“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!