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When people find out we live in an RV, the reactions are all over the place.
Some think it’s the coolest thing ever. Some act like we’ve lost our minds. And some just blink at us like we admitted to living inside a hollowed-out tree stump.
But no matter how people react, they always have questions. And not just the basic “How do you get mail?” kind of questions.
We’re talking about the bizarre, the random, and the kind of stuff that makes us wonder if they think we live on another planet.
So, in the spirit of sharing the full RV experience, here are some of the weirdest (and most unexpected) things people have asked us (along with the answers.)
“So, do you have a bed?”
Nope. We sleep standing up like horses.
Yes, we have a bed. It’s a queen-sized, real mattress, and it’s way more comfortable than the one we had in our old house.
RVs come with built-in beds, but we swapped ours out for a legit residential mattress because we’re not about that cheap, wafer-thin RV mattress life.
“Where do you go to the bathroom?”
Ah, the question everyone secretly wants to ask but feels awkward about. The answer: in the RV.
It has a fully functional toilet and a black tank that holds everything until we dump it. The process isn’t the horror story people make it out to be. It takes maybe five minutes, and no, we don’t have to touch anything gross.
If our toilet ever stops working, the RV park we live in has restrooms.
“How do you cook? Do you just eat canned beans?”
We have a stove, an oven, and a microwave. We also have an Instant Pot, a grill, and a fire pit for when we feel like pretending we’re on a survival show.
The only real difference between cooking in an RV and a house is the space. Everything is smaller, so we have to be more organized.
And while we could survive on canned beans, we’d rather not.
“Aren’t you scared of tornadoes?”
We live in Arizona. The closest thing we get to tornadoes are dust devils, which are like baby tornadoes that exist just to make a mess of your camp chairs.
Now, if we lived somewhere with actual tornadic activity, we’d have to be more aware of the weather. But here? The biggest threats are monsoon storms and the occasional grouchy javelina.
“Do you shower?”
Nope. Just rolling around in the desert and letting the sand exfoliate us.
Yes, we shower. We have a real shower with hot water and decent pressure. Our water heater is propane and electric, and we’ve never run out of hot water. If for some reason we needed a backup, the RV park has showers.
But if we’re camping in the middle of nowhere? That’s what wet wipes and camp showers are for.
“How do you get mail? Do you even have an address?”
Yep. The RV park gives us a site number, which works like an apartment number. When we were traveling more, we used a mail forwarding service. If something ever changes, we’ll go back to that.
If someone’s imagining us out in the desert waiting for a pony express rider to show up with our Amazon packages, I hate to disappoint them.
“What do you do when it gets hot?”
Listen to people complain. A lot. But also, we have two air conditioners, shade trees, and sun screens on the windows. The park has a pool, and if it gets really bad, we’ll head up to the mountains where it’s cooler.
RV insulation isn’t great, but we make it work. And when people ask this, I remind them that living in a house doesn’t magically protect you from heat, either.
“How do you put up with each other in such a small space?”
We actually like each other. Crazy, I know.
We both work from home, so having separate office spaces was the real challenge. Once we figured that out, everything else was easy.
When Levi travels for work, I miss him. When he comes home, he’s excited to be back. The RV size has never been an issue for us.
(But if it ever were, there’s always the rooftop tent for some enforced personal space.)
“Do you have a normal fridge, or do you just eat dry goods?”
We have a residential fridge. It keeps things cold. Just like a house.
Though, to be fair, we did start out with an RV fridge, which was terrible. It barely kept anything cold, and when it died, it smelled like ammonia and disappointment. We replaced it with a real fridge, and life has been much better since.
“How much does it actually cost to live in an RV?”
This one is surprisingly hard to answer. It depends on where you stay, how much you travel, and what kind of RV you have.
For us, we rent a site in Tucson long-term for around $375 a month. That includes water and sewer, and we just pay for electric and propane.
Our RV payment was around $500, so it wasn’t much different from what we paid on our house (except now we’re actually happy.)
“Do you ever miss living in a house?”
Not really. We’ve had this conversation so many times, and the only things we’ve come up with are a dishwasher and a garage. That’s it.
We don’t miss mowing a lawn, dealing with a mortgage, or being stuck in one place. Living in an RV works for us, and that’s what matters.
People Have No Idea What RV Life Is Actually Like Until They Live It
Most people have this idea that living in an RV means roughing it in some weird survivalist way. They picture us cooking over a trash fire, rationing water, and storing our food in an ice chest.
Reality? We have a normal life, just in a smaller space.
The questions people ask are funny, but they also remind us how little people know about full-time RV living. Hopefully, this clears some things up. And if you ever have a weird question of your own, ask away. We’ve probably heard it before.
Still Here? You Must Be the Human Equivalent of Well-Seasoned Cast Iron Pan.
Most people tap out early like tourists who underestimate Arizona heat. But not you. You’re built different. So why not pull up a camping chair with us on Substack?
