On a side note ...

I wanted to tell you about the "dealership" where we bought the CWV because it's kind of cool. We don't know all of her history, but we do know she spent some time in San Antonio and "was owned and maintained by the government," according to the Craigslist ad. The kid working at the dealership in Cedar Park said he bought her in an auction.

The dealership building is teeny tiny, about the size of my two car garage. Maybe a little smaller. It's like a large shed. A large shed with a sign in the bathroom declaring it a "Man's Place. Leave the Seat Up." (Which, on a second side note, is something we've discussed a few times lately.)

Anyhow, it was a tight space and I had a bunch of questions for the kid while he was trying to get our paperwork together. Yes, it's a family business. A year ago they sold it to a friend who claims to have since made one MILLION dollars off it from charging people $35 a week to park in the lot and advertise their cars. Dang! They also rent back space to sell their own vehicles, a fleet of large passenger vans and busses.

As we were wrapping things up, the kid's dad stopped by with two younger brothers in tow to help clean out a newly acquired blue van. The dad told me they got into this business when they started buying large vehicles to haul all of their FIFTEEN (15!!!) children around in. Same mom. Same dad. ONE of them is adopted. Don't worry, they know which one.

And in case you were wondering, they were ALL homeschooled. "It keeps them pure." And they are all very polite and disciplined. Alls you have to do is take a heavy hand to their backsides for the first 5 years. They learn pretty quick and voila! Great kids! Personally, I couldn't parent that way, but I could see how homeschooling 15 kids could make that necessary. I only met three of the family's kids that night, and they were all super polite and the one who seemed to be running the show really had his act together.

Of course I had about 50 more questions, but our paper CWV plate was printed and laminated in  a hurry, and before we knew it we were out the door ... so I guess that's all we get to know until the next large van purchase ...

junk yard trip #1

Tuesday night SBF went to a junk yard after seeing an ad on Craigslist for a similar van with big front SEATS for sale! WHAT?! He took the seats out -- the plan is to remove the benches from the CWV and put in two more normal seats so we can all ride in style and comfort and SAFETY. He also scored an owner's manual and a big ol' hitch that he is going to bolt onto the back. We need the hitch for the bikes, of course. This was on the priority list so it's a super sweet find. I wish I could have gone to document ... next time!

It all started with a craigslist ad ...

I wish I could say something like, "It all started with a craigslist ad...", but I kind of think it started way before that. But for the purpose of this very first post, It all started with a craigslist ad. A craigslist ad and a 1998 Ford E350 15-passenger van with 46,000 actual miles on it. This thing must've done a lot of siting because I have probably walked more than 46,000 miles since 1998. Well, close to that.

Also, I wish I could say she was in pristine condition and stored in a garage all her 21 years, but then she would have been out of budget. (Wait, was there even a budget for a spur of the moment creepy white van purchase?) Instead she has a rusty bumper, a rusty roof, and her insides are not quite perfect, but actually, not too bad either. I kind of really, REALLY like sitting inside her. She's super cool and spacious and has a lot of potential.

The tricky part, I think, is where to start. It could be really easy to just start DOING and CHANGING random things on her, but I THINK I've convinced my SBF to make a list. We need to prioritize. The good/bad is he actually knows how to turn the potential things into real things (He's crafty and clever and can fix helicopters and bicycles and probably ANYTHING.) so it's gonna be hard to HOLD. HIM. BACK.

We're starting with a tune-up. You know, to make sure she can actually get us places without breaking down. Because that seems the most grown up, (most boring) most important thing to do.

In MY head, the second most important thing would be to make sure we have 2 more seats with headrests, because you know, whiplash. Why are all those seats so low? Didn't people get whiplash in the 1990s?