That's not me in the picture**. It's Carlos Lago of Truck Trend Magazine. He wrote an article in December about living in a Ford Transit Connect in Los Angeles. I have to give the benefit of the doubt and presume that he wrote the article with his tongue in his cheek and a comic intention. I hope that he was not serious about being forced to live in the Transit Connect, and it was just a stunt for the sake of the article. [If it was out of necessity then I hope things will be looking up soon for you, Carlos. Having to live in a vehicle on the streets is nothing to laugh at. There are several familiar vehicles in my neighborhood that occasionally move a few blocks here or there, and I worry and wonder about my nomad neighbors' plights.] Anyhow, I know I can make the Ford Transit Connect a much more comfortable (temporary) home for us on our road trip. That is, if we can get our hands on one. The conditions of our trip will differ wildly from those described by Carlos' story. For starters we will make great use of camp grounds where facilities are available. In addition we will be visiting relatives and many friends across the country so we'll be sleeping in lots of places other than in the van. Lastly, we have no reason to turn our noses up at small motels, indeed we have a weird way of finding the oddly comfortable ones. We won't be forced to search the cities for out-of-the-way places to secretly park and sleep. With some carpentry and clever design our imaginary (for now) Transit will add up to more than an air mattress, a cooler, a curtain on a bungee cord, and a guitar. (There's Carlos' first mistake. Ukes take up so much less real estate than a clunky guitar.)
**photo by Carlos Lago/Julia LaPalme
I sure hope Ford didn't give that guy his Transit for free-- talk about accentuating the negative! If Ford gets a clue and sends one your way, I have no doubt you will make the very best of every square inch you find inside-- and write all about it (perhaps for Truck Trend magazine!). What great advertising that would be for Ford! Carlos was only "slumming it" for the article-- he conveniently returned to his real home when he'd had enough (brushing his teeth next to a homeless person seems to have been the last straw). I look forward to reading all about your upcoming adventures, and your pre-adventure quest for the ultimate pan-American exploration vehicle; I hope (for Ford's sake, as much as yours-- they could use all they help they can get re-tooling their image) that it's a Ford!
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