By the time I got to town on Thursday I was feeling a little jet lagged, after driving much faster for much longer than I've been used to.
When I woke up Friday morning, my first thought was the same as I've had every morning for 2 years: where am I going today. Some mornings my answer is a grateful "I'm staying in the campground today." Today for the first time in 26 months I realized I was not only not going anywhere today, but I won't be going anywhere for a long time. That's a very disconcerting thought and may take me some time to assimilate.
For the time being, I've decided to stay in the RV across the street from Anna and David's house. With their electric power I can do everything except turn on the air conditioner; though since I can run the fan, I should be okay for a while. I need to solve the problem of dumping my waste tanks, which is my next hurdle, and after the chilly weather forecast, I'll likely be needing more propane (much easier to find). So at least for the near future, I've got a pretty comfortable situation, as long as the neighbors don't mind.
It's so hard to plan very far ahead because so much is unknown about this virus. As I was driving down here, I was assuming this hiatus would likely last only a month, and I could get back on the road in time for May in Iowa or at least June in Minnesota. But with the current news reports, I'm now beginning to think I'll have to wait even longer. I can see how much depends on everybody having patience, not trying to go back to normal too soon, and that includes me.
South Korea is now reporting that they'd been sure they were on the mend, with their daily cases plummeting from 900 down below 100. They started to loosen restrictions, and now their case rate is shooting up again. Given the reluctance among many in the US to stay away from large gatherings in church or at funerals or at bars or on the beaches, and our president's impatience to reopen the economy as soon as possible, I have no trouble at all envisioning something similar happening here - only on a much larger scale because of our much larger population.
I'm also worried about Dr. Fauci's recent statement that the virus may show a seasonal variation and die down during the summer, only to come roaring back in the fall.
In other words, I'm still wanting to plan ahead and beginning to understand that's impossible right now. A hard concept for me to grasp.
Meanwhile, I have a long list of things I've been wanting to do for ages but haven't had the time for, and now time is exactly what I've got. Some of these things are still trip-related, such as finally finishing the posts for the Birmingham Civil Rights Museum and the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. I'll be working on those in the coming days.
I also need to organize my finances, which I haven't done in months, and file my income tax return (and I'm grateful for the extended filing period).
Some things I can't do, such as get the annual inspection done on the RV, which didn't get done a year ago because I was nowhere near Texas. It's also time for an oil change. Both of those things won't be available for some months, I suppose.
One place I can go is the storage unit, since that doesn't involve being around any people at all. I've got lots of things stored in my RV's basement that can go into real storage - help lighten the load for when I can start driving again.
Because I can't imagine my daily life could be interesting when I'm not traveling, I'll begin publishing blog posts once a week from now until I get closer to being able to get back on my trip.
I hope everybody's staying safe.
For the time being, I've decided to stay in the RV across the street from Anna and David's house. With their electric power I can do everything except turn on the air conditioner; though since I can run the fan, I should be okay for a while. I need to solve the problem of dumping my waste tanks, which is my next hurdle, and after the chilly weather forecast, I'll likely be needing more propane (much easier to find). So at least for the near future, I've got a pretty comfortable situation, as long as the neighbors don't mind.
It's so hard to plan very far ahead because so much is unknown about this virus. As I was driving down here, I was assuming this hiatus would likely last only a month, and I could get back on the road in time for May in Iowa or at least June in Minnesota. But with the current news reports, I'm now beginning to think I'll have to wait even longer. I can see how much depends on everybody having patience, not trying to go back to normal too soon, and that includes me.
South Korea is now reporting that they'd been sure they were on the mend, with their daily cases plummeting from 900 down below 100. They started to loosen restrictions, and now their case rate is shooting up again. Given the reluctance among many in the US to stay away from large gatherings in church or at funerals or at bars or on the beaches, and our president's impatience to reopen the economy as soon as possible, I have no trouble at all envisioning something similar happening here - only on a much larger scale because of our much larger population.
I'm also worried about Dr. Fauci's recent statement that the virus may show a seasonal variation and die down during the summer, only to come roaring back in the fall.
In other words, I'm still wanting to plan ahead and beginning to understand that's impossible right now. A hard concept for me to grasp.
Meanwhile, I have a long list of things I've been wanting to do for ages but haven't had the time for, and now time is exactly what I've got. Some of these things are still trip-related, such as finally finishing the posts for the Birmingham Civil Rights Museum and the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. I'll be working on those in the coming days.
I also need to organize my finances, which I haven't done in months, and file my income tax return (and I'm grateful for the extended filing period).
Some things I can't do, such as get the annual inspection done on the RV, which didn't get done a year ago because I was nowhere near Texas. It's also time for an oil change. Both of those things won't be available for some months, I suppose.
One place I can go is the storage unit, since that doesn't involve being around any people at all. I've got lots of things stored in my RV's basement that can go into real storage - help lighten the load for when I can start driving again.
Because I can't imagine my daily life could be interesting when I'm not traveling, I'll begin publishing blog posts once a week from now until I get closer to being able to get back on my trip.
I hope everybody's staying safe.
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