Well, it's time to finally come clean with a confession. For the past couple of months, my T@B camping has been minimal because I bought a new RV this spring. I love my T@B and the wonderful community of T@B owners, but a few events earlier this year moved me to buy a new RV much sooner than I would have ever planned to.
Earlier this year, after returning from the trip my mom and I took to the Gulf Coast and New Orleans, my mom was hospitalized and nearly died from Legionnaire's Disease. She apparently had contracted it while on our trip and likely from one a shower facility at one of the campgrounds we had stayed at. Legionnaire's is a form of pneumonia that's contracted from breathing infected water vapor into the lungs. Most non-smokers don't get it because the cilea in their windpipe catches this and other bacterias and keeps it from reaching your lungs. But for smokers, it's a different story (which explains how my mom happened to get it, yet I did not).
Well, never in a million years would I have thought that taking a simple shower at a campground or hotel could be life-threatening, but it indeed can be just that. So, that experience got me re-thinking the idea of camping in a small T@B for long trips (and having to rely on commercial facilities for showering). But on the other hand, my long T@B trips, made me realize just how much I loved to be out on the road seeing new things and meeting new RV'ing friends. So, I knew I wanted to continue my periodic "full-timing" RV adventures and knew I would ultimately want a bigger RV to make those long extended road trips more comfortable for working and living.
Then, the recession kicked into high gear--- RV dealers began really cutting prices on their remaining inventory, the government offered a sales tax rebate on new RV purchases for this year only, manufacturers up'd their cash-back incentives, and by the grace of God, my job and company stock happened to be one of the lone bright spots of this economy. All the stars were now aligning to make this year the time to buy that new RV rather than waiting for retirement....so I did it.
Earlier this year, after returning from the trip my mom and I took to the Gulf Coast and New Orleans, my mom was hospitalized and nearly died from Legionnaire's Disease. She apparently had contracted it while on our trip and likely from one a shower facility at one of the campgrounds we had stayed at. Legionnaire's is a form of pneumonia that's contracted from breathing infected water vapor into the lungs. Most non-smokers don't get it because the cilea in their windpipe catches this and other bacterias and keeps it from reaching your lungs. But for smokers, it's a different story (which explains how my mom happened to get it, yet I did not).
Well, never in a million years would I have thought that taking a simple shower at a campground or hotel could be life-threatening, but it indeed can be just that. So, that experience got me re-thinking the idea of camping in a small T@B for long trips (and having to rely on commercial facilities for showering). But on the other hand, my long T@B trips, made me realize just how much I loved to be out on the road seeing new things and meeting new RV'ing friends. So, I knew I wanted to continue my periodic "full-timing" RV adventures and knew I would ultimately want a bigger RV to make those long extended road trips more comfortable for working and living.
Then, the recession kicked into high gear--- RV dealers began really cutting prices on their remaining inventory, the government offered a sales tax rebate on new RV purchases for this year only, manufacturers up'd their cash-back incentives, and by the grace of God, my job and company stock happened to be one of the lone bright spots of this economy. All the stars were now aligning to make this year the time to buy that new RV rather than waiting for retirement....so I did it.
In May, I found a still-new 2008 Winnebago View with all the features and colors I wanted at a great price. As my storage space is starting to fill up on this blog site, I've started a new travel blog called Winnie Views to record the trips I take with the new motorhome.
I've still got my T@B, but it's been taking a rest this summer at the storage yard while I learn all the finer points of driving and maintaining a 25-foot, 10,000 lb diesel-powered rig. Like my camping pal Terry says, "you can never have too many campers", so I guess my camping collection has officially begun!
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