RV Yeshiva
This past week we went on an RV trip, our first RV trip. I have been wanting to do this for many years and my family finally aquiesed and agreed to a short 3 day RV trip to Tennessee. As we were packing up our van (to go pick up the RV) my 3rd son (age 7) says: "The neighbors are awake and they might see all this stuff and think we are moving!". We leave the house at 8 AM (with a van full of kosher food, bags and enough stuff to fill an RV plus 6 people) and my husband says "It is still not too late to back out of this trip.". My 18 y.o. son comes out of the house and says "Are we going to the beach? To Yellowstone?" At which time my 16 y.o daughter says "How many rooms does the RV have?" At 9:30 AM we are still in the RV parking lot (being oriented to our "home" for the next 3 days). 3 of us need to "poop". We're afraid to use the bathroom. The owner of the RV has warned us not to make sharp right turns or we might pull off a stop sign, curb, telephone pole, etc. At 12:00Noon we pull into a gas station. We scrape the bottom of the RV on a hill. At 1PM we stop at some caverns. We spend 2 hours in a damp moist cave, 300 feet underground and learn about how long it takes to go blind in the dark and we are informed about the women who was once left behind and climbed up the cave stairs in the dark. We are all now feeling warm and fuzzy. We are also informed that the oxygen is 30% less and that last week 800 people had a party in the cave. I can't think of a more miserable place to have a party. At 5:45 PM we hook up to our campsite. I have cramps and 1 motrin on me. I venture out with my daughter to beg for a motrin from the "neighbors". They are toothless, but manage to understand my needs and I am relieved to acquire 4 more motrin. At this point, my teenagers are huddled under the A/C vent and won't move out from under it. They fight for the A/C spot in the RV while the rest of us sweat. Everything in the RV is little: little water, little air, little beds, little cupboards, just plain little. My husband ventures out to find a can opener and to meet more neighbors. He ask the neighbors, "So how long have you been here?" The man answers "2 weeks." My husband says, "In this spot?". The man says, "Yeh. Right in this spot." My husband comes back baffled at the thought of staying in 1 spot. I think it is not much different than the Yeshiva boys who sit for years in 1 spot. 8 PM: We drive down to visit the lake. We are alone there and it is beautiful. We now are very wet. My daughter asks "Don't we have a dryer?"
Day Two: We venture out of our "spot" as the neighbors are bewildered by the fact that we move in and out so frequently. We stop by the "dumping station." We all back up (way back) while my husband empties the poop. It makes a horrible gurgling sound and we are all amazed at the volume. We seal up and are on our way when we smell a horrible stench and are force to stop. Seems like we left a valve open. We close it. Quickly. We go on a beautiful waterfall hike and then to a swimming hole where my husband insists that we hang with the yocals and jump from cliffs. We all refuse. I finally agree and get water up my nose. Another reminder not to agree so often. My son is deciding at this point that RVs are not a good investment. At night we cook out on an open fire and roast marshmellows. I am happy.
Day Three. We visit another park and go horseback riding. I decide that my legs are not designed to straddle a horse. We spend another peaceful day lugging our home around Tennessee, hiking to waterfalls and swimming in water holes. We cookout another dinner and roast marshmellows. Grace, our 7 yo neighbor asks my sons to play. They play hide and seek around the bathhouse. She is here with her aunt and grandparents and they have not moved in a week. She visits the nature center (a 6' x 6' building) as an "outing." Grace informs us that she prays nightly for a brother or sister.My boys cannot relate. It starts to drizzle and we welcome the rain.
Day Four: We travel home. My sister informs me of her friend who lost their $500 RV deposit 30 minutes before returning their RV when they ripped the roof off on a gas station awning. I keep this in mind as we head back. I pray we don't rip the roof off any gas stations before we return the beast back home. We make it. I give thanks.
Day Two: We venture out of our "spot" as the neighbors are bewildered by the fact that we move in and out so frequently. We stop by the "dumping station." We all back up (way back) while my husband empties the poop. It makes a horrible gurgling sound and we are all amazed at the volume. We seal up and are on our way when we smell a horrible stench and are force to stop. Seems like we left a valve open. We close it. Quickly. We go on a beautiful waterfall hike and then to a swimming hole where my husband insists that we hang with the yocals and jump from cliffs. We all refuse. I finally agree and get water up my nose. Another reminder not to agree so often. My son is deciding at this point that RVs are not a good investment. At night we cook out on an open fire and roast marshmellows. I am happy.
Day Three. We visit another park and go horseback riding. I decide that my legs are not designed to straddle a horse. We spend another peaceful day lugging our home around Tennessee, hiking to waterfalls and swimming in water holes. We cookout another dinner and roast marshmellows. Grace, our 7 yo neighbor asks my sons to play. They play hide and seek around the bathhouse. She is here with her aunt and grandparents and they have not moved in a week. She visits the nature center (a 6' x 6' building) as an "outing." Grace informs us that she prays nightly for a brother or sister.My boys cannot relate. It starts to drizzle and we welcome the rain.
Day Four: We travel home. My sister informs me of her friend who lost their $500 RV deposit 30 minutes before returning their RV when they ripped the roof off on a gas station awning. I keep this in mind as we head back. I pray we don't rip the roof off any gas stations before we return the beast back home. We make it. I give thanks.
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