Blogs, random thoughts, travel

  • Buying a Mattress

    by Dave McAda
    We set a date to go to a mattress store to look at our options.  In preparation we laid on all the beds in our house and camper.  We came away with the realization that the most comfortable mattress we owned was the foam one we made for Wanda the campervan.  
    Posted in Life, Retirement, Van Life

  • Week of Waterfalls

    by Dave McAda
    [The ranger] assured us our Civic could handle the gravel road to the parking lot but not to think about traveling farther down that road.  Then she pointed out some simple to reach falls closer to the Blue Ridge Parkway and I pointed to a spot on the map and commented “that’s where we tried going a few years ago but got a hincky feeling about the directions”.  She suddenly had more respect for us and said “oh, you’ve been reading so-and-so’s book”.  
    Posted in Hiking, Van Life

  • Rattlesnakes and Calf-pullers

    by Dave McAda
    I had pulled two weeds and was stepping toward another when I realized my next step would be onto the head of a snake.  And not just any snake.  
    Posted in Life, Van Life

  • Dear COVID,

    by Dave McAda
    Sitting in the wine department of our local grocer this week, we received our second vaccine shot. (We also snagged a few bottles of sangria at a great price.)  In a few days we will have as much protection from this virus as we’re probably going to get and we will emerge from our COVID cocoon ready to explore the world more confidently. 
    Posted in Covid-19, Life, Van Life

  • Telling Time while Traveling

    by Dave McAda
    When we are traveling in different time zones we have the hardest time keeping up with a church group that meets via Zoom.  You say ‘oh it’s okay to miss once in a while.’  That might be so; if we weren’t the group LEADERS!  
    Posted in Van Life

  • Choosing Where to Sleep

    by Dave McAda
    

    I have some Instagram friends who think I park Wanda under billboards that read “Rob the Van Under this Sign”.   And although some of them live in large, dangerous cities they are convinced that as someone sleeping in my van in the middle of nowhere I am certain to be the victim of a violent crime.

    Posted in Van Life

  • Not All Trips Are Pleasant

    by Dave McAda

    Not all trips are pleasant. Not all family relationships are harmonious. Not all stories have happy endings.

    Posted in Life, Van Life

  • The Push Home

    by Dave McAda
    That’s when I had words with our GPS.  To say we’ve had a contentious relationship is an understatement.  “She” is constantly telling me what to do, correcting my every move, or incessantly nagging me to turn.  
    Posted in Van Life

  • The Build Continues

    by Dave McAda
    We learned that there are as many opinions of how to do electricity as there are users on FaceBook.  Ultimately we found a couple people to follow on YouTube who seemed to know what they were doing and didn’t mind admitting/showing when they made a mistake.  I will confess that I picked one because I liked the font they used on their website—turns out I learned A LOT about electrical from them!
    Posted in Van Life

  • The Build Begins

    by Dave McAda
    Just picture yourself standing in your new-to-you vehicle with a metal saw in hand preparing to cut a large hole in the back door—C-R-A-Z-Y!  We did a few things right and many wrong but after considerable time we had a jagged square opening that a window sort of fit in.
    Posted in Van Life

  • Talking Smack

    by Dave McAda
    I’m not sure if I’ve ever talked with such authority and conviction concerning something mechanical.  I felt alive.  
    Posted in Van Life