Showing posts with label vandwelling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label vandwelling. Show all posts

Van's done! - Almost..



Yay!!! The major painting on the van is DONE! It took two days to do the roof - I wanted to make sure it was dry before crawling up there again today. Cool weather made it so much nicer and although I got some sun, I didn't bake. I'm amazed how much cooler the inside of the van is now that it's totally white. At noon - with temps 80 degrees outside, it was still 65 inside and was sitting in direct sunlight. I think if I put the reflectix up it would have been even cooler. I still need to go back at some point, sand down the few runs, places where bugs and crud got stuck and touch up some things, but the bulk of the hard work is done. I can take my time on the other and it will give me something to do on the road when I get bored. I also need to touch up the area around the windshield and scrape the excess paint off of the glass. Piece of cake!

Now - moving to the inside. I need storage - more of it. Fortunately I've figured that out too. Just need to do the bed for the dog and a small box for supplies and I'm done. There's painting to be done inside and some cosmetic touches, but overall? I'm pretty pleased. I'm planning on a yard sale this weekend if it doesn't rain - then will head to TN for the week. Test run to see how the van will do.

Why vandwelling?

People *get it* that I want to travel, see the country and have a great time. That part of vandwelling they understand. They don't understand the fact I enjoy living in the van, or having all my stuff within arm's reach, or being able to clean my entire "house" in 20 minutes. They don't understand that what I want to do isn't a year-long vacation. It's more.

I'm a story-teller. It's what I do - tell people's stories. I'm a writer, a journalist of more than 22 years, a photographer. What fascinates me are people's stories. This trip is going to be about "people's stories." Because I think stories spread ideas and ideas spreading creates change, which in turn creates a better life for us all. If you don't understand that, then check out this video of Seth Godin, speaking at TED 2009 in California:



If you're interested in what he's saying, read his book, "Tribes." Lots more details in there. By hitting the road and putting MY skills to work, I can help people I meet by helping them tell their story and get the word out about what's important to them. And that's a huge part of why I am doing this. I could stay in one place and do the same thing. But that's not me. I want more. Plus -it's hard to find a lot of people in one place that are really passionate about an idea. You have to move around. So I am. I hope you join me on the journey!