Our driveway campground is once again down to one Airstream. Our friends the Welshes have departed for adventures west of here, and I doubt we will ever see them in our driveway again. They plan to sell their Airstream when they complete their year of travel, because they’ll need to buy a new house, and it’s difficult to find a place to store an Airstream in their home area of northern Virginia.
I am saddened by this because I’d like to think they’ll return here someday, or that we could go camping together in the east next summer. I’m hoping circumstances will change to allow them to have some Airstream, if not this one, in the future.
It’s just 26 days to our departure too, if various factors come into alignment before then. The house is in a pretty good state, but not quite good enough to call “move-in ready”. We’ve discovered that the shower faucets in the hallway bath are also leaking behind the wall, and so yet another project has joined the list. We have, slowly and haphazardly, had to replace every single faucet in the house due to leaks. That includes all the outside garden hose spigots, the main house shutoff valve, the washing machine faucets, both toilets, both bathroom faucets, the kitchen faucet, and our hookup in the carport. This house was a water-conservation disaster. I think it was probably using a few hundred gallons a week just sitting here empty before we bought it.
We’re still reviewing our plans for the next voyage. We expect to be out in the Airstream for about 6-7 months this time. We’ve tentatively scratched Canada from the schedule, due to high fuel prices (even higher in Canada, and the weak US dollar doesn’t help), and the cost of the ferry to Newfoundland. If we find a sudden windfall that could change, but it’s not likely. However, we have been able to add in some interesting spots on the return trip west, including Arkansas and the four corners region (CO, UT, NM, AZ).
I am told by reliable sources that the Spring 2008 issue of Airstream Life has begun to arrive in the mailboxes of subscribers. If you don’t have yours yet, don’t worry because delivery time varies quite a bit across the country. Some people won’t see it until the end of the month. If you like the cover art, you can buy it printed on canvas here.
Since the magazine is arriving, I can make an announcement of the first-ever “Vintage Trailer Jam” to be held July 11-14 in Saratoga Springs NY. It’s co-sponsored by Airstream Life (me), Colin Hyde, and Vintage Trailer Supply (Steve Hingtgen). We’ve been working on this for several months, and I think it will be a great event. We’ve got educational seminars planned, slideshows, on-site demonstrations, a catered dinner, an Open House, and all kinds of other stuff. We’ll be camped on the grounds of the Saratoga Automobile Museum, and everyone who attends will get free admission to the museum.
Colin is down in Florida right now spreading the word at the Florida State Rally and at last week’s Tin Can Tourists rally, so I expect the event will fill up fast. It’s not just for Airstreams — so if you have any kind of trailer or motorhome more than 25 years old, we really want to see you there!
In the meantime, we’ll dream of fun times to come while we sleep in our concrete carport campground. It’s a little bit lonely without our friends next door, but soon we’ll be out there again, roaming around the country and meeting new folks.
Uke song of the day: “Kaze ni Naru” by Ayano Tsuji. It was the ending theme song for the anime movie “The Cat Returns.” (Chords here).
