Now that I have been living in my van for over a year full-time, friends and family tend to ask me with a slight tip to their heads, “How do you like it, honestly?” This always makes me laugh as if the tilt to the head will help their ears hear the words of my full confession about the horrors of van life better. Instead, my chirpy reply, “I love it!” always causes them to step back, probably because by nature I am as chirpy as your favorite vampire villain. However, my response is genuine.

Though there is the decision fatigue that has caused me to hang up my party planning and itinerary making passions, I have a slower-paced approach to life that keeps me living more in the moment. Instead of doing things because of obligations or expectations, I reflect on what will bring me joy now, and then that is what I do. For example, I am currently staring out at San Francisco Bay from my favorite location near Ghirardelli Square, watching the crazed swimmers no doubt envisioning their own escape from Alcatraz, and eating all of my favorite snacks. I can’t say my lifestyle has changed much as I still spend an inordinate amount of time binge watching Netflix, listening to audiobooks, and laying around during my weekends; the biggest difference is the view.

Every night I sleep in a new location causing me to think more deeply about where my physical location ought to be and of course I am going to choose a pretty place because why not? Knowing that my favorite locations all consist million dollar views, though my cost to enjoy the view is free and warm; never underestimate the benefits of being warm! When I used to live in a house in Pacific Grove, I could venture out onto my oceanview balcony or head to the coast for about an hour to read before retreating indoors. Now, I drive up along the coast, park, and remain for hours delighting in nature and people watching.

In order to make the move into a van, a tremendous amount of care had to be spent to downsize my life so that I could contain my possessions within such a small space. Having all that I need and love located in one place and nearby has added to my apocalypse-obsessed mind. No longer do I need to worry about forgetting something at “home” such as a sweater, a charger, or my ID because all of that is just a parking space away from where I am working or exploring.

Most significantly, I have that happy blend of hybrid work environment since I go and teach my lessons in my classroom with all 49+ middle schoolers, but when it is my prep times, I can slink away to go work in my van. Who would rather work in a staff room with constant distractions and noise when one could walk into the parking lot and be “home” in just a few minutes? When I close the door, I have my comfy duvet, my sugary snacks, and my Dr. Pepper all within arms reach along with my adorable tuxedo cat, Van Zander Cat, whose purring can regulate any kind mood. Because my van is fully loaded including super strong wifi courtesy of Starlink and running water, I never miss a zoom call or have to wait in line for the bathroom. Some would even call this “slaying.” (Reminder: I teach middle school.)

As all remote workers discovered during the pandemic, there certainly are perks to being able to work from anywhere without productivity suffering one bit; in fact, I would say that I work even more efficiently because I have less interruptions while lesson planning and grading providing me greater work flow and contentment. Gone is the need to rush out of school even if the work is incomplete to beat the traffic or get home to my cat, who is honestly sleeping all day anyway, and in its stead is increased creativity and collaboration because energy levels have become recharged by having a proper break from the demands of teaching adolescents full-time.

Thus, instead of spending hours thinking of how to get out of living in a van, I am trying to figure out how to continue doing van life while also pursuing other dreams I have like going back abroad. Currently, I am looking at schools that will allow me to take my van with me or storage plans to make my van still available to me during summertime and wintertime holidays. For right now, I will continue watching this crow taunting my cat, and I for that matter, with his freedom to fly.