and who are you?

[wonderkaty]

thanks y'all for your replies on what you "do." here are 3 follow up questions that I was thinking about today (while miserably temping):

1. how old (or young ) are you?

2. what inspired your bus trip/lifestyle?

3. is this your only/one of many (if so what others) adventures/dreams realized?


and I will start:

1. I am a mere spring chicken at 23 (although I will be 24 next thursday, for anyone wanting to keep track )

2. I will admit, again, that my main inspiration was/is the electric mayhem bus from the muppet movies. I mean, honestly, what inspires a more fun trip than a pair of best friends, a bear and a frog, singing about "moving right along..... getting there is half the fun, come share it with me" (oh! please note, in the song "moving right along" fozzie says: "we'll hitch-hike, BUS or yellow cab it, cabbit?!" <-- I took that and ran with it!).

3. well, my bus trip is one of the first of hopefully many great adventures that I dreamt up, thought through and followed through on. I did manage to sail around the caribbean on a 120 foot sailing schooner for a couple months for school (tough life, I know). my next plan: perhaps working in antartica? I will keep you posted.

I look forward to "getting to know" y'all!
thanks!

 

[stego]

Old/Young? Hmmmm......
Well, much to my astonishment I have made it past the 1/2 Century mark!

I'm sure this isn't PC but Kesey's "Further" was an inspiration! (Hey - it was the 60's!) In fact - I even painted the famous:
"You're either on the bus - or off the bus."
on the header panel of mine. Also I like to do raft trips, and after too many trips with 4-5 vehicles and all the assorted problems w/ caravans and such, I decided 1 bus was much less hassle. (Plus - a bunch more fun.)

Not hardly - but the buses have played a role in many of them. I'm also a sailor (landlocked at present), and have also sailed the east coast, to Greenland (Brrrrr!) and some on the left coast. I do a bunch of different rafting trips - my fav. is the Grand. Plus skiing, hiking, blah,blah.......

Almost worked on "the Ice", have a buddy that's worked there for years (Gonzo - where are you?), but that adventure never quite came together.

Later -

stego

 

[system-f]

I am a 25 year old wana-bee school owner. 26 this month.

The bus is inspired by my outdoorsy lifestyle and our overland/camping trips. I have always had a thing for big/medium duty trucks and what better way to own one than a school.

 

[lblampman]

I just turned 51 in mid-October; "my how time flies" is about the truest cliche that was ever writ.

I grew up with a father in the Navy and we moved a lot. I've been nomadic ever since; it's only been the last few years that I stayed in one place longer that a couple of years. Now I'm ready to hit the road again; I've seen most of the U.S. and a lot of Canada but a lot of the time it's been in short bursts and now I want to go back and spend some time in various areas. The bus seemed like the perfect vehicle for exploration on a modest budget and I could build the interior just the way we wanted it (velour, gilt edge and mirrors don't seem to go with muddy Cattle Dogs). My wife is an artist (painter) and I needed to design a work space for her into the bus' layout; something I couldn't do with a factory-built RV.

A dream I've always had and likely not bring to fruition is long-distance sailing; my wife just isn't an over-the-horizon type gal although we enjoyed living on a boat for a number of years. However, she spent 4 years on the road with me in an 18-wheeler as a co-driver so she's really comfortable with going just about anywhere in the bus.

 

[vonslatt]

1. I'm 43 - but only chronologically

2. Well, I already mentioned the camping thing - in addition I've always wanted a motorhome for exploring the country, so much of what is really interesting is tucked away, you have to stumble across it.

I'm am also a BIG narrow boat fan. England is criscrossed with thousands of miles on canals and you can rent a 7' wide 45' (up to 70') long diesel powered steel hulled boat to explore the countryside. I've done this about half a dozen times now. Here are some links if you're interested:

http://www.black-prince.com/boats.html
http://www.viking-afloat.com/content_fr.htm

I've piloted a boat over this aquaduct several times, it is an amazing example of industrial revolution engineering - built when our country (US) was still a teenager.

http://www.joe.shakespeare.btinternet.co.uk/llangollen.htm

Infact, I have been thinking of "the bus" as a sort of "American Narrowboat" and and thinking of painting it in a traditional canal boat style.

http://www.canaljunction.com/narrowboat/decoration.htm
http://www.starling101.btinternet.co.uk/canals/roses.htm
http://coventgardencrafts.com/young.html

3. Other dreams ? Well, when I was a kid, "the bus" was a spaceship and the dream was exploring the galaxy rather then the countryside - but that requires infrastructure that just isn't available yet! ;-) Anyway, lots to see on this planet! Yep, I'm an SF fan - though more of a "Firefly" fan then a "'scaper" like SoulTrader! ;-) In fact, "The Bus" may just end up named "Serenity" if the kids' "Buckbeak" doesn't win out!

My other passion is bicycling and human powered vehicles - you can see some of that on my own website at http://www.vonslatt.com . I'll also be documenting the bus project here once I begin.

Cheers,

Jake.

[/url]

 

[Eric von Kleist]

Who dat?

1. how old (or young Wink) are you?

I am older than some islands, but younger than most stars. In people years, that's 43 chronologically, but mentally I'm younger. (It makes me feel better to say that.)

2. what inspired your bus trip/lifestyle?

I have always wanted to get a school bus and live in it. I don't know why. I can't remember much of my life when I haven't thought about it. I know that when I was about 6 I was thinking about it, but it once I grew up it seems like I let social expectations (and my wife) rather than my own likes and inclinations dictate what was appropriate consumption (house, car, TEEVEE, etc.)

3. is this your only/one of many (if so what others) adventures/dreams realized?

I don't have one. Yet. As I said in the What Do You Do post, I'm living with my soon to be ex-wife. If I can swing the purchase of a bus with my income tax refund, I hope to get one. Then I'll be in school and living in a bus. That would be cool.

 

[SeanF-SKO]

1. 33 trips around the sun so far.

2. 2 reasons for the skoolie conversion

(a) I wanted to take a motorcycle trip to Baja this autumn, and had no luck trying to find a window when I could take a few weeks off from work. Couldn't be done! ...so I thought, "Wouldn't it be easier to just live & work there for part of the winter?"

(b) It's somethng I've always wanted to do (live in an RV and travel/work). Since I work from home (see other thread!) via the magic of internet, I can take my job on the road.

3. Every day I'm alive is a dream realized!

 

[Quest_techie]

1. 17 until january the 8th at which point I am legally accountable for my own actions (yikes)

2. I think I wen t on to rant on about this in the "do" post, But I'm just trying to get a good running start from american culture ,see those things it has created before leaving it behind to pursue...

3. My dream of a P.h.D in history and perhaps teaching it at strode university in glastonbury, this particular dream made sense for awhile, but themore I personally change the less sense teaching history in a structured setting makes to me, I want to make a difference in the world and I know I have the capacity, but I don't know if I'm looking in the right direction.

 

[wonderkaty]

it has been a while since anyone has commented on this thread and I think there are a few new members who might not have seen it..... I love hearing who fellow bus people are so please reply if you havent

and here is a new set of questions to add to it:

4. what is your favorite place you have been with your bus?
and
5. what countries have you been in, and have you seen converted buses there?


I will answer first

4. my bus trip focused mostly on the national parks west of the mississippi river. wow, they were ALL amazing. I have to say that zion and bryce in utah were great surprises to me, as was the badlands in south dakota. and as for staying somewhere in a bus, joshua tree was outstanding, very surreal <-- we had to spend the day in a cave and drive at night since it was so hot. ALL gorgeous! perhaps the most exciting place to drive the bus that we went to was highway 101 (is that right?) on the coast of California. whoa, some of those curves in a 71-passenger bus, with a huge drop-off on the otherside.... not a way to travel for the fein of heart. has anyone else tried that?

5. I have had the great pleasure of traveling a bunch in the last couple of years (mostly through school) and I have been to a number of outstanding places. the coolest places I have seen converted buses, however, were new zealand (where they even have a hostel that is a converted bus that you can stay in for 10 dollars a night!) and south africa, where I meet a 'crazy' woman who was living in a broken down school bus in the kalahari desert. if I ever get technologically advanced enough, I will scan pictures for y'all.


okay, your turn!

 

[captainkf]

what's with you?

I am 27 and have just finished another Degree from university. I think this will be it for a while . I got the bus to move my wife Margot, my two dogs and myself across canada where she is going to University at Dalhousie. It has turned into quite the obsession. We just got unpacked and I already started removing walls and buying new equipment for the next renovation. Oh good times.

I hadn't thought of owning or living in a bus prior to owning one. The bus was cheaper (seemingly ) than buying a moving truck. Now that I have I love it. We saw so many great things because we were able to travel like turtles.

I used to camp but I have had a back injury so am now unable to camp (tent) for long. I still bike, climb and do generally outdoorsy things but now I can sleep well.

The best place I have been in the bus is a tough question. I would have to split it: one would be the Slocan valley in BC and the other is living on a beach in Nova Scotia called Lawerencetown. Both were free, beautiful and scenic. The mountain biking was great in B.C. and the surfing is great in Lawerncetown.

It's been nice getting to know you all a bit better. -Richard

 

[Eric von Kleist]

I don't have one. Yet. As I said in the What Do You Do post, I'm living with my soon to be ex-wife. If I can swing the purchase of a bus with my income tax refund, I hope to get one. Then I'll be in school and living in a bus. That would be cool.

Okay, I got the bus. I'm living in it. I'm going to school. It's all cool.

WHERE ARE THE CHIQUITAS?!?!?

Y'all promised me there would be chiquitas! Or maybe that was just the voices in my head...

 

[Griff-SKO]

They're the long yellow-green things over in the fresh produce section.

 

[Eric von Kleist]

That's about as close as I've been, let me tell you!

 

[phillbus914]

1. I just turned 24 last Friday.

2. Nothing really inspried me to get a bus, I've just always wanted to live in a bus, ever since I can remember riding the bus to school I would dream about how the lay out would be. During school I would always draw up floor plans and my friends would add wierd stuff to it and tell me how crazy the idea was. I bought my bus in June of 04 when I was 22.

3. I havent really had any adventures in it yet, I would really like to travel in it but as of right now I'm tied down with a job and a house payment ect.. I do like having the bus as a back-up home. I like the thought that no matter what I'll always have a roof over my head. Also I have enough saved up that if I get fired or whatever I can go about a year before I have to worry about finding another job.

4. I dont really have a favorite place to go with the bus yet, hopefully I'll get to take a trip with it when I get my weeks vacation in march 06

5. The only other country I've been too is Canada, but I didnt see any busses there, at least not in Winsor.

 

[66ChevyTailgater]

1.25

2. Tailgating and a love for Kansas State University

3. We wanna have the most functional and most enjoyable tailgate bus around.

 

[Puggy-ClassB]

I just discovered the "narrow boat" thing online, and oh man, is this ever a parallel to skoolies or what!? It's like a skoolie, with the chance of drowning as Mark Twain might say

 

[Skoolydoo]

I am a ole man, have lived 2 plus times longer than most of you. When I look in the mirror I still see a young man looking back, I have traveled all my life, been as Far East as you can go without calling it west.
I don't swim so I keep my A$$ out of the water.
I am bidding right now on my first shoolie, my wife and I will fix it to our liking, then set out to see America again
Over the road truck driver for almost 40 years. Now it's time to stop and see all those cool places I had to drive by so that you all could have your fun things in life..
So I will see you on the road sometime.
Peace out brothers and sisters as they said in the 60s yes I remember those days..