A friend encouraged me to do a video blog of my experiences & travels & I thought it was a great idea, so here it is! :) (Thanks Laurie!) This Weekly Video Blog will include interviews with people I meet in the GA Mountains @ my Home Base area (with an emphasis on fellow travelers & outdoor enthusiasts of all types) as well my travels near & far. Also, I will cover interesting places, events, and scenic beauty all along the way. Hey you just may be in my next Video Blog! If you have any particular ideas or suggestions for this Video Blog, or any aspect of LordandCurtiss.ws, please don't hesitate to let me know on the "Feedback" or "Guestbook" page. Thanks! Please come back & visit often!
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You'll help me improve my associate % if you use my link. It won't cost you penny more and I sure would appreciate your help. (Thanks so much! :)
Here is my first video blog! (Posted 9/12/09) This is actually the first video I have ever shot as well as put together for a little clip. I hope you enjoy it! It gives you just a little glimpse of my Home Base area in the North GA Mountains. It's a beautiful area surrounded by lakes and mountains & even a couple waterfalls! Note: Although the quality of this little video is not bad, I promise I will get better as I continue! :) This videos & all videos are/will be shot with a cool little Flip camcorder I bought from Amazon.com. I love it because it takes nice quality videos, is super easy to use & small enough that I tuck it in my purse & always have it handy! And with the built-in software even a novice like me can use it! :)
Although it comes in a number of colors & even designs & has come down in price since I bought it a few months ago, this is what I have:
"I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope."
~God via Jeremiah 29:11
Note: All Videos (& blog entries) posted below, are/will be posted in order of date posted. Please feel free to offer any comments on my GuestBook. (Thank you :)
3/5/2010 The last couple months have brought more cold temps & snow to the point that I am pretty much over "snow" for this winter. C'mon Spring! In the last couple weeks we have had a few intermittent days of beautiful Spring-like weather that have reinvigorated me! (And many others too I'm sure!) On one of those beautiful days (2/20/10) I drove south to the north side of Atlanta to meet with long-time mobile dweller David Hair. As expected, David is the same generous, kindhearted man with much expertise & an ease in his step & demeanor, in person as he was/is online. The toughest part of the interview was trying to edit my 20 minutes of video down to under 10 minutes! It was a great interview & whether you are a van/mobile dweller or not, I know you will really enjoy it!
Two Big Announcements:
My awesome 27 yr old son has been chosen to be on a new weight loss reality show! As soon as I am at liberty to give details I will. It is very exciting!
My book (first comes out in eBook form) "Setback Survival Guide" (subtitled: Strategies to keep on going when life kicks you in the teeth!) will be completed & begin the marketing phase by the end of this month! I am very pleased with the depth of information & resources covered. I am confident it will provide the strategies/solutions from the basic to the extreme, to help many who need to save money & live well! I will be posting my Twitter link soon for further news!
If you have any questions for David Hair, you can ask him on this forum: http://vandwellers.org/forum/index.php
As always I would LOVE to hear any comments or feedback from you on my Guestbook (click on the link at the top of this page).
Thanks & Blessings for Your Journey, Brenda
Don't miss this enlightening interview with long-time mobile dweller: David Hair
Holidays, A Winter Freeze &
A Brand New Year!
Blog Entry: 01/08/2010
The holidays have come & gone. They were enjoyable. I went to S.C. for Thanksgiving & then again for Christmas to spend time with family. My son & his girlfriend also drove up from Atlanta so it was enjoyable spending time with them as well. We especially had a great time at Christmas! We even went to see the movie "Avatar". Loved it!
The last couple months have been packed with a lot of learning and adjusting to this new way of living. The majority of the time I love my little van & living in it, mostly here at my home base. But I do have moments (mostly when it rains several days in a row, particularly when it remains overcast with no sun or blue sky) that I become almost lethargic and down. I feel stuck in a little space at those times and I have to literally pull myself out of it! Otherwise, I enjoy my cozy home. I write and research for my ebook and work here with a 360 view of pure beauty. A lake with the sun providing a spectacular glittering show that resembles thousands of diamonds sparkling on it's surface! Add in the sights of the geese & ducks gliding along it and beautiful graceful birds soaring above it, colorful song birds early in the morning chirping and hopping just outside my windows, and squirrels jumping and playing on the crisp leaves and a couple deer (one day I saw the most perfect little doe), my views are full of life & beauty. When people are here (and there are only a few during the winter months) they walk their dogs and picnic & fish at the lake or walk down by the trail not too far from where I often park. I enjoy all the beauty around me... I feel a part of it.
The last few days (over a week) it has been unseasonably cold, teens at night ( a couple times into single digits) and the highs of 20s and 30s. With the wind chills of -0- to about 10. At first I was freezing But I bought another fleece blanket, donned my warm footies and became familiar with the higher settings on my awesome little heater. And now it is not hard on me at all. I am not saying it isn't cold because it is! But I have adjusted very well. It even surprises me at times. We just had our first little snow that stuck here and with the temps it is frozen solid! Here are some photos of my last month or so, including a few with family during the holidays in SC. I am currently working diligently to get my "Setback Survival Guide" completed soon!
Praying 2010 Is An Especially
Blessed Year for You & Yours!
Christmas 2009 Van Ambiance. First snow (01/08/2010) from a cozy inside view.
More first winter snow with unseasonably cold temps. For a southern girl, ya'll it's cold!
Me (Brenda), My son Chad & his gf Laina. Pic 1: Too cool with our 3D glasses after seeing the movie "Avatar".
Above: More first snow. Right: My niece Melissa & I. Below: My sister Patty & I on Christmas day.
Here I am celebrating Christmas Day with my sisters in order of age: Brenda (me), Kathy, Patty & Pamela.
Note: My Mom, Dad & sister Kathy are in the November "Family Visits" video below.
11/18/09 It has rained for a couple days again, but it has been a light rain. I have been researching today for an ebook I am writing on surviving hard times. I read (another story) about someone who has fallen on hard times & has to sleep in his car. He is trying to figure out how to do that & be concealed where others don't see him. When reading his post I realized that for some, my van home is a luxury, and certainly my home base area is very much a luxury. Every day there are more & more people that have been living in apartments & paying quite a lot for rent & related living expenses. When those people become unemployed or underemployed and find themselves without funds or low on funds, they must take drastic measures. Some end up in shelters or on the streets. I can't even imagine how terrible that would be. I believe that particularly for those of us that are of the 28% of Americans that live alone, (way up from 10% in 1950) that there are particularly more options. For those who live with a significant other, still numerous options, but those with families it definitely is more challenging. However, there are alternatives we can take. We can make the best of situations. Knowledge is not only power, but knowledge can be the difference between comfort and discomfort, between safety and danger, between adventure and hopelessness. It is my mission to get information to people no matter what the circumstance, whether it be as simple as wanting to throw a birthday party for an 8 year old on very little money or finding themselves without a place to live, that they can know options available to them. I am finding that in our current economy there are so many people that need real strategies to not only keep on going, but to thrive as they do. That is my mission right now... to provide a worthy source of information that will actually make a difference.
My van with my tow behind. A peak inside my van. My silk flower night lighting.
In addition to where we live, there are so many elements of life that tough times often touch: how we eat, what we do for entertainment among many others. There are so many wonderful ways we can thrive even during challenging times. In my opinion, we in America have become so accustomed to eating out and going to the movies that we have forgotten how wonderful other low or no cost forms of entertainment can be. We can be creative and utilizing strategies and solutions and become even happier. Life is an adventure...not just in times of plenty but in creative times too. I'm not just talking about it... I am living it myself. The "Setback Survivaal Guide" will feature many effective ways to solve very tough problems from simple to extreme. OK.. back to it...
Simple joys: A couple on a bench & children feeding ducks. Thrive not just survive...
Life is an adventure...not just in times of plenty,
but in the more challenging creative times too.
This is my van & set-up. Tomorrow (10/25/09) will mark 2 weeks that I have been officially full-time van dwelling. The time has gone by pretty quickly. I have found myself adapting daily just as one would to moving into a different home. But the use of space is hugely important to be sure. The water purifier is a PUR filtered container (love it!) & also totally love my ice maker (red on the floor). Some may chuckle at my silk flowers with mood lighting & a couple teddy bears, one from when my mom, sisters & I went on our only all girl trip together in a beautiful cabin in the TN Mountains a couple years ago, the beeny baby teddy on my dash was given to me by a friend after a big event in my life a few yrs ago and the most important one is a little daschund beeny baby that my now 27 yr old son bought me with his earnings from working the baseball games concession stand when he was 12 yrs old. It may sound silly, but those things give me comfort and reminders that I am indeed "home". The 6 bins in the back of my van contain necessary items from food & kitchen supplies to my office and personal items. There is a very comfortable chair/lounger that can be inflated and used indoors or outside. The black tri-fold mat gives me additional padding to sleep on. The olive green zipped hanging wardrobe contains my clothing on the 3 shelves that lie within it. I have the passenger side chair reversed and use it to put together my "office" & TV viewing area in the day. At night after I retire I often sit the little flat screen 10.2" TV on top of my portable ice-maker to view it. With my comfy pillows & comforter I am pretty comfortable. You may have spied the little heater next to the ice-maker... it keeps me toasty when needed. Well... I still have lots to learn, but have learned much in this short time. Except for emptying the porta-potty, I am enjoying the experience! :) The fall colors are deepening each day & my current site view here is spectacular. As I write this I smell people burning wood & hear the muted voices of folks enjoying themselves. Don't you love the smell of clean wood burning? Yeah... It's nice... :)
I highly recommend the PUR Water Dispenser (pictured here on my black storage ottoman). I loved it when I was in a traditional home, but it is awesome to have while mobile dwelling. You never known what is in the water in a home faucet much less others along the way. Inexpensive, saves you lots of money on bottled water & keeps you healthy! I love this thing!
11/08/09 This video was taken in NE GA. The river you see here is the Chattooga River.When people come to visit I secure them a cabin here at my home base area & most of the time (unless it is one sister or friend etc.) I visit with them until time to go to sleep & then I head back to my cozy van until the next day of "visiting". :)
This week's blog encompases a combination of 2 family visits, most of it is from the last 3 days with my parents & sister Kathy. The shots you see of it raining are from a trip Kathy made down to visit me a couple weeks ago.The area is so beautiful that it is hard to do it justice & keep it to just over 3 minutes!! A good time was had by all! :)
The leaves are falling fast now... at times it looks like it is "raining" leaves. I am working to complete my e-book "Strategies To Keep On Going When Life Kicks You In The Teeth". I can hardly believe how fast the time is fleeting. I have now fulltime vandwelled for 4 weeks as of today.
I plan to do some exploring into some of the surrounding areas soon & will be posting some video blogs of those excursions as well. For now I am thoroughly enjoying this beautiful scenic area & sharing it with those who make there way here.
