So, who knew last December when I wrote an after-Trip-6 update, what would happen in 2020?!
We had thought that a few months after my knee surgery, we’d head back out in the RV again. And still, like everyone else in the world, our plans changed, and none of us really know tomorrow what will happen. It’s been crazy, but we are happy to report that as of the end of August, we have not been ill with COVID.
We were quite apprehensive earlier this year as we sat inside our house & watched the news reports on the New York City virus disaster, and we saw the numbers rise daily as the virus marched from NYC north (as many of you watched it spread south and west nearer to your neighborhoods). Little did we know that this much later in the year, the problems would still exist in other parts of the world and our Country. And things are far from normal here even though COVID numbers have been much lower. We won’t even talk about politics, the economy, and the racial divide. You all know full well what has been going on. All we can say is: WHAT A YEAR!
We sincerely hope that all of you are staying safe & healthy, and that you have not lost loved ones nor been ill yourselves!
I had my left knee replacement surgery on January 9th, spent one night in the surgical center, and was home the next day. The entire surgical team including everyone from receptionists to my surgeon were outstanding. Things went well. That said, the recovery was difficult and it took a long time. The first two months were really bad. Thank goodness for meds, but there are side effects, and that was not enjoyable. I started in-home physical therapy the afternoon after I got home, and two weeks later graduated to out-patient PT. Very, very difficult, but without it, and without working as hard as you can, you won’t recover fully. Rob was extremely supportive; I could not have done it alone!
I continued with PT until mid-March when our County shut down due to COVID. I continued my exercises at home with Rob’s help and still do them. As so many others have done, we spent the time indoors cleaning & clearing out the junk. Once it was okay for contractors to come in, we had a roof repair done, some work on the septic system, and got a Mini-Split heat pump air conditioning system installed. (We’d used window air conditioners previously.) We were so happy to have this new system this summer when the temperatures climbed above 90 degrees for prolonged periods of time!
Travel has obviously been out of the question. Rob’s mother passed away in March; it happened quickly and he couldn’t go safely out to see her & they still cannot have an in-person memorial service. Everyone we know has had to cancel travel plans. We finally decided to take the RV (and the kitties) to our land in Maine for 6 to 7 weeks, coming back in time for the next batch of work to be done to the house in late October. We couldn’t go up previously because Maine shut its borders except for Vermont & New Hampshire (who had lower COVID counts like Maine). When Maine finally reopened to New York & Massachusetts, a negative COVID test was required in addition to a two-week quarantine period upon arrival. In August, the border was opened fully except to States with high COVID counts. And supposedly, masks are required, which is absolutely fine with us. Not being able to eat inside restaurants, just doing take-out & delivery, has been saving us money & time, too. Hmmm, is this the new reality?
We’ll be doing a more moderate Blog for this trip, with less pictures & less blow-by-blow dialog. We’ve blogged about trips to Maine several times before and there’s no need to repeat everything. But we really do want to document (for ourselves) the latest adventure: we are seriously considering having a SMALL cottage build on our land. We’ve spent many hours this summer researching contractors & builders, and designing (many times, over & over) what we need in a part-time home. The reason for the home, rather that just staying in the RV (which we truly love), is that when November rolls around, we always have to leave. The weather gets too cold & the pipes freeze in the RV. We really want to spend some winter time there – it’s incredibly lovely. Also, we cannot camp at our land until May, once it has warmed up enough & mud season is over. It would open up whole new experiences for us if we had an insulated home. Long story short, we will be starting up the Blog to document the whole process, for us. Feel free to come along for the ride. Today we left home and drove to Massachusetts close to the Vermont border. Tomorrow we have appointments with three timberframe builders. And more people to meet on the way to our land. At the land, we have at least eight general contractors to interview. We will be busy, and what a beautiful place to be busy in!
Stay safe everyone, and once again, thanks for reading! We’ve missed you.
Mama and baby deer in our front yard,
Deer in our back yard