LOSING IT IN TEXAS

The first five and a half months in my van were spent mostly in the comfort and safety of my parents’ driveway in Sarasota, Florida. I hadn’t planned it that way. I’d started my grand van life journey, having exited corporate America and never-ending rent increases in our nation’s capital, only to wind up at my parents’ place.

I drove to Florida in October with the plan to leave after Thanksgiving. But it was too cold everywhere out west come December, and wouldn’t I like to celebrate my parents’ birthdays in the Caribbean with them? Oh, and I just made new friends here that are so much fun, I don’t want to leave them! And my relatives are coming to visit in March! My planned two-month departure date came and went, and I found myself settling into the van, tires stationary on the driveway, from where I could easily access the loving support of my mom and dad—as well as their free hot showers (no shower shoes required!).

By mid