Pacific.

Roads to the other side

Passage through Wyoming. Big Sky country.

 Highway 85, a windy one lane journey through the mountains 

 and then, just like that…. it was flat

Snowed in. Repaired out. 

So when you buy an old Bus, you have to expect that there will be some repairs along the road. Who knew there would be this many!! After our stint in Elkheart, Indiana, we were crusin' along. "Hammering down" at a good clip as my Dad would say. We made it into South Dakota where Nate learned how to replace fuel filters as well as some colorful new language! Having sat for so long, our fuel tank has grown algae so its a constant battle to stay ahead of it. Armed with new knowledge and a few extra filters, we headed into the sunset…

We got as far as Rapid City, when all hell broke loose. Mind you, the bus is no pleasure cruise. Its bumpy, smelly and loud enough that Nate and I generally don't talk until parked (plenty of productive daydreaming happens during this time). So, as we pull into Rapid City to get new tires put on (thank you J&K!!) we were alerted to the extreme more-than-normal bumpiness that still persisted and had grown worse since our tire change. Anyways, long story short we spent the whole day in another garage getting all fixed up and all poor. The joys of home ownership! As the hours ticked by in the waiting lounge, the impending doom of a blizzard got closer and closer. We thought that we could put a few night driving hours in and get ahead of the storm but as soon as we got back on the road, we quickly got right back off. The wind and rain were becoming so strong that we knew it would be nothing but bad news if we kept going. We decided that safest thing to do at that point would be to stay put until the blizzard passed. We found a Walmart and nestled ourselves behind the building to wait it out. 

This is what we woke up to…..

And then...

                    This happened!!

             

So here we are, hunkered down in a Walmart parking lot in Rapid City, South Dakota, for the

 next day or so. They are predicting 18-24" of snow!! Thank goodness for warm blankets, 

hot tea and good books. Hope you are all warm and snugly somewhere. 

This is where we'll be, held up in our hippie fort...

 

 

Sunrise. South Dakota

Find the real world, give it endlessly away,

grow rich flinging gold to all who ask. 

Live at the the empty heart of paradox. 

I'll dance there with you - cheek to cheek

-Rumi

Wisconsin. And two things they grow here.

Elkheart, Indiana

If Wapiti (Elk) shows up, it means: you're entering into a time of plenty, one where you'll have everything and anything you need. Call on Wapiti when you're involved in a project that requires considerable stamina and durability to see it though to completion. 

******

Alright, so we all could have guessed this was bound to happen….The bus broke down…. 

We were trucking' along nicely. Top cruisn' speed of 65 (70 going down a very steep hill) I had finally wrestled up the courage, and Nate the exhaustion, to take a turn behind the wheel. Driving a bus sure ain't as easy as one would think. You can NEVER take your eyes off the road, there is no texting, no fiddling with the radio, no eating and definitely no holding hands with your passenger. HA. Come to think of it, maybe the world would be a safer place if everyone drove a bus? So there I was, driving…

 I pulled off to take a little stretch in Elkheart, Indiana. Fueled the bus and ourselves up and off again we went. Well, almost. Just before we pulled out of the truck stop, GUSH went all the coolant. This is about the time that we found out our 'super premium premier AAA' policy does not cover the bus (since she is a "renovated bus" and not a manufactured RV") Major Bummer. Thankfully, being in the heartland of trucking country has its perks. Did you know they have Mobile Mechanics?! After calling a bunch of these fine people, we resided to the fact that no one was able to come rescue us until morning. So we had ourselves a little party we did. Propane got hooked up, a scrumptious dinner and apple crisp were made (with Champlain Orchard apples!) cocktails were had and two humans and one cat were all snuggled up in bed by 9pm1

Our angel of mercy showed up late morning to replace our water pump and within three hours of his arrival, we were back on the road. Would you believe that he had never even heard of apple crisp, let alone tried it! Well you know he drove away with a good dose of VT's finest. THANK YOU Jeremy! We like you a whole lot! 

So now here we are, rolling through Minnesota. Turning heads and causing accidents. Not really, but I fear we may one of these days. Everyone is so mesmerized by our front door. I pray they don't go texting or picture taking in those little cars of theirs. The world would be a much safer place if we all drove skoolies. Who's with me?!!

Pagoda, the Coyote

Love and Gratitude Soul sister and Warrior Mama. Thank you…

Gordon "Nateguy" Ramsey

A time for all things...and good things come in time...

  

   It was a little chilly this morning. Chilly enough that I pulled out my big cozy sweater to take stalk of our new home in the early morning; Looking at the dew that had settled on our plants hanging off the bus's side mirrors, on the bag of tomatoes from my Dad's garden. Sometime between my last blog post and now, we acquired a bus. Sometime between my last blog post and now, four whole seasons have come and gone. I have turned a year older. We have lived in two different apartments. 

I have attended 7 births. 

We have moved...into a bus! 

    It seems like just a few months ago, we were moving back to Vermont. Digesting the previous months of our lives. Letting the dust settle and recovering from jet lag. It amazing how time stands still when you travel. I felt so PRESENT then. Grateful for the day and the smells and the food and the people and the majesty and the higher spirit. Its easy to be caught up in the mundane. Don't let it happen. Sing to the sun in the morning for its life giving power. Tell your mother, your lover, your brother, another, how gosh darn lucky your are to know them! Do something that absolutely terrifies you like move out of your apartment, quit your job and move into a bus with your honey and your cat. Don't let any fear stop you from living the honest real deal truth of your dreams. 

BE bold. BE silly and make mistakes. BE without a safety net. Don't be afraid to BE authentic.

   I say this as much for myself as for all of you. I decided years ago, that a life lived in fear was a life I never wanted to live. Since then I have worked on knockin' those fears back. Its not always easy and its not always grandiose. The victories are often small but no less fulfilling. Sometimes its as simple as eating something I thought I would never like and sometimes its as complex as being really and truly HONEST with myself. I like slipping up and making 'mistakes'. That's where we truly learn. I love facing my fears. I love Nate more every day for helping me face them and being honest with his own. 

I love our life. And I LOVE that this exact life would only be possible with him in it. 

(For the record, I definitely saw some Unicorns frolicking under the Rainbow)

*****

Did you realize that you have control over your happiness! Regardless of what you have or don't have.

Isn't that amazing!!!

   Nate and I understand that. It isn't always easy to see it in the moment but we understand that we need to be accountable for ourselves and our own lives. Who we spend time with, how we treat others, how accountable we are for every decision, action and reaction. It's really quite simple - we have control over our happiness! I mean it, you REALLY DO!!
Thank you for reading that. I hope it sinks in.

So now without further ado....Lets get down to why you are really here:  to know what the heck is going on with this bus of ours! The month that we moved back to Vermont, last June, we bought a 1998 Bluebird Bus off of Craigslist. You know that feeling when you are traveling and you never want it to end. You just want that feeling of the unknown and the unattached to keep going. Well, we decided for us, the path to that feeling was to...well.... just keep going. On our trip, we had talked about buying a VW bus. I know, how cliche. But it made sense. It was compact, which after living out of a backpack for so long, it seemed almost overwhelming to live in anything larger. To actually have to "deal" with all of our stuff stored away in various basements and realize how little of it we actually needed, well we just were not bold enough to address that yet. It was also nostalgic. I mean, come one, who hasn't dreamed of a road trip in a VW bus?! However, for us New Englander's, there are certain realities like rust which tend to take their toll on those vintage beauties. So, we found the next best thing. - A BUS! She is a well loved ol' gal. Has certainly seen her fair share of Vermont winters. Rust and critters have made themselves quite cozy and it seems like when we fix one little thing, we are really just pulling a tiny string that unravels the whole giant rusty old ball. Thus is our lives -  Loving, repairing things, breathing,power tools, a little swearing, maybe a couple tears and an ever optimistic eye on the road ahead. We admittedly waited far too long to begin repairs and so when our original date of departure (September 1) rolled around, we were far from ready. We finally pulled out of Vermont last week and after more repairs and improvements and lots LOTS of help from family and friends (extra special BIG thanks to Jed and the Corrine St gang, Jean, Kirk, JD and everyone else who laid their hands on this beast) we finally hit the road! Stay tuned for lots of pics and hopefully a good story or two. "Special Purpose" is far from complete, it will be an ever evolving project, much like all of us. Go hug someone and have a great day.
we love you.
xoxo

 **this post was originally started on September 5th and finally posted today, just an idea of how silly busy our days have been!