Its Almost Time

Kickin Up Dust by Robert Walter’s Super Heavy Organ
[audio:http://ia310129.us.archive.org/2/items/rwsho2005-08-19.flac/rwsho2005-08-19d2/rwsho05-08-19d2t01_64kb.mp3]

I’m selling the ~$400 of stock I have tomorrow, so I can get that money by the time I’ll need it. That money should put me at almost exactly $2000 to spend on a bus, which should be plenty. I’m planning on picking up a early 90s bus with around 120k miles on it, somewhere between 36 and 40 feet long. In a perfect world, I would have bought this bus. But the timing wasn’t right, the price ended up higher than I wanted it to, and it was in Montana. A bus that fits my needs will come around, I just hope I don’t need to wait too long.

My dad was trying to persuade me to buy something smaller, so I could use it as a day-to-day vehicle. He encouraged me to look at box trucks, step vans (UPS-like vans), or even just fullsize vans. I get where he is coming from, but I really am looking for a dedicated roadtrip machine. I’ll still use it as a day-to-day vehicle, in spite of the impracticality of it, because it is so incredibly novel. Even though I have no intention of buying notabus, I took a look at what else eBay had to offer me.

I wasn’t too impressed by any of the vehicles my dad suggested to me, but I’m glad I looked around, because I found eBay Motor’s Emergency and Fire Trucks section. Yes, you can buy fire trucks. They’re actually quite reasonably priced. I am a happier person now that I know that I can buy a fire truck on a whim. But what is really interesting about this section is that I discovered ambulances. They’re perfect for live-in vehicles. I’m not talking about ambulances that are just significantly modified vans, but the ambulances that have a massive box for a back-section.

They are tall enough for me to stand in, they already have a bed, electrical setup, air conditioning, and they have access to the cab. They’re also decently cheap (<$5k for a decent one). I would love to buy one, but I figure at most six people could stay in one, and that would be tight as hell. I figure I’ll buy one after I’m done touring with lots of people. An ambulance is perfect for a solo trip, or a trip with four or fewer people. You don’t need a special license to drive them, and overall they seem to be pretty comfortable living. I’m watching this one. Again, not intention of buying, but I’m going to keep it in mind, for future plans.