Day Two: A Kayak and two IPA's (Guest Blogger RTR)

So the quest continues into day 2 of B-Day 

month.

I decided to wake up early so I could drop the wife at work 

and use the car for transporting the kayak to the harbor.  It's 

just a Cobra Explorer but it is sea worthy and self-baling.

I used six bungee cords where two probably would have 

sufficed. ( It's only a 1/2 mile drive to the harbor. ) Anyway, a 

beautiful morning on the water. A leisurely paddle 

around and out to sea and pier. Saw the boats from the other 

side as I ride my bike most days around the harbor. 

Next time the kayak hits the water it will be in a new 

environment.

After a clean-up, the Mission Ave Bar & Grill was calling out 

and a tasty Left Coast IPA went down without a whimper.

I'm always amazed at how many people are drinking beers 

at 1 PM on a Tuesday. Is every one having a B-Day month?

As the crowd seemed to be all up in their phones, I moved 

on. The wife's rescue from work was still an hour away so I 

rolled to the Pour House where I was forced to enjoy another 

IPA. ( Stone ) Met a young man who attended the same high 

school as my children. Ah, bar talk can be so pleasant. 

Keep it flowing, O-Side. 

30 Days of Birthday Fun: Day 1

So today is the first day of my Birthday month. (editor's note: he took a selfie.)

Planning to do something fun every day, so today I took a bike ride to Del Mar from O-Side. Quick stop for a photo shoot in Leucadia.

 Rode thru the beach State Parks to both laugh and be amazed at camp sites. Surf check at Swami's. Beer at Jakes. Meet- up with wife and her long time writing friend. Tap water offered at their beach condo - what's up with that? Beers and early dinner at La Especial Norte. Sunset bike ride to O-Side Harbor. A good Monday as far as Monday's go.

Now to rant. ( The views, opinions and positions expressed by the author and those providing comments on this blogs are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions or positions of RV People or Grapes of Ralph.)

 I really enjoy Monday bike rides because there are significantly less spandex and Lycra outfits that are offensively distracting. The question of the first day of my birthday month; why do you have to dress up for a bike ride?

 These athlete wannabe's are ridiculous. A great bike ride down the coast is relaxing, taking in the sites, the surf, the cafes and the people. (I mean the ladies.)  But these pedal- frenzied non- athletes are hell- bent to get somewhere, but they are missing the rainbow. Do they really think they have a shot at Le Tour? 

When one of these guys or gals shouts out, " On your left," while I am moseying, enjoying, or actually riding out of the saddle, it infuriates me.

 I am not confrontational by nature. I have been in maybe four fights in my entire life. ( Not counting the grunion throat clenching between myself and best friend, ) but I will get off my bike and throw with these assholes... if I could catch them!

 By the way, bike riding should be fun. It is NOT a sport unless you are sponsored. It is recreational. So take that bell, and "on your left", and shove IT where the sun don't shine! 

“Either Give me More Wine or Leave me Alone.” Rumi

We’ve quickly made friends in the Trailer Park.

And why wouldn’t we? We’re nice, hygienic and amusing and oh…we have wine!

Al Fresco in the Trailer Park patio.

Well, not enough for the entire Trailer Park, but we do have The Wine, as mentioned, stashed in and around the RV.

Which is handy, because last Friday, a couple of young men popped in for a drink- and left five hours later. Go figure.

 I was the first to leave (an Irish Goodnight- look it up) but Ralph stayed until I pounded on the window for him to stash the bottles (Carson Ridge Paso Robles 2013,  Cabernet Sauvignon, orre de Oña, Rioja Finca San Martín Crianza http://www.torredeona.com/en/the-wines/finca-san-martin/and a lovely Chateau LaFleur Morange Mathilde 2010http://www.reversewinesnob.com/2013/08/chateau-la-fleur-morange-mathilde.html)

 and come to bed. 

This wine list could be the reason we live in a Trailer Park!

This happens more than you would think. Ralph can stay awake, drinking vino and telling stories and pouring glass after glass until he falls asleep in the chair. Seriously, it’s a talent. (I'll post that photo down the line.)

At this point Ralph has already decided we need to stay in the RV at the beach for at least six months. Sounds good to me. There’s the sand, the pier and of course, restaurants that sell wine!

333 - Oceanside.

Ralph thinks that settling down for a bit (not forever!) will be good for us since we’ve been traveling around for the past five or six years.

Del Mar, CA...where it all started.

From Southern California to the Pacific Northwest to Southern Utah and Northern California and back again.

In Zion National Park on the Virgin River.

“At this point in our lives we can be sure of two things,” Ralph said. “Every day brings a chance to start over and…we love wine.” The Grapes of Ralph.

The Grapes of Ralph

It turns out that Wine Wednesday and moving day are on the same day this week- which calls for a toast- 

"May our house always be too small to hold all of our friends."

That seems apropos considering we’re still in the RV.

But back to moving.

It’s pretty simple since the house is on wheels and our bikes can be tossed inside and the plants can go in the car as we move to the beach. In fact, since we have moved five times in the last five years- before we bought the rig- this has been the easiest move yet!

Now, you’re probably wondering how we are moving our wine collection. (Snort.)

You might think that we hired a professional wine shipper , but Ralph has that covered. 

Besides, our wine collection is in the towel closet and he only has to make sure our two bottles of Opolo 2011 Petit Verdot and the bottle of Silver Oak 2011 Napa Valley Cab and my last bottle of 2013 Chardonnay from Karma Vineyards in Lake Chelan don’t smack together. And of course, when we open the closet, the wine doesn’t fly out onto the floor.

Drinking wine in Lake Chelan.

Our other wines- the Dead Nuts and the bottle of Sofa King Bueno from Chronic Cellars  and the bottle of Black Pearl Maximus Syrah 2010 from Black Jack Ranch in Los Olivos are somewhere near the spare tire, and Ralph assures me they are safe.

I trust him, because he’s a pro at moving AND drinking wine.

Ralph drinking in his new favorite pub at the beach.

"The Sofa King Bueno is fruit forward with hearty whiffs of vanilla and spice and it goes well with food, which is a good thing."

Tiny House, Tiny Cooking

Let's get one thing out on the table: in my opinion, a "tiny house" is the hipster version of an RV.

And I am not a hipster.

So yes, we live in an RV- by choice by the way- because we had a plan to travel around the country last year. And we made a good effort, traveling up and down California for the better part of the year. I wrote articles for money and The Husband drove and fixed things. It was a good set-up..

Then I was offered a job. A real one- for the first time in 20 years.

It wasn't planned, but it's a great opportunity to stay near friends and family for a while (who knows how long I will last in an office?) live inexpensively at the beach, and save money for...a bigger RV!

To be honest, we have our names on a list for a cool apartment near the beach, but someone will have to die before we move in...and since it's a 55+ apartment, I say the odds are decent...if we want to stick around that is.

I suppose we would look cooler if we lived in a RV park in a tiny house, but I like MY tiny house. It's vintage- 30+ years old, and it has all the comforts of home.

My bathroom is small but it fits everything I need. I actually have too much space if you can believe it, and it's right next to my bedroom- as in one foot away- so the sink can be used to store my wine when I'm on a writing binge and can't be disturbed.

I love my oven so much I can hardly stand it. At first I was freaked because I I burned the first cake I baked and the cookies, but then I read a tip on Pinterest to place a pizza stone in the oven. I asked my friend Val to find me a stone- she's a great shopper- and she found one the next day!

As you can see I use it a lot AND it's very artistic looking. (And yes, Jeannie C. I clean my oven!)

Also, my fridge is just like yours- only smaller. I have ice trays and lobster mac & cheese balls in the freezer and wine and veggies in the fridge. Oh, and some yummy French soft cheese. What more do I need?

My crock-pot comes in handy as well, and I'm damn happy I don't have one of those giant ones you use to feed everyone at a super bowl party.

I just place it into one of my tiny stainless steel sinks so the place doesn't burn down, and go off to the beach, oops- I mean work- and eight hours later I've got dinner!

Seriously, other than a little more closet space and a better spot for the toaster (I'm on my second one- the first one died when three pens fell into it and I made toast. Inky toast. The one I have now only had a large hoop earring fall into it which apparently does not harm toast,) we're all set.

So other than an RV with a silly facade that looks like an outhouse being towed down the freeway, (I had an actual house for 25 years. I'm over it.) I like this tin can of a house. All 30 feet of it. It has six wheels, lots of windows and a screen door to keep the flies out.

Oh and the best part? It's paid for!

The Grapes of Ralph

     So- we aren't exactly back on the road...but we are...but we're not. 

Life changes all the time and we're the type of people that change with it. This time last year - pre-RV - we were getting ready for a two- month road trip in our van, mainly to see if we could live in a small space and not kill each other. We found out we could, even in a snowstorm in Mammoth. 

Damn, it was cold, but we, much like Jesus and the Donner Party, had wine. Ralph a little more than me, because I have to write stuff for a living and talk to important people, while he has to read a map (yes, he still reads maps) and make a fire and scare away bears. Apparently he can do this and drink wine. A lot of it. He’s good at it and he doesn’t age. (He'll be 68 this year, ladies.) Seriously, Ask his doctor who recently said, “I wish all my patients were as happy healthy and handsome as you.” Hmmm…

Anyway, Ralph loves his wine more than an OC Housewife loves her Botox. He finds us beautiful sunsets and white, sandy beaches and pristine forests- and he always has a wine to pair with an adventure - like what to sip while attending a polo match.

 He loves it all, mostly red, and since our budget is tight, I'm lucky he's not a wine snob. 

Since I’m starting up this blog again, Wednesdays will be devoted to Ralph and his wine. He might review it, advise you on one of his favorite wineries, or just drink the cheap stuff and tell a joke, depending where we are. Oh, and right now we are at a campground in Oceanside, CA.It’s a tad tacky, but its a mile from the beach and it's home for now and it' has been since the first of the year. I’m not sure how long we’ll stay or where we will go next, but Ralph says not to worry about it and you know, have another glass of wine.

Ralph's favorite cheap wine is Trader Joe's Block Red wine. It's about 13 bucks (although it's important to note that although he may drink cheap wine, he does NOT lower his standards by drinking 2-buck Chuck. He does have principals!)

"It's full-bodied, yet mellow and very drinkable," Ralph says. "It goes well with pizza, steak or a pan-seared trout. As I said, it's very drinkable."

Two Months and Counting

We've been on the road for two months now, and so far we haven't killed each other or actually filed for divorce. 

RV roughing it

 So that's a good thing. 

 The ongoing discussion about why the leaky sink isn't fixed could cause more issues than it's worth, so I'll try and keep it to myself for the next few weeks.

In early October we headed from San Diego and stayed on the beach- and the 101- for a night in Huntington Beach, and I will have to say the cars were louder than the waves. 

Not us swimming...but it could be.

Then we went to Monterey to visit the family for a few days and we found some peaceful empty beaches.

Carmel-By-The Sea; not to be confused with the candy I guess.

Have I mentioned I love the beach?

We met two funny guys in a dive bar in HB, and they made me laugh since I really wanted to cry after falling off my bike twice.

One funny guy (L) and one funny husband. (R)

Who falls off a bike on the boardwalk?

We arrived at our destination in beautiful Lake Ruth/Mad River at my aunt's home to do some repair work on her cabin. (The Husband is doing the work. I write and waste time on Facebook.)

Ruth Lake, only full lake in California...or so I'm told. 

The area is beautiful, but there is no...anything. OK, there is a bar where the guys growing weed stop in after work...smelling like weed. The whole area smells like weed!

We've been here almost two months and the family part is great, but the forest is scary and I can't hike because of the weed farms and the lake is cold and...it's time to move on. 

And maybe get the fucking sink fixed.