The heat...

I want to take the kids to play in the snow.  We've done it every year - headed up the mountain for a weekend and went sledding - but it doesn't look like we will get that opportunity this year.  I even went to the local kid's exchanged and traded in last year's snow clothes for those that would fit these little giants.  By this time last year Flagstaff had 64 inches of snowfall.  This year they've had 11 and there is no snow in the forecast. 

Maybe you saw this report that Phoenix will be unlivable by 2050.  Of all the reasons to move into an RV full-time it is this - you don't want to be invested in a market where the number of 100+ degree days has increased from the historical average of 92 to over 132!  It doesn't matter how nice your house it...what is it they say?  "Location, location, location." We (desert dwellers) try to pretend that this is not the case, we crank up the air conditioners (making the situation even worse), but let's be serious - it reached 119 degrees on June 20th of 2017 - (the day we moved our remaining property from our McMansion), and that was the 4th highest temp ever recorded in the valley.  June of 2017 was also significant in that there was zero precipitation. 

Climate change refugees are already a thing - not just from third world countries, but also from the forgotten and abandoned places in the U.S. devastated by natural disasters exacerbated by climate change.  This is taking place while the city of New York sues oil companies for creating this situation.  The city of New York is also divesting $5 billion from 190 companies with fossil fuel ties.  Clearly we cannot count on our houses being safe.  For example, we have friends who lost their home to hurricane Sandy - they were subsequently crapped on by their insurance company and local jurisdiction and were not made whole.  Because Arizona offered affordable housing, they landed here.  Will we all be forced to move like nomads to avoid climate change events?  If so, living on wheels will certainly make it easier - though I agree that it would be preferable to be able to move my home without the use of fossil fuels.  Though, if we could move infrequently, following weather that allows us freedom from heating or cooling, we may end up having a lesser carbon footprint than many households. 

On that note, our solar system has been ordered!  Much of the first month of our journey out of the heat this summer will be spent in "unimproved" campgrounds - meaning we will not have hook-ups, but will have to rely on our solar system, propane, and hauled water.  In the RV world, this is called "boondocking" and we have not yet experienced this.  We will not have the ability to use our air conditioning when we are boondocking.  Boondocking can be very cheap (or free), if staying on BLM land, WalMart parking lots, or other RV friendly overnight locations.  While I have made reservations in National Parks, we have some flexibility in our schedule to also seek out true, free, boondocking spots while running from the extreme heat of climate change.