Runaway Home- the book that started it all for me as a kid

[dburt]

This is the book that started it all for me years ago. I own the 1942 and 1957 editions. In about the 4th grade I got a hold of this 6th grade "Alice and Jerry series" reading book and was captivated by the story of the family that traveled from the east coast to a new life in Washington state with thier car and house/camp trailer in tow. I was transported to another dimension, this was good stuff! So ever since I have "had a thing" for the nomadic lifestyle, exploring new places and seeing different things. When I was a kid, we lived in small towns and did not travel much except to go see relatives, we did not even have a TV in our house until I was 16! So the thought of visiting exotic places and all the cool things to see while going down the road in my own mobile dwelling was quite a dream for me! Over the years that graduated to the concept of a bus or truck house, something with my own touch and creativity. Over the years I have owned quite a few nice Rvs, camp trailers and motorhomes, but it is not the same as making your own with your own distinctive touch and imagination thrown in. The last 10 years or so I got into the antique and vintage camp trailer thing, buying and selling them over ebay and sites like maxitear.com. I was under the heavy influence of Craig Dorsey at Vintage Vacations and the excellant and exciting work he was doing. I even sold him a nice Vagabond trailer. But those dreams planted by the book Rolling Homes have never totally gone away. Now that I am past 50 and getting closer to 60, I realize too that I don't have the energy and drive I had when I was 30 and it makes me sad. But such is life, we go on and sometimes branch out in new and easier directions for our creative outlets. Converting a bus would be easier then starting from scratch with a house truck on an military deuce platform. Ah... but the other side of me says "that the deuce housetruck would be a heavy duty, go anywhere all wheel drive adventure rig". But the older more cautious side of me says "do you really want to do all that work, and spend all that money you don't really have?" (My deuce is worth quite a bit more then the bus that I have, and the bus already has the roof and walls- the basics are in place!) So- that should be a more economical build. Plus the bus has power steering, and auto transmission and good air brakes. You can work on it inside during inclement weather. (My bus is too long for my shop, but the deuce would fit inside- there I go again, arguing with myself!) Oh the decisions we face sometimes!! Now as I have said on a previous post, if the deuce would sell first, I could keep the bus and try and live the dream, make it a reality and at the same time do it cheaper and easier then a from-the-frame-up housetruck! But then the bus would not go out in the desert as easily or up in the mountains on the primitive and rough roads where I like to explore. Oh man, I better quit before I argue myself into a corner!

[Sharkey]

Ha, and here I thought that Runaway Home was going to be a story about how a housetruck lost it's brakes on a steep grade...

Glad to see that you got the image posting thing worked out.

[dburt]

Well Sharkey, that possible loss of brakes issue further compounds my dilema because the deuce trucks have air over hydraulic brakes, and do not have a dual system master brake cylinder like more modern vehicles. So if you lose a wheel cylinder, brake fluid hose or master cylinder you are headed for deep and serious trouble at the bottom of the hill. The bus has real air brakes, that is a plus!!

[Rudy]

DB, It is nice to see that you are posting cool stuff. I, too, am in my late 50s. It is true that my energy level wanes at this age. I think that Sharkey is around our age group. It seems, however, that he has more energy to accomplish tasks than ten of me. Perhaps he did not fry as many brain cells as I have.

[dburt]

Rudy, it is good to find a group of like minded folks to share neat stuff with! The older we get, the harder it is to live by our wits, since I myself am getting rather short of them. I think I expended to many valuable brains cells by breathing too many welding fumes and breathing in too much wood dust. Since it is said that ignorance is bliss, perhaps I am headed for a very blissful state. Years ago I used to do alot of cut steel artwork and furniture building, this was before the more common use of a laser to cut steel, so I used a plasma arc cutter alot. And then I welded together my creations. Even though I tried to be very careful about inhaling the fumes, I know that I was not always 100% successful. If I knew then I would have lived this long, I would have taken better care of myself! Sharkey seems to have lots of energy and multi-tasks well also it appears. Perhaps it was that good clean living and vegetarian diet he indulged in all these years that now serves him so well. We are pretty much 100% vegies ourselves now, just a rare, occasional small amount of chicken or fish. Have to watch the weight, cholestoral, blood pressure and other hazards of growing too old too quick!

[tamangel]

this is the 'vehicle' that started it all for me..

From the Joe Palooka ,Comics in the Sunday newspaper..

Mike

http://edmonton.kijiji.ca/c-ViewAdLarge ... 3c_18.jpeg

[dburt]

Mike- I love that toy!! In the mid-70's I had a chance to buy out an old Hobby/Toy store that was going out of business. They had some very rare nice old toys that I bought and resold 'cause I was a poor college student and needed the money. One was a very neat 40's tin car that pulled a camp/house trailer. It's worth a fortune now, but I bought it for $5 and sold it for $20. Big money in those days! If only I could have known then what I know now, I could have ruled the world!! DB

[Rudy]

Mike, I very much liked that picture of the tin toy camper. One of the most favorite toys I had as a kid, (eight years old), was a wind up bulldozer with rubber tank treads. I sure loved that thing.
The picture of that tin camper has gone into my Motorhome picture file. There are over 850 photos in there. I once spent a week, going to EVERY craigslist ad all over this country and downloading pictures of all the motorhomes, housetruck, and housebuses that were for sale. Sharkey says that I am a fanatic. I wonder if my lust for trucks and buses is dangerous to my psyche. That's what happens when one lives their life as a hermit. There's nobody around to bounce ideas off of.

[splummer]

dburt very nice post, i do remember reading those books when i was a child, i wish i had them now,at present iam reading on wondering wheels by jan and cora gordan written in 1928 about a family that traveled the east coast in a old hearse.i have always like traveling but have not done any for many years, when i was younger we gave no thought about going cross country, that was our life style for a while but we built our place here in the mts and got very comfortable. my wife and i were talking about a long trip very soon in our bus, i am also in the same age bracket as you guys so my planning will be a little more thought out as before. steve

[dburt]

Splummer, don't wait to do it if you can afford it. I worry that sometime in the near future something will happen (terrorist attack, natural catastrophy, economic problems etc) that could cause oil to spike again and prevent alot of us from traveling due to extreme high fuel prices. That would not be so bad if we still had rail travel available everywhere, but in our neck of the woods there is no AmTrak anymore. The only way to travel by rail is to hobo it and hop a freight. In fact it's a long ways (75 miles) to the nearest Greyhound bus station. And I am getting to old to go far on a bicycle or shoe leather. Is the book On Wondering Wheels still in print? It would be a kick to read it. You are right, it is easy to get laid back and comfortable in our comfort zone and not venture out. But come on out west, and I am sure some of us can show you around and point you to the good things to see out here. DB