Back At It Again!

Annnnnnnd we're back! After a lengthy break for the holidays and some other work, my dad and I are finally back in Colorado and working on the van again!

 

We did come up for about a week in February and managed to get started on the air spring installation. (The air springs will help keep the rear from sagging as more weight gets added to her as we build and will help me maintain a smooth ride among other benefits.) We were working in my uncle's hangar near Denver as that gave us a heated space, tools, and a smooth floor that all helped us get where we needed to be to work which was underneath the van. I had a very fun time rolling all around on my uncle's creeper. 

We didn't finish the installation at the time, so that is where we picked up when we got back up here. We didn't have much time, though, before the weather hit. Snow for days and temperatures in the single digits have kept us holed up inside for quite a while now. But we haven't been idle. We've been using the time to do some much needed mental working figuring out details in the plans and designing elements that have only been roughly sketched out before now.  For instance, the designs for the drawer my keyboard will sit on took more than a day and went through at least five different iterations that varied wildly in their complexity. But no matter how slowly, we are surely making progress, even if it isn't always obvious or physically evident. Also, did you know that invisible hinges are a thing? Yeah, they're pretty neat!

Once we finish the installation of the air springs (as best we can without the electric system set up yet anyway) we will probably be moving on to the heater installation. I have heard in the community that that has gotten tricky due to some changes to the body of the vans in the last couple years, so that should be interesting.

 

Also, while I was at home in Texas and unable to work on the van I found another project to help occupy my time: creating my own recipe book! Since internet will never be guaranteed I need to have my recipes available offline, so I decided to go ahead and spend the time formatting recipes I make in the way that works best for me while I was at it.  Now, all my recipes are in one place, with no unnecessary pictures or ads, with the ingredients and instructions together and easy to read.

 

This took a rather surprising amount of time to accomplish, but now I have a recipe book setup just how I like it with going on 30 entrees, plenty of breakfasts, snacks, and sides and a quite healthy (or I suppose "unhealthy") complement of dessert recipes as well! I plan on having this printed to make a thin recipe binder for the van before I take off.

 

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Status: 

 

My fridge finally shipped and came in!

The soundbar I ended up buying sounds amazing in my bedroom now so I can't wait to hear what it'll sound like installed in the finished van space!

I did purchase my mattress during the sale but unfortunately was not able to sleep on it during the trial period, so 🤞 fingers crossed that she'll be good! Also, since a Full XL is not a very common mattress size, the sheets have been a whole mess that is still being worked out.

The faring on the roof rack works fantastically and we have no more ROAR when driving!

I ordered better tires for the van back before Thanksgiving and when I asked for an update was advised they kept getting pushed back and that I might want to pick different tires. I was just getting ready to go about doing that when I got another call saying the ones I ordered should be in in a week! And yesterday I got the call that they are in and I have an appointment to get them installed next week!

My windshield currently has a couple rather enormous cracks in it from an unfortunate highway rock incident from last year, so when I go to get the new tires on I am hoping to get a new windshield installed on the same day. 

Part of the point of the mental work days (figuring out exact designs and such) is that we are trying to figure out our plywood needs in advance as wood keeps getting more expensive and harder to find. If we can get dimensions then we can plan how much and hopefully get it purchased before it gets too expensive or disappears completely.

 

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(Hint: Did you know that you can click on any of the photos in my posts and they will open up bigger so that you can see them way better?)

 

 

 

 Another gorgeous sunset.

 

 

On the drive home to Texas before Thanksgiving the clouds were doing some really weird stuff and it looked like a painting.

 

The van jacked up in my uncle's hangar so that we could work underneath her easier.

 

 

The other morning, when I woke up around sunrise, the snow was so close to the house that I couldn't even see to the edge of our bluff. I think it was the lowest visibility we'd ever had here. I was taking a couple pictures when all of a sudden the sun managed to peak through the clouds. And then without warning and very rapidly the sun started burning off the higher clouds and what was left settled heavily into the valley below us and in three blinks I looked out again and we were sitting on top of a sea of clouds. It was one of the most breathtaking things I have ever seen. I took several pictures from my balcony and then scrambled to throw on my warmest layers so I could run out to the cliff edge to be closer to it all. 

 

The sea of clouds as seen from my balcony. 

A view into the valley from the edge as the clouds started to slowly dissipate.

On my way back from the bluff I noticed and got to follow bobcat tracks!