A night on the beach

It's late, but I don't feel sleepy. I have all Gertie's windows open, a cool breeze is wafting through, and as I write this, I can hear the waves breaking against the shore a hundred feet away.

Ocean Wood campground really is a magical place, just as my friend David Forness wrote to me while I was still in Eastport. At first I wasn't sure—not that it wasn't nice, but I've been in state forests that were almost as nice. But after spending an evening on the beach with David and René, I'm convinced.

The day didn't start well. Yesterday afternoon was warm, so I left the big vent over the bed open when I went to sleep—something I don't usually do. And at 2:20 a.m. I woke up in a decidedly damp bed. My first panicky thought was that Marie had urinated on the bed...but then I realized that she wasn't in bed with me. (In fact, she can't get up there by herself.) Then I came fully awake and heard the rain.

I cranked the vent shut and assessed the situation. Because of the way the cover is hinged at one side, water had only come in on the left side of the bed, in a fairly limited area. And the sleeping bag wasn't sopping even there, just damp. By rolling to the right, I could stay off the wet part. So I tried to go back to sleep...but it wasn't easy. Waves of rain drummed against the roof, the sound carried clearly through the ceiling only a couple of feet above my face. Ordinarily a soothing sound, this time it just reminded me of the soggy area a few inches to my left. I finally did drift off to sleep, but I had weird dreams that I couldn't remember, woke up, drifted off, woke up...and all the while it rained. Sometimes a gentle drizzle, sometimes sounding like machine-gun fire spattering on the metal roof...I wondered what kind of day I had in store.

I slept as late as I could make myself—until about 8:30—and still felt groggy when I got up. I tidied up Gertie's interior, because David and René had promised to drop by late in the morning for a tour of the rig. Then I tried again to connect to the internet via my cell phone, but despite a good signal, I got an authentication failure. I'm afraid the recent rumors about Verizon cutting off casual internet use may be true. (They want everybody to sign up for their $80-a-month data plan, but of course that ain't gonna happen.) I've been out of touch since leaving Eastport—almost three days. I really need to set up the satellite dish, but since I've been changing sites every day it isn't worth the hassle.

David and René showed up around noon, and after welcoming them to Gertie I offered them slices of the apple pie I'd made last night. That was something of a milestone for me, because it was the first pie I've baked in Gertie since going full time two months ago. For me, a home isn't really a home until I've baked in it. The new oven performed perfectly and the pie turned out well...in fact, I had more filling than would fit in my pie pan, so I'll have to make a tart or turnover later to use up the extra.

David and René loved the pie! René said it was the best she'd had in years, which of course made me feel very good. She was especially impressed by the crust, which I'd made with Euell Gibbons's ultra-simple "oil crust" recipe: two cups of flour, half a cup of vegetable oil and a quarter cup of milk mixed together with a fork. No ice water, no measuring globs of greasy Crisco, no cutting shortening into the flour...and the results are equal to the best crusts I've had anywhere.

David and René brought me gifts: a small beach stone, a bumper sticker that says "No matter where you go, there you are" and a beautiful little bud vase (made from a tiny vaccine bottle in a fanciful wire holder) that René had made, with a couple of tiny sprigs of greenery and a nasturtium blossom. I was really touched. I don't have any plants in Gertie, and I've always wanted some but have been afraid that I couldn't keep them alive. (I had a very poor track record with plants in my apartment.) But with this bud vase, I can pick a sprig of local foliage wherever I go and put it in the vase. It'll be a wonderful homey touch. I was very grateful for the gift.

After inviting me to join them on the beach for a fire this evening, David and René went off to the local Lobster Festival. I set about moving Gertie one site over, where there's a vacancy today that Mike Brunton, the campground's owner, had tipped me off about. Mike comes around on his bicycle at least twice a day to check on things, and I chat with him when I get the chance.

I got Gertie moved to site 28, and was even able to get her level without using my ramps. This site has a little path in back of its parking area, leading to a picnic and tenting area behind and below the parking place...quite secluded and altogether charming. You could pitch a tent here and feel that you had the whole woods to yourself. Perhaps the most striking thing about Ocean Wood is the size of the sites: typically a quarter acre, including the beachfront sites. Mike says they are the largest in the US, and I believe him.

After setting up in the new location, I walked back up the road to the Bruntons' house to talk with Mike about staying on for a week or so. I had walked around the campground yesterday, checking out all the sites with electricity for a clear view of the southern sky for the satellite dish. (My handheld Align-A-Site finder made this easy; otherwise it would have been impossible.) I marked the suitable sites on my campground map and took it along with me. Mike found that site 17 was open for five days starting tomorrow, and it was on my list of electric sites where I can use the satellite dish, so I booked that one for the full five days at $29 a day. That's more money than I'd normally want to pay, but this place is special. Besides, having just spent six weeks camping for free in Walt's yard, I figure I can afford to pay thirty bucks a night for a week here.

It was hot and humid, and by the time I got back to Gertie I was good and sweaty just from the walk. Since I knew that I'd be dumping tomorrow before moving to site 17, I indulged myself in a cool shower that left me feeling much better. Then I tackled some minor bathroom remodeling that I'd been meaning to do for a long time: rearranging the locations of the wall-mounted toothbrush holder, Q-Tip dispenser, Kleenex holder and so on. Gertie's bathroom sink area is so small that having these items in well-thought-out locations makes a big difference. For example, moving the Q-Tip dispenser a few inches means that now when I bend to wash my face and then straighten up, I won't risk gouging my scalp on the dispenser. I've done that more than once! I also made a holder for the bathroom cup out of white coathanger wire. I was very pleased with my work; the new arrangement is a big improvement.

After that I lay down with Marie on the couch and read a few of P.G. Wodehouse's stories from the collection "A Wodehouse Bestiary," one of my favorites. But I soon grew drowsy and dozed off. Clearly I didn't get enough sleep last night! Waking up, I had a light supper of apple pie, then spent half an hour doing a little touchup painting around Gertie's interior. At about 7:30 I got my cameras, lenses and lightweight tripod and walked to David and René's site, number 12, which is on the ocean. They were already out on the beach stoking a fire in the stone fireplace provided, and it was cool enough by this time that the warmth was welcome.

We watched as the moon slowly sank, making the water gleam and bringing a ghostly sheen to the wet stones exposed by the receding tide. A few campfires at wide intervals along the beach showed that others were enjoying the evening as we were. I made some attempts at photographing the scene, though my exposures were mostly guesswork. The air was just slightly cool, but I was comfortable in my shorts...unlike previous nights, when the temperature has dropped rapidly after sundown.

We talked about the Lazy Daze group and what wonderful people they are...about the colorful indviduals like Sarah Blackwood, Lorna Dunham, Jonna Harlan and Eudoro Lemos who bring so much knowledge and experience to the group, while livening up the proceedings with their sprightly humor...about how lucky we are that our love for this motorhome brand has brought us all together. David and René talked about staying another day...the beach had worked its magic on them, just as it did on me.

René asked whether I was still wearing my watch. I was—tonight—but I admitted that I often forget it nowadays. She laughed and told me that she and David can tell when a person has become a true fulltimer by whether they're still wearing a watch. At one point in the conversation I mentioned a cooking pot that I have "at home"...and for the first time, I meant "in Gertie"—not "back at my former apartment in New Jersey"! That's another milestone for me: I'm really thinking of Gertie as home.

Around ten o'clock I headed home to Gertie to cull my photos and write this journal entry. It was the end of what had turned out to be a perfect day with good friends in beautiful surroundings. Listening to the ocean as I write makes me feel blissfully tranquil. I can imagine, after an evening on the beach like tonight's, coming back to your home on wheels and making love to the sound of the ocean. I envy David and René a little, because they can do that.