Introducing our new van/home

Hello everyone :) I figured I'd save myself sometime and just post this for people I think might be interested to see what me and Bret (my partner) have been cooking up. I may not have all my friends and families emails... so if you think someone I know or used to know might want to see what I've been up to... then pass this on. I have pictures in my photo album if you'd like to take a peek :) When Bret and I started dating about 3 years ago we found out we both shared a common dream; living in a motor home. We thought we could build one out of an old U-Haul box truck but found out the hard way that it would take much more money, time, knowledge and most of all landlords who didn't mind the construction of it on thier property. Needless to say we lost a bit of money but had awsome adventures that made it all worth it. We discovered alot about eachother and how we work together... we make a great team! Any hooo.... We started looking at all kinds of motorhomes and new we wanted one that ran off diesel... the ones we checked out where ussually too big, too many miles or didn't come with diesel engines. However there was an intriguing van we kept seeing at festivals called a Sportsmobile. So we checked out the website... they could do custom conversions!!!! COOL! the price tag? Uhhhh welllllll depending on all the bells and whistles you decide to add to a brand new van... they can cost anywhere from $54,000 on up.... we were looking at the on up price tags ;) We decided we'd custom design one and well... it did cost abit of mooollaaaa$ but what ever!!! Dreams shouldn't have price tags ;) and we are extremely happy with our chioces... sooooo we have been waiting about 8 months for this custom van too be built and recently recieved it! YAY!!!!! Eterior description: the hieght is 10' 6" including the 2 large solar panels ontop..... gotta be extra carefull around trees n things! When driving down the highway we can see eye to eye with the big rig drivers... it is 21ft long including the front winch bumper and the back storage box bumper... it's hard to judge how far away your bumpers are from things when driving it... we'll be extra careful! it has electrical hook up capabiltities if we want to plug in at a camper park or someones house.... The solar panels on top are how we will usually power everything inside and out... they charge a huge battery pack under the van so we don't need a generator. We opted for a 4x4 conversion and winch because Bret loves to go snow boarding and we want to go to harder to reach camping areas. We also thought it would come in handy for a piece of property we'd like to homestead in the future... There are outside outlets for whatever (like tools or blenders).... there are exterior lights on both sides. storage containers in both bumpers and an extra container on back... and more...... Interior description: The first things I want to piont out about the interior are the special materials I scouted out. I ordered recycled fabric for our curtains, couch and bed. The fabric is made from recycled polyester and I had it sent to Sportsmobile. I also special ordered and had Sportsmobile custom fabricate out counter tops out of a material called Paper Stone... Paper Stone is made out of recycled paper and resin. we have two refridgerators... one is used as a freezer by turning it all the way up. there is a portable tiolet we can easily transform into a brief case that we can take to any toilet and dump. we have an upper pullout bed we'll sleep in and our couch turns into a short day bed. we have alot of outlet areas and lots of lights. it has a diesel water heater and furnace that take just a tiny bit of fuel from our 46 gallon fuel tank. the sink has a 16 gallon tank and the faucet head of the sink is also a shower head that is long enought o pass out the windows. we had a custom cabinet made for our drinking water containers. so much!!!!! etc... etc.... yadda yadda yadda.... blah blah blah..... it's frikin' self contained and awsome!!!! So we plan on living in this beauty for at least a year or two or.... hmmmmm ;) At first we will be living around Berkeley and working to save up more moooola... I know it may sound a bit strange, unconventional, foriegn, risky, inconvenient or uncomfortable to you... maybe.... maybe not... to us it sounds like an adventure, fun, comfortable, challenging and yes unconventional... we are a bit different you might say :) any hooooo.... that's the up date here on my end... with love and hugs! Liza and Bret