first day of van dwelling

Today's the day... my first day as a van dweller!

I moved the remainder of my possessions from my temporary home in Redmond into my little travel trailer for storage (it will remain in Redmond for now) then spent the rest of the day in a parking lot, doing some last-minute organizing & getting in a little reading time.

About 9pm, I headed into a nearby neighborhood to find a good spot to camp. I'm on a residential street in an upper middle class area, sort of on a property line next to some tall trees (got the tip online that parking at a property line leads both neighbors to assume you're visiting the other). After parking and drawing the curtains, I noticed there's a streetlight nestled amongst those tall trees-- good for safety, bad for sleep? It's just a couple of weeks past Summer Solstice, so the day is still light. I think it would be better from now on to pull into my camp spot after dark, so as not to draw unnecessary attention, though I think that other online tip to scout out your spot BEFORE dark is also a good idea.

My Westfalia's water system and refrigerator are still untested. Last Friday I pulled off the access flap & lock to the on-board water tank to get it keyed (the previous owner had lost the key), but the locksmith was already closed for the 4th of July weekend.

Thanks to my new external laptop battery, I'll be enjoying a viewing of my Twilight DVD tonight, as I've been saving it for just this occasion.