We have been loosely planning this Airstream adventure since August 30, 2013 when we met up with Richard Spencer on a vacation in France and he told us about his and Polly’s “travelling toaster.”  Sitting in the drawing-room of a Normandy château the size of Montana, this notion of living small and eating tuna noodle casserole intrigued us.  Anyway, it seemed like a good idea at the time.

Why rent when you can buy!  After extensive research on Airstream Classifieds.com and pouring over all the available floor plans and models on the Airstream website, we plunked down cash money for a mint condition 2007 Safari 75th Anniversary Special Edition 28 foot front bedroom model, for those of you who are into Airstreams and know what all that means.   I loved it for the floor plan and design features (separate shower, big pantry and all-purpose closet, queen size bed, panoramic windows, deep round kitchen sink and sage green & white Tattersall upholstery on the seat cushions). Brad loved it for all its “systems”, the rivited aluminum skin inside and out, and the fact that we bought it from a fellow engineer who took meticulous care of it and kept records of every conceivable detail.  During the 227 days leading up to our first serious voyage to the American West, Brad replaced all the systems (whether they needed it or not — because he loves tinkering with “his own personal space shuttle”)  and made all kinds of adjustments to make the interior more convenient and aesthetic.  Some of his clever doings:

1.  Installed satellite TV, including a 32 inch screen in the living room that swivels into a vertical position for traveling — secured by two jaunty bright red bungee cords — and ran the wires through the wall and under the refrigerator, so there are no visible cables hanging down.

2.  Added shelves in the hall closet which perfectly fit ten colorful cloth folding storage bins I got from Target.  These make great versatile packing containers for anything from lace underwear to single malt scotch.

3.  The left side of the hall closet now contains the control panels for the satellite TV and all other electronic systems.  He also included a narrow shelf in the hall closet with ten million electrical hookups for charging and storing all our electronic gizmos out of sight.

4.  Added moveable wooden dividers in the over counter storage binds (velcro attachments) which keep plates and dishes vertical and secure for travel.

5.  Added a headboard over the bedroom window so we can sit in bed and read without leaning on the screen.

6.  Bought a brand spanking new Ram Laramie 2500 truck with a Cummins diesel engine and a serious trailer hitch.  This thing would pull me out of the water on a slalom.  After a full lunch.

My contribution:

1.  I decorated the hell out of the trailer — mostly with bright-colored cushions, funky light fixtures and several changeable vintage table cloths and bed coverings — to stave off boredom on the road keep things interesting and light-hearted.  I also bought groceries.

Now we are ready to go!

dining room
still at the farm