As you rock up to work and reach for the Tetley’s, spare a quick thought for a couple who have chosen a very different work/life regime. One that involves a T25 called Boscha, lots of travel – and a host of new and exciting challenges that will no doubt shape and enrich their lives forever…
Kayak guide Corey Smith and website developer Emily King set out to see if they could combine an adventurous nomadic lifestyle with a traditional 9-5 business career using their 1987 T25 Vanagon as a mobile home, office space and means to travel from one work opportunity to another. Basically, it was an experiment to see if the two historically different paths could be merged and to discover what could be learned from the experience. And whether it would all be worthwhile…
They left New England in January 2013 to embark on a simple lifestyle on the road, while at the same time running a web development company. Thus far, their journey has taken them on a wild ride of ups and downs and has included inclement weather, breakdowns, broken bones, meeting new clients and new friends, as well as moments of bliss and mind-blowing beauty. It’s all told on their site Where’s my office now? – and what a wonderful tale it is…
Needless to say they are the first to admit that it’s not all been plain sailing. “Van life isn’t as romantic, simple and easy as some of you may envisage. Sometimes, basic tasks like keeping food cool, washing dishes and staying dry are daily challenges that consume a lot of time…”
All of which has led to the intrepid duo carrying out a range of modifications to make living and working in a van far easier and more organised, including installing food storage and refrigeration, a solar battery setup, a solar heated pressurised shower and even a special roof rack for the pop top roof to stow more stuff. Helpfully, the precise details of what work they’ve done and how they did it is also contained on their site.
As their experiment into a very different and radical way of combining work and life continues, more information and experience is being gathered. “What we are learning as we continue down this road is that embracing the unknown and pursuing dreams are challenging, but absolutely worth it.”
It’s certainly an inspiring story and one that will undoubtedly make anyone reading it feel the urge ditch their lunchbox, grab their passport and laptop and jump in their bus…
And actually, what’s stopping you?
Ian
The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of the author and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of VW Heritage