“…Although we’ve come, to the end of the road, still I can’t let go. It’s unnatural – you belong to me, I belong to you…”

Robert Redford. Not only is that the answer to our last trivia question of the season, but it is also the name that conjours up a giant black and white poster. Yes, Redford was the actor who had both a cameo in “Avengers: Endgame” and a cameo on my bedroom wall. Our friend Phil answered correctly first, followed by Sam, followed by Lisa. Thanks for playing along all summer. It’s getting harder and harder to write good questions! Hopefully, I will have more trivia for our next camping season.

Thank you as well for all the positive comments and support following my retirement announcement. I appreciate the kind words. Many of the good wishes were from the very colleagues who get me through each day. I will miss them most of all.

We are currently sitting outside, in front of a beautiful campfire. It’s been very, very hot and humid this week, and very ‘buggy’ as well. A campfire did not seem ideal. However, being it’s the last week of summer camping, and our last night out, tradition calls for a campfire. Tonight is a bit more comfortable than previous nights, so it’s all good. Blogging by the campfire….my favorite place to be.

We took a bike ride around the RV park on Tuesday afternoon. It felt pretty good to get back to riding, although my knees were creaking and aching with every pedal turn. We took paths that were basically flat – I do much better on those. I must say, I love the freedom of riding, and the exercise I know I am getting. Next time, I will have to bring along my “Oil Can” – like the Tinman needed in “The Wizard of Oz”!! I’m tellin’ ya…getting older is rough.

We spent late Tuesday afternoon and most of Wednesday at the lakefront here, which is a 3 minute walk from our front door. The weather was great. It was very sunny and hot, which made cooling off in the lake all that much more refreshing. There are other campers around, but not nearly as many as in June, July and the beginning of August. If you are thinking of trying out a campground, this may be the perfect time in the season to do so.

Our evenings have been spent relaxing – because that’s exactly what we need. We watch mindless tv, scroll social media, watch a movie on Netflix (Rich), and catch up on correspondence (me, me, me). Let me just put this out there, once and not again. These days, the political climate puts everyone in one of 3 categories. Category 1: A person supports this administration, and is horrified by all the negative press and rhetoric. Category 2: A person is completely against this administration, and is horrified by all the negative press and rhetoric. Category 3: A person is not buying into either 1 or 2, and is horrified by all the negative press and rhetoric. In any of the 3 situations, there are some horrific things occuring. We spend many nights watching old reruns of “Friends” or “Big Bang Theory”. It makes our vacation much more relaxing. This is a tough year, friends and family. But we’ve had many tough years. Regardless of where your loyalties lie, let’s just try kindness. I have avoided the topic of politics in my blog, and will continue to do so. Instead…let’s just try kindness.

This afternoon, we rode down to the pool. It’s about a 5 minute bike ride from our spot. There were many families there, and the water was really refreshing. It was a bit of a different crowd than the lake crowd. I guess everyone has their preference. What’s yours? Lake or pool? For me, I’d rather swim in the pool, but I’d rather hang out at the lake. That’s just me.

Every dinner Rich grilled this week was scrumptious. (I always compliment him. Otherwise, I’ll have to cook!!) There were burgers, chicken, wings, steak – every night was terrific. Our side dishes included salads, corn, zucchini, mushrooms, and broccoli. This is healthy eating…right? Of course, right! Did I lose any weight?? Of course not! Oh well, there’s always tomorrow.

As soon as the embers die down, we will pack up the lights and chairs outside the RV, and straighten up the inside. We will put away all dishes and pots, and gather up all the laundry. Early tomorrow morning we have an appointment for the RV’s “yearly physical”! We need an oil change and a general service visit. The only place that provides this service – that we have found in Jersey – is 10 minutes from Ocean View Resort, in Woodbine. We spend about 2 hours in their “waiting room”, and then we will head home. In many ways, it really is like a doctor’s visit! This coming week at home brings reality back like a sledge hammer – but that’s always how the summer ends. Anyone associated with school – teachers, school staff, parents, students – have this roller coaster ride back down to reality the last week of August. I already broke a promise to myself. I promised I would not check my rosters, my classes or my Google Drive until September. But I just could not keep that vow. Anxiety, curiosity and a bit of fear have me delving into classes already, and planning the first few weeks of actual lessons. I wish I could tell you differently, but old habits die hard.

And so, 2019’s Summer Camping Stories have come to an end. Wishing you healthy days, peaceful times, and happiness inside and out. As always, thank you so much for reading along – it means more to me than you will ever know. Goodnight.

Love,

Marla and Rich

This is a close facsimile of the actual poster in my room.

Feet in the sand. Lakeside.

Rich chillin’ in the lake.

Sundown.

Poolside.

The lake at night.

Lights!

The last of the embers.

“Today I don’t feel like doing anything. I just wanna lay in my bed. Don’t feel like picking up my phone, so leave a message at the tone. ‘Cause today I swear I’m not doing anything, nothing at all…”

Hello from Ocean View Resort, in Ocean View, New Jersey. If you read along while I posted from our 2019 Summer Travels, it is clear that our trip hit the ground running, and never stopped. Consequently, we arrived home exhausted. We then spent the next 3 weeks or so doing everything possible on our to-do list – and I feel we never slowed down. So, we are taking just a few days down in Ocean View to renew and refresh. It is actually odd for me to be camping without an itinerary, directions, and a plan. The actual plan for the next few days….relaxation. I’m not sure how to do that; I’m working on it.

In the past three weeks, do you know what else never stopped? My insomnia. I feel as if my body is afraid to fall asleep. If by chance I do fall asleep, I have not been able to stay asleep. In fact, last night was the first night in a very long time that I both fell asleep, and stayed asleep. That would explain my 9:30 a.m. wake up time this morning. I just need the rest. I have sel-help books and cds, and names of sleep specialists. I am trying to solve this problem on my own. Rich points out – repeatedly – that my insomnia may be an inherited situation. Both my Mom and my Dad had insomnia. There were hundreds of instances that my Dad could be found sitting on the floor in our house, watching tv with the sound as low as possible – at 3:00 in the morning. That was, of course, after his late night snack! I stay out of the kitchen when insomnia hits, and try to remain in bed. Unfortunately, for those with insomnia, laying for hours (or what seems like hours) waiting for sleep often brings anxiety. My biggest (or smallest) problem – depending on how you look at it – is that I am VERY functional after a night without sleep. Well, the good news is that last night broke the current insomnia cycle.

Rich and I found Ocean View Resort back in 2012. Judah and Tova were getting married in August, and we decided to do an RV “staycation” here. Seven years later, OVR is still as clean as it was then. The amenities continue to improve as well. And, as with everything else, the price rises with time. For a full service park, however, with a beach front lake, a large pool, movies every night, a brand new mini golf course, an ice cream shop, walking paths, paved roads, an enjoyable bike path, shade and sun at virtually every spot, paddleboats, a splash zone for kids, a fishing pond, an on site RV parts and service center, daily activities, laundry, wifi, cable and more – it’s not over the top. It’s also exactly 5 minutes off the parkway. For a few weeks in July, they even offered an inexpensive shuttle to Sea Isle City, about 3 miles away. It was an evening shuttle, provided for visitors to enjoy the ocean and the promenade. I do wish that was still available. Regardless, we will be fine.

Our current activity includes Rich laying on his hammock and me lounging and blogging – our 2 favorite sports! It is very warm but overcast – and when the sun peaks through, I am in the shade while Rich is not. We are on our relaxing spot, next to the lake. This is the first time we are in this particular location – and it’s our new favorite place to be. We arrived around 3 Monday afternoon, and spent time setting up our lights and our outside area. This RV site is long and wide. We are not directly next to our neighbors, and there is a very comfortable place just “to be”. It is relaxing as could be.

Last night, we walked to the campground clubhouse to watch “Avengers: Endgame”. Okay – you all KNOW this is not my type of movie. But my husband said it was one of the BEST movies ever! (I’m going to respectfully disagree). There were only about 15 other campers in attendance. It was… okay. I mean, Rich gave me a 20 minute lesson on what went on in previous movies, so I would have a clue. His explanations were excellent – I had great background info going into the movie. My only task was to figure out what was happening on the screen, suspend my belief that super heroes are make believe, and buy in to the whole Marvel Comics genre. Here’s where the trouble began! Look – I don’t get it. My superhero belief began and ended with “Batman” – in 1968. But, I went along, to continue to be open to new things, and to try and enjoy things that Rich enjoys. The movie was action packed, very… colorful (that’s a positive description!), and not super blood and guts violent. But, I can’t say that I’m now a fan. Tonight’s movie is “Solo Star Wars”. Tomorrow night is the Kids’ Movie Night. The pick is “Zootopia”. Thursday night is “Star Trek Beyond”. Out of those 3 choices, my top pick would be “Zootopia”! So, I’m not sure we will be going back to the movies. Syfy is just not my top genre. In years past, we saw “We Bought a Zoo”, and “Dolphin Tale” here at Ocean View. Both those movies were excellent! That’s more my speed. But, it’s all okay.

The last trivia question I posted on the blog – which now seems like centuries ago! – was “What was our total RV mileage on our trip?” There were a few answers, but the winner, by a MILE (get it?!) was our friend Lew. Our starting mileage was 16515. 0ur ending mileage was 21671.3. My incredible math skills, and the calculator on my phone, tells me the total RV mileage was 5156.3. Lew’s guess was, I believe, 5000 miles – and so, congrats Lew, you win! (I really had no doubt!) If we included the many days of car rental miles, the amount would certainly increase substantially. But I don’t have the desire or patience to do that. Maybe when I retire…..

Oh, speaking of retirement – here is my official announcement. (You publicly are hearing it here first, friends!) I officially submitted my retirement information. I will be an official New Jersey retired teacher on November 1, 2019, which happens to coincide with my 60th birthday. Therefore, my LAST day of teaching is Halloween, 2019! It seems fitting, doesn’t it?! I promised myself there will not be any social media countdowns. That is unprofessional and obnoxious (I guess). There most probably WILL be several updates on days left – but only if necessary! The friends and family who do know asked, predictably, how I was feeling about retiring. Here is my thoughtful answer. I am 95% happy to be retiring. I am 3% sad at the thought of leaving several treasured colleagues who I sincerely love and cherish, and without whom I could not survive the days at work. And, I am 2% angry that I am not more sad leaving a 25 year profession. I will surely have more to say in the future. For now, that about covers it.

The second most asked question, after announcing one’s retirement from teaching, is “What now?” So here are the top answers. 1. For November and December, I am going to sit around and giggle. I will go back to working in January. 2. No, I will not be subbing. 3. No, I will not be tutoring. 4. No, I will not be teaching Spanish in a private school. 5. No, I will not be working bi-lingually. And, 6. No, I am not an interpreter. I want nothing to do with education or Spanish in the future. That ship has sailed. I feel complete with both of those. I am looking forward to going in a different direction for retirement. Suggestions are welcome. Top desires include writing, working from home, and trip planning. Of course, working at Kohl’s wouldn’t be terrible either – but I don’t realistically see actually coming home with any cash. So, that might be counter-productive. In any case, this is a good conundrum to have!

Alright, today’s trivia question: In “Avengers: Endgame”, there were many cameo appearances by famous actors and actresses. Who do you think is the actor that had both a cameo in the movie, AND was on a giant poster in my room when I was a teenager? Intriguing, isn’t it? Answer tomorrow.

Here are a couple of pics we took yesterday. It’s certainly not close to the beauty of Arches or Bryce Canyon – but it is pretty nice for Jersey. Catch ya tomorrow.

Marla and Rich

My view from my lounge chair; Rich catching more rays.

Evening Sky.

Dusk.

Ahhhh.

View from the front of our site.

About 50 steps to the sand.

Summer Extreme, 2019. 🙂