.

Maybe I’ll travel. 

Really, it’s the best time to do it with no rent payment racking up without me occupying the space. Over my many years of online gaming and meeting dog trainers through internet communities, I had made an abundance of friends across the country. Not to mention friends that I had grown up with or met in Wisconsin who had moved away. Spending some time couch hopping would be a great way to save money for a downpayment on a house while connecting with people I didn’t get to see often or have never met before. 

You should get a camper van.

It was my best friend Travis, or as I know him more affectionately by his alias online “Vivi,” who suggested it. 

He sent me a picture and it was love at first sight. 

I had spent some time before the fire on and off dreaming about tiny houses and RV living, not really anything that I had ever seriously considered. They were always just fleeting thoughts, a week of researching and wishing before the thought faded away, just a wouldn’t it be nice? Now with the option to heavily save, a hefty insurance payment on the way, a month and a half of overtime to go hard at, and tax returns on the horizon… It was the perfect time. It almost seemed like fate. 

I spent the next few weeks watching YouTube videos of people living the #vanlife and I never once questioned if this was what I wanted to do. Life on the road with my two dogs, spending time in nature, connecting with friends, living my life to its fullest. It feels like the opposite of what I was doing before. Maybe this is my quarter to midlife crisis, but for once in my life stepping outside my comfort zone brings nothing but excitement when before it would have filled me with anxiety.

I have a plan in plan in place. Apply for an auto loan through my bank, look for a van, buy materials, visit Iowa for a few weeks where my uncle and I will build it out, travel the country in my custom camper van. Don’t worry, the process to this end result will be heavily documented. I am beyond excited. 

This is my adventure and the road to it will be traveled in a van.

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If you’re wondering what I’m talking about or having trouble picturing it in your head, this model is what I’d like to base the design of my van off of: https://www.boho.life/bristol Actual plans for a design will have to wait until I purchase a van.