Bought my first RV on April Fools Day

In early 2013 I decided to start my retirement planning for real. I retire in 2014 at age 47 with 25 years of service as an Air Traffic Controller. For years I thought I would start out buying a catamaran and cruising around the islands, doing the Great Loop, etc. A year or two ago I began to realize that I didn't want to do that solo, and also, as I did more travel through the US, that I really wanted to see a lot more of this country. So, I began researching a "land yacht" or RV. :-) I rented a tired 35 footer from Cruiseamerica in 2012 and almost killed the dream. It was too big, too wide, too squirrely to drive with 120,000 miles on a stock suspension, and too cheaply made with rattles, squeaks, and randomly opening cabinet doors. Once I recovered from that I started researching smaller rv's. I REALLY wanted a Class B van, but I felt I needed a separate fridge and freezer, and a "real" bathroom. So I started looking at B+ style rigs. I loved the Chinooks but wanted something where the manufacturer was still in business. I found a 2008 Phoenix listed for sale in St. Louis, MO for 38,000. I flew out and bought it on April 1st, 2013. :-) My friend Fay flew out the next day and we started back east.