YouTube too

In August, I travelled in a van and documented everything I did. I will document my travels both in print and on YouTube just for fun, as I find video editing fun.

So, what am I doing right now? I have been experiencing some electrical issues in the van and some issues with my bed. The bed is an electrical set-up with pistons that move it from couch mode to bed mode, and it has failed a number of times. It ticks me off because when I bought it, it was the first thing I thought of—the bed is going to fail.

The bed on the van, like a lot of the built vans, is located overtop of the "garage" or a storage area. The owners before me were mountain bike athletes who used the van as their bike meet home. I don't really need the garage as much as I thought I did, so I started to think of what I could do with the space.

I had a bunch of different ideas. I really need a desk with which I can edit, and it is easier with a desk or workstation. So, I created several drawings. An idea of what you want is only part of the equation—a very small part. The next step is to find a person who can make it happen. I watch a lot of YouTube videos—a lot! One guy who I follow is Chrome at Vancity Vanlife. He was showing a builder, and as it turned out, this guy was in Dundas, which is just around the corner from Hamilton. So I contacted Andrew Fleming, the owner of Overland Interiors and asked if he could help me. He had a quick look and suggested we make a subfloor and then build a frame around the existing setup to create the U-shape I am hoping for.

Andy has slotted me in for the week of the 6th of January 2025, which is five long cold weeks from now. I love the idea of vanlife living and it's a little odd to embrace when I have an apartment in the city. I need to immerse myself in this lifestyle if I want to live it. It just sucks that it is so cold and windy. It is a good opportunity to test the heater, and get into the life.

Recording YouTube videos is a fun part of life... thousands of youtube vanlifers are out there, all telling their story their way. I am really keeping people up-to-date on what I am doing. You see, I have a life outside of vanlife. I don't have to live in a van; I choose to because I want to experience my life and venture out of my comfort zone regularly. So, talking to a camera the whole time while doing it is equally uncomfortable.

My family said you can't go yet, you will miss Christmas!! I will be in the area and likely pop home on Christmas Eve with my wife. I am happily married to a wonderful, supportive, loving woman. She and I have been married for 27 years. We know each other and lean on each other. So why would she "let" me leave to travel around in a van? I asked her to come with me with our two cats but she is not interested in that. She likes our apartment. I do, too, but I want to travel on my terms and not have to fly, eat at restaurants and sleep in overpriced hotels. Plus I like my naps.

I can honestly say that I will not be doing this forever; I will, at some point, stop vanlifing and YouTube. This will all come to an end, hopefully by my choosing and not something out of my control. I like the idea of the travel. And living in a van in itself is uncomfortable, or at least not as comfortable as my condo is.

I started this adventure by building an overland truck (F-150). However, it wasn't the right time and was a little cold to pursue. The truck was not built for that kind of adventure, and it was right around the time we sold our house and moved to a condo.