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Boxanne

How are you going to vent the wood smoke out of Boxanne? Are you going to add a chimney? Please get a carbon monoxide detector if you're planning to use the stove inside the van!
 
Met the guy who will install the stove. I didn't know beforehand, but it turns out he installed a stove at my parent's.

I've just contacted the person who makes the stoves to get measurements from combustibles when installing, along with requesting an adapter or flue for the stove.

Fitting will be easy he said. A little unorthodox, and he can't sign off on it, as it's not exactly supposed to sit in a big combustible box on the back of a van.

However, we are making good progress.

Ed
 
A little unorthodox, and he can't sign off on it, as it's not exactly supposed to sit in a big combustible box on the back of a van.

That's an understatement, Ed.

Much better to contemplate the use of a reliable portable camping stove that uses combustible forms of fuel, but used outside the vehicle itself, with combustible fuels prudently stored in proper containers away from any immediate heat sources.
 
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@Judge , you talk about car trauma, our house burned down. My only barbie doll was in it. RIP barbie. My dad had a lucrative job and apparently, somebody didn't want him to get it. So they burned the house the nite before we were to move in. In was near Yosemite. I never underestimate what people will do anymore. I was a tween when it happened.
 
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@Judge , you talk about car trauma, our house burned down. My only barbie doll was in it. RIP barbie.

Point taken. That would certainly resonate with me with even greater intensity. Losing your most important possession is literally one thing. Losing a house is losing nearly everything.

A concern not lost on me living in the desert where nearby sagebrush and cheatgrass can burn up in seconds.
 
The guy ended up refusing to install the stove. The search continues. I asked on a group yesterday of van, caravan, boat people. They showed me their setups and gave lots of advice on sizes, materials, layouts etc.

In other news - Boxanne from space.

1718701929243.png


Truly the most spacious.

Ed
 
Woke up in the early hours of the morning to a vehicle skidding, followed by a loud crash. My immediate thought was that someone had crashed into Boxanne.

Turns out it was a flatbed van being chased by the police, following a ram raid. The loud crash was caused by the ATM machine falling off the back of the van.

It was nothing short of a miracle, but the neighbours car parked behind my van took the impact, and although the car had then hit the back of my van - there was no damage. Their car however was utterly totalled.

The ATM machine had then crashed and rolled onto the pavement on the other side of the road - it was very large. The scuff marks on the pavement suggest this heavy box had tumbled over 10 metres after smashing into the car.

The police had managed to stop the suspect's van just a few metres from our house. They took my details, but again I'm just thankful the van isn't damaged, especially as I'm trying to sell it.

Waking up with a jolt and panic has upset the muscle tension in my lower trap that had settled down the past month or so, but I'll take that over the potential write off and financial black hole that could've occurred this morning.

Ed
 
Earlier I had my first call about Boxanne in months. My gut knew as soon as they spoke that this wasn't the right person. They opened with "How much is the van?"

I think to myself: you know exactly how much it is - because it's written on the advert, so don't insult my intelligence. I tell them I won't take anything under 30k, having nearly spent 40k on it.

He scoffs, and says nobody would ever pay over 30k, and that it doesn't even have a bed in it. A mattress is a few hundred quid mate. I respond saying that I know the right person will come along to buy the van. He then low balls me by nearly 10k and says he'll offer me 25k. I remain calm and polite throughout, but I tell him I know how much my van is worth, and that it's not open for debate - and if he has nothing further to say, then this conversation is over.

Sure, 25k would get me out of debt, and give me the financial freedom I've been seeking for years, but I'm not going to sell my van to someone with a low vibe. The van will be going to someone who I will instantly vibe with - a person who will love and utilise Boxanne as intended. Of that I have no doubt, and I will wait until said person comes along.

Ed
 
Someone clipped Boxanne when driving past it, and left black scuff marks on the back and sides of the box. Thankfully I can rub off the black scuffs on the paintwork. I'm glad that I opted for specialised paint when the box was resprayed. Alas, in other places I see the paint is starting to flake. And on the cab I see more surface rust is coming through. A few days ago I dropped the listing price again to £22,500. That's now at a loss compared to the 25k+ I spent on the project

Having already spent over £12,000 on bodywork, I'm frustrated to say the least. I'd have hoped it would've lasted longer than a couple of years. Although the body shop did warn me that vehicles of a certain age, it'll be a constant battle when it comes to rust. However, the van went back twice for further repairs to rust that was coming through after the full respray. I can't afford to do anything more with the van.

It's a shame, as every time I look up close at the van I can see more problems with it that makes me feel disheartened, and worried that whoever comes to view the van may start to haggle and price gouge me. Mind you, I haven't had a single viewing in 11 months.

From today I've got 5 consecutive days with a service user. It's going to be tiring. For months now I've had 4 consecutive days. Thankfully in June it's down to 3 a week; which will be a lot more manageable. The real issue is that I haven't had my full 8 hours sleep each night in months now. Feeling tired all the time, which really takes it's toll long term.

Unfortunately, the £80 spent on car repairs the other day didn't fix anything. The mechanic has hearing aids and can't hear the noise like I can. So might need to try another garage - but I don't have money to sink into it. He said it didn't sound serious, but that doesn't quell my "what if's" whilst driving a car that's constantly making new and problematic noises. It's due it's annual service & MOT inspection in 2 weeks. I'm hoping it'll be cheap, and get through the MOT without issue.

Until the van sells, finances will be tight next month. Thankfully from June my new work rota is more varied, which should mean less stress, but on the flipside it'll mean earning less money.

Hoping my partner gets some job interviews soon, as she's been applying to so many places and hearing nothing back. Plus she has money worries of her own. I support however I can, but of course I worry about it too. I think both of us feel eager to take the next steps in life, and we're both in situations that feel less than ideal.

A lot of things playing on my brain at the moment. I've also had a week of intense self-doubt regarding my trajectory to become a medium. Your beliefs create your reality - so my worries aren't doing me any good in this regard.

All the aforementioned worries along with months of constant fatigue is creating quite a predicament. There's a persistent feeling of living in limbo since returning home back in August 2021, and wanting to move forward in life. I'm often met with being told that things could be a lot worse, and that I have so much to be thankful for - of that I have no doubt.

With this spiritual journey - others have said they see so much in me, and for my future and abilities - things I don't really see in myself, and at the moment am struggling to believe in myself much at all. Spread too thin.

Many of these issues have been things I've talked about before, and writing about it again doesn't seem to lighten the load any, but I wanted to verbalise things.

Some positive steps of late have been renewing my car insurance an hour ago. Saves me £20 odd a month. Also I've listed the campervan on eBay. It's expensive though - £15 for 10 days, vs £50 on Autotrader for 6 weeks.

At this point I'm pained to spend any more money on the van, and it needed a new battery 2 days ago that cost me another £145.

The next steps in life all hinge on the van selling. The disappointment, fatigue and waning patience as I approach 11 months of trying to sell the van are taking it's toll; and adding to the general feelings of exhaustion.

Ed
 
I'm an expert on industrial painting including how to prevent premature rusting via treatment prior to painting and how to apply it after market. Could walk you through, sounds like you could use a helping hand now.
 
A huge car dealership went out of business where l live. My neighbor has had issues getting hired.
 
I'm an expert on industrial painting including how to prevent premature rusting via treatment prior to painting and how to apply it after market. Could walk you through, sounds like you could use a helping hand now.
They said they didn't do a bare metal respray to save money. But I still spent over 10k on all the work they did.

I can see rust coming through in 6 places

Ed
 

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