Re: [a/s] New members

[Michael Steele <Michael_Steele@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Well, Ebert, we don't actually live close enough to the highway to 
hear a honk... thank goodness! And as beautiful as the hill country 
is, it's really a nice place to visit: I need more water! (Note: I am 
NOT asking for floods, nor 40 days of rain, or any other trouble! 
<grin>) I've only lived in Fredericksburg about a year, and my wife 
and I are getting ready to go back to full-timing in Austin, where 
I've lived for five years, and where my work is (I'm a programmer for 
Dell Computer). Of course, Austin isn't any wetter, so I see it as a 
temporary move.

Since my wife is new to full-timing, she's reluctant to live in an 
Airstream, so we're buying a 30' Starcraft, which seems a lot 
brighter inside and much roomier, and has a more home-like kitchen. 
It's those box-like walls, you see... <grin> To help pay for it, 
we're selling (ack!) our 31' vintage Airstream. (If anybody's 
interested, details are at
http://www.jump.net/~micsteel/as.htm.) I console myself with the 
thought that I plan to someday buy another Airstream, but the truth 
is, I've put a lot of thought into building my next rolling home from 
the ground up. After looking at dozens of travel trailers and 
fifth-wheels, and realizing what a mockery of excellence some of the 
newer Airstreams are, I'll probably never buy a new one. Besides, I'm 
thinking about articulated steering systems, to distribute the load 
more evenly on the frame and help going around tight corners. (Why 
should all the axles be in the middle? <grin>) I've got a simple Idea 
that may make steering completely automatic, if somewhat 
unconventional. It'll stabilize towing, too.

Why a rolling home? Because, in spite of the beauty of many places 
I've lived, I still haven't found where I want to settle down. It 
seems that many places are unspoiled only because there's nothing to 
spoil, and the signs of human devastation are everywhere... but I'm 
digressing. Central Texas is too dry for me, and too full of 
allergens: Everything from cedar to turkey farms to cement 
factories... and even traffic, these days! We live in a small 
neighborhood outside of Fredericksburg, with maybe fifty houses in 
it, and it seems there's a car going by every two minutes. Often, 
there are three cars visible at once. Now, that may seem like a joke 
to some, but there's nowhere to go in our neighborhood: It's a 
dead-end street! Fifty houses, a car every two minutes: That's a car 
from every house every two hours! Multiply that by . . . Well, people 
sure are driving a lot more than they used to.

So my wife and I have been talking about building a home in the 
wilder areas of the Pacific Northwest or Alaska. When I get 
particularly bent out of shape, I talk about living on a ship-- a BIG 
ship! <grin> Meanwhile, keep a light load. After all, life is a 
journey, and you don't get to take much baggage with you when you 
disembark!

I'll shut up now... :)
Michael
<mailto:michael_steele@airstream.net>