Back in the van

A fairly relaxing morning for me – bath which the kids got into after me, then some breakfast and then a bit of online stuff. I did the SORN for Willow, went through a pile of paperwork and dealt with a couple of things that needed doing. I have a phonecall to the CCCS still on my ‘job list’ which I am putting off but will make, probably next week now. Along with cancelling the insurance for Willow, thinking about Christmas and Scarlett’s birthday, sorting out my Secret Santa present. Oh and the application for the croft!

Ady did some hedge cutting with my Dad, who seems fairly hell bent on keeping him working at least twice a week. He’s going to help with some painting somewhere at the weekend. I can’t complain when we’re there rent free but it does feel rather like our feet have not touched the ground yet since we arrived.

We all had lunch and then we packed up enough stuff for one night (which as all campers know seems to be not much less than for a week) and headed over to the campsite where Caz and Bid are living at the moment, via Lance to drop the Sharan off for an MOT tomorrow and Sainsburys for food supplies for the evening.

Caz and Bid are currently living between a 1968 Bedford truck converted into campervan with woodburner and cooker, and a little two berth caravan with awning parked up on a little campsite. They also have a van and a car and are selling at various markets and other outlets locally, seasonal and local food from a stall. They are doing well, despite the obvious challenges of living that lifestyle. It’s been a fantastic evening, the kids had a ball together and the four of us sat first in their van and then in ours, ate and drank and just laughed together, swapping stories and dreams and plans. It’s so interesting telling different sets of friends about our ideas for Rum and the croft, what their reactions are and what they percieve to be the bits we’d struggle with or be just fine about. You can’t help reacting to people’s choices in relation to yourself so for someone living in a very conventional way something like the croft on Rum seems mental whereas for another family living in a truck, in tune with land and produce and with few material possessions or ties to the conventional world it all seems exciting and full of opportunity. Which is not to say I don’t value the questions and challenges and ideas and opinions of everyone else because I do but it’s pretty refreshing to have someone’s only reaction being enthusiasm, excitement and many positive vibes to match our own. Hanging out with fellow dreamers is awfully good for one’s own dreams 🙂 I spent many an hour, drunk, the wrong side of midnight in my teens, with fellow passionate teens working out how I was going to help change the world. This year I’ve had those same sorts of converations with people again, often sober and over a cup of tea resting on a fork in a field with muddy boots but with the same flavour of excitement and possibility. Maybe it’s just as misguided and idealistic and pie in the sky now as it was 20 years ago but it sure feels possible and exciting and worth doing :).

After dinner (sausages) we all had pudding – Bid had bought two fancy desserts from Sainsburys so we send half of each over to the kids who were hanging out in their van and we dug into the other two halves with a spoon each before we collected Davies and Scarlett and Caz and Bid went to bed. It was a fantastically clear starry night so the four of us (Goddards) stood star gazing for a while before coming in to marvel at how spacious the van feels without all our stuff in it. This is Davies and Scarlett’s last night in Willow, we’re at Chris and Julie’s on Thursday with it before we put her into storage but the kids are invited to sleep in the house with Jack and Maisie so it will just be Ady and I in the van.