OMG! What was I thinking.... I bought another house! This time it's a 3 bedroom ranch in New Hampshire. Honestly it happened so fast, I'm not quite sure myself how I got here. One day, I was riding my bike across Missouri in 110 degree heat, and in what seems like the blink of an eye, I found myself freeze in Northern NH. As I sit here in my makeshift office, staring out the window at 15 inches of freshly fallen snow, I'm deeply afraid this too won't last.
What happened? It's pretty simple really: I wrote a letter to 23 homeowners in my daughter's neighborhood, basically offering to buy their houses. Within 3 days, several people had responded wishing me luck, and one had offered to sell. I drove over almost immediately and quickly walked through the property. Not exactly what I was looking for, but it had potential; within 4 hours it was under contract and I was on the road again.
Unfortunately, in order to pay for the house, I had to sell my van! (I know, right? You can't make this stuff up!) I still have Vandora (my Chrysler Pacifica camper), but Kintsugi Dash, (a Winnebago Solis Pocket 36A), was sacrificed for the cause. On the plus side, Kintsugi was a 2021 Ram with a 2022 build. In other words, she lacked the upgraded chassis and safety features now available on the Promaster.
By late August, I had also realized that the mad rush for RV's and camper vans during the pandemic was coming to an end. By selling Kintsugi when I did, I escaped with a hefty profit. (It was, and is, my intention to purchase a new Promaster, once the supply again exceeds demand.) I'm also eternally grateful that I'd kept Vandora in storage ... just in case. (See... I do learn from my mistakes.)
On the plus side, having a house is wonderful. The sheer idea of having heat, water, laundry and a garage is pretty exciting in and of itself. I bought a tiny houseplant and happily painted over the lime green and gold walls that surrounded me. My second grandson was born a week ago, and being here, so close that I can walk over to see them, is wonderful.
But....
I am a nomad... and once again, I'm sitting in a house.
It scares me when I find myself lying awake at night searching RV Trader for vans. It scares me when I attempt to date and realize that any stable man, who's worked the same job for 20+ years, sends me running for my life. Though in their defense, I'm sure I scare them too. How exactly do you explain to someone that you've moved in and out of 6 different houses - let alone, bought and sold 5 different camper vans since 2017?
Ironically perhaps, I was once a pretty stable person, and a fairly submissive wife. I'd worked as a nurse, and knew when to keep my mouth shut. It's not that I miss that woman, but at least I recognized her. Society recognized her. There's something about being married, raising kids, and living in a house, that grants you an almost instant stamp of approval. Society rewards its heteronormative members. It embraces those who follow the rules.
Those who dare to live outside the norm, however, quickly find themselves cast in Matt Foley's ionic role: "living in a van down by the river."
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