Hello everyone (a little about me)

[Andy R]

Well now that we have this new forum, I thought it would be good to post my own introduction.

In 2001 I was living in Colorado and really wanted to enjoy the remote parts of the state without having to unload all the camping gear and get setup. My vision was to pull up next to the creek just upstream from Rollinsville and park my rig and be able to take in some rays, crack open a drink and enjoy the afternoon. Since I love winter mountain sports (skiing & snowboarding), I also had a vision of taking my rig to Arapahoe Basis where they will let you park it in the remote lot for the whole season (so I hear, and have seen some SOBs there for at least 6 weeks). I wanted to have a nice warm space with snow covering her and be able to wake up and enjoy the fresh powder vs. getting stuck in the I-70 traffic each afternoon when I was headed back out of the Rockies.

Each drive home I could see an a mid 60s Globetrotter over at the base of a mine in Silver Plume. I got aluminum fever REALLY bad. At night I would envision the interior I wanted and the little things that I was going to do different. I would make Excel spreadsheets to calculate the battery power I would need for a weekend excursion away from hookups but still be able to run DirectTV and have my tunes as needed. Then finally I found my chance, a early 60s Bambi in my price range on the VAC classifieds! I jump at the opportunity and closed the deal site unseen in Boise, Idaho.

I called the local dealer and they were SOOO nice. They even drove over 30 miles to pick her up and tow it back to their dealership. They did an initial evaluation and sent me the to do list (ouch). Well I had the major stuff done (new axles, breaks, etc) so she would be tow worthy and they even got most of the system to work (electrical and heating, thus propane).

After driving all night to get to Boise in time to pick her up on a Saturday (before they closed) I got there and my adrenaline kept me perfectly awake. We got my Jeep Cherokee connected and I was soon towing my first Airstream! I remember how cool I felt and I would look back to check out 'my rig' over and over. The first night I kept looking out the hotel window just to see my new silver baby.

The next day we started back from Boise to Denver and we stopped in Park City, Utah where my girlfriend and I camped the first night in her at a campsite near a river. It was magical, it was snowing, it was so cold, I had no idea how to work anything, but boy was it fun! The heater made a horrible noise (fan bearings) but that was music to me that night...

After a perfect morning waking up to 3" of snow, I got the car warmed up and we were back on the road to Denver.

Once I got back to the cabin I was staying at (near Black Hawk, Co) I start the process of taking inventory and figuring out what I was going to do. My vision was for a very clean space, so the more I pulled out the more I found some nook and cranny that was never going to be clean enough for me. I finally decided the floor tile was going to have to come out, so that meant the interior needed to be put into the TUFF shed.

I got the interior out and neatly packed away and started the process of ripping out the asbestos tiles. I hot them out (way more work then it sounds, see my photos) and was just about ready to lay some cheap vinyl (I know it would have cracked at the flex points, but I it was only going to be under the floating Pergo flooring). At that point I went back to Dallas for my 10 year high school reunion and happened to go on an impromptu job interview. Before I knew it I had a job 1,000 miles away and 5 days to find an apartment, pack my stuff, drive to Dallas, get unpacked and be ready for my first day at my new job.

In this frenzy, I just left Lilly (my nickname for my Bambi) in Colorado at my Dad's cabin where I was staying. It took me a year before I could go back to Colorado to pickup Lilly. I brought her back to Dallas and parked her outside my high-rise and took her to North Dallas RV to have a few things fixed (namely the suicide door that was being held shut by a piece of wood). Then after I brought her back to my place, I found a lovely orange sticker on her from the Police. Apparently everyone else did not like to look out their window at her as much as I did...

So I had to take her to storage where she patiently sits waiting for me once again give her my devoted attention again someday.

Over the years my fever switched from aluminum fever to forum fever and I started to acquire other little forum sites who’s owners were having trouble keeping up with the technology that runs them (upgrades, backups, etc). My passion for forum communities (namely from the experience I have received here) grew stronger and stronger as I believe forum communities are going to be a BIG part of the future of online social environments.

This past summer I took a big risk and left my day job in Dallas to pursue a career building online communities. I spend the bulk of my time on forums for forum owners, PMing with moderators and administrators on the handful of sites I manage and installing new features, doing upgrades, etc.

In an effort to save money and gain some amazing experiences I moved from Dallas to Buenos Aires, Argentina where I am currently. The cost of living is one of the lowest in the world and this very European city offers great food, nice people and an awesome value overall.
http://money.cnn.com/pf/features/popups/costofliving/popup.html

I had my old cell number forwarded to Vonage phone and a 1MB internet connection, so other then my favorite hamburger stand and being able to physically hug my family, I don’t feel like I am 5,500 miles away. My plan is to keep journeying and seeing the world while working on websites.

So, Lilly will not be finished for quite some time, but when I do have the time and money to focus on her again, I know she will return me 10x my investment in joy. I don’t think I could ever sell her because of the sentimental value she brings me. Without her this fine community, my little company might not have been formed and the great people I have met along the way might not have been part of my life. So I am at ease knowing that one day I will again stop and smell the aluminum…

[Rog0525]

That's a great story Andy. Adventure, travel, romance, wanderlust et al.
We should all be so lucky as to find our dream, as you seem to have. I don't think I could ever be happy anywhere other than in the good old USA but I might have more roots here than you. I guess the bottom line is to do whatever you feel necessary to find your ideal niche in life and just simply enjoy.
Peace and good will to you, your Airstream and your dream.

[rfield54]

Andy,

While you're away, we here in Colorado will keep the lights on for you. - Roy

[AZstreamin]

Andy,
This is an old post reply. But i had to comment... I'm new to AS ownership. I bumped into your story of how you accidentally fell in love with Aluminum and it is a story much like my own. The desire to travel to the edges of the world in an AS while staying connected is bliss. Are you still in Argentina? or How long did you stay? See any Airstreamers in your travels? I've heard wonderful things about Argentina. It would be very Wally like to roam their country side in an AS and post weekly reports for the rest of the world....It could grow into a travel.com show.. or a new forum maybe... That's my 14 cents.
Brent
AZstreamin