Quilting in an RV, Clark! (The good and bad of quilting in an RV.)

There are pros and cons to quilting in an RV (honestly, the cons list could be super-long and I'd still give it a whirl). 
Pros:

• There is more time for sewing.  More honest-to-goodness hours in the day to feel the fabric, listen to the whir of the machine and play with the layout of blocks.  Really, God gives more hours to quilters in an RV...27, or 28 in a day!  Ok, so maybe not.  But even with kids, there are fewer chores, they're done faster, and the overall cleaning and maintenance of an RV is miniscule in proportion to the monster house and yard growing weeds and gathering dust back "home."
• Everything is within arms reach.  It is hard to lose something in 36x15 feet of space.  I'm not saying it can't and doesn't happen, just less frequently.  So when I need my 6x6 square ruler, I lean over or reach under my seat.  Nothing is upstairs when I'm downstairs or in one of 12 bookcases that were once-upon-a-time labeled and immaculate.  Every piece of fabric and spool of thread is in my sewing box or in the bench designated for my sewing stuff.  This brings me to my next point...
• Fewer items means less digging and more sewing.  Self-explanatory, yes?
• I get to buy the fabric and thread for my projects!  Whoop! Whoop!  You're thinking, "How did  you get the fabric and thread for your projects prior to RV'ing? Steal them? Hello!"  But what I did, and is common to quilters, is use my "STASH."  Sure, I'd purchase some complementary fabric or more thread in the color I needed to quilt something.  But more often than not, I'd "build" my stash, pick a few pieces from it, purchase a few more to go with them and wah-lah! Project ready!  Purchasing EVERYTHING for ONE project is pretty new to me.  Honestly, this is listed in the cons, too, you'll see why.
• I get to change the view out my craftroom window.  When this was written I was in Pagosa Springs, CO, now I am in Richland, WA but I could just as easily be at the beach in San Diego, the hot air balloon festival in Albuquerque, or the rolling countryside of Kansas.  Options, baby.

Ok, the CONS (I hate doing this, but knowing them helps me address them and, ultimately, try to make them to go away.)

• My sewing table is the dining table so I have to put my stuff away.  This isn't true for all RV'ers, but reality for me.  I haven't had to do this since our 2nd home in 2004 and that was only until we designated a bay of the garage (hey, I'll take what I can get and in northern AZ, that was doable).  I don't like wasting good sewing time pulling stuff out and trying to remember what to do next.
• The space is small so no stash building!  Ok, I could build a little, but really, it can easily get outta hand, so I have to accept the limitations of my space.  This meant bringing my "travel" or "class" machine (a Janome Jem Gold that I do love) and leaving my Big Girl at home with all her fancy buttons and computerized ease-of-use at home. 
• You have what you have.  If you're like me, you don't like to repurchase things you already own simply because you don't have them with you.  This means I am going without my beautiful acrylic quilting table that slips so snugly around my Janome machine because I FORGOT IT (stupid, stupid, stupid).  It would be expensive to replace and I have no need for another one.  It is frustrating to think, "My strip ruler would be PERFECT for this quilt," knowing it is a thousand miles away hanging on a wall nobody is looking at and would cost me 30 bucks to duplicate.  I did purchase another ruler but in a size I didn't already own back home.  See how smart I am? Trying to get around technicalities may become my specialty.
• Buying fabric for one project at a time. This was a good thing, right? Uh, not necessarily.  Fun! BUT...  I now know how much a quilt ACTUALLY costs me.  I mean, I'm no dummy and can do math, but there is a special mental block that allows a little ignorance-is-bliss situation in the minds of quilters.  We buy bits and pieces over extended periods of time.  Hence, the sanctity of the 'stash'.  To purchase every item to complete a quilt all at once may cause the average-incomed quilter to brutally beat a recipient who placed it in their dog's bed.  (Murder may be a justifiable defense if the pattern was difficult.) 
• One must learn about the limits of electricity.  In other words, I can't run my coffeepot, space heater, and iron at the same time.  Pop! Fortunately, my fuse box is indoors and almost within arms reach, but that doesn't mean I want to stand there switching the thing.  I've learned to be strategic for this one.  Brew the coffee first, heat the iron next, and have Sparky put a designated circuit in for the space heater. :)  Ok, I cheated.  But prior to the snowy conditions, I still juggled the iron issue.  It's the alpha dog and doesn't share.  If that puppy is heating, nothing else is allowed to be running.  I'll see how it does with my crockpot this weekend, but my toaster oven is out of the question.  It is important to know which circuits are linked to what.  I know someone who discovered the bathroom is on it's own circuit and a short extension chord allows her to iron, brew coffee, and bake her heart out!  You'll have to see what works for your trailer.

Well, that's a start, anyways.  There may be a ton more to both sides (not enough room for a design wall, someone still has to make dinner, but a cleaning lady would be a lot cheaper for the trailer than the house, and on and on.)  As I keep sewing on the road, I'll add to the list!