Why do bloggers apologize for “not posting for so long”? You don’t give a shit, and neither do I. The truth is, life happens and hey, I’m not getting paid to blog so I have to work for a living. I’ve been costuming all summer on HBO Girls and flying back and forth from Brooklyn to San Antonio putting my hard-earned money towards my Airstream mobile shop. Yes! The dream is still on the horizon! And it’s taking so long because, well, I am renovating it myself, and no corners will be cut on this bad Mamma-Jamma!
Also, I had no clue what I was doing! So, research, research, research! I’ve been reading books, listening to pod casts, have been very active in the Airstream Forums community and have even been cold-calling nationwide vintage trailer restoration shop owners.
Oh yes, it’s happening and I’m taking a serious pride in building “Chucky” from the ground up, and literally, I’ve broken that beast down to the shell and the rusty frame. I’m still selling vintage in my online shop and doing a few pop up shops here and there but, my costuming job in the film biz keeps me busy and my savings account ready for all my upcoming Airstream dreams.
It’s hard to believe that only one year ago today I was in San Francisco on my 5 month road trip across America. Here’s my visual journal into what I’ve been up to this summer on my Airstream building adventure thus far between New York and Texas:
Welcome home Chucky!
Before demolition
El Bano
Grandpa tried to give us some A/C in the hot TX summer heat #fail
A very tedious job of removing every rivet in the trailer
Ponyo never left my side…until I kicked her out when we removed asbestos tiles
The hardest part was sawing out all the pipes and pulling out the kitchen/bathroom
Getting closer to bare bones
Now that we are down to the fiberglass, we put on hazmat suits
Yup, rat shit everywhere, all the more reason to start from scratch!
Couldn’t have done it without Mom!
This is called ribs + bones
Next, it’s time to rip out all that rotted floor
Drilling, cutting, sawing, sweating
Getting down to the frame allows me to see all the rust damage and prepare for welding new cross members and outriggers which I had to order
Bag it up!
This was a bartering piece to my new Airstream buddy, Bruce
This and so much more!
Salvaging all the 1960’s OG accent pieces for future renovations
This bizarre voodoo from New Orleans is all over the door and window!
Monopoly and the Lord! What a combo
Now that I’ve pulled ALL the bolts and rivets out…what’s holding the shell down? Not much
I get by with a little help from my friends…Chris helping me build the X-frame to secure the shell off restoration
X-marks the sweet spots!
More updates when the new axle comes in!
American Drifter 