So three years ago I bought a van. A BIG van, not a soccer mom minivan.
I had just bought a new house, well, new to me anyway, because it was 90 years old when I got it. It was cheap, a tax foreclosure the city sold me. It had what they call ‘good bones’, which means the foundation is solid, the walls are holding the roof up, and the roof refrained from leaking, in return for the favor. Everything else though was in desperate need of rebuilding, as it had not received any care for years, and was abandoned and vandalized for two years before I bought it. It also had 4 layers of different kinds of flooring nailed or glued on top of each other in the kitchen, and thousands of nails and staples on the oak wood floors throughout. It had a dark brown bathroom, with the filth of the ages grimmed on it, and holes on the walls. I tore it down. It is a plaster house, so not a square inch of drywall. That means the walls and ceilings had hairline cracks all over, but I learned how to plaster courtesy of YouTube teachers, and I have to say, that I have a new appreciation for the masters of the trade. It is no accident that these houses are called “Craftsman”. It is true, that they don’t make them like they used to.
On the plus side, the house had curved tray ceilings and built-in furniture, and some windows with stained glass, that were all intact. Solid oak doors, a phone niche, a spice cabinet, and a milk shoot. Yes, I had to find out myself what these things were, and google was my friend. It was love at first sight.
At the time, I had a Ford Fiesta which is a small car, good enough to haul me back and forth for the 4 miles trip to work. I could also fit 3 bags of groceries in it on a good day, but not much more.
So I get this house that needed LOTS of repairs, and I was going back and forth to Home Depot and Menards getting materials for the repairs. As I was doing most of the work myself – after work and during weekends – I was increasingly annoyed by my little car’s inability to carry anything bigger than a football in the trunk, and then one day I bought a toilet -you know, the throne, with the commode and the water tank behind it- the smallest I could find in the store.
So I take it out to the parking lot, and try to fit it in the car. Would not go in the trunk, I tried the back seats, the trunk and the back seats down, nothing. I had to open the box right there in the parking lot, and put the commode on the back seat, and the tank in the trunk. I had the bad idea of getting some moulding too on the same trip, so I headed back home eeeever so slowly, with the windows down and the moulding sticking out the windows, and the toilet behind me bumping my seat every time I touched the brakes.
A day or too later, I traded my year old Fiesta for my BIG Chevy Express cargo van and some thousands of debt, during a financially super-tight period.
So I climbed on it and I was in heaven. I mean really! Up-high there, I could see a mile ahead on the road. And I could carry full sheets of paneling and plywood, and 10 foot 2x4s and close the doors too! The finances were still tight, as I had to shovel money to the house repairs and the car loan, but as soon as I could breathe, I took a trip in the van. Summer of 2019, I drove off for 5 days, sleeping in the van, eating in the van, hanging out in the van, pretending I’m RVing, with my folding chair, the folding table, the sleeping bag and a fan. I parked in parks, at the edge of small towns, and down by the river (of course). I walked around, swam in new waters, and talked with new people. I had a blast.
When I came back, I decided to make a real camper out of the van. I have been watching Bob Wells for a while, so the idea was not new. Lots of people have converted lots of vans into campers, and some have done a spectacular job doing it. I gave it a try myself. I have taken pictures along the way, and I’ll string them in a video, for those who care to see it.
It is still a work in (slow) progress, but every failure teaches me something, and every success gives me enough joy, to do a little happy dance.
To be continued…
Sofi s in Town 