I promised when I wrapped up my first blog post that I'd make sure I balanced things out by writing about the positive things I've experienced so far as a result of starting a van conversion, and that's what I intend to do now. That first post might have been a bit miserable, so this will hopefully be a bit cheerier :)
Having thought about this, I'm wondering if this post might be a little unusual compared to what other people say the great things about van conversion are because I've come to realise that the things I'm enjoying about it are a little more intangible than perhaps one might expect when involved with such a practical task as this, but this blog is about my experience with a van conversion so I can really only write what's applied to me, so it'll have to do...
So first things first, I'm sure we've all been subject to one of those 'What Kind of Worker Are YOU?" tests that inevitably come up at some point during employment, so you should hopefully know what I'm talking about here: whilst the likely wording of the question eludes me at the moment, I've always answered confidently that I'm one of those people who like to have something physical to show for my efforts at the end of the task. Whether it's a giant pile of something that's been moved or a space that's been cleared/tidied or a finished product that's been created from its constituent parts, I always feel a sense of satisfaction at the end of my work day when I can see with my eyes what I've achieved by the end of it. The nice thing with a scratch conversion is that every day ends with visible changes, and I like that. In particular, days working with insulation boarding have been good as seeing a stack of boards that were chest height at the start of the day reduced to knee height by the end of it makes it feel as though a lot of work has been done, as well as imparting the knowledge that all that keep-warm material is now sitting in van ready to do its job where keeping the space comfortable in the colder months is concerned.
'Visible Changes' has been an enjoyable experience too. Things that make the van *look* different. I know I frustrated Rosie a little during the earliest stages of the build by fussing rather minutely over prepatory tasks such as rust removal and hole-plugging, etc., and whilst I'm pleased that I did spend the time fussing over these things to prevent serious and costly problems occurring further down the line, I can't say as I necessarily enjoyed those tasks. I guess nobody does, that's probably why photos of those types of things are a little fewer and further between on the 'Gram. What I have enjoyed on the other hand, is watching the van change physically. And the bigger changes at that; things like getting the insulation boards down on the floor and bulkhead, getting the plywood floor in, getting the portholes and shore power plug in, stuff like that.
'Visible Changes Part 2': When I'm back in Norfolk doing my day job and not working on the van, one of the best things is seeing photos of things that have been made and installed in the van whilst I'm away. It's good to know that even whilst I'm away and not working on the van it's still getting further toward completion.
Success. I'm sure that most folks relate to the feeling of success and the joy that comes with it. So far, most installations have been successful on the first try, which is particularly satisfying because I am NOT a DIYer. In fact, I've always made the effort to keep away from *anything* DIY as best as I can, so it's safe to say that I don't have a lot of skills or knowledge in that area, so the fact that I'm getting things right on my first go is pretty remarkable and I'm pleased by that. In truth, one thing that definitely didn't go perfectly first time was porthole installation. Having said that, lots of lessons were learned whilst attempting to fit the first porthole, the method was refined with the second and thankfully the third and fourth portholes went in without a hitch, so even when success didn't come easily it was satisfying to have earned it through trial and error.
The weather. Strange as it sounds, working in/on the van in the warmth of the sun has been a really nice experience. Keep in mind that this van build has primarily occurred in late January/February so far, so a lot of time working on the van has been in the cold, the dark, the rain, or any combination of the three, so the couple of times that the temperature has risen and the sun have shone in tandem have made for some really pleasant working conditions, and has just made undertaking the work more enjoyable for it.
Bonding. I've known Rosie's father for practically the same amount of time that I've known her and we've always got on well, but we haven't necessarily spent a lot of time getting to know one another in the past, so since starting this van build we've had the opportunity to spend a lot more time together now and I've enjoyed it a lot. We probably spend more time apart than you'd think because rather than working on tasks together we tend to work on our own tasks and work separately in the space, mostly as a result of where tools are located in the workshop or the van, but despite this it kind of feels to me almost like we're having the chance to become 'work pals' in some kind of way. I guess maybe men might relate to this more than women, but it's that kind of relationship that seems to come inherently as a result of the type of work environment that we're in, in this case a car mechanic's garage. It's hard to explain, so I think that probably only people that have worked in that kind of tool-filled, grimy, oily, vehicle and machinery-populated workplace will understand what this type of relationship is like, but I think I can say with confidence that you'll know it if you know it. Anyway, I've worked in a lot of places like that in the past and it's kind of fun to be back in that kind of workplace again, play at being 'a bit of a bloke' and develop a better relationship with him on the whole.
Realising an aspiration. I'll keep this fairly short because I think we've touched upon this previously in the blog, but with most days that pass I'm getting more and more disillusioned with the way that society functions in a hierarchical sense, and it's something of a relief to feel as though I'm taking a first, but potentially fairly significant step toward getting out of the system by some degree, and out from underneath the thumbs of people that currently have significant sway over the way that I have to live my life. Also, with the cost of living increasing dramatically at this point in time I think that I may be under the greatest degree of financial stress that I've ever been under, so it's a relief to know that in a couple of month's time Rosie and I will hopefully finally have a chance to start keeping more of our earnings in our pockets and living a better (but still very very grounded and humble) quality of life.
Daydreaming. With the reality of living in a van coming to us in the very near future, we joined the Caravan and Motorhome Club to find out whether there were any useful pitching spots for us to utilise around our 'base' area in North Norfolk, and whilst I'm pleased to say that seems as though it'll be a useful resource to us once our wheels start turning, we also recently became aware of and took out a year's subscription to the Britstops guide for very much the same reason. In terms of places nearby our base Britstops hasn't been quite so useful, but what it has done is given us the opportunity to find out where pitches are elsewhere in the country and start dreaming about little weekends away and suchlike that we might be able to take in the van if we're lucky, and it's been very nice to have something to look forward to sitting on the back burner besides using the van as a semi-residence in our base area.
This has been a fairly massive post again so whilst I'm sure there have been other things I've enjoyed it's ten to ten at night as I write this, I've had a busy day of physical labour and I'm going to call it a day with this here now, so those are some of the things I've enjoyed about the build so far, and hopefully there are more to come.
On a slightly different note, I suppose the biggest update is that we officially handed in notice to end our tenancy agreement on the cottage this evening, effective 1st April, so the next time I'll be writing it'll probably have something along the lines of "We're living in a van and it's not even finished yet!" and how that's going, so that's probably something to look forward to, should make for some interesting/entertaining reading... Seriously though, it'll be the start of our journal relating to actual van LIFE is concerned, so that combined with further posts as to updates on the build should be interesting with a bit of luck, maybe amusing, hopefully entertaining... So look forward to that I guess. Life's gonna be weird for a bit ;)
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