10 days between showers?
In my previous life I would have never considered going 10 days between showers. Especially considering I live with a beautiful woman beside me all day – literally within 20 feet at all times. Luckily, she is on the same schedule as I am. While I admit that 10 days is not the usual span of time between bathing, it is not that far off of my once per week shower routine.
There are times, such as this past week, where the showering just has to be put on hold for a few extra days to accommodate the gray-water tank in the Airstream, which can only hold so much before needing to be emptied. The camping at Rincon Parkway in Ventura, CA does not have any dump station and the nearest dump station was charging a premium fee. Kerri and I decided we would just have to wait until we moved on from Rincon Parkway, and could dump our waste water tanks, before showering. To those of you reading this that still live in a normal house, I’m sure this sounds ludicrous I know. Surely the odors I would be excreting would fend off any animal attack after just a few days, let alone a woman sleeping beside me each night… right?
The secret that most full-time RV’rs already know, is that the human body already knows best; daily showers are not necessary at all. In fact, it is very (very) counterproductive. Each shower strips away the oils (and bacteria) our body produces naturally. It then works overtime to create the oils again, only to be re-stripped the very next day. Eventually our body never comes out of overtime-oil-production and that is when we stink. The bacteria that live on our skin actually reduce the oils (and stink, and dead skin) naturally. Stop stripping away the natural balance of oils and bacteria, and the body relaxes the production, and the stink takes many more days to appear.
Back when I was solo and in a van, I showered regularly by visiting my gym, or using my solar shower. Nowadays things are a little easier, with the Airstream being able to hold enough water for us to live on for a week including one shower each. The trailer also has a shower (two actually if you count the utility shower outside) which comes at a surprise to many… I’m not sure why. In the end, both Kerri and I shower once a week (sometimes more frequently if I go to the gym), and spot-clean the more intimate areas daily with wipes or warm water and a wash cloth. Neither of us get to a point in which we feel the other “stinks”, which my family knows is a miracle for me.
Happy showering!
Yup. I wash the naughty bits every couple of days, but can go a long time without showering. I do love an occasional long, hot shower with plenty of water pressure, though. Oh look! A truck stop! Let’s get wet!
My record has been a 12 day span between proper showers. I really start feeling grimy after 7 or 8 though.
When I lived in a van I scrubbed with a washcloth daily but only showered once a week to wash my then long hair. I had a lot more tank capacity than that but it was all I felt I needed.
Thanks Linda. Yes, I too cleaned with a cloth and a few cups of hot water. It is amazing how clean you can feel after such a bath. Luckily, my hair has been cut very short since I started full-timing, so I can even wash my hair with that water.