So we went winter camping.

It was actually great, heat-wise. We’d picked a super warm place to go, Silver City, partially because we’d never been and partially because it’s like 150 miles from the Mexican border, and those southern NM towns stay pretty nice in the winter, so we assumed it would be a safe bet.

WRONG.

First couple of days were fine, except that the temps in our hometown were going to drop so low that we had to call the county and have our water shut off. Got it done, fine. 

The nights were kind of weird, though. With the radiant heating in the camper, the heat has to come out somewhere, and the one place it really feels super warm is in the corner where the bed meets the wall, which just happens to be where I like to sleep. So the side of me facing the wall was like a billion degrees, and the other side was nice and cool. I had to keep rotating in order to avoid overcooking myself.

Otherwise, no problems.

We walked downtown and through a couple of pretty empty shops and bought a pretty etching. We even went on a big kid hike and only got slightly lost, adding probably an extra mile to the hike which was no big deal.

Still all good.

We saw that there was a chance of snow on Valentine’s Day so we planned to spend the day close to the camper but everyone we’d talked to said it rarely really snows there and when it does it melts pretty quickly. So we prepped the camper, unhooked the hoses from the outside water supply and just got ready for it.

Holy crap. Holy. Crap.

It went from almost 60 to like 20. It was windy and the snow just kept falling and falling and falling. We had a nice day inside, our heater was working, but we were also planning to leave the next morning at like 7 am, so my husband kept having to go out and get stuff prepped and check on the camper.

Yeah. It was a little surreal. 

We went to sleep, everything was okay. Then we woke up and started to prep to leave. We needed to get all of the water dumped and antifreeze run through the system, because we knew we were headed home, which was even colder, and we didn’t know how long it would take to get there.

So.....sometimes even when you prep the hoses, the valves freeze. Did you know? I didn’t. 

It was pretty sweet. My husband was out in the freezing for ages, getting everything to work. The water pump stopped working and the vent fan inside had condensation and was dripping water onto the floor. And it was cold, because you have to stop running the power at some point.

And then, after my husband was finally able to get all those outside things done (I felt horrible...it was so cold out there and nothing I could do to help), we had to flush the lines with antifreeze. And I had to hold down the toilet flusher and flush it and I know I got toilet all over my arm but there was nothing I could do about it and I was DYING.

YES, DYING. I DIED. FROM TOILET.

Okay, I didn’t die. I survived. But all I’m saying is that it’s a good thing the jacket I was wearing was washable, and that I could take it off once we got in the car. It was rough times.

So we finally got all of that done. We finally got on the road, only a couple of hours late. I actually backed up the car to the hitch ball thingy and was very proud even though it took me twice as many tries as it should’ve to get it lined up.

So we get on our way. And it’s all good. And then BOOM.

A ten mile stretch of icy highway. Going ten miles an hour behind semis and campers and also towing a camper.

Needless to say, it took forever, but we got home.

We got home and I was so excited to run into my bathroom and engage in some serious hand washing. It had been hours. Hand sanitizer and one truck stop bathroom washup just isn’t enough for me. Got inside and....guess what? NO WATER.

That’s right. Even though we’d called the county first thing that morning and asked them to turn it back on, and they’d said they would, it didn’t happen. And, big baby that I am, no water right then was the worst. 

I didn’t actually cry, but I almost did. Also, I really needed to hit the potty but with no water for hand washing, I just can’t. And the camper had no water, either, since it had already been winterized.

So we had to wait. It was the longest hour of my life.

Okay, I’m being overly dramatic. I just really like a good handwashing.

Anyhow, it was a good, fun trip, and we’d definitely go back to Silver City because it’s cute and there’s a lot of stuff we’d like to do post-pandemic, but....somehow I think we may not be extreme winter campers. Just, nope.

 Oh, man. So glad we’re getting back to the business of normal life now that the election and inauguration are over with. 

Hahahaha just kidding. Still living with the pandemic and all the fun times.

I’ve started playing a game that I’ve called, “How many times today?” It’s really fun. Here’s how you play:

Pick a person that you’re in fairly frequent contact with. Maybe a co-worker if you’re working in an office, or maybe even a family member, if that’s who you’re spending all of your time with. Then, pick a complaint that you’ve heard that person make. For instance, mine is a person who I’ve never seen wear a mask. Like, never. And yet, this person constantly complains about other people who don’t wear masks.

Yeah, this game is a tad bitchy.

Then, pick a random number of times you think the person is going to make the complaint in a specific period of time. The last time I played, I picked eight times in one hour.

Guess what? I lost. Ten was the magic number. Ten complaints in one hour. 

My new goal is to see if I can make others play this game with me as the complainer. I’m going to make my dreams come true.

What? New horizons. I can do this.

I also forgot to mention it, but every time I win, I get a piece of chocolate. That’s the key to the fun. Chocolate.

Yeah, I get a piece if I lose, too. I’m a grownup. I do what I want.

Religion is a poor substitute for humanity.

It just is. Spouting cherry-picked verses from the Bible and then being nasty and cruel and hateful to others because they differ from you or disagree with you is not Godly, and it’s not right.

We have to stop. We need to remember our manners, think before speaking, and remember that these are our fellow human beings. They have thoughts, feelings, experiences, and lives that we know nothing about. Remember that we’re all struggling with one thing or another.

BE KIND.

 So the whole Christmas-New Year inspirational thought time kind of passed me by. Mostly I was just trying to deal with work stuff and baking and trying to see my Dad a little bit in a safe way.

Coronavirus time, man. It’s crazy.

We did find good hiking trails in our neighborhood, though, so that’s pretty great. And we’re trying to potty train our bird, but have discovered that training a bird is really tough because they forget things so easily. So that’s going to take another year or two, but it’s okay. She gets really proud when we both clap at her for pooping on her papers instead of on the floor or on us. Once or twice, we could tell she made the connection and let us know she needed to poop so we could take her to her paper to do her business, but come on. She’s a bird.

And that’s pretty much it. No deep thoughts, just the usual normal stuff. And getting excited for a vaccine so we can see each other safely because we are a small family, so we’re pretty darn close and it’s weird not hanging out a lot. But it looks like a warm winter, so lots of outdoor porch time with my Dad’s AMAZING porch heater. For reals, that thing puts out a ton of heat. I love it.

We’ll get through, guys. Just keep going. Support your local stores and restaurants because Amazon is going to be just fine, but the little guys need help right now, if you can. And be nice, wash your hands, and wear a mask. It’s just common courtesy; don’t make it political. Please.