Hello all. My name is Tammi, however my user name here, as well as my van tags are 'G CRAY'. No, I'm not a 'gangsta', but rather a grandma....Grandma Cray... the most important title I've ever had. I am an avid nature person. Hiking, backpacking, camping and just hanging out in nature has always been where I find my Happy Place. The past several years I have also become a rather obsessive minimalist. I think (hope) these two passions of mine combined will make this the ideal lifestyle for me!
I am not officially in van dwelling mode yet, although I did trade in my car last month for a 2017 Chevy Express 2500, and have started the process of converting it. I am currently in my last year of teaching before taking an early retirement, and hope to be hitting the road after the end of the school year for a few practice runs. I own a piece of property in the mountains in North Carolina, so that may very well be my summer "home". If all goes as planned, RTR 2019 will be my first big trip, and my official kickoff to van dwelling.
Right now, I live in a sticks and bricks in Northern Illinois with my roommate, who is also my (almost) ex-husband. At some point we will seriously start going our separate ways and will have to "split" the house, but we are waiting until the grandkids are a little older. We are parting very amicably as far as our marriage, and remain incredibly good friends. He is actually helping with (doing) most of my van conversion, and will probably take a trip or two with me when we finish it.
So far for the van I have purchased my frig (Dometic 65DZ), my solar system (Renergy 300 watt on the roof, and 200ah battery), and my Fantastic Fan. We are working on finishing up the insulation this weekend. I figure as soon as I have insulation, ventilation, refrigeration, and electricity...I'll have the bare bones basics, and be ready for a trial trip. I want to spend a week or so in it before I start to really do the build, so I can get a feel for what will work best for me.
I am not officially in van dwelling mode yet, although I did trade in my car last month for a 2017 Chevy Express 2500, and have started the process of converting it. I am currently in my last year of teaching before taking an early retirement, and hope to be hitting the road after the end of the school year for a few practice runs. I own a piece of property in the mountains in North Carolina, so that may very well be my summer "home". If all goes as planned, RTR 2019 will be my first big trip, and my official kickoff to van dwelling.
Right now, I live in a sticks and bricks in Northern Illinois with my roommate, who is also my (almost) ex-husband. At some point we will seriously start going our separate ways and will have to "split" the house, but we are waiting until the grandkids are a little older. We are parting very amicably as far as our marriage, and remain incredibly good friends. He is actually helping with (doing) most of my van conversion, and will probably take a trip or two with me when we finish it.
So far for the van I have purchased my frig (Dometic 65DZ), my solar system (Renergy 300 watt on the roof, and 200ah battery), and my Fantastic Fan. We are working on finishing up the insulation this weekend. I figure as soon as I have insulation, ventilation, refrigeration, and electricity...I'll have the bare bones basics, and be ready for a trial trip. I want to spend a week or so in it before I start to really do the build, so I can get a feel for what will work best for me.
