Finding Meaningful Work in Our RV Travels

Vanessa and I are often asked the same question whenever we speak of RV travels — how are you going to make money? Valid question. We both had very lucrative jobs before taking the plunge into full-time RV exploration, yet that doesn’t mean that we don’t have to make a living while on the road. As awesome as it would be to just live off savings and travel without regard, that doesn’t seem to be in the cards for us just yet.

As a copy/freelance writer, I’m blessed to be able to work from just about anywhere. As long as there is WiFi, of course. I take jobs here and there covering topics that I feel strongly about, or that allow me to broaden my knowledge on a whole slew of varying topics. I’ve learned quite a bit while freelancing, plus it keeps my writing skills sharp.

Aside from writing, Vanessa and I are hoping to find other sources of income while on the road, particularly involving farm work, harvesting, manual labor and the like. We’re looking to get our hands dirty, and invest a little bit of ourselves back into the earth. Maybe it’s hard to imagine a former Miss Teen USA and a published author choosing a life of working with our hands from dawn to dusk, or harvesting apples under the autumn sun, but it’s with good reason.

One of my favorite chapters from Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers  is the last, right before the epilogue, called Rice Paddies and Math Tests. (If you haven’t read this book, I urge you to do so. If you want my copy, email me your forwarding address and I’ll send it along. It’s worth the read.)

Gladwell speaks about meaningful work in this chapter and the importance it has on a person and on a community. The Chinese, as a culture, spend so much time building, maintaining, and harvesting from their rice paddies in order to provide for themselves, their community, and their families. There is meaning behind the work they do. There is pride and reward. This ultimately is a contributing factor to why the Chinese are so hardworking and motivated as a whole.

Vanessa and I both worked in offices, without significant personal reward. We were making money for our bosses, while stationary behind a desk for hours at a time. There wasn’t much meaning in the work we were doing. We felt extremely unfulfilled.

To us, working on a farm, or harvesting grapes in a vineyard would facilitate meaning and purpose. Not only would we be helping the smaller farms who need more hands than people are willing to offer, but we also are rewarding the community with the fruits of our labor (pun definitely intended).

Maybe it sounds crazy to some, but one of the main reasons Vanessa and I are taking this leap of faith into full time RV living is so that we can cultivate a stronger sense of purpose and meaning while exploring the country on our own terms. We don’t want a 9-5. We don’t want to sit in traffic every day. We don’t want to earn a paycheck just to buy more “stuff” nor do we want to sell people more “stuff”.

It’s a lifestyle change that we’re hoping to find much more rewarding on a personal level because it speaks to the very core of our being.

Life on our own terms.

Why Choosing the Right RV is Important

It’s been a few weeks since we’ve written, so our apologies in advance. We’ve been going through some huge life changes and making all the right moves in order to get our RV adventure underway.

Vanessa and I had some difficulty deciding on what we should be traveling in for the duration of the trip (still unknown might we add). There are so many different types of motor homes and recreational vehicles to choose from, you really need to take time to navigate your needs. So, we decided to write a post about the different types of RVs out there, so that if anybody finds themselves at a crossroads like we were, they can navigate more easily their needs and wants.

We started first looking at travel trailers. Here’s why:

1. They are modern

One of our primary criteria in finding a road home was a more modern decor. We kept coming across these RVs that had a very outdated style — older fabrics, wood everywhere, hideous fixtures. Brand new travel trailers have more modernity on the inside, which made it a plus in our book.

2. They are affordable

We found some brand new 2016 travel trailers for $16k-17k. That was EXACTLY what we needed. We didn’t want to spend an arm and a leg on this trip because we were trying to downgrade our expenses. Finding something brand new, with a warranty, at such a low cost was ideal.

3. They are spacious

Travel trailers have more space on the inside because they aren’t attached to a cab or motor. This means they’re more lightweight, and usually longer. With two humans and two dogs we figured the more space the better.

So, with these three criteria, we started our journey by falling in love with the Airstream. *Sigh* The new Airstream Serenity was right up our alley.

The decor was very modern, it was clean and new, and seemed to have everything we needed to get on the road. We found one we loved and filled out the loan paperwork…….

Only to be rejected. Turns out, we naively were trying for a 70k loan for a TRAVEL TRAILER when we have never had a loan that big for either one of us. See, the thing is that financial companies are looking for you to have had a loan of considerable size already when you are trying to finance an RV so that they know you can handle it. Primarily because RVs are not considered necessary — they are are luxury. They are an add-on to someone who already has a full-time home.

To this day though, it was a blessing in disguise that we didn’t get the Airstream. We would’ve been 70k in debt without a truck to even tow it.

But besides the price, we also weren’t so keen to the idea of having our home detached from our “getaway” vehicle. Unfortunately, this was something we had to consider since we are two girls traveling the country alone. If anything were to happen, and there was trouble on the road, in a travel trailer we would be trapped. So, since travel trailers were ruled out, then certainly fifth wheels were ruled out as well for the same reason. So this ultimately led us to Class B vehicles. Why we considered Class B RVs:

1. Cab is attached

2. Very small body

3. We could take it free-camping

Number 3 was huge for us, because we really want to explore the country and nature without having a huge hassle of finding a campground and parking. Free-camping is VERY much on our agenda.

Yet, we soon found out that the affordable Class B motorhomes in our price range were VERY outdated with high mileage.  There also were few and far between to consider. So, that brought us to our next option which were Class A RVs. Why Class A’s were appealing:

1. HUGE space inside

2. Cab was attached

3. It’s really like a small apartment on wheels

4. Within our price range for used

5. The open-space feel of the interior

However, we did find one major drawback which ultimately dissuaded us from choosing a Class A. They were just too big for what we needed. Since we wanted to free camp, or just pull over and sleep on the road, Class A motorhomes would definitely not be the right choice.

So this really narrowed us down to the Class C RV variety.

Why we LOVED Class C motorhomes:

1. Easy to park

2. Affordable for a used one

3. Exactly the amount of space we needed

4. Cab was attached

5. More Ideal layout for two humans and two dogs

5. Better gas mileage

The Class C’s seemed to fulfill everything we were looking for. The above bunk was perfect to get away from the dogs, the space was just right, and if ever we were in a dangerous situation, we could hop in the cab and take off.

After months of going back-and-forth, we narrowed down our search to Class C motorhomes and eventually, after much duress and coming quite close to giving up, we finally found Maude, our 2007 Itasca Navion.

Why I Decided on Full-Time RV Living: Marisa

The first question Vanessa and I are asked when we tell people about our full-time RV adventure is “why?” A lot of our friends and family are curious as to what lead us to such a drastic decision. Why did we pare down and give away the majority of our belongings? Why did we decide to live in such a small space when we had a beautiful bungalow by the beach? Why quit our jobs and lose the stability of a full-time income?

So we decided to write a quick word or two — from each of us– in regards to why we made this decision in hopes that friends and family will understand a bit better, and welcomed strangers will find some inspiration to pursue their own to happiness.

Marisa

I’ve been working full time since I was about 16. All throughout college and graduate school I had a full time job because I did things a bit backwards in life — rent, utilities, moving out on my own all at the age of 19. I’ve been going nonstop for a while. Having a full-time job has been necessary to paying my way in this life. But there have always been disadvantages. For example, having to work Christmas Eve, as well as the day after Christmas, allowed zero time for family. I would spend all day in an office, at a desk, eyes on a computer, with only 30 minutes for lunch. I would have to sit in 12+ hours of traffic each week, on top of already working 45 hours per week. By the time I got home, I was irritable, exhausted, and only had about an hour or two with Vanessa to eat, clean up, and relax before starting it all over again. I was not happy.

I came to the conclusion that without so much “stuff” to pay for, I wouldn’t need to be working so hard. I wouldn’t need to be away from Vanessa or away from my pup Penny. I would actually have time to do things that made me happy.

I’ve never been one to understand why we all work so hard for a dream that doesn’t fulfill us or make us happy, or why Americans spend the majority of their lives at jobs they hate. My mom and dad are both extremely hard-working individuals and always have been. My dad came over on a raft from Cuba and became very successful on his own. My mother owns a pet magazine called Suncoast Pet, that she runs primarily by herself. Working hard is in my DNA. But I want to work hard at something I love. I want to work hard at making memories, and exploring the country, and meeting new people. It doesn’t matter to me if my hard work doesn’t translate into dollars and cents. Sure, there are bills I need to pay through freelance writing, but I’m not looking to make more money than I need to buy more stuff that we just end up throwing away in a few years.

Full-time RV living means all of my things fit in my home that can come with me wherever I go. I don’t have a house full of “stuff”. I don’t have a tremendous amount of bills or debt. But most importantly, I get to travel the country with my girlfriend — and my best friend.

I’m not passing judgment on those who enjoy or take part in more conventional living. I did it for the last 30 years of my life, and there was always something missing. Always a sense of exploration that wasn’t being fulfilled.

That’s why I decided to embark on this adventure.

Stayed tuned for the next blog: Why I Decided on Full-Time RV Living: Vanessa