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In January 2003, I decided to start producing a periodic newsletter Retirement Tips and RV Stuff. Below, you'll find a copy of the newsletters to date. If you'd like to get on the distribution for the next newsletter, send me email at rjhoffman@yahoo.com.
If you're looking for a specific topic in one of the old newsletters, the Search box on the right will find it for you. It will also point you to other references to the topic throughout the website.
Before I begin the newsletter, I feel it necessary to mention one of the greatest natural disasters in Earth's history. I've been watching the newscasts, as I'm sure you have, and feeling like I'd like to do something to help these thousands of people. I found the website http://www.redcross.org/ where donations can be made. Go there if you'd like to do your part. You can give as little as $5 and I'm sure every $5 counts. Designate your gift to the International Response Fund. NOTE: You may not be as old or slow as I am, but I went through 4 credit/debit cards before I could get it to accept my donation. After you type in the card number, you need to make a selection on the Payment Method box right below that. If you don't, it tells you that your card number is wrong. Oh, well ...
I've been hesitant to put out my funsy newsletter with all this going on, but I guess life goes on, so ...
Revamp -- hmm .. sounds like an archaic term, doesn't it? Guess I got it from my dear old maw. Just looked it up in my handy online Merriam-Webster -- says it means "REMAKE, REVISE, RENOVATE, RECONSTRUCT." Yup, that's about right ... I'm revamping. Revamping this newsletter, my Internet On The Road (IOTR) website, my Poker system, my exercise plan, and whatever else I find in my life that needs revamping.
First, the newsletter. QUOTES AND TRIVIA is gone, since I haven't been able to obtain a replacement for my neato Damon RV Travel Calendar. Poker is going to be relegated to a separate section all its own, so you can skip it if you're tired of hearing my constant ramblings about my POKER ADVENTURES. AND, I'm going to try to have a contest each month -- my problem is finding worthy prizes. This month, the prize is a copy of Retire and Travel - 20 Years Later. If you already have a copy, we'll find another equally valuable prize for you. The contest is buried lower in the newsletter -- you may have to search for it, so read everything ... ;) Especially read those TRYING TO MAKE A FEW BUCKS ads -- I'm revamping them also. Taking out some that haven't done well and adding some great new ones!
Second, my IOTR website -- read about that in the LATEST SITE UPDATES section below.
Third, my Poker system -- read about that in my POKER ADVENTURES section below.
Fourth, my exercise plan -- I plan to start again. We were members at a gym in 2003 and I went 3 times a week almost every week. Since we "dropped out", I've tried to take a walk every other day, but have failed miserably. I think it's something magic about paying for it and wanting to get my money's worth.
Fifth ... there is no fifth ... yet.
About RVing, one of the supposedly primary topics of this newsletter, we've not done any this month. However, some friends came down to visit from Alabama and have been doing a tour of Florida, staying at Passport America parks all the way. They stayed New Year's Eve in a campground in Titusville, so came down to visit us in Rockledge. They have what I consider a unique approach to the toady problem -- instead of towing a vehicle, they simply call Enterprise RentaCar and have one delivered to them at the campground. When you think of the cost of a towable vehicle, the towing mechanism, and the extra gas expended in the towing, I'm wondering if this isn't a less expensive and more convenient way to go. I've thought about doing it, but always end up pulling my little Sidekick along. One day, I'll do the rental thing just for the experience.
Did you read Chuck Woodbury's 12/12/04 newsletter? Two biggies there. The first was his gracious mention of my website to his 90,000 or so readers. Instead of the usual free book for the x000th visitor happening once a month, I suddenly was seeing one every few days! The hit counter went from 23,000+ on the 12th to 29,000 on New Year's Eve. That's 7 books in 3 weeks, mostly to Chuck's friends, I believe. With the giving of the book to the 30,000th visitor in a few weeks, I'll have given away 10 free books. I've decided that'll be it and I'll figure out other ways to give books during 2005 -- starting with the Giant Iceberg Contest, described later in this newsletter.
The second biggie (I think it was in that same newsletter) was Chuck's discussion of slide-outs and how they keep getting larger and larger. He spoke of the 4-slide Class A's that are out there now. I sent him a note, telling him about the T-Rex by Rexhall that has 2 slides, the entire left side and the entire right side. I didn't think they could get much bigger than that. NOT SO, BATMAN! I was watching TV the other night and saw a story about the amazing Anderson Mobile Estates, a 22-wheeler semi with a SLIDE-UP! That's an upstairs! Total floorspace - 1100 square feet. Wowser, Robin! What will they think of next? I think the price was in the $2M range. It's not to late to buy one of these beauties for a loved one for Valentine's Day.
Now, a few whatevers ... in case you didn't get these in your email during the holidays. A great Christmas website, 13 pages of creative pictures and sound, http://www.jsmagic.net/emissary/. Also, in case you slept through the announcements, they now have a do not call number for cellphones, which we are going to start getting those wonderful advertiser calls on 1/1/05 -- do not call setup for both cellphones and land lines can be found at the government website https://www.donotcall.gov/default.aspx.
December Travel: None .. stayed at home, decorated the house, and played online games (me=Poker; Joyce=Spades).
January Travel: Anticipating some travel to visit some of my WiFiRV campgrounds around Florida.
The Great Book Give-Away: Check the Retirement Tips home page for names of winners -- and for details on how to claim the big 30,000th visitor free (and final) book.
Read on for notes on my latest site updates, some words about how I'd make some money if you guys would buy something off the website, my latest Poker Adventures, and wrapping up with my Ramblings on whatever occurs to me between now and then. And ... buried somewhere within all that .. the Giant Iceberg Contest.
- Added a non-travel chapter to the travel log: Chapter 63. A Retiree's Holiday : Ramblings on how we retirees spent our end-of-year 2004 Holiday.
- My first book Retire and Travel For $1000 a Month is now available in both Ebook and hardcopy form, for those who don't like reading their books on the internet.
- I just realized that InternetOnTheRoad.com has some rather obsolete information -- I've initiated revisions to reflect recent new technology and plan to continue throughout 2005. Keep watch here for more announcements. Major updates this month were the complete replacement of menus and reformatting of all pages.
- I've found two great sites for RVers. For reviews of RV service facilities http://rvservicereviews.com/ and campground reviews on http://rvparkreviews.com . The reviews are done by plain RV folks, like you and me. In fact, you can contribute your own reviews if you're interested. Both websites are on my links webpage, in case you lose this newsletter.
Here's a list of some interesting products, some of which will make me a few bucks if you need them and buy them here:
- Camp at Half of What Everyone Else is Paying! No home park, no monthly maintenance fees, no long-term obligation, just pay the small annual fee and camp for half-price. Check it out here.
- 50+ ways to get to the internet when you're on the road! Read'm at Internet On The Road.
- Giant Iceberg Contest : Ever notice that iceberg on every page of the Retirement Tips website? Click any one and you'll see the prettiest iceberg ever! AND, notice how the one on the home page changes to four other photos? Tell me what state I was in for each of those photos and you'll win a copy of my latest book! Just email your answers to me at rjhoffman@yahoo.com. Hint: All of the photos are from my Travel Log. When there's a winner, I'll announce it at the bottom of the home page, where the recent free book winners are listed.
- Dream Lifestyles to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All about How to Get a Life By .... whatever .. you fill in the blank. Check them out here.
- Dream Jobs to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All you need to know about How To Break Into ... whatever is your dream job. Check them out here.
- Earn Money While You Camp! Join WiFiRV as an affiliate, either a lead generator (tell us about campgrounds that need WiFi) or a sales representative (assist in the selling of WiFi systems). Go to my Internet On The Road (IOTR) / WiFiRV page http://www.wifirv.com/assoc/iotr/ to learn how you can earn hundreds for a few hours work.
I'm not sure what-all changed, but I'm suddenly playing higher stakes games ($2-$4, $3-$6, $5-$10) and winning! It started when I discovered FullTiltPoker.com and started playing for my 100% bonus there. I discovered a new way to play and added a new wrinkle for my Secrets For Winning Online Hold'Em Poker. I'm so excited about FullTilt that I've created a special sample of Chapter 17 that you can view free! In Chapter 18, I'll lay out this whole new wrinkle to the system. But ... sorry about that ... you'll have to buy the book to get this info. How am I doing? I joined FullTilt and started playing my new approach on December 17th -- now it's January 2nd and sofar I've made a profit of ... $877!
Was just watching the 2004 WSOP on ESPN and saw Gerry Drehobl, an RVer and amateur poker player, win $365,000 playing the Hold'Em tournament. And he didn't even buy a copy of my book! That makes three I've seen won by online and/or amateur players, Chris Moneymaker ($2.5M), Greg Raymer ($5M), and Gerry. Ain't life interesting!?
How about all these jokes floating around the internet? I didn't know there were so many. I get duplicates every now and then, but generally they're new. There must be thousands of them. Where do they all come from? Have they been laying dormant for the last hundred years, waiting for the internet to be invented so we could email them all around the world a few hundred times? Who in the world is writing them all?
I met a guy at a campground in Georgia a couple of months ago and we've been communicating by email. This guy must be in 10 different joke circles, because I receive 4-5 from him every day. Most of them are movies and short videos -- all very funny, but I'm not sure what to do with them. I'd like to put them on my website, but don't know exactly how and probably couldn't afford that much server space anyway. Being the kind that doesn't throw anything away, I've got many of them stored on my computer, waiting for that time when I find some fantastic way to make use of them.
And how about the hoaxes? I've seen many of them several times, each time with a sincere warning from a friend, worried that I'll be taken in by the #99 phone guy or the 5-cent charge on emails or be killed when I use my cell phone by a gaspump or that virus that's going to eat my computer or whatever. When I get one that looks even a little like an urban legend, I just go to my favorite urban legend debunker site snopes.com. I don't know why people don't check there (or one of the other similar sites) before they send these out to "all their friends and acquaintances", but they just don't. If you send me one, and I reply with an email saying HOAX, that's where I looked.
I was cooking out a steak last night and it occurred to me that some of my strongest memories are from when I was cooking out. Is that wierd?
In case you haven't been paying attention, I first retired in 1962. I was a mailman then -- quit my job and took off on my first around-the-USA trip. I had a 1962 Volvo that I'd purchased new for $2395. The seats folded down and made into a nice-sized bed, even for a 6'4" skinny guy. I often refer to that as my first RV and the trip as the first of many USA tours. I recall that early in the trip, I stopped at a picnic area somewhere up on the Blue Ridge Parkway I think, started a fire in one of those big outdoor cookers, and cooked myself a hamburger. As I sat there eating my burger and watching the other campers enjoying the outdoors, I thought to myself "Can it get any better?"
In 1968, I'd graduated from college and bought my first house in Clear Lake, Texas. I recall one evening, sitting out in back, lighting the coals to cook some supper, looking out at the backyard and thinking "Can it get any better?"
In 1984, after buying our first Class A motorhome, wandering around the USA, I spent many an evening cooking out, looking at fantastic scenery, and thinking "Can it get any better?"
In 1986, we'd just moved back to Madison, Alabama from Santa Barbara, California. We'd bought a neat little condo with a pool in the backyard! I'd never thought I'd be able to afford a house with a pool, but we'd been able to save a little while in California. I recall sitting out back, beer in hand, grille afire, looking out at my pool, and thinking "Can it get any better?"
In 1999, I was boondocking in Arizona, I'd just had a great day flying in a hot air balloon, and guess how I ended the day? As I say in my Travel Log Chapter 13 "I was sitting in my front yard cooking some hamburgers the evening of the 15th, thinking about what a great day I'd had, and noticed the beautiful sunset. 'A perfect end to a perfect day!', thought I." Again, "Can it get any better?"
So, now it's 2005. I'm retired, doing what I want to do when I want to do it, making a fair living, sitting out looking at my screened-in pool, cooking a nice Porterhouse, and thinking "Can it get any better?" ... Only time will tell ...
And! I still have the RV and can travel whenever ...
January Travel: Took a little trip to do some WiFiRV "work." Wandered up and down a 30-mile stretch of U.S. 27 on the West side of Florida, and visited 8 campgrounds. Wow! There sure are a bunch of RVs in Central Florida in the winter! Every campground I went to was absolutely over-full -- RVs parked on the grass, in the driveways, wherever they could find a space. Talked to a bunch of people, learned a little more about more about selling, enjoyed a little RVing, and maybe even sold a WiFi system -- don't know for sure yet.
February Travel: Anticipating a little more travel to visit some of my WiFiRV campgrounds around Florida.
The Giant Iceberg Contest: It's really amazing! I look at the Iceberg photo on my homepage and watch those RVing scenes go by, and it's OBVIOUS to me where they are. Obviously not obvious to anyone else. I gave away one book to my niece in Gainesville, who was astute enough to notice the Ron-Jon billboards and figure out that the scene was in FLORIDA about 50 miles from her house. Since she got one right, I emailed her a book. Anyone who can identify any of the other scenes, if you're the first, you'll get a book. She tells me the pictures change too fast to see them. Doh! Am I the only one with a PrntScrn button on my keyboard?
Read on for notes on my latest site updates, some words about how I'd make some money if you guys would buy something off the website, my latest Poker Adventures, and wrapping up with my Ramblings on whatever occurs to me between now and then.
- Faux News: I updated Joyce's FauxByJoyce.com with some photos of her latest job, the Viera Project.
- I made most of the updates required to InternetOnTheRoad.com to include the latest technology. Updated the WiFi and Satellite info, as well as adding a blurb on Wireless Cards, the latest way to always be connected while your RVing.
- I've gotten several very nice comments back from readers of my Retire and Travel - 20 Years Later book. Added them to the book page - go check them out and maybe you'll be curious enough to buy yourself a copy.
- I added Chapter 18 to my Secrets for Winning Online Hold'Em Poker Ebook+WebBook entitled "Playing with the Big Guys -- And Winning!" Not of interest unless you've purchased a copy -- have you?
- I've found two great sites for RVers. The first provides a really fantastic 360-degree view of the inside of most types of RVs at the Go Rving Virtual Tours page. The second is a Webcams of the Florida Keys page that has some really great webcams, some with sound. Click on the Sloppie Joe's Cam at the right time and you'll see the band warming up and starting an evening of fun. Or go to Sloppie Joe's and wave at the camera. Some of those people either don't know that there's a webcam there -- or they don't care!
- Places You've Never Been: On my Retirement-Tips.com homepage, have you ever clicked on the Iceberg in the top left corner? Do it! You'll be pleasantly surprised. And what about the Life Tips photo -- see them all on one page. Lastly, how about the Stargate near the bottom of the page -- if you're a Stargate SG1 fan, you should find this entertaining.
Here's a list of some interesting products, some of which will make me a few bucks if you need them and buy them here:
- Camp at Half of What Everyone Else is Paying! No home park, no monthly maintenance fees, no long-term obligation, just pay the small annual fee and camp for half-price. Check it out here.
- 50+ ways to get to the internet when you're on the road! Read'm at Internet On The Road.
- Dream Lifestyles to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All about How to Get a Life By .... whatever .. you fill in the blank. Check them out here.
- Dream Jobs to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All you need to know about How To Break Into ... whatever is your dream job. Check them out here.
- Earn Money While You Camp! Join WiFiRV as an affiliate, either a lead generator (tell us about campgrounds that need WiFi) or a sales representative (assist in the selling of WiFi systems). Go to my Internet On The Road (IOTR) / WiFiRV page http://www.wifirv.com/assoc/iotr/ to learn how you can earn hundreds for a few hours work.
I'm still playing higher stakes games ($2-$4, $3-$6, $5-$10) and winning! I've made over $1500 since December 17th. It started when I discovered FullTiltPoker.com and started playing for my 100% bonus there. I discovered a new way to play and added a new wrinkle for my Secrets For Winning Online Hold'Em Poker. I'm so excited about FullTilt that I've created a special sample of Chapter 17 that you can view free! In Chapter 18, I layed out this whole new wrinkle to the system. But ... sorry about that ... you'll have to buy the book to get this info. How am I doing? I joined FullTilt and started playing my new approach on December 17th -- now it's February 12nd and sofar I've made a profit of ... I dunno ... kind of lost track somewhere around $1500!
I guess I kind of rambled up at the start of this newsletter. Don't have much else to ramble about. One thing I could do is thank all of you who are emailing me with your comments, questions, suggestions, etc. on my website, my newsletters, and my books. Seems like there are many people out there either about to go RVing or at least thinking about it. If I can assist you at all in learning what you need to know to make your decision, let me know. I enjoy imparting what little knowledge I have and it's exciting to me to hear from people who are enjoying the full-timing life. As I've often said, if I don't know the answer, I'll probably know where to send you to find it.
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Email rjhoffman@yahoo.com to sign up for the next newsletter, coming whenever I'm in the mood again.
February might be the shortest month of the year, but it seemed that just as much happened in February as in any other month. I started a couple of new websites, played some live Hold'Em Poker, read a great book on RVing in Europe, FINALLY got winners in my Giant Iceberg Contest, just missed winning every one of Chuck Woodbury's contests by a hair, and helped Joyce paint another beautiful mural. Read all about it below!
Let's take them one at a time. The websites are in FEATURED WEBSITE below. Read about live poker and Joyce's mural in LATEST SITE UPDATES. The RVing in Europe book is reviewed under REVIEWS. That leaves the contests to talk about here.
Look on my RetirementTips.com homepage to see all the Giant Iceberg Contest winners. Click these links to see the photos behind the iceberg, Retirement Tips is Quartzsite, Arizona, Travel Tips is on the Florida Turnpike just East of Wildwood, Florida, Investment Tips is the parking lot at the Grand Casino in Tunica, Mississippi, and the one with Online Tips is on a little creek in Townsend, Tennessee. Congratulations to all the winners and thanks for taking the time to figure out the locations! I haven't thought up my next give-away-a-book contest, but I'll have one soon. In the meantime, if you're really wanting to read the book, it's available for only $10 -- if you later win a contest, I'll send you a $10 refund!
Speaking of contests, have you been entering Chuck Woodbury's RVtravel.com contests each week? I'm assuming you read his weekly newsletter ... it's always full of interesting stuff. I understand he has a staff of several who help him put that newsletter together. No wonder he has more info than mine with a staff of one ... LOL. For the past several weeks, he's had one or more contests in his newsletter. I almost always get the right answer, but it seems my timing is off. I kept track a couple of weeks ago -- once I was 11th and the winner was #22, then I was 30th after #11 won, then I was 109th after the 9th won $100. Kind of forgot the time on that last one. They're always interesting ... most test your knowledge of the good old USA, some are just general trivia, but it's always fun to get the answer right, even if you don't win. I think I saw a note somewhere saying he wasn't going to do the contests anymore -- I'm not sure. Guess I'll find out when Issue #150 comes out tomorrow. I hope it's not so -- I really enjoy those each week.
WiFi News: Guess I might need to start a section for this .. seems like I've always got a couple of things to say about it each month. This month, I saw an article about I-19, the Canamex Interstate Highway, that is the home of the "world's first highway Wi-Fi mobile voice and high speed data network," from Rio Rico to South of Green Valley, Arizona. I've read about WiFi in the rest areas in Texas and some places where they've made their entire downtown area a HotSpot, but this is the first time I've seen them do an entire highway. I'm hoping we'll soon see the day when WiFi is as easy to access as our cellphones are now.
March Travel: Who knows? Maybe the weather outside of Florida will finally get decent enough to make a trip North. I've been wanting to wander over to Biloxi and on to Texas to visit son Ronnie. Maybe in March? or April?
Read on for notes on my latest site updates, some words about how I'd make some money if you guys would buy something off the website, my latest Poker Adventures, a book review, and wrapping up with my Ramblings on whatever occurs to me between now and then.
OOPS! Almost forgot! I've started the Oldguy Poker Club -- read about it below under POKER ADVENTURES! You might even want to join up and make some easy money!
- Faux News: I updated Joyce's FauxByJoyce.com with some photos of her latest job, the Melbourne Beach Project. She's back in this Melbourne Beach home for the 3rd or 4th visit, this time doing a neat beachy mural over their family room bar.
- I've added Chapter 64 to My Travel Log - Short Trips and Yard-Birds : Some not-very-exciting "adventures", waiting for winter to end. One of those "short trips" was to the Sun Cruz casino ship, where this oldguy finally got around to playing some live Texas Hold'Em. Did I win? Read the chapter ... LOL.
- I've gotten several very nice comments back from readers of my Retire and Travel - 20 Years Later book. Added them to the book page - go check them out and maybe you'll be curious enough to blow $10 for your own copy.
- I added Chapter 19 to my Secrets for Winning Online Hold'Em Poker Ebook+WebBook entitled "A 20-Question Survey" Not of interest unless you've purchased a copy -- have you?
- I bumped into the Postcards From America website this month! Really a great site with great pictures from a couple of RVers who apparently have covered North America several times.
- I've just started building a website for Pelican Place, a really neat little gift and what-not shop in Tallahassee, Florida. If you're ever in Tally, check it out -- you can spend hours looking through all their "Phun Stuff."
Here's a list of some interesting products, some of which will make me a few bucks if you need them and buy them here:
- Camp at Half of What Everyone Else is Paying! No home park, no monthly maintenance fees, no long-term obligation, just pay the small annual fee and camp for half-price. Check it out here.
- 50+ ways to get to the internet when you're on the road! Read'm at Internet On The Road.
- Dream Lifestyles to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All about How to Get a Life By .... whatever .. you fill in the blank. Check them out here.
- Dream Jobs to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All you need to know about How To Break Into ... whatever is your dream job. Check them out here.
- Earn Money While You Camp! Join WiFiRV as an affiliate, either a lead generator (tell us about campgrounds that need WiFi) or a sales representative (assist in the selling of WiFi systems). Go to my Internet On The Road (IOTR) / WiFiRV page http://www.wifirv.com/assoc/iotr/ to learn how you can earn hundreds for a few hours work.
As I mentioned above, I've started the Oldguy Poker Club. It's not a club for oldguys (necessarily), it's one started by me -- the Oldguy. It's a name I use whenever I play games online -- and I use it as my username for a bunch of other things, like my bank .. haha. If you've considered playing poker online and just haven't ever gotten started, check out my club. It's the best deal you'll find anywhere for extra perks, comps, and bonuses for playing online. AND, joining will get you a free copy of my $15 Secrets for Winning Online Hold'Em Poker ebook+webbook.
If you've been following my newsletters long enough, you may recall that I reviewed a book a month for awhile. Then, I guess I stopped reading or reviewing -- deleted this newsletter section, anyway. Well, this month I was actually asked by the publisher to review a book! A real honor. I've now made the book available in my Library. Read on for my review ...
Take Your RV To Europe: The Low-cost Route To Long-term Touring by Adelle Milavsky, Ron Milavsky
Details! Details! Details! WOW! You won't believe it. The main part of the book is 169 pages, with 143 more in Appendices, for a total of 312 pages. And, these are 8x10 pages, not the standard pocketbook size. Even if you don't have an RV, this is a must-read! It takes you day-by-day around the back roads of Europe, leading you through places you don't read about in the travel brochures. It didn't take me more than a few chapters of reading about the complexities of taking your own RV to Europe to convince me that it was something I'd probably never do, but if you're considering doing it, this book will tell you EVERYTHING you need to know. Read the book first for entertainment, then keep it as a reference. I would bet that you'll never see a book with this much attention to details, including photos whenever they're needed to clarify a point. And that's just the main part of the book -- they go on in the Appendices with 80 pages of letters they wrote home during their trips, very useful notes on 17 European countries, followed by info on ports, suppliers, useful internet sites, and European RV dealers/renters. Their notes and recommendations are REQUIRED for an RVer, but INVALUABLE to someone planning to travel Europe in any manner whatsoever.
Here we have a retired couple with alot more energy and perserverance than I've ever had. They take you step-by-step through the process of why they decided to ship their RV instead of renting/buying one when they got there, finding the most cost-effective ways to do the shipping, and then finding their way around Europe in a manner that assured that they made the most of their time and money. They even go into details on how to save money on your second (and subsequent) trip(s). If you're interested in visiting, driving, shopping, eating, camping, touring, enjoying scenery, or just reading about Europe, this is your book.
I'm wondering if I overdid it a little last month with my "can it get any better?" monologue. I've gotten a variety of responses to it, but none yet that suggested I shouldn't have written it. And this month I have those cutesy bird pictures in Chapter 64 -- you've read it, right? Some would think that our retirement is all birds and flowers and poker and murals and everything just continues to get better ... hmm .. not quite. Retirement, like life, has its ups and downs, but I think they're much more traumatic when you're retired. When things go wrong, you don't have as much opportunity to recover as you did when you were 30 years old. You just have to do the best you can with what you've got and hope things will hold together until you're permanently "unretired." One of the biggest problems is to figure out where to invest whatever nestegg you have to make it last as long as possible or necessary. I've put a few suggestions on my Invest! page, but none are foolproof.
If you've been reading my stuff since 1999, you know that I was big in the stock market back then ... before the bubble burst. Well, I'm still in it .. just not as active as I once was. About 5 months ago, when Martha voluntarily went to prison, I decided to buy some of her stock. Managed to make about $2000. Then, thanks to some astute buying high and selling low, I've managed to lose $1500 on her in just the last week or so. GET IT BACK TOGETHER, MARTHA! I see her enjoying her first day back at the ranch and wonder why she's not working to get her stock back up ... LOL.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that although Joyce and I have much to be thankful for, I don't want to paint a picture of retirement as all ups and no downs. I visited a website recently of a middle-aged couple who decided to sell everything and follow their dream of full-time RVing. After everything was sold and they were in a hotel, they found they didn't make as much on the sales as they'd hoped and their RV loan wasn't being approved. Wow! Positive attitudes are great, but some people kind of overdo it. Like the guys in their 30's who are quitting their jobs to play online poker full-time -- sort of reminds one of those day-traders of the late 1990s.
I trust that everyone reads my newsletters, poker adventures, retirement tips, and travel log adventures with the understanding that I tend to accentuate the positive and down-play the negative. I feel like you just gotta try to reach a balance between bragging and whining ... hope I'm doing so.
As far as investing or making money in retirement, the best advice I think I've ever gotten was at an Ebay Auction seminar I attended several years ago. It wasn't from the verbage on the thousands everybody is making putting things up for auction on Ebay -- although, I actually know people who are doing well at that. It was the concept of Multiple Revenue Streams. I've mentioned that before and here it is again. You find ways to create little trickles or streams of income and hope that they eventually turn into a "river" that will provide enough to keep you "afloat."
Try it ... you'll like it!
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Email rjhoffman@yahoo.com to sign up for the next newsletter, coming whenever I'm in the mood again.
I don't know how things are in other states, but I've recently noticed a trend in Florida -- RV parks and Mobile Home parks are closing one by one.
My first observation was in January 2005. I was over in the Clermont area, between Tampa and Orlando, to assist some WiFiRV engineers in removing the gear we had at All Seasons RV Resort there (Travel Log Chapter 64). Seems the owners sold out to a housing developer, because that is more lucrative than trying to keep the RV resort open. Here we have about 300 snow-birds, planning to stay through April, being told they gotta move by January 23rd -- ouch! After visiting a few more of the campgrounds in the area, I learned that this isn't an isolated incident. Several other parks there have recently closed, either because they were hurricane-damaged and it was more profitable to sell out than to repair, or because they got an offer they couldn't refuse. As a result, the remaining parks in that area were full to the bursting point. If you were a casual traveler, looking for an overnight spot near Clermont, you were pretty much out of luck until Easter, when the birds start returning back to the cold north-land.
In March, our local newspaper (Florida Today) had a long article entitled Trailer parks gone to the wind, with a subtitle of "Residents face uncertain future as hurricane-damaged sites close." The article told about several mobile home/RV parks in the area that were damaged by the recent hurricanes. In some cases, park owners are simply saying the park is closed and issuing eviction notices to residents. In others, residents have been stymied by Brevard County's "modern zoning regulations," which prohibit the addition of new mobile homes in the existing parks. In addition, they've passed a regulation that states that trailers that are more than 50% damaged must be removed -- replacement is forbidden. Does it sound like the county is trying to get rid of all the mobile homes? Sounds that way to me. The usual excuse is that they're doing it because of the danger to mobile homes in hurricane areas, but it appears to me that they're just trying to slowly but surely get rid of all those unsightly mobile homes in favor of more upscale, higher-taxable land-bound homes.
My most recent wake-up call was a conversation that I had with the manager of an RV resort close to my home, where they've got 200+ sites, with about 30% being park models and 70% RVs. He was telling me how the taxes and expenses keep rising and he doesn't expect to be able to stay open for more than 3-4 more years! What a surprise! Here's a beautiful, apparently successful park with plenty of activities, amenities, and costing in the range of $35/night to camp. During the "season" they have campers on sidewalks, boon-docking, stuck wherever there's a space, and the guy says he can't make enough to stay in business. What's the answer?
The other side of the coin is campers like me, who are travelling to someplace and looking for a place to just stay overnight. We don't really care about recreational amenities, activities, pools, beaches, etc. We're usually just looking for a place that has electricity and a safe place to stay for a few hours, that's not too far off of the highway. In Chuck Woodbury's recent newsletters, I've noticed he's addressing this same topic, talking about how people are having a tendency to look for a Walmart instead of paying $20-$25 for an overnight.
Example: Last week, I went with Joyce to do some painting at a home on Melbourne Beach. The closest RV Resort was a very upscale place, with beachside pool, sauna, jacuzzi, in-park pool, recreation hall, fishing piers, etc., etc. Charge was $45/night, which we paid because we wanted to be close to the job. That's the most I've paid for a campsite in years! And we didn't use anything except the pavement on our site, the electricity, the water, and the dump station. Certainly a candidate for the "no-frills" option that Chuck suggested in his newsletter #154.
So what's my suggestion? Do to RV parks what they did to restaurants! Years ago, if you wanted to eat, you had to walk into a restaurant, be exposed to whatever ambience the owner had devised, be seated by a host or hostess, order through a waiter, etc., and pay the price to support all that ambience and the various employees required to handle all your needs. Then along came the Drive-In! I remember in the 1950's, we had drive-ins that allowed us to sit in our cars to eat! We sometimes ordered through a car-hop, but later graduated to talking through speakers, so one "wait-person" was able to handle many more clients. Then, the innovation of the even more efficient Drive-Thru came along in the form of McDonald's, Jack-in-the-Box, Burger King, ... and on and on. Some had and still have an area where you can go inside and sit, but some were/are simply a kitchen and a window, leaving it to you on where you want to go to consume the food. Why not do the same to RV parks?
It looks to me like we need two types of RV parks. The kind we currently have with recreation, pools, activities, and lots of people to keep it all operating -- these would be like the sit-down restaurants. Then, we need a new kind of park, where we drive up, pay some money, park and hookup, and don't expect anything from anybody. If we need recreation or entertainment, we drive down the road somewhere and pay for it. If we just want to Camp-And-Go, we pay $10-$15 and all we get is hookups and a little safety. These would be like the drive-thru restaurants that provide us with cheap, fast food. If you're a snow-bird, looking for a place to "live" for several months, you find one of the Full-Service RV Resorts. If you're just a traveller going somewhere, you stay at one of the cheaper, Camp-And-Go parks. How about that?
If I had the money and the initiative, I'd go open one right now. Bet I'd make a bunch!
That's my thought for the day/month.
WiFi News: More states getting WiFi! I read this month that all Iowa rest stops will have WiFi by July 2005. I'm not sure how many states now offer free WiFi to travellers -- I'm sure there's a book out on that somewhere. When I was in Clermont in January, I found free WiFi at a Florida State Travel Center on U.S. 27 -- maybe they have it at more of the rest areas here, I don't know. I guess they'll start advertising it on roadsigns soon. Check the site updates below for website WiFi updates this month.
March Travel: Just a couple more short trips for business. Since gas went over $2 a gallon, I guess we're a little hesitant to travel far. In addition, it seems like we have medical appointments every week or two, plus Joyce keeps getting paint jobs to do. Are we retired yet?
April Travel: Sounds like there'll be a fishing trip this month! Looking forward to a little fun in the sun -- I'm spending entirely too much time at this keyboard. Wonder if Jonathan Dickinson State Park has WiFi yet? I doubt it. Probably a good idea to be uncomputerized for a week.
Read on for notes on my latest site updates, some words about how I'd make some money if you guys would buy something off the website, my latest Poker Adventures, a book review, and wrapping up with my Ramblings on whatever occurs to me between now and then.
- Faux News: Watch for updates in the next week or so on Joyce's FauxByJoyce.com with some photos of her latest job, the Riverview Project. We started working in this large, beautiful home on the Indian River this month. Currently finishing a faux finish through the entire master bedroom and bath, with a mural in the bath. Plans are to do the laundry-room next, then ??
- I've featured my friend Virgil Wulff's site http://www.virgilallenwulff.com/ before, but decided to do it again because we've just added some great new stuff. His book Deadlihood, completed and published in 2004, can now be read FREE online. We're going to put a chapter a month out there for your enjoyment, of course hoping you'll get anxious and buy a copy of the entire E-book for $10. If you like mystery and thrillers, with a hint of new age science fiction, you might really enjoy Deadlihood -- and it's FREE. You'll also find information there on his more recent novel Immortality Seekers and his latest manuscript Mind-Exchange Chronicles.
Here's a list of some interesting products, some of which will make me a few bucks if you need them and buy them here:
- Camp at Half of What Everyone Else is Paying! No home park, no monthly maintenance fees, no long-term obligation, just pay the small annual fee and camp for half-price. Check it out here.
- 50+ ways to get to the internet when you're on the road! Read'm at Internet On The Road.
- Dream Lifestyles to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All about How to Get a Life By .... whatever .. you fill in the blank. Check them out here.
- Dream Jobs to Go! Great electronic books for $12.95 that download to your computer immediately. All you need to know about How To Break Into ... whatever is your dream job. Check them out here.
- Earn Money While You Camp! Join WiFiRV as an affiliate, either a lead generator (tell us about campgrounds that need WiFi) or a sales representative (assist in the selling of WiFi systems). Go to my Internet On The Road (IOTR) / WiFiRV page http://www.wifirv.com/assoc/iotr/ to learn how you can earn hundreds for a few hours work.
Not much new this month, adventure-wise. I had a losing streak, so quit for a few weeks. Now I'm back into it and winning again -- it's really strange how you think you're playing the same way all the time, yet you can consistently win for a time, then consistently lose for a time. Right now, I've decide to concentrate on tournaments, since that's where the big money is and they also seem to be the bigger challenge. They appear to require much more patience and cunning than cash games, plus the amount you can win can get very substantial. So far, I've made it into the top 20 several times (out of 200-900 players), but have yet to get to a final table. Hope to have something more exciting to talk about in a month or so of tournament play -- or maybe I'll be losing again ... who knows?
In March, I received another book with a request that I review it in my newslette! Am I becoming famous? I think not, however, I enjoyed the book and include the review below. I''ve also added the book to my Library. Read on for my review ...
Casino Camping : Guide to RV-Friendly Casinos by Jane Kenny.
If you're looking for a place to camp while you spend time in a casino, this is the book for you. It lists casinos with pay campgrounds, as well as those that allow you to boondock free. It includes casinos in 25 states, which I assume are all those that currently allow gambling. Each write-up includes contact info, a description of the casino and the RV park, available discounts, and directions. The author groups casinos by type, separating land-based from riverboat, etc., making it very simple to find what you're looking for.
Although this makes a great reference book, it's also an interesting read to get information on boondocking, casino discounts, comps and other casino tips. It also gives the novice a great picture of what to expect when they first attempt to combine their camping with their casino recreation. It even includes a section on avoiding becoming addicted, which I read several times but finally decided it didn't apply to me :)
Unlike many of the paperback reference books, this one also includes an appendix that provides a quick-look listing of every casino in the book, plus an index if you want to look one up by city name or casino name. All in all, a very complete treatment of the casino camping topics.
I've got two things to ramble about this month. Firstly, I'd like to whine a little about gasoline prices ... WAAAH! Over $2 and still climbing. If you'll recall, on my 2004 Gas War Page, I suggested that we all shop only at Murphy stations (the guys who live at Walmart Super-Centers), hoping that would encourage other vendors to drop their prices to compete. Well, I got a real surprise at my local Murphy the other day -- their regular was $2.13 AFTER my whoop-te-doo 3-cent discount! At a Hess station near my house, it was only $2.11 on the same day! I don't really know if Hess (and others) are finally finding ways to compete with Murphy or if Murphy is unfairly raising their prices for some reason. At the same time, I noticed that Murphy stock was going down at the same time that oil (and gasoline) prices were rising rapidly -- something about a lawsuit caused their stock price drop I think. So, I wondered, is Murphy now going to try to squeeze us to pay for some lawsuit? Who knows? The prices are now back down to being 5-10 cents lower than anyone else around, so I guess I'll stay with Murphy for the time being.
Just a note regarding Murphy/Walmart/Sam's Club. I was told that Sam's Club has gas that's usually cheaper than Murphy and that the Walmart Discount Card works at the pumps at Sam's. I haven't verified that yet, but thought I'd pass it along in case you've got a Sam's closeby.
Second topic, what if you were RVing in Europe and paying $4-$6 a gallon? Wow! After reviewing that Take Your RV To Europe book last month, I began to pick up on some information about RVing outside of North America. I'm thinking about putting up a page (or more, if merited) on non-American RVing. I found a nice website on European RVing http://a-motorhome-on-tour.co.uk/im/anpics4.asp?id=anan3, with photos from around Europe. I was really surprised to learn that RVing is very popular in Europe, despite the gas/petrol prices. It seems that they don't have as far to travel to see stuff, so the gas isn't quite as significant as it is in North America. From what I'm learning, Europeans, who generally get much longer vacations than Americans, are just RVing all over the place over there. And I always thought that we invented RVing ... hahaha.
I also bumped into http://www.sundayherald.com/47612, a website about Aussies RVing. Seems like that trip around the Australian continent that was popular among young back-packers in past years is now becoming the path for retired RVers. Many Aussies are "re-discovering" their country after retirement, generally using RVs that provide a more convenient method for getting there for those who are no longer up to those long hikes.
Maybe I'll go do some searches and see what I find. Maybe there's a Retirement Tips and RV Stuff equivalent website out there, aimed at Europeans. Now that I'm playing tournaments, I have alot of free time while waiting for a decent hand, so could probably do some searches while I play. We'll see ...
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Email rjhoffman@yahoo.com to sign up for the next newsletter, coming whenever I'm in the mood again.
