One Saturday night I did something I wasn't very thrilled about. I went to dinner with my sweetheart! Now don't get me wrong - I love to go to dinner with him. But this was not a lovely dinner in a quiet, romantic place. It was a dinner in a big hall at the county fairgrounds near our home. The dinner was sponsored by a hunting organization and it included an auction afterwards. The hall was big and crowded and noisy and tables lined the outside walls of the hall - tables filled with rifles and knives and all sorts of hunting equipment. Most everything on display was part of a raffle - someone was going to take it all home. There were big things and little things. And things that made me wonder.
To be honest, I was less than thrilled to be there. I was only there because my sweetheart wanted to go and he was happy to take me. The dinner was wonderful - delicious! We sat near the front with some people from our church. I was happy to see them and sit with them. Little did I know what was about to happen!
The conversation around the table pretty much centered on hunting. Strange, don't you think? I pretty much minded my own business, listened and enjoyed every bite of my meal. Until the man across the table asked me a question. At that moment, I didn't have a clue what was about to happen. I didn't know that my life was just about to change and that a dream held in my heart would soon come true! What did he ask? Was I planning to go to hunting camp with my sweetheart again this year? No, I said. I can't! My sweetheart is taking our ten-year-old grandson and our son and his son are going again this year. Since our little cabin-on-wheels only sleeps four, that's pretty much it. There's no place for this grandma to sleep, I said. 'Unless I had my own trailer!'
That's when it happened! Everything changed instantly. Suddenly the dinner tasted better and the whole evening felt like magic. The man who had asked the question is my sweetheart's fishing buddy from church. He told me he had a little hunting trailer he planned to sell in the next couple of months. When I asked about it he told me it was old! 'That's what I'm looking for,' I said. 'You wouldn't want it - it doesn't have a bathroom!' he said. I told him that didn't matter. 'Ever heard of porta-potties? Or campgrounds with restrooms'? I asked a few more questions and I knew his little trailer was worth looking at. I was pretty sure it could be just what I was wanted. He told us he had rebuilt the floor and the walls and he explained things my sweetheart understood. That was good. It was something to be considered. I asked if I could see the trailer. He said yes. Soon.
It wasn't long afterwards that the auction began and all the talking stopped. All eyes were focused on the things up for auction and all ears were carefully listening to the auctioneer. All, that is, except mine. I was aware of the auction and the activity all around me but my heart felt like singing. And smiling. You see, I had been 'shopping' for a little trailer for several weeks. On Craigslist. On vintage trailer sites. Looking in driveways and backyards as we drove around our area. I had read almost every vintage trailer blog and website I could find - I was pretty sure what I wanted. And that evening - with the noise of the auction and the movement of people in a crowded hall at the fairgrounds not far from my home - I was quite certain that my search may be coming to an end. I felt that my dream was about to come true.
The next evening we went to our friend's home to see the trailer. The moment I stepped out into the backyard and looked across at the little trailer I knew this could be the one. A 'tour' inside, complete with explanation of all the parts and pieces and the details of the equipment, confirmed in my heart that this little trailer was what I wanted. The sun had just gone down and it would soon be dark so I quickly took a couple of pictures with my cell phone. Pictures I would look at over and over in the next days.
My sweetheart and I had agreed that we would go home, discuss it and make a decision. That's what we did and it wasn't long before I let our friend know that I wanted to buy his trailer. I could hardly believe it! I was about to get my own, little vintage trailer! And that was just the beginning. The beginning of an adventure - a dream come true!
