Posts Tagged Alameda
Posted on July 15, 2009 by angela
Jason and I have always lived in an old house with small closets. This tends to be an issue if you actually have stuff, so I’ve always insisted that our next home needs walk-in closets.
Bode has proven that we will now have walk-in closets, but seriously – this is the actual closet that the three of us will keep all of our clothes in. Somehow it looked bigger when it was leaning against the side of the garage. I guess it’s time to add more stuff to the donation pile.
The garage sale is set for 10 days from now, so the following week will be spent getting the new engine in the bus so we can move it out of the way. There’s that, and gathering all the things we don’t want to store or give away and getting them ready to sell.
Once the VW is running, we can sell 1 of our cars, too. That should be a good time.
Posted on July 8, 2009 by angela
Ever try to get a four year-old to sit still and smile for a photo? Tell them it’s for a passport and they’ll have to show it to border patrol to enter a foreign county. It works wonders.
Bode’s existing passport is actually going to expire soon… well in a year anyway. We just might be gone for longer than that, so it’s a good thing we checked. For adults, they’re usually good for 7 years or so. Not for kiddos. I suppose it makes sense, since he’s only a few months old in his existing passport photo. Nevermind that the photo is of an infant and the they somehow managed to make his hair fire-red.
Posted on July 6, 2009 by angela
Why am I packing and storing 35 plastic promotional cups, but not a single real glass?
Texas Championship Rose Bowl Cup, Happy New Year 1999!, and Wurstfest: A 10-day Salute to Sausage… you cups will be packed safely away. All other drinkware – wine glasses, coffee mugs, pint glasses, highballs, lowballs, beer mugs, pilsner glasses, and the ever-lingering sippy cups… garage sale or donation pile for you!
All of the things I was dreading having to sort through seem so much easier to throw into the donation pile than I expected. All those clothes that never really fit right, but I held on to them because they were pricey — gone! Those questionable clothing items that someone gave as a gift in the best intentions that I thought maybe some day I’ll wear in front of them – donation time. Tiny tiny T-shirts with much loved band logos, that just really don’t fit a gal that’s had a baby — here ya go childless friend!
It’s quite liberating, actually. And, of course, I’m looking forward to replenishing my wardrobe some day. However, shoes are another story. Jason’s current packing argument with me: quantity of shoes. Our desired number of shoes per person are 4 pairs apart.
Posted on June 30, 2009 by angela
It takes two vans to keep one running, or so the saying goes.
We are now on our second van, but this one hasn’t run since we bought it in March. It’s not that Jason hasn’t been working on it - it has been a near daily activity.
This 1971 red VW camper was literally a piece of crap when we bought it. It was impounded by Oakland police and sold at auction. We bought it from a guy who had supposedly cleaned it out. The inside had to be stripped clean, power-washed and scrubbed. And this van was in a little bit better shape than the first van.
Posted on June 18, 2009 by angela
We have to be out by August 14. Out of our house…
Although we have talked about this for months, the path is now laid and we must move on in 50 days.
I thought the (secret) purchase of a VW van last year was just a result of a midlife crisis. Within weeks he was talking about a major road trip.
A trip of a lifetime. For months it has been in the back of our mind. But now, as of tonight, the lease for our house has been signed. The curtains and appliances stay – everything else has to go.
Oh the list of things to do. So, what do we do tonight? We drink a bottle of wine and watch a chick flick.
Tomorrow, we start the purge, the plans, the chaos.
The story has been told to some friends and family. There has been a lot of worry and/or excitement from both. This site will help to keep those interested in our whereabouts and adventures informed.
Bode: To indicate by signs, foretell.
A good beginning bodes well….
Posted on February 6, 2009 by angela
It couldn’t happen. Not yet at least. There was no way, without a van we could rent out the house and be gone in 6 weeks. And so, we’re looking to summer.
Posted on January 15, 2009 by angela
I first suspected my husband of having a midlife crises last summer. I remember catching up with my girlfriends during a girls’ weekend in Napa, and mentioning this. They laughed it off, remembering Jason from our twenties as one of the most laid back guys they knew. He’s still laid back, but I knew he was itching for adventure and wanting to spend more time with me and our son.
My friends and I returned to our house in Alameda on a Sunday before they all flew home. There, I find that he has taken our son Bode to Santa Cruz, and purchased a ’71 Volkswagen camper van.
I can’t say I was totally surprised, and frankly, I was a little relieved. He could have bought an expensive sports car or taken a mistress. Jason has always been a Volkswagen guy, and has always wanted a van. His dad had one when he was a kid (and still had it when we began dating). Phew, I thought this was the end of it, a little project for him will cheer him up.
A little about the van. He got it for a steal, but I soon found out why. He bought it from two women who had lived in it with their dogs, yes dogs. They’d upgraded to a bigger van, and needed the cash. The van didn’t run, and was towed to our house that week. To say this van was a horrific mess is an understatement. Jason pulled everything out, including the tie-dye curtains and gave the entire inside a power wash. Clumps of dog hair streamed out and flowed down our street.
For a couple months, Jason worked on the van while Bode played in the pop up tent. A little electrical work here, reupholstering some seats there. Bode and I did puzzles on the table inside the van.
But, the restoration wasn’t enough. The van was just the beginning, just a taste of the possibilities. Soon he was talking about traveling around the world. Yes, of course I thought he was crazy at first. But, the more he talked, the more we came up with reasons why now might be the time.
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