🎁 The Treasure Chest on Wheels

How I Inherited Someone Else’s Campground Fantasy (and a Waffle Iron I’ll Never Use)

When we bought this camper, I thought I was getting a great deal. The photos showed it packed with camping gear, and sure enough—when we saw it in person—every cupboard was full. Linens, dishes, gadgets, you name it. I wasn’t just buying a camper. I was inheriting an entire camping lifestyle.

At first, I thought, “This is perfect! I won’t have to haul everything from home—we’re good to go!”
But oh no.
What I actually got was a fifth wheel full of things I already own… and don’t use at home, either.

🛻 Our Kind of Camping

We’re boondockers.
We camp off-grid. No water, no hookups, no camp host giving us a map to the shower house. We park on BLM land, use our own table and bathroom inside, and rely on solar for power.

So imagine my surprise when I opened a cabinet and found… a waffle iron.
A nice one, too. Still in the box. Like someone had big plans for campground brunch.

That’s when I realized—this camper wasn’t stocked for boondocking.
It was stocked for campground glamping. You know, the kind with full hookups, a laundromat, and maybe a gift shop with hand-dipped candles.

It’s clear they were prepping for a full-time life on the road.
The camper had been in use from 2012 to 2019. Then COVID hit—and it never left the driveway again. But before they parked it, someone had gone on a serious camping shopping spree.

And now?
Well, now I’m unpacking a collection of unopened dreams.

🔍 The Mystery of the Brand-New Gear

Some of it had been used, sure. But a surprising amount was still brand new. Tags still on. Appliances never plugged in. Dishes never washed. It was like she had been prepping for something big—but never got to live it out.

Here’s a short list of the “essentials” I pulled out:

• 🧇 A waffle iron (because golden crisp breakfasts scream wilderness survival, right?)

• 🥬 A food processor—still in the box. Perfect for whipping up campground coleslaw in the middle of nowhere.

• 🍷 A full cupboard of plastic drinkware, including wine goblets. Because boxed wine by the fire just tastes fancier in a goblet.

• 👕 An iron. Not for the awning—this one was for clothes. I guess wrinkle-free pants were part of the plan.

• ☕ White House coffee mugs. As in, presidential seal, real-deal White House. I can only assume they expected dignitaries at the dump station.

None of it fit our camping style.
I already have this stuff at home, and I barely use it there. So why would I lug it out into the woods where I’m counting watts and scraping scrambled eggs off a spork?

🧠 What Was She Planning?

That’s the mystery, isn’t it?

Maybe they were prepping for a big retirement road trip. Maybe she was going to cook homemade meals at every stop. Maybe she just went a little wild on Amazon after watching too much HGTV.

And then?
Life happened. COVID hit. The camper got parked.
All those plans got put on hold—and never came back out of the box.

Now I’m the proud owner of her camping dream... and all the unopened kitchen gear that came with it.

🤷‍♀️ What I Really Bought

I thought I bought a fifth wheel.
Turns out, I bought a time capsule—filled with someone else's unfinished adventure.

And while I won’t be pressing my pants or pureeing anything soon, I’ll admit… it’s kind of fun opening each cabinet and wondering, “What were they thinking?”

Some campers come with wheels.
Ours came with White House mugs and a mystery.

Wanda-ism:👉

“I thought I was getting camping gear. What I got was a fully loaded fantasy—and a waffle iron I’ll never use.”
🪑 Pull up a chair. I’ve got a story.