Ten Things I Learned While Living on the Road
Somewhere in South Dakota, while idling on the side of the highway, waiting for the RV to catch up, I spotted two American antelopes in the field.
I never thought I’d see American antelopes, a.k.a. Pronghorns, on the side of an interstate highway, but there they were, looking at Blue and me parked on the shoulder. I never would’ve even known they existed if I were stuck in a house in the PA suburbs. Seeing that made living on the road magical.
There was a year in my life when I lived in a 40-foot RV with my husband, our cat, and our dog. It was 2021 when the new norm was to work from home and avoid crowds as much as possible. My husband traveled a lot for work at that time. He’d stay in a state for a long time, and we rarely saw each other in person, bringing us back to our long-distance relationship days. So one day, he asked me if I wanted to do the RV life with him.
There was nothing for us to lose, so I said yes.
What followed was a beautiful year of adventure, full of ups and downs (mostly ups), discoveries, and breathtaking nature. In mid-2022, we had to return to our regular lives to live in our regular home. Long story short, reality finally caught up with us, and we had to make adult decisions that had us go back to the ‘burbs. However, I can attest that living on the road was one of the best moments in our lives.
Here are ten things I learned:
#1 I got into a minimalist mindset (sort of).
All the stuff I owned fit in three compartments inside the RV: one dedicated closet for clothes (my husband had his), a drawer for shoes, and a cupboard for sketching and painting materials. All the things I needed fit in these three places.
Right before we relocated all our stuff inside the RV, I had to figure out how much stuff I could bring.
At some point, when I was stuffing three suitcases full of just clothing, I changed the question from “how much stuff” to “which stuff do I need?”
I downsized my wardrobe, decided not to bring any of my books, and picked which basic art materials I would use more often than not. Of course, I still had my laptop, my monitor, and my iPad, and I managed to even get a PS5 when there was still a shortage of units.
So maybe it wasn’t truly a minimalist lifestyle as it’s traditionally defined. But living in a house where there’s so much space, you kind of get into this consumerist mindset of buying everything and filling every space with so much stuff–whether you need it or not.
Living in a smaller space allowed me to identify my needs first, more than my wants.
#2 We could have gone smaller.
We had a rig the size of a tour bus. I watched my husband drive this huge thing on a gravel road that overlooked a cliff to access a BLM-land. There was no phone signal, so if the RV decided to stall right there, we would’ve had to abandon it.
My palms would also sweat when we drove on the highway. Since we didn’t have a hitch set up, I drove behind him in a Jeep Wrangler. Watching him drive across state lines was nerve-racking, especially when he was sandwiched between 18-wheelers.
There were still a lot of creature comforts in a 40-foot, Class A mobile home. Even though our bathroom was the size of a small closet, and our living room was also our kitchen and dining room, there was still so much space.
If we were to do it again, I would go with something smaller, like a van. I think we could’ve gone off the beaten path more often if we had a van.
#3 We could have rented.
We bought our RV in 2021. I wish we could’ve done more research about owning an RV.
If you’re thinking about buying an RV, the one important thing you have to know is that it immediately depreciates as soon as you drive it off the lot. You’re better off renting first to get your feet wet.
#4 Work-from-home made this lifestyle accessible to us.
I’ve always wondered what people who have done this for a long time did for a living, and how they even did it before the age of the internet.
I’m not sure if you’ve seen the movie Nomad Land with Frances McDormand (great movie, by the way). It’s about van lifers who chose to live on the road post-Great Recession. One of the plot points in the story is that the main character drives around the country to find seasonal work. It highlights the economic disparity between those who choose this lifestyle so they can continue to afford living, versus those who can afford to live on the road without worry.
It made me feel privileged that I could work from home, earn a livable salary, and have this experience.
#5 Google Maps was made for me.
I’m directionally challenged, and I often draw a blank when asked about specific locations. Without Google Maps, I wouldn’t know where we’d be and which exits to take.
#6 The U.S. is a big and gorgeous country.
We drove from Pennsylvania to California, then from California to Washington State.
Then, by the start of 2023, we made our way back to Pennsylvania. During that time, we saw and stayed in several states, including Indiana, Kansas, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Oregon, Montana, South Dakota, and Ohio.
It made me appreciate interstate highways and scenic stops. We went from seeing canyons and mountains in the west to a sea of grass and sky in the east that felt straight out of a Studio Ghibli film.
#7 Living on the road encouraged me to be present.
When I’m living in the suburbs or the city, my usual routine consists of doom-scrolling, gaming, or being on my computer (like right now!).
When we lived on the road, we would stay in places surrounded by nature. I’m 100% a city gal, but it was calming to be out there. I felt disconnected from the rest of the world, which wasn’t a bad thing. I was just focused on what was in front of me.
My husband and I sat outside in camp chairs, reading or drawing. Because of the limited internet (which only functioned for work and other basic tasks), I spent more of my time writing and illustrating than gaming.
This helped me realize that I would like to one day retire in a cottage in the woods. And if it’s not asking too much, those same woods would spit me out on a beach after a nice little walk.
#8 Living on the road is best enjoyed with the people you love.
It sounds corny, but it’s true.
I will remember making our dinners together in a cramped kitchen, playing loud music. I will remember parking on the side of the road to look at the canyons before we head off to the desert. I will remember sitting outside in camp chairs, listening to the crickets and watching the stars.
I can’t imagine doing it without my husband or not bringing our pets along. We all saw these beautiful sights together. I didn’t care if Jake (our cat) had to use a plastic container as a litter box. He had to be there, too.
This experience brought my husband and I together. Living in a small space made us appreciate each other more and helped us learn how to work together better.
#9 I regret not doing it sooner, and I wish we could go back to that lifestyle again.
I love change, so I love seeing something new every single day.
I loved the moments when we’d be in one place one day and going to a different place the next day. We went from city RV parks in Escondido, CA, to woodland camp sites in Silver Creek, WA. We stayed at rest stops in the middle of nowhere or drove to a KOA to park for the night.
Our backyard was a lake at one point. I worked from 6 A.M. to 2 P.M. to match my East Coast coworkers, and by the time I clocked out, we’d walk to the lake and paddleboard.
While our next place of stay required planning, I enjoyed every minute of it and experiencing it with my family.
#10 California drivers are the worst.
I love California, so I’ll preface with that. I want to go back there and live there!
I’ve heard the worst drivers are from New Jersey and Maryland. But no.
California has the worst drivers. Maryland is the second.
The 10th item here is subjective and also a joke. But is it a joke?
