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Conversations with the Universe
Isn’t it your triumphs over adversity, surprise rebounds, and stellar comebacks that you look back on with the most fondness, NubianNomads ? Far more than the easy, cake for breakfast and pajamas in the afternoon kind of times?
Fondly,
The Universe
Conversations with the Universe
NubianNomads , no matter what your faith is or is not, no matter where in the world you are, I want you to know that during this holiday season I’ll be with you. In the eyes of every child and the melody of every song. I’ll be the glimmer in the ice crystals, the rays in the sun, and the stars at night. And with each smile you see, every hug you receive, and every laugh you hear, I’ll be there, reaching out through another, with blessings and tidings to last you the year. Not because it’s Christmas, but because I love you, always have, always will. And these things are true every day of your life.
Snowball – Duck!
The Universe
Conversations with the Universe
NubianNomads ! Was it you?!
We have some new “help” here and our incoming correspondence has been kind of garbled.
Someone was thinking big, I mean really big, and now the entire Universe has been thrown into action, aligning players, circumstances, and coincidences that will miraculously fall into just the right place at just the right time. It’s changed everything, absolutely everything. The world will never be the same.
Actually, this happens with your every thought. But if it was you, did you mean joy when you said toy?
Sounded like you wanted every toy? Either way, consider it done, just let us know.
Tallyho,
The Universe
Ramblings on the Road
Full-time RV’ing is a lifestyle that we have grown to really enjoy. There are several reasons for this but I will try to highlight the things we like most!
The Adventures
Leigh has always been the adventurous sort. If you have followed this blog, you know I call her a force of nature! I would say that she is ready to go where the wind blows but I have come to realize that she actually creates the wind. (Hi! This is Leigh. He might have a point there…lol) I, on the other hand, had roots with a curiosity for travel. It was my plan to hit the road once we had retired. Needless to say with great skill and effort, (18 L-O-N-G years of effort) Leigh uprooted me and now I am a leaf on the wind…watch me soar! 
California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina have all been multiple ports (Ports? Ok, I’ll let it slide) of call. They all have had something interesting and delightful that captured our imagination or our taste buds. (Did I forget to mention that we are totally Foodies???) The wonderful thing about living on the road is the ability to experience them all for however long you like and then move on to the next spot! (It is hard to leave sometime. We loved El Paso! I couldn’t believe how cool the people of El Paso were. We can’t wait to get back there!)
Be it the peaceful beauty of Hidden Beaches RV Resort (What happens at Hidden Beaches, stays at Hidden Beaches. That’s all I am saying!) of Blythe, California, or the Natural Grandeur of the Texas mountains on the 375 loop in El Paso, Texas (aka Makeout Point). The perfect comedy of living at Robinhood RV Park (which we adore) or the Jewel of Alabama… Lake Lurleen! (This place is a must-see! It is heavenly. You will know what I mean when you get there!) The sunsets there are just amazing. We have enjoyed every stop but one and it was so insignificant we won’t even discuss it. (I’ll mention it, in case other people of color decide to stop there. It was called Hilltop Campgrounds & Park. When we arrived we saw a lot of political posters! That’s fine. Made me a little edgy, but ok. Then when we parked, we saw confederate flags. That made me downright scared! I immediately posted on social media so our friends and family would know where we were, just in case. We left early the next morning.)
The People
Our favorite thing in our travels has been the many connections we have made across this country. We are pretty laid back folks and make friends fast. We have been taken with the folks we have met out on the road. We have been told that the quickest way to start a conversation in the RV community is to open the hood of your RV or toad vehicle and folks will go out of their way to stop and help. We can’t really attest to that although we think now it may be true. Because we have not had the chance to get that far. Conversations come easy no matter which park we visit. There has been someone at each stop that we treasure spending time with. Fast Eddie and Judy at Tree Tops Resort in Arlington, Texas…Scott and Caren with the kids in El Paso…Can’t wait till they get to Virgina so we can visit with them again. Brini misses you guys! Also in El Paso, Mary, who turned out to be Leigh’s Ride or Die in Robinhood Park! This list could go on and on but the theme is common, great heartfelt relationships all across this nation.
Do we have differences? Yes! But we have much more in common if we could just take the time to meet folks where they live. Face to face without the anonymity of a keyboard, the beauty of this country is revealed to me at least. Our travels have given me hope for us, Americans, and highlighted the good that I have always felt was here. Now, maybe we may have rose-colored glasses on but it is something I truly believe. Good folks carry the day!
Not here to tell you that it’s all roses and daisies on the road because it most certainly is not. What I can tell you is that there is wayyyyyyyyy more good than bad and the FREEDOM it offers outweighs any obstacle you may have to overcome!
So our advice…
Downsize, change careers, sell the house and cars, or remove whatever it is you think is holding you back from living this way, if it interests you, and set sail (Who are you and what have you done with my husband?). Twenty years from now, you will enjoy the memories of a life lived on the road way more than you will the regrets of never casting off. Plus we would love to see you!
Till Next time
Peace and Blessings
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Conversations with the Universe
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There and Back!
Robinhood RV Park in El Paso, TX
So we have been there. There you ask? Across the country. The U.S.A. via the 10 and the 40…notice how I said that. In my youth, that would have been I-10 or I-40. It’s a west coast thing. Being a child of the south, I have my own way of saying and doing things. Some are considered quite charming by my significant other (That’s me! Leigh) and some…Not so much (OMG!). Anyhow, it was interesting to go to places across this great nation of ours and see how others do it.
From the freewheeling, upwardly mobile west coast to the heartland welcoming midwest, all the way to the bible belt, the grind it out south, and east coast! All very different. All special in their own way and we enjoyed them all.
Arizona Sunrise
We will be stationary (Still in our RV) for the next six months or so but don’t get that confused (I would say, don’t get it twisted! But I’m cool like that !!!) with us hanging up our traveling shoes. I have the great opportunity to finish what I started with the women’s tackle football team that I helped establish and coach, the Carolina Phoenix! I am super excited to be back in the saddle as the head coach and look forward to making an impact and win another world title along the way.
Have no fear Nubian Nomads followers, Leigh and I will still travel around within my home state of North Carolina and other points of interest on the east coast. We will still bring you content from our journeys as we settle in for these few months of the season. Then we will be back to our adventures traveling across the U.S in Stevie J, our wonderful Class A mobile home!
Stevie J at Springhill RV Park in Chapel Hill, NC
Tim in Gallop, New Mexico
The beauty of Springhill RV Park
Great friends in El Paso, TX. See ya’ll in Virginia!
We are currently posted up in Chapel Hill, NC (Home of my beloved Tar Heels – Free Tix are much appreciated!!) at a beautiful campsite called SpringHill RV. It is our NC oasis. Tucked into the woods with huge lots. There is plenty of room to spread out and just be. (Visitors are welcome! Just call First! Oh and only two at a time…lol) As with the vast majority of RV parks, the neighbors are awesome. We are extremely happy with our journeys thus far and look forward to many more days of fun and adventure!
Til Next time
Peace and Blessings
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The International – Bar & Restaurant
So the hubby and I were attending an awesome street fare last week in El Paso called Chalk the Block. See the review HERE. We were having a great time. Since, we brought our fur baby, we decided to eat at a local dog-friendly bar and restaurant instead of the food trucks. Needless to say it was disappointing. But not the beer. The beer was amazing. If you want the details, click the link to my #YELP review.
Chalk the Block
So in our efforts to take in as much of the local flavor during our travels, we came across an event in El Paso, TX called “Chalk the Block.” The downtown area of El Paso was blocked off and local artists were given chalk and a space of concrete sidewalk to create masterpieces.
We also ran across Matte finished vehicles that the artists were given license to create on as well. To us, the results were stunning.
There was some real innovation in 3D art happening there. To get the true feel of it, you will need to enlarge the photos below on your computer screen, download the app on your phone, and scan the image: Click Here for App Link. Once loaded, you can see the actual photos come to life!
We have now figured out we need to add at least 30 min to each planned outing that we take Brini to because she loves attention and she is sooooo cute that folks just have to stop and pet her in all her excited glory!
They did not leave the kiddies out of the equation. They were given chalk and an area they could express their inner artist as well!
This event was complete with food trucks and so many weight-adding options that smelled delightful and were a sensory over load!
This was an amazing event and we highly recommend you pay it a visit should your travels have you in the El Paso area in early October. (Leigh here. We did stop to enjoy the fare at a local restaurant that didn’t go so well. But I’ll post that under the Beer blog)
Til Next time
Peace and Blessings
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What we miss…
We have been back home for some time now and are fully immersed in our life as full-time RV’ers. We absolutely loved living in South Africa. We had such a great time visiting the various historical places we got to see and tasting the traditional South Cuisine cuisine. (Leigh here – Can anyone say, Peri Peri sauce?) We loved seeing Soweto and the capture site at Howick Falls. We loved seeing all the animals in their natural habitat in Kruger National Park. The best thing, however, was the relationships formed and the many people we got to meet during our time there.
I miss the morning walks. The times I got to see the city of Johannesburg come to life. I miss the driving beat that the city possessed all its own. I miss the free and open debates that were part of a regular rotation of discussions by the Consciousness Cafe on post-apartheid South Africa and how best to move forward as a unified country. I would love to get involved in something like it here in the USA. We need it just as much as they do.
We miss the many fun times we shared with Charlene, Mpume, Tiseke, and Cmba at clubs and fine dining establishments. Our Thanksgiving crew, the Johannesburg Couchsurfers. Dez, Prisca, Elliot, Weng, Merushka, Naill, Sanele, Rejoice, Paulina, Freddy, & Ayuk…Plus, many others.
To that end, we also miss the frequent meetings with the lovely couple Sam and Thato… Wish we could have still been there for the birth of their first child.
We miss Leigh’s Pen-pal from childhood Thato (I have known him since high school. I got to meet my pen pal!) and his sister, Josephine, who’s hospitality on short notice was amazing.
We miss Yuniya who was so gracious to show us around to make our acclimation to South African life as smooth as could be.
We miss all of the lovely faces and the spirit of all the students & staff at Maharishi Institute that brightened so many days for us by simply being. Way too many folks there to name. I can’t mention the school without mentioning Meghan and her lovely mother.
We miss our adopted South African daughter, Zandile, (She gives the absolute best hugs) whose name we couldn’t pronounce right until just before time for us to leave. Lol, We miss your smile!
There are many, many more that we could name and I am certain we will get to them in future posts. Just know that we carry you all with us and treasure every moment we shared with our brothers and sisters across the water! Now come on over to the U.S. for a visit. We miss ya!
Til next time
Peace and Blessings
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