This was it. Aside from my test run trip and going to my parents’ house after packing up as much of my life as possible from Jane’s house, I finally hit the road on Monday, September 16, 2019. My general plan is to go north so I can come back south with the chilly weather, …
Author Archives: marylandry
The Build: The Sink
I could have opted for a bucket or basin and a few gallon jugs of water, but to make the van really feel more like a tiny home on wheels rather than an extended camping trip I thought I should add a sink and ‘running’ water. Originally I decided to use a foot pump based …
The Build: The Bed
Sleep was not always my favorite. My mother tells me that as a baby I tried my hardest not to sleep, not to nap, not to close my eyes because I didn’t want to miss anything. In retrospect the earliest sign of my major FOMO in alleged adulthood. But now sleep is THE BEST! Reading …
The Build: Furniture
If I’m going to live in the van, I suppose I need some furniture in there to make it feel like home and hold all my stuff. First of all, I had no clue how to attach anything to the sides of the van. I know it can be done, I mean work vans have …
New York: The Adirondacks
A friend from (my now former) work invited me to visit her family’s vacation camp in the Adirondacks, so it was the perfect excuse to take a few days away to test out the van, make sure it was road-worthy on a longer trip, and relax! I drove north from Delaware where I’d been visiting …
The Build: Fan Install
According to all I’ve heard, the enemy of vehicle dwelling is moisture. Sleeping = breath = condensation = dripping on your face from the ceiling as a wake up call, rust, mildew, mold, blegh. The general consensus from those in the know seems to be the only long-term remedy is a good fan for circulation …
The Build: The floor
After completing the floor insulation and soundproofing application, it was time to actually get a floor in this thing. While I love the look of the gorgeous wood, bamboo, or cork floors in the magically clean, sleek vans of Instagram, my small space, limited budget, and knowing it was a fun trip rather than a …
The Build: Sound proofing and insulation
Soundproofing With so much road and engine noise and stuff that will be in the back rattling around, I wanted to add some soundproofing where I could to make it a little easier to hear my music, radio, audio books, and self think while driving. I’m not sure if it works the other way or …
Buying the Van
I scoured Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, and used car sites online for weeks, sent many interest inquiry messages, discovered that a majority of sellers don’t know or care to mark things as sold when unavailable, and chatted with several people before finding my lead. The Buy It was a Craigslist ad, located in a suburb on …
Meet Mary
A very little bit about me, but if you’re here you probably already know it all Hi, and thanks for taking the time to check out the page. My page is mainly designed to share updates and stories with my friends, family, and perhaps people I meet along the way so I don’t forget to …