Hello!
I'm Mary. My travel companion, seen in the picture in his Christmas deer hat, is Cowboy. The other picture is Buster.
About 6 months ago I bought Buster Lewis, a short school bus built by Lewis on a Ford E350 chassis, for conversion. It was a very uncertain period of my life, and I was attracted to full timing, but not sure it was the right next step for me. Turns out, it wasn't: my elderly mom became very insistent that she needed someone to live with her, and so my "maiden voyage" was the drive from California to her home in Massachusetts. Much of the conversion is done, but I was forced to take a major detour into the dark side of mechanical things when a Ford dealer here accidentally filled my diesel tanks with gasoline. Not knowing they'd done it, I drove a good 25-30 miles, doing some damage that's literally taken months to get under control. But... now I am back on track with my solar installation. The bus is already livable in a minimalist fashion but I'm adding the things that will make it an all-season full-time option right now.
My mother has dementia, which is progressing more rapidly than any of us expected. I want to stay with her as long as I can care for her, but the time will come when she will need to move to another level of support. In fact, she's stated that when her 17-year old kitty passes on, she would prefer to move to an assisted living facility where one of her closest old friends lives. As much as I love being with her I think that will be an awesome move for her; she loves being around people but is extremely shy about stepping into the world on her own, and they've got Happy Hour and communal meals and activities and a movie every day at this place. My Dad passed away last year, and he was super outgoing, so with him she had this instant social life. Even with me here, she is very isolated, seeing virtually no one else. I twist her arm to let me take her out every now and then, but mostly it's "Family Feud" reruns and the sofa, so I'd love to see her someplace where a richer social life is at her fingertips.
When this next phase of Mom's life begins, the house will have to be sold to pay for it, making bus life more of a necessity for me. I'm looking forward to it, and take little "practice runs" by heading out to events in the New England and New York areas for a few days at a time (I sell vintage and use the bus as a kind of "popup shop." Mom doesn't like to be alone for too long so it's limited how far I can go, but even these short runs are helping me discover what's important for me so that when I am able to make the full-time change I will hopefully be better prepared.
I recently watched a movie on YouTube that some members of this site were featured in, and it inspired me. My biggest fear about full timing has been that, as an older woman traveling solo (or with only canine companionship) I would feel as isolated as my Mom does (I'm 57 now). From what I saw in that film, I think just about the opposite will be true: you guys seem to understand and maintain community on a deeper level than anyone in my life currently could possibly have time for. It may end up taking years for me to make my full time dream a reality (which of course would be not be a bad thing because it would mean more time with Mom), but by watching what you all have been through and where you've landed, I feel so much more sure about this life I am moving toward.
If you'd ever told me my retirement plan would be to move about the country with no fixed abode in a mini school bus, I would have laughed as if that were absurd, but in the back of my head, I'd have been saying, "If only..." Now, thanks to you all, I feel like it's not only a possibility but a true goal.
I'm Mary. My travel companion, seen in the picture in his Christmas deer hat, is Cowboy. The other picture is Buster.
About 6 months ago I bought Buster Lewis, a short school bus built by Lewis on a Ford E350 chassis, for conversion. It was a very uncertain period of my life, and I was attracted to full timing, but not sure it was the right next step for me. Turns out, it wasn't: my elderly mom became very insistent that she needed someone to live with her, and so my "maiden voyage" was the drive from California to her home in Massachusetts. Much of the conversion is done, but I was forced to take a major detour into the dark side of mechanical things when a Ford dealer here accidentally filled my diesel tanks with gasoline. Not knowing they'd done it, I drove a good 25-30 miles, doing some damage that's literally taken months to get under control. But... now I am back on track with my solar installation. The bus is already livable in a minimalist fashion but I'm adding the things that will make it an all-season full-time option right now.
My mother has dementia, which is progressing more rapidly than any of us expected. I want to stay with her as long as I can care for her, but the time will come when she will need to move to another level of support. In fact, she's stated that when her 17-year old kitty passes on, she would prefer to move to an assisted living facility where one of her closest old friends lives. As much as I love being with her I think that will be an awesome move for her; she loves being around people but is extremely shy about stepping into the world on her own, and they've got Happy Hour and communal meals and activities and a movie every day at this place. My Dad passed away last year, and he was super outgoing, so with him she had this instant social life. Even with me here, she is very isolated, seeing virtually no one else. I twist her arm to let me take her out every now and then, but mostly it's "Family Feud" reruns and the sofa, so I'd love to see her someplace where a richer social life is at her fingertips.
When this next phase of Mom's life begins, the house will have to be sold to pay for it, making bus life more of a necessity for me. I'm looking forward to it, and take little "practice runs" by heading out to events in the New England and New York areas for a few days at a time (I sell vintage and use the bus as a kind of "popup shop." Mom doesn't like to be alone for too long so it's limited how far I can go, but even these short runs are helping me discover what's important for me so that when I am able to make the full-time change I will hopefully be better prepared.
I recently watched a movie on YouTube that some members of this site were featured in, and it inspired me. My biggest fear about full timing has been that, as an older woman traveling solo (or with only canine companionship) I would feel as isolated as my Mom does (I'm 57 now). From what I saw in that film, I think just about the opposite will be true: you guys seem to understand and maintain community on a deeper level than anyone in my life currently could possibly have time for. It may end up taking years for me to make my full time dream a reality (which of course would be not be a bad thing because it would mean more time with Mom), but by watching what you all have been through and where you've landed, I feel so much more sure about this life I am moving toward.
If you'd ever told me my retirement plan would be to move about the country with no fixed abode in a mini school bus, I would have laughed as if that were absurd, but in the back of my head, I'd have been saying, "If only..." Now, thanks to you all, I feel like it's not only a possibility but a true goal.
