is there anybody out there?

hello blogosphere, i miss you. while i can't commit to coming back full blast just yet, i've been thinking about it, and feeling the need to share my life again. but i'm also in school full time, very busy and not too sure when i can really devote a spare minute to this endeavor. anyway, i'm here. and i want to move back into a van really bad, but i'm caught up in regular life pretty deep right now. will share soon. in the meantime check out the only new link i've posted in a long time-- this guys site: jason from vanabode, he's pretty awesome and his book is full of information which i will review on this blog from my own experience when i have a chance. www.vanabode.com

sold

the van has been sold! to a very cool chick from chicago who plans to live in it and will undoubtedly take it on many more adventures.

her blog www.tashaviaf.blogspot.com will chronicle the milestones, i'm sure. i wish her all the luck, joy, independence and satisfaction in the world.

what a long strange trip it's been.

thanks for tuning in, wrapping up, and moving onward!

chateau for sale!!

hello everyone, i don't know how many of you still check in here since i've been off for so long, but i thought it would be worth a try! i'm selling my trusty van, my former home, my beloved companion --the freedomvan. it is parked at my dad's office in central pennsylvania and i intend to have it in running condition before the sale (last i knew it was running great, but it's been a year so...) if you or anyone you know has an interest in this home on wheels, please email me.

it looks like i'm settling down for a while in hawaii, i've lived in a house for almost a year and we will likely stay here for another. simon is having much success as a tattoo artist, and i have gotten my massage practice going and am still working at a restaurant part time. there seems to be plenty for us to dig our hands into with many new projects and plans on the horizon. that's why i've decided to let go of the chateau, pass it on to someone who will enjoy it's affordable comforts and freedoms before they deteriorate. it makes me smile to think of some kindred soul getting behind the wheel and journeying on across america.

for pics of the van look here.

i'm asking $1900, make an offer!

freedomvan@gmail.com

all pau

this blog has been fading out for a while, and i guess it's time to admit it's all 'pau' (hawaiian for 'over', 'done', 'complete'). wrapping my mind around all that has happened this year, i am so grateful for the journey, the daily unfolding of surprises, and the place i landed.

i just had another birthday--31 now. i remember last year's birthday, my parents came to visit me in colorado, i showed them my van set-up, we cavorted around the mountains reconnecting our family ties, and i began to relax into my singleness. i'd made it to 30 without any serious commitments, why not use my lightness as a birds advantage and take off into the wind? the seed of my next adventure was planted, i would make one of my big dreams come true--living in a tropical paradise.

fast forward to today. i woke up cradled in the gentle embrace of a man i'd given up hoping for, in a place of unending blooming beauty, myriad birds singing me out of bed and into another day of perfection. i can't remember if i've ever been this happy. i don't expect it will last forever, but i'm going to ride this wave to the shore, and then i'm setting up my home there.

from here on out, it's our adventure. i may end up heartbroken, but i'm ok with that, this is worth it. maybe we'll move back to the mainland, pick up the chateau faded rainbow and rattle off onto the blue highways together, and if so, i may resume this blog. but for now, we are cozily nestled in our island incubator, thoughts of leaving far from our minds, and i feel more like keeping my heart a secret than blasting it into the storm of the internet.

until we meet again, mahalo nui loa to you wayfaring strangers, long time friends, family, and vandwellers....

settling in

on the first rainy day in may, it's time to envision the next stage of life here in hawaii. i have the urge to dig deep, to commit, to rededicate myself to massage and bodywork. it is my gift, one of them at least, and the one that is most accessible. i have three more days at abundant life, and i've decided after that to work on building a practice, getting an office, and taking a workshop or two, there are so many on this island. massage has been the closest thing to my life's work, and though i don't feel complete in it, i know continuing on is an important part of getting to that fulfilled place. part of my problem in everything i do is that i love to start things, but have a hard time finishing them or even getting to 'level 2'. i am a perpetual beginner. but the wheel of life keeps turning and i am more and more attracted to maturity, longevity, and depth.

on a parallel track, simon is mid-way through his apprenticeship to become a tattoo artist. he's always been an artist, and he recently the opportunity to join up with a local tattoist to learn the trade. he'll be able to start tattooing this summer sometime, but it will take a few years, preferably in the same location, to become truly proficient and build a clientele. i figure, if we're going to be together, i might as well do the same. i think it's kinda awesome that we are both 'bodyworkers' from different angles with similar aims--to help people heal, transform, and enjoy their bodies as the vessels for their souls.

my days of ceaseless wandering may be over. for now.

liking where i am

i didn't get it. i was pretty bummed, and pouted around for a while, but i'm over it now. i'm actually looking forward to having alot of time to devote to non-work related things. once i'm done at abundant life, i will only be working 3 or 4 nights a week, so my days will be mine to do what i please. and what i please is a new project...see there's this path out our backyard, and it leads to the ocean where there is a cliff and a beach down below, and no one has been there yet because we need a ladder. well, we bought the rope yesterday to make the ladder, and that's just one part of the project. there's a camping spot there by the cliff, a super sweet camping spot, the kind you could see as home with a little cleaning up and a few tarp structures. see where this is going?

i also took a good long look at the yard today, it's amazing. there's so much here to care for, prune, cultivate, enjoy. i'm digging in to this jungle, learning what is growing around me, and relaxing into where i am. i really like where i am.

worky jerky

i'm sitting around with the animals, trying to think of what to write. it's not flowing like it used to, i wonder why i'm so dry. could be a case of work overload--i asked to go to part time at abundant life, but they never did get around to changing my schedule and i've been working 3 or 4 nights a week at the grill. this pattern was about to drive me batty when i threw a wrench in it's works and quit abundant life. yes, it's been a good run, but it's far too much work for far too few rewards. i mined the most valuable resource there, simon, and it was time to get out. the canary keeled over and i felt myself starting to crumble under the weight of hours lost to the drudgery of the timeclock. this is not why i moved to hawai'i, i moved here to enjoy myself, have an adventure, fall in love.

while i'm quite sure i'll be fine with only working at the grill, there is another prospect on the horizon. surprised by a phone call from the manager at the best restaurant in hilo, i had a really good interview with her last week. i dropped my resume there months ago when i was on the hunt, and apparently they found it good enough to hold onto. if i got this job, it would be similar to the job i had in denver, casual fine dining, upscale clientele, good wine and food. if my earnings were comparable to what i made in denver, my life here would be so incredibly comfortable. i could even afford to go to my brother's wedding in europe this fall. i think i have a good shot at landing the job, i'm certainly qualified, i just don't know if they interviewed someone more charming or funny than me. seems unlikely though, really :)

it looks like things could get pretty settled around here for a while. i have no desire to leave, but i do miss my friends who are frolicking on unicorn mountain without me in colorado. i hope they all miss me real bad.