On Christmas day, I stayed in bed long enough for a second cup of coffee. I perused news headlines, answered a couple e-mails, and listened to a podcast. It was warm and the sun was streaming through the van windows, and all seemed right with the world. Cosmo and I walked down to visit Bonnie. I know she likes Good & Plenty candy, so when I was at the dollar store the day before, I bought her some. I took them with me and said “Merry Christmas.” She came out with a plastic candy cane full of M&M’s. Great minds think alike. We chatted for about an hour in the morning sun. The temperature was already close to 70.
I went back home to work on some web updates. I spent much of the day just working on tech stuff, sending e-mails, and making a few phone calls. I went back outside where it was a gorgeous day and I sat in the sun a bit more, thinking of all my friends back east caught in a cold snap and snowstorms. I was grateful for the warmth, and for being able to wear shorts and a t-shirt on Christmas day. When I went inside, I caught a glimpse of my sunburned face in the mirror. It never occurred to me to put on sunscreen at the end of December.
Bonnie had mentioned earlier that she had gathered some sticks and branches to have a fire. I had a box of paper and cardboard trash, so I gathered some sticks to add to it and Cosmo and I walked up to Bonnie’s at sunset and made a small fire. The fire was actually quite a big blaze with the small twigs and lots of paper and cardboard, but it was very short-lived. As we stood outside and the fire subsided, the crescent moon was about to set. Below it was Venus, bright near the horizon, and a little bit later, Mercury was visible just a short distance away (at least it appeared to be a short distance; about an inch as seen from Earth.) Above the moon was Saturn and overhead we could see Jupiter. Rising in the east was Mars. We marveled at how we could see six of the eight planets (rest in peace, poor Pluto) if you counted the Earth that we were standing on to observe all of this. It really was quite amazing. I don’t know where Neptune and Uranus were, but if they were in our field of view, they were too far away and too dim for us to perceive.
Cosmo and I walked (actually, we sort of skipped, and played tug-of-war all the way) back to our van. I stood outside a while longer until it was dark enough to see the Milky Way. I went inside and made spaghetti. It was strange for the sun to set so early in the day and to eat dinner after it became so dark.
We had a lot of rain on Monday afternoon and into the night. It made for a good “inside day” and so I took advantage of being inside to work on my necklace that I’d had made in Peru when I went to Machu Picchu. I’ve worn it every day since I got it from a jeweler in Aquas Calientes. He saw me looking at all the beaded necklaces and bracelets in his shop and asked if I saw anything I liked. I told him I liked several and was going to buy one. He said, “Tell me what you like about each one and I’ll make you one with all those elements for you.” I thanked him, but said I was leaving in the morning. He said “That’s not a problem. I can make it for you now while you wait.” I chose a stone, and some beads and told him the length I wanted for the stone to hang just past my collar bone. He strung the beads and while I watched, he twisted silver wire around the stone and hung it from my neck. I loved it. It broke a couple of months ago, and I tried to repair it once, but it broke again. So I went on YouTube, found out how to wire wrap stones, and ordered a repair kit from Amazon. It took a rainy day for me to gather a couple stones from the ground outside my van and practice the wrapping technique. After a couple tries, I was ready to repair my necklace.
I was so happy to have it back around my neck, a constant reminder of Peru, the kindness of people there and the lessons learned. It was not “as good as new” because the jeweler who made it for me had years of practice, but my repair seems durable, and it makes me happy.
Tuesday was warm again, with no wind, so I took advantage of the weather and got an outside shower. I stood in my swimsuit and washed my hair and beard and rinsed. I am camped the farthest away from the main road of all the campers in our area, my passenger side facing other campers. The shower is on the driver’s side, so when I looked around, there was only one other camper, so far down the road that his van was just a tiny dot. I decided it was fine to take off my swimsuit and get a full-on shower. I am not remotely an exhibitionist; in fact, my Judeo-Christian upbringing probably installed a lot of body shame in me, but I have to say that being naked outside in the middle of the desert was such a freeing experience. And being clean from hair to toenails is a delight I will never take for granted again.
The next day it was cloudy in the morning, and I went into town to do laundry. By the time I returned, the sun was peeking through the clouds and the temperature rose to 75 degrees. I sat outside with Bonnie for a while and then went back and listened to an Audible Book outside in the sunshine. I was glad I had taken advantage of the sun, because by Thursday, it was once again dark and overcast.
With the sun so low in the southern sky all day long and the cloud cover so many mornings, I’ve been quite aware that my solar panels aren’t keeping up with my energy consumption. Since I drive so rarely these days, the alternator doesn’t have a chance to charge my coach battery, so the solar charger has to pick up the slack. I have 410 watts of solar panels on my roof. On a sunny day in July, the panels can generate around 360 watts of power. On a cloudy day in December, I’m lucky if they reach 140 watts, and if they are charging my coach battery (the battery in the back that powers my lights, water pump, fridge solenoid, etc.) it is sometimes putting out more than it is taking in. I’ve been keeping an eye on it, trying not to let it get too low. I may have to find a campground with electricity and go there for a night to top off both my lithium phosphate (solar) battery stack and my coach battery so I can start over fresh.
Lessons From The Road: There are many upcoming events coinciding with New Year’s Eve, the Full Moon on January 6th (The “Wolf Moon,” thus a “Howling at the Moon Contest” in Quartzsite), and of course, SkooliePalooza coming up at the end of January. I’m quite conflicted about going to some of them. I went to “Burning Van” last year. The guy who sponsored it, and who charged a fee to participants just to be told the coordinates on BLM land, did little in the way of organizing anything. There was to be a potluck on New Year’s Eve and a talent show. It was cold and windy and the host was nowhere in sight. Fortunately, an attendee stepped up. She was a “Show Biz Type” and did some arm twisting until people agreed to participate in the contest. I guess the group decided as a whole to do the potluck despite the weather conditions. I met a couple of nice people, but it was primarily a younger crowd, and I felt I really didn’t fit in. They are doing it again this year, as a free event. It will be just south of Quartzsite, so very easy for me to drive there. I’m conflicted. My friend Kitty correctly diagnosed me with severe FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), and a part of me thinks about the new friends I could possibly meet if I just showed up. Another part of me remembers what a non-event it was last year, and how cliquish it felt and how there was no one there who I kept in touch with.
I am considering the “Howling” event for the full moon on January 6th. The organizer is an older man, with long grey hair. Cosmo and I have been howling along with the coyotes when we hear them at night, so maybe with a little practice, we’ll enter and give the other contestants a run for their money. It is in Quartzsite.
There is also a “Hippie Gathering” on New Year’s Eve. There was one “Hippie Gathering” in Quartzsite when Kitty and I were there last week. The young people inviting others to attend had zero concept of the definition of Hippie. They were loud, rude and for the most part, just flat out offensive. One boasted of being a libertarian and by his definition it meant “Nobody tells ME what to do.” By my definition it meant “I can be as obnoxious as I want, disrespect other’s rights, and nobody can convince me to do otherwise.”
I long for the connection these events appear to offer, but I have no interest in connecting with most of the people who are sponsoring the events, or the people they attract. I think the lesson is that I long for connection, but I need to be patient. Events will come drawing people who are part of my tribe. I’ll move to places and connect with nice people like some of the friends I’ve made over the past year. I don’t need to go to trending events where there is not much chance of connecting with people who I’m unlikely to make lasting bonds with.
Happy New Year. May this coming year bring you all health, happiness, and fulfillment.
See you down the road!