As a full-time sleeping passenger, I’m just along for the ride. My Mom, Dad and sister have a few things that things that should be common sense while traveling through the US. We have all seen these things at least once and my parents wish someone would listen. Low and behold, I am listening and giving them all the love and letting the know that everything will be ok.
Here is the listen of common things that should be common knowledge, all from my prospective of course!
Laundry Room Etiquette
This bothers my Mom the most. Just a word to the wise, she is a very nice mom and loves me dearly. But laundry is her thing and I just like to lay in the warm clothes. She says the best way to manage with laundry room inconveniences is to find a laundry mat outside of the campground. She finds that there are many washers open, cheaper and faster than the campgrounds. However, according to mom, when using the campground laundry rooms, take note of how many there are and never take all of them. Always leave 1 or 2 available for other campers to use. Try to be mindful of other users that might need to use it as well. But if your doing your laundry at 2am, by all means use them all! She is not awake at that time.
Bright Lights
Sometimes when we visit campgrounds, lights are very scarce. This helps me of course when I have to go potty at 2am with my Dad. However, there are times that the lights can be a bit extra. When I am looking out the window and I can’t tell what time of day it is I might think that it’s time to get up and play while my parents are going to bed. Also, we don’t like mosquito’s and bright lights attract them. Just be a bit courteous of how many and how bright the lights you have as an extension of your home.
Running through Sites
Full-time living comes with it’s own set of rules. One of the unwritten rules would be don’t impose on other campers sites while occupied. My parents even try to get me to the dog park to do my business so there is no accidents. When kids are let loose in an campground we often know that they are playing a game or trying to find a short cut to their destination. However, this causes me anxiety and I start barking because I am scared. For safety reasons as well, people should not cut through sites as there are water, electric and even sewer lines that could be tripped and hurt someone. For my parents ears, please don’t use occupied sites as a short cut.
Cleaning up after your pet
I know this should be without saying, but I have witnessed and smelled quite of a few of my furry friends messes that have been left behind. My parents are so strict with the clean-up that they even bought awesomely scented bags to pick-up my mess. Are they perfect, nope, but they do keep there phones close so someone can bring a bag and we wait until clean-up arrives. It is common campground rules that you need to pick-up after your pet. Please don’t be that pet parent that has to be asked to leave because you didn’t clean up after my friends.
Idling Engines
So I like to sleep in late and take many naps throughout my day. My parents on the other hand are early risers. Work and school are a must if I want to continue my sleeping schedule. We all know about travel days and how stressful they can be. However, there are quiet hours for a reason. I am sometimes woken up and get antsy when a diesel engine or a motorcycle is idling right next to our site sometimes for 20 minutes. Not only is the polluting the air but can someone explain why these have to be running for a long period of time. Sometime these engines are running at 6am and I know that is way before quiet hours are over. All I want to say is be mindful of the time. We don’t mind it after hours are over and we understand that sometimes engines have to heat up, but not at 6am.
Distracted while setting up camp
This one bother the heck out of my Dad. He usually can get our home set-up in about 30 minutes or so. However, our new neighbors want to chat and get to know us before we get the air conditioning on. I am getting hot in here and I can’t take off my clothes. My parents want to talk to you too! They wants to be friends and tell you about our travels, where we come from and listen to your story as well. But give us 30 minutes and they will be the life of the party. They love learning new tricks and would love share a coffee with you any other time. They also understand that emergencies arise and need our attention and they know that, but too often it to just chat. My parents are prudes, they just want to set-up and be done with that process because they might miss something important. Like opening the wrong tank or forgetting to turn the propane on. Just be patient with new neighbors, we are excited to meet you too!
So that is my first Izzy Says… What do you think? Are these Pet Peeves are your list, do you have others that we can add? Let us know your thoughts for next time. We love hearing from you
You are so “On the money”!! Way to go Izzy.