Chillin' at Elephant Butte and T 'r C

Sunday, February 3, 2013 through Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Sunday we relaxed and caught up with odds and ends. Greg said we needed an administrative day, so he worked on finances and I puttered. We haven't taken the time to evaluate our expenses since we left home almost three months ago. Greg had worked up an elaborate spread sheet as we planned our move, with estimates of our expenses, so now it was time to see how realistic we had been. Long story short, we are spending more than we expected. Diesel fuel has been less expensive but we are driving much more than estimated, campsite costs and food costs have been higher. Our fixed expenses can't change, so we are evaluating the rest. Our health insurance, which is primarily catastrophic coverage, as we are in good health, is higher than we estimated. Silly me! I had the nerve to turn 60 and get bumped up into a higher risk pool, so up the fee went, for no other reason!

We decided to spend whatever we need on fuel. The point of our journey, is to journey! We are not ready to be “snowbirds” and reside in one or two spots for the winter. The RV is averaging 17+ mpg, and Greg drives below the speed limit to keep it good. He is a very considerate RV'er and pulls over frequently to let vehicles pass.

We haven't tried to cut our campsite expenses too much. We stay, for the most part in state and national parks, and avoid the really pricey RV parks. When we feel more confident in our ability to boondock or dry camp, we can start staying for free on federal land, mostly national forests and BLM land. In Texas, we bought a $70 annual pass for the state parks. They charge the daily park fee as well as the camping fee, so it adds up fast. Florida only charges the camping fee, so we didn't buy a pass there. In Everglades National Park we bought the $80 annual parks pass that gets us into any federal land for free. Of course, we still pay to camp. After camping two nights at Elephant Butte, we realized that of the $14 a night it was costing us, $10 was the entry fee, so we bought an annual pass for $225, pretty pricey, but it gets us $4 a night camping in all New Mexico state parks through next February. When I reach 62, I will be eligible for senior passes and discounts. So, until Greg catches up, after 62, I'll be doing all the check-ins!

Food is more of a problem. Whenever we need food, we have to find a grocery store. Not being familiar with regional chains, we don't know what we will find. We have been growing and buying organic food for decades. Back in Maryland, I could stretch our food dollars by growing vegetables, taking advantage of sales and coupons, and buying with a discount at our food co-op. We search for local natural food stores, but their selection has been small and expensive. Some of the conventional food stores have some organic items, but some none at all. Pretty much everyone has boxed organic lettuce, if nothing else. I've bought more non-organics than I'd like to. When I find organics, I stock up, and then our small fridge is crammed full and not running as efficiently! The top of the fridge is my pantry, and is usually loaded up, too. That helps when we travel, as there is less to go flying on the turns, when it is packed tight!

I am not in love with WalMart, and have avoided shopping there over the years, but I am coming to find that they do stock some organics. More some places than others. They also seem to have all the non grocery odds and ends we need, and they cater to RV'ers, so we can purchase the RV toilet paper, (yes, it has to be specially biodegradable for our waste tanks!), that we need. Any WalMart stop turns into an hour because it takes so darn long to find things! So, the point of all this rambling is that I am going to find it difficult to keep our food costs as low as they were at home. And, I need to keep Greg, who never shopped for groceries at home, out of the cookie aisle!

Another expense that we have control over is eating out. Sometimes, I just need a break from cooking in my tiny kitchen. We don't want to miss out on the local specialties, so if we choose to go out to eat, we usually go at lunch when the same menu costs less.

All in all, we should be able to cut back here and there and still enjoy the journey.

Our second full day here we decided to go explore Truth or Consequences, or as the locals call it T'r C. We drove into town and found an easy parking spot on the main street. T 'r C was originally called Hot Springs, but in 1950, won a contest by Ralph Edwards, the host of the TV show Truth or Consequences, to re-name the town. It is an interesting mix of old-timers, old West, New Agers and the desert. There are quite a few businesses that have hot springs, mostly inside, for you to enjoy. We walked around and had lunch at the Happy Belly Deli. Greg got to try a Green Chile Philly. The funky version of a green chile hamburger. We also found the Turtleback Oasis Marketplace, the local natural foods store, but we only bought some loose tea. They had no produce. Since we are still looking for a book of New Mexico geology, we visited a used book store, Xochi's. He led us to a back room, flicked on the light, and pointed us to an old bookcase full of ancient geology texts from random places. Greg had fun perusing the books, but didn't find what he wanted. We then wandered into the Chamber of Commerce and met a fulltiming couple from Michigan, who had decided to buy a house in T 'r C, since they had been wintering there. Talk about a nightmare! They bought a fixer upper and can't get tradesmen to come in a timely manner to do the unexpected work. The nearest Lowe's is in Las Cruces, 75 miles away. The local electrician charges $80 an hour and won't give quotes. So, I guess it takes

as long as he needs the money to pay his bills!

After our visit downtown, we drove to the outskirts of town to WalMart and picked up some odds and ends. Then back to the park to pick out a new site. We bought our annual pass and paid for three more nights. This time we wound up in Quail Run farther back from the lake, but the sites are more private and quieter.

Yesterday, the 5^th, Greg took some bike rides around the area and tried to ride to the dam, but the access road is closed off. Today, he took off up the trail north along the lake, but after two falls in the soft sand, and an encounter with a thorned mesquite bush, (ouch!), he gave up and rode on the road. Yesterday's bike ride did yield a bundle of wood that he strapped to his bike, so last night, we had the first campfire since Manatee Springs. We had a pile of bills and receipts to burn. We started the fire before dark because the temperature drops so rapidly at sundown. It has been in the 60's during the day and near freezing at night.

I have been cleaning, relaxing, cooking, and playing on the computer. The park has free wifi access, and we have good phone reception. We have water and electric, but have to go to the dump station every few days. The Albuquerque TV stations come in clearly with our roof antenna, and we were finally able to stream the last two episodes of Downton Abbey, and access Netflicks. We have a covered patio and table, and a shower close by. A lot of camp amenities for $4! We are paid up through tonight, and will probably stay two more nights after that. Then a big windstorm is coming, so we need to head out on Saturday. We will probably go farther south in New Mexico, but haven't decided where yet. We are camped in a very dry unsheltered spot, and as soon as the wind picks up, the sand will be in everything!

Greg just came to tell me that a whole flock of Gambel’s Quails are acting crazy and all wound up in the desert bushes by our site. They also make little “woot-woot” sounds that sound digitalized. Apparently, we are here the time of year that they begin to leave the flocks and start nesting pairs. Interesting to watch the males and females “courting” nearby!