We’re in Paynes Creek Campground, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-built park in Hartwell, Ga. And one thing is clear: Those army engineers know how to build and maintain a campground.

And I reckon that come tomorrow morning, it’ll make a pretty good virtual office, too.

The sites are big, spacious and relatively secluded, and almost all have a view of the rather diminished Lake Hartwell (though we seem to have brought with us to Georgia four days of intermittent rain it hasn’t put a dent in the long-time drought the Peachtree State has suffered).

Since it’s a corps park, that means reservations are handled by the U.S. Park Service’s Reservations.gov tool. If you plan to camp, remember this site.

After five whirlwind days on the road, we’ve decided to settle in for two nights. That will make Friday a “casual Friday” for Home Office Highway. I’m actually looking forward to a morning of work, and an afternoon of exploration in this secluded place. Read More »

When it comes wireless phones and my choice of hearing devices,this home office worker tends toward the dysfunctional. I’m a fan of Bluetooth and the wireless functionality and freedom it delivers.

But I like the clarity and simple effectiveness of wired headsets. Hence my confusion (my wife would argue that it doesn’t end there, but that’s another story).

Headsets are important — and sometimes legal must-haves — accessories for wireless phones. As you’re tooling around town or exploring the Final Frontier in an RV with better things to focus on than answering your wireless phone, they free your hands for note-taking or driving (helping avoid costly traffic tickets in those markets where hands-free cellular phone use is the law – see list below). Read More »

Before we left home on Home Office Highway, I made sure to let my clients and family know the boundaries we’d all be facing. I told them I’d be working “part time.” That meant, at least to me, that I’d ply my own hours — usually before the “traditional” workday or on a spotty, unpredictable schedule throughout.

But something funny happened on the highway: The home officer’s own expectations seem out of whack. I thought I’d be working very little. But I find myself working a fair amount. Less than at home, for sure. But more than I’d expected. I’m at the dinette table early (nothing unusual there), and checking email — in the RV, at gas stops (plenty of time there to fetch, read and reply), while standing atop Stone Mountain outside Atlanta.

I guess I’m the one who missed the work-expectations memo. Read More »