To Sleep, Perchance to Dream

Much of my build-out was based on my bed.  I needed as much room as I could get without sacrificing a decent bunk to sleep on.  A good friend of mine had suggested I look into a Zinus Memory Foam mattress and that's just what I did.  I managed to find a narrow twin which is only 30 inches wide a 75 inches long.  So it would be long enough for a 6 foot tall person like me to sleep on but take up as little width as possible in the van.

I added it to my Amazon wishlist and behold, my very first patron and a very good and thoughtful friend of mine bought it for me as a surprise.  It arrived ready to unbox, unroll, and inflate.  I was beyond tickled and excited!  This single event kind of made the whole thing real for me.  I would really be sleeping in this van out there the world somewhere and soon!

The link I added above is not the mattress that was purchased for me. Sadly for you, dear reader, it would appear that Amazon is no longer carrying that exact mattress that I now have but offers a hybrid of some description instead.  I'm just glad my friend acted when he did and purchased my original choice.

The instructions said to let the new mattress inflate for 72 hours before use so I had to wait three days to try it out.  In the meantime it made sense to try and pack my glassblowing show back into the Kraken to see if everything would indeed really fit, tables and all.  It took no small amount of arranging and rearranging but finally I was able to get it all in with a little room to spare and without blocking the windows which was a big goal for me.

This exercise in spatial relations reminded me very much of those finger puzzles I would get as a kid which had square tiles of letters in a plaque with one square empty from which you could shift and maneuver the letters around to make words.  You simply had to move "A" to move "B" to move "C" to spell CAT.  Well my friends, it would appear that I have been able to spell CAT with this build-out.  I hope it functions as well in reality as it looks here in preliminary preparations.  Only time will tell the story.

The Alchemy of Turning Wood Into Iron

The alchemy of turning wood into iron is pretty easy as it turns out.  It's called Rust-Oleum Universal All Surface Flat Metallic Soft Iron Spray Paint and Primer in 1.  I really couldn't have asked for a better color.  I have a thing about grey.  Perhaps you've noticed a pattern evolving here?!

The furnishings would now blend with the interior in a minimalistic camouflage of soft iron grey.  The putrid color schemes of most RVs and even typical conversion vans have always given my eyes a type of visual nauseousness. 

Putting a brace between the table and the bunk served three purposes really.  The first purpose was to brace both structures in place without bolting them to the vehicle.  The second was to provide an effective half-wall behind which to securely stack crates of glass show inventory and supplies.  And the third purpose was to keep me from using the back doors as an entrance and egress.  The back bumper is short and rounded, a perfect trap just waiting to cause a slip and fall accident.

With a little wiggle here and there, it would appear that most everything will fit as I had hoped.  Again, my glass show inventory, tools, and supplies will take up more room than my every day living supplies will.  

I embrace minimalism pretty well.  And while that's true, it's also true that I sell trinkets and dust catchers for other folks to clutter up their lives with.  Oh the irony of it all but that's life!

Splinters, Blisters, and a Build-Out, Oh My!

Had I known, I think I would have purchased a Class C RV.

Armed with a screwdriver, a hammer, some nails, some glue, and leftover paper towels I went to work.  Lucky for me, my measurements and the cuts that the helpful guy from Home Depot made were all spot on.  That made the job less troublesome to be sure.

I started with the table.  It was smaller and a little less complicated than the bunk and yet it was pretty close to the same kind of structure.  However, if I was going to go through a learning curve, I wanted it to be on a piece of furniture I wouldn't be trying to sleep on at a later date that could fall apart in the middle of the night if I shifted my weight the wrong way.

The Gorilla Wood Glue was amazing and money well spent.  I suspect it made up for some of my lack of carpentry skills.  Only time will tell how well it holds up, or holds me up, as the case may be.

With only a few challenges, the table pretty much went off without a hitch.  However, I did see a pattern emerging...  One in the palm of my hand from the screwdriver.  It was called a blister!

The bunk build was larger and more of a challenge in terms of logistics.  Due to its size it weighed more and due to my size I wanted at least six legs on it to hold me up.  My hands were already tired from screwing around with the screws and blisters were forming. 

Please remember, "Damn it man, I'm a glassblower not carpenter."  That never gets old. ;-)

Now that they were basically built I needed to do a little trim work on the furnishings with some 1" X 3" wood trim.  This would further secure the pieces and help prevent slippage by anything that might be placed on top of their respective surfaces.

My hands were pretty well torn up by this time so I borrowed a rechargeable drill.  It made the work go that much faster but let me just say, they sure don't make drill bits the way they use to!

All in all, I'm glad I built these items instead of just buying something already created.  It is, after all, part of the journey of #VanLife and now I have a good story to go along with my blisters and splinters.  More importantly I know that while I'm a glassblower damn it and not a carpenter, I can still turn a screw.

Build or Buy? VanLife Decisions

Well, after looking around at flea markets, researching various ideas, and literally weighing the options, I've opted to build what I need.

Now, how to do that with a manual screwdriver, a hammer, and absolutely no carpentry skills.

In a phrase reminiscent of one of my childhood heroes, Dr. Leonard McCoy Chief Medical Officer of the USS Enterprise off of Star Trek TOS:

"Damn it man, I'm a glassblower, not a carpenter!"

Lucky for me Home Depot cut my wood to order!  So all I needed in addition were screws, wood glue, and maybe some paint.  Oh, and some Reflectix insulation for creating blackout panels for the windows.

All said and done, I spent about $80 at Home Depot on the build-out and another $20 at Walmart on the spray paint.  Now, let's see what I can do with a hammer and a manual screwdriver!

Here's my list of supplies:


Bed 30" x 75" so cut 31" x 76"
Frame 2 - 76" 2x4 & 3 - 29" 2x4

Table 16" x 48"
Frame 2 - 48" 2x4 & 2 - 13" 2x4

Trim boards 76" + 31" + 31" + 48" +16" + 16"

6 Bed legs: 18"
4 Table legs: 23"

Gorilla Wood Glue
1 1/2 inch all purpose screws

Reflectix 2 - 10' x 24" rolls

Spray paint color: Flat Soft Iron

Let the Build-Out Begin

Deciding what one needs in a vehicle one is going to live in encourages much thought and planning.  You have little space to work with and every square inch counts.

I don't want to mess with the flooring, the walls or the windows.  The Kraken is pretty nice and reasonably well insulated for my purposes, as I don't plan to have him in any extreme hot or cold weather.  Unlike a typical cargo panel van, the Kraken has windows all around the cargo area because it once was a people moving wagon and those windows offer great visibility which is wonderful to me.

I'm essentially looking at a couple of furniture structures to provide some basic support and minimal comfort as I travel.

The build-out on the Kraken is going to be very minimalistic.  The reality is that I need more space for my glassblowing show: inventory, tools, tent, tables, et cetera than I do for everyday living amenities, at least for now.

I've basically decided on a table and a bunk.  The table will some day hold a basin and possible water tank and a small camp stove of sorts.  The bunk obviously will be my bed.

The table will be on one side of the van and the bunk on the other.  Both will run along the length of the cargo bay instead of the width.  At 6 foot tall, I need a full length mattress on which to sleep but I don't need it to be very wide, maybe a narrow twin will do.

During my last two years of minimizing my possessions I have given away many of my tools and am left with the basics.  Do you think a screwdriver and hammer will be all I need?  Perhaps I should shop the flea markets and find furniture that's already built that will fit my needs.  What to do...  Time will tell the story.

On thing is for sure, the captain's seats in back need to come out!

The Memorial of the Kraken's BuildDay

It was cleaning day and also, I would discover, the build date or birthday of the Kraken.  He turned 23 today!  Happy BuildDay old fellow!

Interestingly enough it was also the Feast of St. Chad today.  You can learn a little bit about this saint of old on this very interesting blog of a dear friend of mine: PEREGRINATIONS WITH ST. CHAD

The Kraken and I spent the day getting to know one another while I cleaned and tenderly cared for the beast on his special day.  For a 1995 van, he wears his age well.

I also did some measuring for the upcoming build out.I am, at this point unsure whether it will be a build out or a buy out from Amazon!  Time will tell the story.

The first thing on the agenda was tending to his worn out steering wheel.

1 #VanLife Meet the Kraken

Meet the Kraken in his YouTube debut.
My 1995 Ford Econoline E150 Club Wagon Chateau

New Beginnings

About two months have passed since I purchased the Kraken and our journey together began.  After bringing him home I discovered some that perhaps the Kraken was possibly possessed or he had electrical problems.

We went to my mechanic and I introduced them to one another.  My mechanic was perplexed as to why I would buy an older van, you see, the Kraken was born in March 2, 1995.  (He has a birthday coming up.)

After a weeks stay with my mechanic he called me with bad news.  Mice had been living in the Kraken and had chewed on some wiring.  There was nothing they could do as they were not an automotive electrical shop.

I searched and searched and found many electrical automotive shops who only changed batteries and alternators, until finally I found a shop on Facebook no less.  They had great reviews and seemed to know what they're doing and so I called up and made an appointment.

Long story short, they discovered the Kraken needed a new brain and had two bad batteries.  A brain was ultimately located and the Kraken, like Frankenstein before him, had a brain transplant.  I brought him home bought him new batteries and his possession seems to have been exorcised.

Now on to the interior...

How Happy Are You?

I've been watching lots of #VanLife videos on YouTube of late and for the most part there are a couple common themes running through them: the absolute happiness of the people participating in #VanLife and the sense of freedom they feel in doing so.

While I'm sure there are those out there who have found such a lifestyle not to their liking, I am not one of them.  Having lived in a 24 foot Class C RV for a couple of years many years ago, I can say it was one of the happiest two years of my life to be sure.

I can see my own experience mirrored back to me in this short video and it takes me back and makes me smile.

The Kraken Rises

"Let Loose the Kraken!" is a catchy memorable command shouted by Zeus in the 1981 fantasy film called The Clash of the Titans and hearkens back to the time of Homer's Odyssey and the travails of Odysseus.

It conjures up images of grey tentacled beasts from the depths of the dark ocean, angry Greek gods, rum swilling pirates, majestic seafaring ships, and lots of high adventure.

Such is the theme of this blog: high adventure!

I am embarking upon a new great adventure, that of living and traveling in a beautiful grey 1995 Ford Econoline Club Wagon Chateau affectionately named "The Kraken" and in the belly of the beast I will travel in search of my own white whale - that next great elusive craft show.

I'm a glassblower by trade and for years I've had a stationary gallery of one sort or another but prior to that I traveled the states blowing glass and having fun, living in a 24ft motorhome.

It is to that latter lifestyle I hope to return and as such, I purchased "The Kraken" in which to haul my tools and wares and make my home while on the road.  And while The Kraken is not a 24ft. motorhome he will introduce me to #VanLife, a new way of living.

Let loose the Kraken!

Stay tuned!