I spent a lot of time with someone special this week. Our relationship has faded in the last year, and it’s gnawed at my heart- so I did something about it. I rolled up my sleeves and dove into the dirty work, as one sometimes must do to salvage a deep love. My efforts paid off. You remember Betty, don’t you?
Oh, Betty. Poor, neglected thing. Trust me, we know what a treasure she is. We know how lucky we were to find her. We truly cherish her, but you’d never know it recently. So John and I set aside this weekend to rekindle our love affair with our little cottage-on-wheels. We spent a total of 8 weeks in Betty in 2011, traveling the western United States. I often say that those two months were the “make or break” moment in our relationship: spending that long in a 13-foot trailer could have made us want to kill each other. Instead, we were married the following autumn. You could say Betty played the role of matchmaker.
We are completely out of camping practice (as was evidenced by this camping debacle), but I knew that the first step was to get Betty back into shape. The best thing about traveling in a trailer is that it’s self-sufficient! Loads of laundry were done- sheets, towels, rugs. I dug around the house and garage, cleaning and returning items that live in Betty- French press, pans, headlamps. I washed every interior corner of the trailer, top to bottom, and cleaned every dish and pot and fork.
I became reacquainted with Betty’s quirks, revisited each of her scars. She shows a little wear and tear, but it’s to be expected: she’s 50 years old. I think her “wrinkles” make her beautiful.
By the time I was done, Betty was sparkling and I was giddy. It may as well have been our first date.
And now, it’s time to figure out our menu, pack up the coolers, unplug, and hit the road to enjoy a crisp fall weekend in Utah’s mountains together…with our beloved Betty.
Stay tuned!
the usual bliss 
Betty is quite the looker – lots of charm 🙂 We’ve toyed with the idea of an RV, etc. but have yet to commit.
It happened quickly for us- a bad camping trip, a spontaneous online search for something small. It’s still “camping” in that we mostly cook by campfire and spend our time outside. We just have a cushy bed to sleep in now.
I think it’s a super handy idea. We are mostly attracted to the idea of having a “home” to stay in between seasonal jobs. The off-season/mud season is always a big question mark in terms of where we’ll live/work next, and a camper or RV seems to fit the bill for feeling a little more secure!
Get one bigger than ours. 🙂
When we were in the middle of nowhere, in bear country during blackberry season, we were happy to have solid walls vs. a tent…!
I’m so jealous that you have Betty. What a gorgeous creature she is.
We really lucked out. We didn’t have to do anything except accessorize her.
Betty is such a babe!! 🙂 Have a gorgeous weekend! Xx
TOTAL BABE!
Enjoy & Have FUN!!! Betty is Beautiful – love the pops of color too:) Happy Weekend
She is just the cutest! And, I love essays that talk about love affairs with things or places instead of people. Years ago I wrote a post like that about Sydney (http://thekatekeeper.wordpress.com/2009/01/23/romance/). Have a great trip! Can’t wait to read about it.
Betty is so retro cute… how can you not fall in love with her?
I’m SO jealous of Betty! I want one!! 🙂
wow!! she looks lovely!! love the colour theme!!
Thank you for the fabulous inspiration for my little trailer that could! http://modagecottage.com/the-little-trailer-that-could-2/
Sorry, but you have a 1966 Scotsman Trailer. I have one also and I thought it was a Scotty. Scotty’s do not have a bump out in front on any model. And the wheel wells are different. Look on the internet.
Interesting! I’ll have to research that more! All of our paperwork says Scotty. Thanks for the tip.
Hi.
Could you please, please, please tell me the brand of oven with the gas cooktop and rangehood?
Thank you
Kerri
Hi, Kerri! Do you mean inside Betty the Trailer? The gas stovetop has an emblem on it that says “Holiday.” There is no oven and I’m not sure if the little aqua hood is the same brand- there’s no indication. Let me know if this doesn’t answer your question! Thanks for reading. 🙂