We’re Living a Mini Life in a Big Way

This morning as I put Dagney on a leash for her morning undertaking, the sun coming up over the desert mountains greets me with mixed colors and hues. Since a doggy door is not a feasible option in a motorhome, our ritual includes this opportunity to bond. Depending on the temperature outside the amount of time my little girl needs to ready her bladder varies. Today the wind blows slightly and though a little mist coverewthe ground, I know the sprinklers’ residue causee the moisture and not morning dew or frost like we get at our Idaho home. She is in no hurry to do her business, so we stroll to the pond surrounded by grass, her favorite place.

Sure, I grumble while crawling out of bed, but find since I turned 60, last week, I am wake when the sun comes up anyway. When I think about it, I’ve been living in an old woman’s body for more than a week. Anyway, Dagney drags me across the asphalt as she sniffs out the best place to pee, and if I am lucky poop, so it can all be done at one time. This morning, she heads towards the back of the rig because last night that was the last place she saw the neighbor’s dog. She never misses the chance to make herself known.

Probably because my eyes are still half closed and frankly, I don’t really care, I provide too much length allowing her to twist and turn among our bicycles. Yelling her name louder than I plan she looks at me and races right. Why I think she will see the error of her ways and run into my arms is a mystery; she never has before.

In an effort to track her movements, I kneel down and spy her under the wheels of my car. The leash is now wrapped around the bikes, the RV tires, and caught on the license plate. Thank goodness I didn’t have the alarm activated or the entire park would be witness to our predicament. Expertly, because I’ve had a lot of practice, we untangle. Interesting that I say we because in actuality, Dagney did not help in any way. In fact, she just made the mess messier. But she did lick my face when freed.

I giggle while unraveling because I notice my mini life. Dagney is a Yorkshire Terrier, no bigger than a minute as my father would say, weighing about five pounds. The bikes she ties up are Jetson bikes that fold down and fit nice in the back of our Mini Cooper. Sure, we drive a luxurious motorhome, forty feet in length, but if I do that math right, that provides only 320 feet of living space which is small compared to our home.

When thinking about downsizing, I envisioned getting rid of stuff — which we did. But, we also go smaller stuff and suddenly looking at it, my funny bone begins to quiver and I begin to laugh. We have almost the same stuff as in our home except everything is smaller.

A washer/dryer combo cleans the laundry with one movement on my part. All I have to do is put everything in, push start and the clothes come out clean and dry. The entire contraption fits in a small closet. When the salesman sold us the RV, he was even surprised to find it.

We discovered a hidden safe by pulling out a drawer and searching the under carriage. If the previous owner hadn’t mentioned it, we never would have known it was there.

There is no conventional oven, but the microwave with a press of a button turns into convection oven and produces quality baked goods. We compete with the Transformers!

Whoever designed our RV, must have taken magic classes because she put storage space where it shouldn’t exist. When the slide comes out, there is a wet bar — yes, it is little but how much room do you need to mix a drink.

Under the pantry, actually a large cupboard, is a hose hooked to central vac. I never had central vac in a house until recently! Living a mini life is good!

When Dagney and I finish the walk, we climb up the mini front steps, that fold in and out when the door opens and closes. I take off her extra small sized vest, and she gives me a huge lick with her tiny tongue.

The best part about living in an RV (temporarily, only 6 weeks) is the bed is queen size. The worst thing is the gas tank is 100 gallons so in this market is takes more than $400 to fill her up.

Thus, we are staying parked in a RV resort in sunny California for a month. Living a mini life in big style.

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Happy tails. :)