So I bought this van.

Ever since I was a little kid, I've wanted a Volkswagen van. A camper van. The kind with the tent that pops up in the roof, and the miniature kitchen in the back, and seats that fold out into beds, you know, all of that. Oh, and it had to be orange. That part was non-negotiable. Maybe it's because I grew up in the 70s.

Did you ever have conversations with your friends about what your dream car would be, if you could own any car in the world? While everyone else was wishing for Ferraris and Corvettes and Lamborghinis my answer has always, always been "Volkswagen camper van. An orange one."

Over the years, I've tried to get me one of these things many times without success. The Internets weren't much help. I mean, there were always vans for sale online, but they were pretty much always in hippie centers like California, or Oregon, or Washington. Never anything within 500 miles of New Orleans. Except once, years ago, when I saw a green one parked Uptown with a "for sale" sign in the window. I decided I was willing to settle for green. I must have called that number a dozen times and never got a response. And then one day I drove by and the van was gone.

The closest I'd ever come to my dream vehicle was an old pickup truck with a camper top on it that I named Blue Thunder and drove all over the damn place, from New Orleans to the Pacific Northwest to Mexico to Chicago and back. If there had been blogs back then (okay, if I had known what a blog was), Blue Thunder would have had its own blog. And it would have been awesome.

But anyway. I got rid of Blue Thunder almost ten years ago so I could move overseas for a couple of years, came back to the States, did some more traveling (by bus and train, mostly) and then settled back in New Orleans more or less permanently. And I haven't owned a car since then. I decided I didn't need one. I could ride my bike to work, and (this being New Orleans) there were literally dozens of bars within stumbling distance of my front door. Still, after ten years, walking/biking in the rain/freezing cold gets kind of old. So I started browsing craigslist on and off, just to see what was out there. I'd sort of decided to find myself another pickup—nice and practical.

And then there it was. A 1984 VW Vanagon Westfalia, for sale, right here in New Orleans. And it was orange. I went and looked at it. It needed a lot of work. Like, a lot of work. I decided I didn't care. A few hours later, it was mine.

The plan is to restore this thing, piece by piece, to its former 1984 glory. And of course to drive this thing all over the damn place.