteering/workamping opportunities.  But once we are finished with our workamping here in September and the 2009 Rally in October, we'll probably step up the intensity on growing our own businesses which have grown out of passions.  After all, RV-Dreams is about following passions as a means to living a simpler, happier life - that doesn't mean a perfect life, but a better life.  No matter which option or combination of options we choose, full-time RVing for us is certainly a better life than what we had before.  :)

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June Financial Summary

June 2009 Results

Campground Fees $0.00 (0.00 per day) - Budget $0.00

No campground fees for June while workamping in Chester, CA at a private campground. 

RV Clubs $0.00 - Budget $0.00

RV Insurance $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Propane $18.98 - Budget $10.00

Cell Phones $85.48 - Budget $90.00

Satellite Internet $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Note:  Satellite internet is not included in our regular expenses.  We classify it as a business expense.  We paid $798 in December 2008 for all of 2009.  However, since we can't use the service for the four months we are workamping, we have suspended the service and will carry over four months of service to next year. 

RV Taxes/Registration $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Satellite TV $84.34 - Budget $85.00

RV Maintenance $0.00 - Budget $50.00

Diesel $0.00 - Budget $0.00

The truck is sitting during our workamping stint.

Gas $80.25 - Budget $150.00

We drove the Jeep 506 miles in June.

Truck Maintenance $0.00 - Budget $35.00

Jeep Maintenance $20.00 - Budget $20.00

Truck Insurance $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Jeep Insurance $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Truck Taxes/Registration $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Jeep Taxes/Registration $0.00 - Budget $0.00

Groceries & Dining Out $319.45 ($10.65 per day) - Budget $450.00

Our Groceries & Dining Out budget for 2009 is the same as for 2008.  It's based on $12 per day per month for groceries PLUS $90 for dining out. 

Since our February experiment of stocking up on cheap groceries before going to workamp in a more expensive locale worked so well, we decided to do it again.  Since groceries are so expensive in Chester where we will workamp from the middle of May to the middle of September, we stocked up on non-perishables at a Super Walmart in Sterling, UT in May.  In May we were over budget by $214 with hopes of being under budget the following months.  June was a good start at $130 under budget.  :) 

Laundry, Clothing, Hair Care $82.00 - Budget $75.00

Entertainment $249.48 - Budget $200.00

Spent a couple nights at a bed & breakfast for our 23rd anniversary - plus a little golf as well.  :)

Insurance - Health, Life, Umbrella, Etc. $1,148.07 - Budget $1,150.00

Monthly health insurance premium of 195.07 plus annual life insurance premium of $953.00.  We have a $250,000 policy on each of us with 30-year level premiums.

Medical & Dental Expenses $0.00 - Budget $50.00

Miscellaneous $11.68 - Budget $150.00

Emergencies/Budget Cushion $0.00 - Budget $300.00

Totals $2,099.73 ($69.99 per day) for normal living expenses - Budget $2,515.00

Totals with Emergencies/Budget Cushion $2,099.73 - Budget $2,815.00.

We were $415 under budget in normal living expenses and $715 under in total.  It was an excellent month.  We are almost $1,500 under budget on normal living expenses for the year and almost $2,500 under in total.

For a look at the numbers through June 2009, go to Our 2009 Actual Expenses. To see our budget month-by-month click on Our 2009 Budget.

On the business side, we had net profit of $3,396.  For the record, to avoid publishing our workamping salaries, we've combined the RV-Dreams Workamping with RV-Dreams.com for May and June on the 2009 Business Financial Summary page.

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This Monday Is This Week's Friday - (Chester, CA)

It was pretty much the usual Monday.  Except I started work earlier to do some pre-8:00 trash juggling.

After that, we did the Honey Wagon, bathrooms, and more trash.  I cleaned up vacated campsites, then Randy and I hauled wood from campsites to our brush pile.

Several campers bring in lots of wood for campfires and then they leave it behind.  Most of it doesn't meet our requirement that it fit within the fire ring unless it is cut.  And most of it is scrap wood or just a bunch of big sticks.

Linda had a pretty easy day.  It wasn't overly hectic, yet it went by fast.  Since it was pretty hot and there is no air conditioning at the local laundry, she opted to do laundry in the morning.

I finished up my day by splitting firewood.  I went through quite a bit, but we'll still need a little more for next weekend.

Just before I headed home, we had a meeting on trash.  Randy and I spend lots of time on it and often it piles up above the tops of the dumpsters until we smash it with the tractor.  Or, the trash cans get filled beyond capacity and we can't get the bags out.  It gets really messy, looks bad, and the ravens, crows, and other birds scatter it during the day.  So we were trying to come up with solutions that accomplish all three of these ideas: 1) keep costs down (that's seems to be the biggest factor), 2) cut back the time we spend managing trash, and 3) provide disposal methods that keep the campground looking nice and the critters out of the trash.

We didn't come up with a perfect plan, but we are going to at least try a couple of things.  We're going to start by replacing a small dumpster with a larger one and have pick-ups twice a week during the busiest times.  We'll see how that goes.

After the meeting, I headed home.  Linda was working out in the garden tending to the plants the critters haven't eaten.

After checking some emails, we enjoyed the lovely evening and I grilled some brats.

I had quiet hours duty again, so I made the 10:00 round.  It seemed everyone was asleep early tonight.  It was a quick trip around the campground.  :)

Since we work this Thursday, we have Tuesday off instead this week, so today was our Friday.  We have nothing planned to end the month and I don't know if we'll come up with anything or not.  Either way, we'll remain nice and relaxed.  :)

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New Forum Milestone - (Chester, CA)

I don't have a whole lot to write about today.  With our late start on the job, Linda made us a pecan pancake breakfast.  That should hold us for awhile.  :)

I cleaned bathrooms, made sure the 30-something vacated sites were in good shape, and emptied all the campground trash cans.  That took me pretty much all afternoon.  I didn't get finished with those chores until around 4:00 when I finally took a break.  I was hot and sweaty and filthy, so I hopped in the shower during "lunch".

I did "clean" work the rest of the evening until almost 8:00, then remembered I was only scheduled to work until 6:00.  Oops.  :)

Linda had a relatively slow afternoon/evening in the office.  She worked on getting prepared for the Fourth of July weekend making sure we have enough supplies to get us through.

Because of the holiday weekend with many folks arriving on Thursday, we are off Tuesday & Wednesday this week instead of Wednesday & Thursday.  We'll be glad when this coming weekend is over.  :)

Back home for the night, we checked emails and the RV-Dreams Community Forum.  Today we had our 1500th member sign up for the Forum.  Wow!

When we started the Forum back in 2006, we weren't sure if it would take off or not.  After all, there are bunches of RV forums out there, and there are lots of forums that stall out with a lack of participation.

But thanks to our wonderful members and their kind, thoughtful replies, the RV-Dreams Forum is being recognized as one of the friendliest, most informative RV forums on the web.  Thanks goes to all the members and especially the ones that are quick to welcome new folks and provide answers to questions!  :)

And don't think we haven't noticed the wonderful sentiments and kind words that have been expressed in many of the Forum posts.  We certainly have noticed and we appreciate all of them - we just try not to clutter up the topics by responding within the posts.  :)

Also, we may not personally welcome every new member to the Forum, but when you "Introduce Yourself", we see you and we make sure that you are receiving a proper welcome.  Thanks for trusting the RV-Dreams Family enough to "put yourself out there".  :)

Well, that's about it for today.  I just wanted everyone, Forum member or not, to know how far the Forum has progressed.  With each new member we get increased expertise and fresh perspectives.  If you've had questions in the past that didn't get answered, you might try them again as we have more people to answer and more people that probably have the same questions.  :)

Have a wonderful day and we'll see you tomorrow.  :)

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Today's Theme: "Have You Seen My Family?" - (Chester, CA)

I started the day by calling my Dad.  It was his 87th birthday.  He and my Mom are still planning on coming to the Rally in Kerrville, TX in October.  :)

My workday started around 10:30, by the time I finished a canoe rental, the bathroom cleaning, a trash run, and fish disposal, it was about 2:30.

Linda started at 1:15.  It was a little less hectic with only a few check-ins today.  But it is still busy trying to monitor the entries and exits and having someone in the store buying stuff constantly.

At 3:00, I changed out of my work clothes into some shorts and helped out around the office - it was sort of designated as "customer control".  Mostly that meant lowering and raising the entrance chain for those with proper car passes.  :)

However, much of our afternoon was taken up by people coming in trying to find relatives.  It's amazing how many of them had no clear directions and didn't know for sure which campground they were supposed to be in.

Our new rule is no one is allowed in the campground unless they have a reservation.  Or, unless a camper tells us in advance they are expecting visitors and they pay the visitor fees up front.  So we weren't letting people in to just go hunt for their families.

Therefore, I tried to help as much as I could.  "What's the name you are looking for?  Nope.  They are not registered here.  What other information do you have about where they are supposed to be?"

We even had multiple people come in at different times looking for the same person .... that was not here.  The person in question had camped here in years prior, but not this year.

I helped as many of the wayward folks as I could.  I would pull out the Lake Almanor area map and show them all the campgrounds.

"See all these little tent symbols?  Those are all campgrounds around the lake.  Work with me here and I'll try to help."

With their limited information, we narrowed down the possible campgrounds and sent them on their way.  That happened at least a half dozen times this afternoon - maybe a dozen.  Sheesh.

We even had one guy who came to pick up his son.  Linda got that one.  "What campsite is your son in?"  Reply:  "I don't know."  "What are the names of the people he is with?"  Reply:  "I don't know."

He made a couple of cell phone calls, but nobody was answering.

"Sir, we can't just let someone off the street go roaming through the campground with no information."  Linda was thinking about all the little children in the campground and we weren't going to be responsible for some freaky abduction thing.

He was insistent, but he wasn't angry.  He understood our position and appreciated that not just anyone could walk in.  Finally, we took his driver's license, got his license plate, and gave him ten minutes to drive through.  We were pretty sure he was on the up and up, but you just never know ... especially when they can't give any verifiable information.

The guy returned within a few minutes with no one in the car.  His son wasn't here.  We returned his driver's license and he headed to another location where his son might be.

We change the color of visitor passes each day (not reserved guest passes, just daytime visitors).  And we found a couple of folks trying to use yesterday's pass for today.  Some just don't want to pay the visitor fee and some try to stay overnight to get around the campsite "number of people" limits.

It's a hassle to try to enforce all the rules, but it makes for a much better camping experience for the majority of our campers.  As I got time to drive through the campground, I had to give the usual reminders:  "Dogs on leashes, please";  "You need a helmet when riding your bike, please";  "Don't walk through other peoples' campsites, please";  "Your truck is sticking out in the road, can you pull it up, please?";  "You can't park your boat there, it has to be completely in your site or in the designated boat trailer parking areas, please."

Fortunately, everyone has complied to this point and I haven't had to tell anyone twice.  It's usually the "dogs on leashes" thing that everyone wants to ignore.  I get all the usual excuses:  "I'm right here with him";  "He wouldn't hurt a fly";  "I have his leash in my pocket"; "He just ran out the door when we opened it".  One person even said "He has a zapper collar so he can't go anywhere" as I watched the boxer run up to a lady walking by on the road.  And she had the gall at that moment to complain about other dogs not on leashes.  Sheesh.

All in all, we had a good day.  We got lots of comments about how clean everything is.  And, for the number of people, things have been pretty quiet - no rowdy groups or loud music.

We called it a day at 8:00 and went home for leftovers.  Checking emails, we found 15 cookbooks have already been ordered.  Uh oh, I hope we ordered enough.  :)

At 10:00 I went back out for the quiet hours run.  Still pretty calm.  It was relatively hot here today (mid to upper 80s), and most people spent time in the sun and on the lake.  That makes for some sleepy campers in the evening.  :)

That's it for today.  Hope everyone eventually found their families.  :)

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Lots Of Check-Ins - (Chester, CA)

Before I get started with our day, here is the link to purchase an RV-Dreams Family Favorites Cookbook.

The cost is $12 plus shipping as shown on the order page.  The re-print cost was a little more than the original print cost, so we had to raise the price a little, but I think you'll find it's still worth the price.  It really is a nice little cookbook, and we'll have them in hand next week to ship out.  :)

We'll have 100 cookbooks, but we have no idea how long this order will last.  Heck, we might even sell them here at the campground and have to get a new order before the Rally in October.  :)

On with our day.

Randy and I started with the Honey Wagon for about an hour.  But then we had to take a break and run some overflowing trash to the local dump when it opened at 9:00.

Then it was back to Honey Wagon duty.  After that, we worked on bathrooms until Randy got called away to handle an electrical problem.  By the time I put the last mop stroke on the bathroom floor, it was almost 2:00. 

Linda was on the late shift and, along with Katrina, she had to deal with the majority of the 40-plus check-ins for the day.  Since the check-ins for Fourth of July weekend are spread out over two days, this was a much busier single day.

Fortunately, no one came in with an attitude and all went smoothly.  After I helped Randy move the dock in one more time, I assisted at the office.

As people pulled in, I got their name, matched them to a site on the reservation list and radioed into the office so they could pull the paperwork.  I recorded all the license plate numbers on a small piece of paper and handed it to the guest to take inside to check in.  That saved a lot of time with folks lined up to check in, and it seemed to work well.

That'll be part of my job next weekend, so it was good to try out that little system.  In addition, while the ladies were whirling around doing the check-ins, answering the phone, and selling store items, I assisted guests with non-check-in questions.  And I raised and lowered our entrance chain for those coming and going that had proper passes - that in itself helps the office folks stay focused on what they are doing.  Occasionally, I drove down into the campground to help with minor requests and issues.

I worked an extra three hours helping with check-ins and helping people get settled.  But that's the fun part.  :)

By 8:00, I called it a day.  Linda balanced the receipts for the day and came home around 8:30.

She had put on a crockpot of chicken - a recipe from the cookbook  :) - and we had a nice dinner.  As busy as it was, she was pleased that it went as smoothly as it did.

I did the 10:00 quiet hours round and had to remind a few groups to keep voices down, but all in all, it was pretty quiet.  It was a beautiful night with campfires glowing and the moon reflecting on the lake as I drove along the shore near the boat docks.

While I was out, I went ahead and replenished toilet paper in the bathrooms so there would be more than enough to get through the next morning.

With a full campground, we hope the rest of the weekend goes as well as today.  :)

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Ditto Yesterday - (Chester, CA)

Yep, today was pretty much the same as yesterday.  Beading and reading for Linda and afternoon golf for me.

In the middle of that, we returned bunches of emails and completed our order of a re-print of the RV-Dreams Family Favorites Cookbook.

For those new to the Journal, it's a collection of 300 family favorite recipes submitted by RV-Dreams readers.  It turned out to be a pretty nice cookbook.  :)

We sold out of the first order of 200 pretty quickly last year, and we have finally received enough interest to make the minimum order of another 100.  We'll provide ordering details very soon.

That's about it for today.  Back on the job tomorrow.  :)

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Personal Recreation - (Chester, CA)

It was a beautiful day.

Linda did some reading and then some beading.  She had a couple orders to fill.

She decided to do her beading on the porch at the campground office just in case in might lead to more orders from guests curious about what she was doing.  :)

I relaxed at the rig until about 2:00 when I left to go play golf.  The best and closest course is Bailey Creek.  It's also the most expensive of the three area courses - $98 on Friday, Saturday, Sunday; $88 Monday - Thursday, $78 mid-day (after noon); and $58 twi-light (after 3:00).  All prices include cart.

I had decided that I would only play at the twi-light rate.  However, a couple of readers reminded me to check GolfNow.com which has some pretty good deals on tee times.  And Bailey Creek happens to be listed.

So, I booked a 2:50 tee time for today and only paid $30 including cart - a fantastic deal for that course.

Upon arrival, I was paired with Richard from Shingle Springs, CA.  He is a P.E. teacher and golf coach at Ponderosa High School and a heck of a nice guy.

I shot a 90 but didn't play as poorly as the score indicated.  I just couldn't hit a short iron to save my life and lipped out a bunch of putts.  Of course there were the usual "brain-in-the-way" mistakes that prevented the score from being under 85 where it should have been.  :)

After my round, I found Linda back in the rig reading.  I grilled some burgers, and we took it easy the rest of the night.

Since she is so into her book, I'll probably have the opportunity to play golf again tomorrow.  :)

There are lots of things to do in the area within a 100 miles, but often we just don't feel like making the drive.  And we are perfectly content to stay close to home and pursue our individual interests - our personal recreation.  :)

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A Nice End To Our Work Week - (Chester, CA)

By the time Linda opened the office/store this morning, there were people lining up to shop, rent boats, and ask questions.

The dumpsters got emptied this morning so Randy and I quickly transferred the heaping truckload of trash left over from the weekend to the empty dumpsters.  Des told us that the large dumpster will be emptied twice a week now.  That should help our trash situation some.

After that, I read electric meters.  All new seasonals have metered electric, while those that have been coming here awhile are grandfathered.  So far, we only have seven or eight with meters, plus our site.

I read meters and figured the charges.  Linda prepared the bills and I delivered them later in the day.  We have a $75 per month electric allowance, and our usage was only $65 for the month.  We were happy with that.  :)

After that, I cleaned a front and back deck at one of the cabins and sprinkled ant granules on ant hills in the section opposite the campground where the shop and residences and our site are.

In my guest relations duties, I had to tell one of our monthly campers to take down a tarp he had set up as a windbreak for his campfire.   My other rule enforcement issues were the usual reminders about kids needing helmets to ride bikes and scooters in the campground and dogs needing to be on leashes.  Oh, and there is the ever popular chasing people off a narrow strip of grass where there is a big "Keep Off The Grass" sign.  :)

Fortunately, everyone was very pleasant to deal with.  There was some sort of "good karma" in the air today.  :)

Randy and I cleaned the bathrooms and did the shower and baseboard scrubbing in the womens' room since we did the mens' yesterday.  Boy, the nice, cushiony kneepads they have make all the difference in the world on that chore.  I might have to get me a pair of those to keep in the RV.  Many RVers have them, but I've always just used an old stadium seat cushion when I need to get on the ground.  :)

I was about to head to lunch when a couple needed a loaner extension cord and hose.  As I was getting ready to deliver those, I got caught in the office helping someone find a place on a map while Linda juggled check-ins, retail sales, and phone calls.  Then two ladies came in asking questions about the area and about boat rentals.  Then there was a guy needing the business card for the mobile RV repair service. 

It looks like we will be busy the rest of the season, even during the week.  Having only one person in the office is quite a challenge.  Every time I stop in, I handle customer questions until Linda or whoever else is on duty can get to them.

When guests are at the store in person, they get priority and the phone goes to voicemail.  However, as I've said before, once you take a call or return a call, it is a fifteen to twenty minute conversation.  People always walk in during those conversations and have to wait, so it's nice just to have someone there to occupy their time and pay attention to them for a few minutes.  :)

We have a little $2 map of the lake that shows roads, points of interest, lake depth, lake hazard areas, and locations of fishing spots by season and type of fish.  I sell at least one of those every time I go in the office.  :)

Once I delivered the cord and hose to the new arrivals, they determined they wanted a more level site.  They had not yet unhitched.  Linda was busy and couldn't respond to my call on the walkie-talkie, so I drove back to the office to see what sites were available for three nights.

I drove back in the golf cart and took the gentleman around to look at the available sites.  He selected one, and I dropped him off at his rig so they could move.  They were happy.

Since it was about 2:00 when I finally got lunch, I cut it short and went back to my chore list.  Our baby Great Blue Herons high in their nest above one of the tent sites have not yet fledged.  So I raked up everything that had been tossed out of the nest.  Hopefully, that tent site isn't reserved much until the herons are gone.  :)

Linda was off duty at 2:45, but she hung in longer to help Claudia as it always seems to get busy at shift change no matter what time that actually takes place.  When she finally left, she loaded up the Jeep to do laundry in town.  But she made another stop at the office on her way out.  She wanted to take care of some unfinished business before we have our two days off.

It was about 4:30 by the time she headed into Chester.  I was finished for the day, but decided to make one last tour of the campground before going home.

Then I got caught up talking to campers.  Some are much more chatty than others, and it was about 6:00 by the time I got to the rig.

But, even as busy as it was, the day took on a good feel - kind of that good karma thing.  Some days our jobs feel like "work" and some days they feel like more like fun than work.  Today, with the pleasantness of people and the gorgeous weather, was a good day.

When I got home, the deck was calling me.  I put on some soothing music and sat outside looking at the lake.

We've had neighbors in the Osprey Cabin the last few days.  They were walk-ins looking for some peace and quiet somewhere on the lake.

I showed them the Quail Cabin and they were going to take it, but I convinced them to at least look at the Osprey Cabin.  At an extra $65 per night, I don't think they wanted to spend the money, but once I showed it to them, he just said "Now this is what I'm talking about.  Sign me up."  For solitude and a view, it doesn't get much better on this lake unless you are able to rent someone's lakefront private home.  :)

They were sitting out on their deck relaxing as I strolled down to the "beach".  A family of Canada Geese paddled away as I approached.

As I walked on, Bald Eagles were on the shore.

Of course, they always flew away from me when I got closer.  Still, they are majestic in flight.

I like this shot of a juvenile taking off.

I slowly made my way back up the beach in front of our rig.  I took a couple more shots of the calm lake ....

as I traced the footprints of the geese and deer in the reddish brown sand.  Ah, my afternoon nature cocktail.  :)

Linda returned from Chester happy to be finished with the laundry.  After a quick dinner of leftovers, she was back reading.

She has been sucked into to Dan Brown's "Angels & Demons", the "prequel" to "The Da Vinci Code".  At 710 pages in paperback, it's a pretty intimidating read, but Linda is zipping through it like I've never seen her read before.  :)

We were both in a mode of deep contentment.

It was a indeed a nice end to our work week.  :)

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Typical Monday Duties - (Chester, CA)

We woke up to the usual upper 40 degree temperatures.  Then, as usual, the temps rose into the 70s with the sun.  We did have an unusual eastern breeze today which seemed to keep the air cooler.

As for our workday, it was a pretty typical Monday.  Linda had the early shift at the office, and I had honey wagon duty followed by bathroom duty.  It's also the day we scrub the showers and baseboards in one of the bathrooms.

In the afternoon, Linda rented a kayak to a mother and daughter, and I got their life jackets and paddles and got them launched.  That was some free entertainment as the mom tried to give paddling instructions.  They weren't getting very far as their little dog kept jumping into the water and had to be pulled back in the boat.  :)

Overall, Linda had a much better day than yesterday.  It started out a little hectic, but it was calmer as the day progressed.  :)

After the kayak rental, Randy and I did more trash juggling before I did some lawn mowing.  After mowing, it was more time with the trash as Randy smashed it with the tractor, and we transferred what we could from the truck to the dumpsters.  Sheesh, we spend a lot of time on trash management.  :)

Linda worked past her scheduled quitting time returning phone calls.  The end of my day was spent going through the campsites and getting them ready for the next campers.  Though we had a massive exodus yesterday, there were still quite a few that left today.

At home, it was about relaxing.  Linda read out on the deck and I checked out the day's recap of the U.S. Open and watched a little of the College World Series.

One thing is for certain - our days go by pretty fast.  :)

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