Simplify, we said. That was the motto this year. At least it was supposed to be. But as our plans progressed, we quickly discovered the simple life ain’t so simple. It’s complicated. I’ll try to explain in a simple way. It’s hard work trying to take it easy. Apparently, there’s plenty of complication involved with trying to live the simple life.

m/ Ooh, you know I…

I found the simple life ain’t so simple
When I jumped out, on that road

— Runnin’ with the Devil, Van Halen

Oh to live a more simple life. I do know we’ll get there. I just didn’t know it would be so complicated getting there. Let’s see…

It all began when Rene decided we should go to Alaska. Life was becoming too comfortable, she said. I get that. However, since the time we placed the order for our new Project M, a lot has happened. A whole heck of a lot.

Back to the Simple Life, Right

The idea was to downsize and get back to living the simple life. Then, we realized a whole heck of a lot needed to happen before we could even leave. Never mind actually getting there. First, we needed to sell the fifth wheel. We finally did, but not until after we went back to Colorado to drop the trailer. We had to take the hitch out of the truck, before heading to Four Wheel Campers for our installation. And, yeah, we’ve got lost of cool footage and thoughts about that. It’s only one of the videos on my to do list that is long overdue.

So, we went from FOY to Eugene. Then we attended a wedding in Santa Rosa. Along the way we replaced the transmission in our Dodge Ram. Long story there, I hope to share sometime soon. That hurt, though we did get 240,000 miles out of the original tranny. So, I suppose we should feel fortunate. Yet, the complication keeping us from the simple life had just begun.

Next…

We went to Colorado and turned right around in a couple days, after removing the fifth wheel hitch. Off to Sacramento we went. Meanwhile Rene’s search for housing in Willow continued. So, we spent the first night in our Project M at a small campground. It was along a river, at a wooded site where we never would have taken the trailer. In addition, there was no cell service. The simple life was in sight.

Yet, we still needed to sell the fifth wheel. And, there was plenty of shopping to do. Rene started researching clothing and gear we’d need for our Winter in Willow. In addition, after spending close to ten grand on our transmission – I told you, it’s a long story – we were rethinking the original rental Rene found. So, she started frantically searching the very limited rental housing market on remote Alaskan town.

Let the Simple Life Build-out Begin

Meanwhile, I was developing my own shopping list. I started designing our build out for the tiny truck topper camper we’ll be living in on the way up, and back down. Then, the time crunch started crunching. Four Wheel Campers invited us to show off our new M at the Adventure Van Expo in Evergreen, Colorado. We needed to have something to show. So, I scrambled to put together some semblance of our simple rig.

Don’t worry, I’ve got plenty of photos to share from the build constant work in progress. But, that may not happen until I have those long hours as a passenger on the way to the Great White North. Because yeah, Rene can actually drive now! After hauling the Arctic Fox for the past 16+ years, I told her it’s her turn to drive.

We created this situation.

You don’t have to say it, I know. We made this bed and we must now lay in it. Lie in it? Whatever, I digress. What I mean is, I know quite well that we put ourselves in this situation. And we all know the situation is the boss, again. But it gets better. While selling the rig, sorting stuff for Alaska, and building out the M, we’re also flipping a unit in our duplex for the next renters.

So, we’re sleeping on the floor among many boxes. With many more in the garage filled with everything from the trailer. And, for whatever reason, we’re losing stuff all the time. And with all that shopping, there’s plenty of returns. Like that ridiculous Destination RV cell signal booster. Talk about complicated, the antenna mast alone would have required some serious storage solution for our small space.

In addition, we’ve got family visiting this week. And, we’re trying to catch up with friends before leaving for another year, again. In short, life is a mess right now. I know, wah…

Yeah, we chose this life. But, then there is work. That’s been fun, juggling Tripawds, client work, and all this new content that isn’t getting published here. Speaking of work, during this whole mess, I’ve taken on a new project we’ll be talking about soon. So what happened to the simple life? Apparently, that’s the dream part of Live Work Dream.

Please stay tuned…

Recommended Reading

During this whole mess I listened to Things that Matter by Joshua Becker. Yeah, he’s that minimalist guy who preaches the more of less. I highly recommend it for anyone striving to make sense of the simple life!