PRETEND CAMPERS

[boxcarOkie]

A friend of mine "claims that he is a full timer*" in California.  A lot of people in this medium (BCM,BNO,BCI and around the net) claim they are full timers, but are they? 

If you are hooked up to a pole somewhere in the nation or living out your dream in a WalMart parking lot, does this make you a full timer?

All of us need a base plate, insurance, medical needs, some own property in one location or another.  So how does this meet the criteria of being on the road "full time?"

To the casual observer, some of this appears to be a factual statement on the bus lifestyle. 

Here is the rub, you sit in your house day after day, you are not a full timer.  Jerking a trailer around the states doing your thing, believe it or not, makes you commercial and subject to "big fines" when caught, full timing or not.  DOT will not recognize you as a full-timer by any stretch of the imagination.

My friend in Pismo Beach, California "has to move once a year," he has set times to be in Lake Havasu City, Arizona, at his membership campground.  Then after his mandatory annual stay he moves from there, to a free spot at the Air Force Base outside Las Vegas, Nevada near Henderson.

All that seems to me to be pretty well scheduled and structured, and does NOT fit the definition of Full Timing to me, but yet, he insists that he is just that.

All the time boasting he is a "Full Timer" while sucking off the pole, just like a few name-less souls who haunt these boards and claim they are the same.  One thing about the Internet and America. 

We are really good at fooling everyone, and in some cases, ourselves. 

When someone inquires of our bus lifestyle, I try to be honest about it, and just say .... "We are pretend campers" and we just love it. 

Please excuse me once again for pin-pointing another absurdity of life, and then like the fool I am, posting about it.  Mondays are usually pretty slow, and hard on wanna-be bus board over-achievers such as myself.

But it does keep me outta the beer joints ... and that works for me.

Watch those right-handers.

BCO

* Full-timing is a term used among motorhome individuals and families who live "full-time" in their motorhome or RV. Such mobile individuals are often called full-timers. Full-timing is a world-wide activity, and there are many bloggers who record their day-to-day life on the road. The term has been discussed in publications since around 1993.  You can find more information on this here.

[Lin]

Don't be so judgmental or you may be judged mental (which may be what you want)"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulltiming

[Iceni John]

Does "full-timing" presuppose that you're on the move a certain number of times per year or that you cover a certain mileage per year?   Or are you saying that if you're hooked up to utilities at a campground, as opposed to boondocking completely off the grid, then you're not full-timing but merely living in a bus or RV?   This is interesting.

I'm building my conversion to be easily capable of supporting me off-grid for at least one month at a time, but if I do exactly this and just drive into town every few weeks to dump tanks and get more supplies, is this something different than full-timing?

John

[boxcarOkie]

"Don't be so judgmental or you may be judged mental (which may be what you want)"

It was not judgemental it was an observation, nothing more.  The link you posted was already provided (bottom of the post). 

BCO

[pabusnut]

...to a free spot at the Air Force Base outside Las Vegas, Nevada near Henderson.

There is no such thing as a "free spot" at an Air Force Base since the government decided in 1992 that all recreation activities for the military must be self supporting.  Most sites cost less than the surrounding economy, but are far from free!  In fact the funds generated from the campgrounds support the other "free" facilities and activities such as the gym, youth sports, etc.

[boxcarOkie]

This is interesting.

John

Yeah, not your typical "cut and paste tripe" and it makes you think about it.

BCO

[boxcarOkie]

There is no such thing as a "free spot" at an Air Force Base since the government decided in 1992 that all recreation activities for the military must be self supporting.

Hey thank you for setting me straight, I am working off of what my friend is telling me (ex-colonel in the AF) and he could possibly be exaggerating in order to clarify.

Appreciate your comment.

BCO

[pabusnut]

Don,

Yes-- $25 a night is just about free on a colonel's retirement!

[luvrbus]

They must cut the Colonels and higher ranking officers a deal we have a friend that is a retired bird colonel we meet up in Ft Hood or others bases. I never saw him pay and they never charged me either traveling with him.Signs all over the place no fire arms or hunting then we bird hunt on Ft Hood it scares me to death and he just laughs at me lol he does draw big bucks from his retirement  

[bobofthenorth]

Marilyn has always been real clear about one thing: "WE DON'T CAMP"

We've got indoor plumbing, hot and cold running water, fridge, freezer, stove, TV(s) and beds.  That ain't camping no matter where or how often you do it.  When we were young and in love/lust I got her out in a tent a couple of times but she doesn't love me enough to do that any more.  And I don't miss it.

I dunno whether we were "fulltimers" or not.  We lived in a bus for over 5 years - slept, crapt and cookt in it 365 days out of the year.  On the other hand, plenty of those nights it was back in the same place, plugged into the same pole - we even had a yard with grass that needed mowing for some of that time.  I'm not sure why it matters so much to some people but there's no doubt it does. 

We run into the same thing now in the boating community.  We're just mere part time cruisers - in the boating world the higher order calls themselves "liveaboards".  Lots of them never move further than the 6 inches of slack in their mooring lines but they're still liveaboards.  We lease a year round slip because that's the only way we can be sure of having one but if we're onboard the boat its rarely in the slip.  That actually makes us UNusual - kind of like we owned a park model in some gated community and pulled it out for 6 months every year. 

Maybe everybody should just do what works for them and not worry about what they call themselves or why someone else does it different. 

[eagle19952]

It appears to me that one folks just need to flap their pencil. If there is a sliver of relative application to a bus conversion well then it must be worth digitizing for posterity.

I'm guessing Google won't point them at a camping/rv site.

[lvmci]

Hi Don,  I always thought of full timing as living in your bus, not spending most weeks of the year in one spot, but "moving to where the climate suits my clothes" as the songs prose went. Taking Tami to the beach for several days at a time, till she gets tired of it, then to the mountains for some trout fishing. Yea, partial timing, sorta timing, summer timing, winter timing, snow birding or snow boaring, or work camping, dont care, cant wait to do it, lvmci...

[luvrbus]

No property taxes, no house, no shop, no yard work,drivers licenses from a state with no income taxes,cheap plates and insurance,no job not looking either,10 dollar a month cell phone plan,using Lowes Wifi and spending your money before the kids get their hands on it that's full timing it sounds good to me   but to late in life for me to make it happen

[bevans6]

Yeah, not your typical "cut and paste tripe" and it makes you think about it.

BCO

No, not tripe, but a little lower in the digestive tract, yes.  Shite, in other words.

[Geoff]

Humm....  I guess real "full timers" are homeless people that sleep in doorways, parks, and anywhere they don't get kicked out of.

Dumb post.

--Geoff