The Inevitability of Breaking Down

She's an old van so was bound to go wrong at some point, but I think there's a lot to be learnt about the personality of a vehicle from the way it breaks down. Some are a pain and seem to love nothing more than leaving you stranded in the middle of nowhere in terrible weather (like the old Mini Ryan had as his first car which I must have pushed more miles than it drove! High heels and all!), and others may go wrong but they always get you home like the old Land Rover my parents had when I was little that had all sorts go wrong but always kept limping along. Thankfully Waki seems to be the 'get you home' type so we're pleased!

Technically the first issue was that her poor deteriorated tyre went flat once we'd got back from Wales and left her on the drive for a day, but that was fine as the spare was good enough to get her to Ryan's work to get them changed.

Ryan decided that since the cost of insurance and fuel economy was so much better on the motorhome than his 3.0L V6 Coupe he would drive it to work instead for a while and to shake any more niggles out into the open, which worked a treat when the clutch cable snapped when he was halfway out of the village! :D Needless to say they got home fine, if a little dramatically, Ryan got a lift into work and fixed it that weekend with a friend of ours with a little modification as they had to guess at what engine it was from and the guess didn't seem to be correct! Whilst Ryan rolled around swearing (I mean working!), I got to work on the scale drawings of the interior so we can plan the exact layout of cupboards etc.

They'll be more to come I'm sure but that's OK, and we plan on storing spares on board of anything that can't be bodged and will leave us properly stranded when we finally go on the road full time. That is when we can figure out just what engine we have...

First things First

So where do we begin? We're still lodging with Ryan's parents and have spent nearly every evening since we got her just sitting inside on the driveway staring about, opening cupboards, poking things and discussing ideas. There's a lot to be done, and we need to get the order it's done in right! 

1. The ceiling and wall behind the bunks needs to come down as leaks in her previous life have left some unsightly damage to the plywood and paper covering, also we need to 'winterise' the vehicle so can use the opportunity to pack in as much insulation as possible! This also needs to somehow extend to the floor and outside of the vehicle so that our water tanks and pipes don't freeze if the weather gets really bad, especially as we plan on spending a lot of time in Scotland.

2. The electrics are shocking (excuse the pun!) and lights flicker or switch on and off when we close cupboards! :S The one leisure battery certainly isn't up to the task of living full time without hook-up so it needs some friends, and as we will want to add a couple of solar panels and a TV etc the whole electric system needs re-wiring, a nice confusing and frustrating job for Ryan... Thankfully we can salvage and re-use most of the lighting and can get electronic accessories on the cheap.

3. Whilst we're re-wiring and insulating we can run our blown heating system, including devising a handy clothes dryer facility in the shower compartment with one of the outlets! Our main source of heating will be via a skinny wood burning stove by the door (as we both wood-carve as a hobby fuel will be plentiful!) with just enough space on it's top for the kettle or pot to save on cooking gas.

4. Storage, and more storage! We will be using the space where the extra berths are for more cupboards and work surfaces. So they need to be carefully planned and built in.

5. We also need a toilet on board, and plan on getting one of those bench type in built ones with the cartridge that comes out through the wall. Or to start with we may just have to go with a traditional portaloo but I really don't like the idea of carrying the waste through the kitchen, I know those cartridges are also sealed but still! :(

6. Last but not least on the inside (and probably not really last either as something is bound to change!) the bed platform needs widening and a nice new mattress bought. Then the left over things like furnishings, extra thick lined curtains (the existing black out blinds are good already) to add colour and extra insulation.

7. I leave this part at number 7 with the view that it will get slotted in somewhere else dependant on the weather and Ryans work shifts. We need to address the rust on the cab but need a spell of dry weather where we are both available for a couple of days in a row to be able to get it all rubbed down and protected. The actual van paint job will be someday in the summer when the inside is finished so for now she'll have to stay looking tatty.

Why?!

I'm sure many people are wondering why we would want to do this! Why would anyone choose to live in a van when they have good jobs and could afford to rent a perfectly normal house or flat? 

We do both have good jobs, but we still find ourselves regularly depressed by not having either the spare cash or time to go to the places we would like to visit or to do what we want to do. Without a job or at least working part-time we'd have all the spare time to do what we want, get a dog, whittle wood...but then we wouldn't be able to afford to rent a house either. So something needs to change, and by addressing the housing cost issue we will have far more money to put into what we want and then someday in the future we'll be in a position where we can go on the road full time and make what little living money we need along the way. Many people retire this way, but I've found already that life has a way of sneaking an unfortunate or ironic surprise or two on you and I would prefer to experience and enjoy my life whilst I'm here or able to do so.

So it’s simply through a matter of addressing the priorities of your life and finding that ultimate balance that works for you. I'm a Libra and so symbolised by the scales, perhaps that's why I do what I do!

Why do you live the way you do? What do you do or have that isn’t really important that you can cut out and so focus your money & energy on the things that are more important to you? It doesn’t have to be as extreme as selling all of your stuff and living in a motorhome! It could just be living in a slightly smaller house, or having fewer expensive to run electrical gadgets... 

Everyone is different so there is no definitive way to live for everyone to follow, or perhaps you’re not ready to do what needs to be done yet! It took us a while of living by ourselves and in smaller and smaller houses/rooms, until finally our financial situation (and I’m sure a little insanity!) caused us to have to take the plunge and make the change. Our family don’t really understand yet how or why we would actually want to live this way, but I’m sure they will before long. That’s doesn’t mean to say however that even when they do understand that they’ll want to, or be psychologically able, to do the same!