Which Direction am I going?

Hello from the Cumberland Plateau and Spencer, TN,

I arrived here on Saturday night, almost a week ago, having traveled from the Quad Cities, with a stop in Fenton, Missouri, and then back through the tip Illinois and north to south through the corner of Kentucky. For the most part, the drive was good and the weather very reasonable. There was a slight mishap on the narrow two-lane Bridgeport Bridge between Illinois and Kentucky, when a larger vehicle also with wide mirrors, clipped my mirror. I thought I was as far to the right as I could be, but to know avail. The impact pushed my mirrors into my driver side window and shattered it. I pulled over at the end of the bridge and waited, but no one came back; so I drove about 30 miles to Paducah, Kentucky, covered in glass, where I stopped at a Safelite Auto Glass shop. A profoundly kind shop worker there, one named Logan, helped me clean up all the glass and attempted to put a temporary fix on my door. Unfortunately, the temporary fix did not work, and after about 30 miles I took the plastic off and drove the west of the way with no window. That extended time, which had me driving after dark, kept me from making my final destination of Wanderlust Waypoints. I decided, because I had no idea of the roads or where I was staying once I arrived, to get a hotel in McMinnville, a town about 20 miles away. Is it rain that evening, but fortunately not very hard so I had no water to really worry about inside the bus. So last Sunday morning, I arrived here to begin the interior bus build in earnest.

The bus building camp is very rustic, and even a little disconcerting, but there are tools in abundance, toilet, and shower facilities, and the proprietor and two people living on property are very helpful. Currently, there are about eight of us working on builds, and the majority of the people here are willing to work together, asking questions, offering advice, and coming to solutions in the building process. There are two people in particular who have unparalleled in their help, expertise, and kindness, helping this somewhat fish out of water work on his bus. They are both in their 30s. The window was replaced on Tuesday by Safelite on site, and the replacement mirror should be at O’Reilly Auto Parts tomorrow. Each day I have learned something new about reality of the shuttle bus industry, and what most of these places in Indiana did with a cab, engine, a drivetrain, and a chassis. What is built, at least in 1999, was nothing that tremendous. Two 16th or 8th inch pieces of fiberglass around 3/4 inch plywood is about 90% of the shell behind the cab. There is no insulation, and the wiring would make my electrician. Father roll over in his grave.

That being said, every single day has been a learning experience about what not to do when building my bus. Again, fortunately one of my building colleagues, whose name is Brenton (or Brent) is incredibly knowledgeable about most everything, and his willingness to work with me and teach me is beyond generous. Andrew, one of the people here on the property, is also profoundly knowledgeable and generous in his willingness to help. The two of them along with Brenton‘s mother have made the week really quite enjoyable and productive. Back in January and February, when I was painting the bus, all the lights, from headlights to tail lights, and clearance lights were all replaced. The clearance lights worked prior to replacing them, but getting to the wiring after removing the old ones, was incredibly difficult. So I actually hoped the Ford dealer would take care of that issue when they did some other work. That did not happen. In retrospect, that might’ve been a blessing because now the wiring, which was terrible, has been replaced. in the process I’ve learned about connectors called WAGOs, wiring ends called Ferrules, and crimpers called Kneipex. The need for soldering or connectors that require heat are no longer needed. It’s really quite wonderful. It took a day or two, but all the clearance lights are working. While not every day, regular trips to O’Reillys, Lowe’s, or a food store are par for the course. The morning seems to be talking over the strategy for the day and what best to work on first. Likewise, there are things to do to help them in their path. There are times I am a go-for and times I am doing actual work. I’ve also put my cooking skills to work for the good of Brent and his mom. I’ve also worked on some additional body work with sanding, painting, and there are some (hopefully) minor issues with the front fabricated door and its locking, but we hope to remedy that tomorrow.

What is certainly apparent is the importance of detail and considering every possibility of breakdown and making sure it doesn’t happen. This is where the expertise and knowledge of my two partners is invaluable. One piece of advice I was given my back in January was to not build myself into a corner. Between Brent and Andrew, I’m quite sure that won’t happen. The second thing really apparent is that things will not go as quickly as I hope, and understanding that is OK is an important lesson. In the meanwhile, I am sleeping in the bus in a sleeping bag on an air mattress. It is not luxurious, and being able to jump in the shower and be as clean as I’m used to being is certainly not something that will happen easily. However, there is a Planet Fitness in McMinnville. I will be making use of it with my membership. There is something of extreme importance to understand here in the bus village. We are community and no matter what your background you are just another builder; we are dependent on the graciousness of each other and our willingness to help the other person. It is an incredible equalizer and it helps you see people beyond your initial impression. There is a couple that have a long bus and are here long-term. They are gracious and kind, but not as much a part of the community. There is another couple who have been here in the past and are back. Their camaraderie and willingness to ask questions and offer thoughts make them a wonderful part of our group. There is a second Andrew here and he works a lot, but he is sort of the caretaker of the place, and I appreciated getting to know him and learned that he has a background in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Those connections are important when it comes to appreciation and consideration of the other person.

And yet, the outside world continues. I spent part of the last two days trying to manage how to move money from here to Europe, and I still don’t have it completely figured out. I’m not sure Labor Day weekend is the best weekend to accomplish more. I also spent time this week, managing mail, prescriptions, health, insurance, and all the other things that sit in the background, as I am somewhat isolated here in Central Tennessee. Fortunately, the weather has been outstanding. It does seem a little bit like fall, and it is strange to not be back in the classroom. Thank you to all of you who have reached out and responded on Facebook, TikTok, or Instagram. I will continue to post the progress, and I still will need to be back in Pennsylvania before the end of September. You can follow me at some of the hashtags that are connected to the post. I wish you all a happy holiday weekend as we head into September. My music video for this post seems to describe life as I am experiencing it at the moment.

Thank you for reading.

Michael