Category: nomad

Pack Box

~ George Crawford ~ 1 Comment

Continuing my search for backpacks and rucksacks throughout history, I keep coming across various types of boxes and baskets strapped to people’s backs.  While querying the web today for variations of the Asian pack box, I saw this nifty solution.  Cheap, easy to construct and extremely functional.

packbox
Found here: http://mistermort.com/

I can imagine this as an excellent platform for a street performer or busker.  Solidly built, this can be a table or a seat and provides a high degree of protection for the contents.  This one is very simply built and harkens back to a medieval concept but note the sweet dovetails holding it together.  I just want a peek inside.  I would be sorely tempted to fill it with compartments.

More nifty ideas to follow.

The Open Fire Yurt – update

~ George Crawford ~ 1 Comment

From the Spiritsintent website…shape_image1Open Fire Yurt

2Open Fire Yurt with smoke cowl

This is our latest afghan yurt, or the open fire yurt as we call it, seen here with a smoke flap type wheel cover, to allow for the open fire whilst ensuring the rain does not enter.

3Check out the rest of their remarkable work HERE.

Ultra Minimalists, Part 4 – Modern Minimalism

~ George Crawford ~ 1 Comment
For the Ultra Minimalists, Part 1, click here.

Modern Minimalists 

Everything I Own: My 288 Things

By Joshua Fields Millburn

  • Life Tools & Accessories – 33 items, including my car, guitar, books, hairbrush, toothbrush, etc.
  • Consumables – 5 groups of items, including food, cleaning supplies, hygiene supplies, office supplies and paper goods
  • Kitchen Items – 19 items, including pots, pans, utensils, coffeemaker, toaster, oven mitt, etc.
  • Bathroom Items – 6 items, including my bathroom scale, rugs, trash can, shower caddy, etc.
  • Electronics – 10 items, including my BlackBerry, MacBook, Printer, iPod, etc.
  • Furniture  – 18 items, including my bed, couch, coffee table, desk, chairs, etc.
  • Decorations – 14 items, including decorative plants, artwork, digital picture frames, wall clock, etc.
  • Clothes (Miscellaneous) – 58 items, including shoes, socks, underwear, belts, gym shorts, coats, etc.
  • Casual Clothes – 79 items, including jeans, hoodies, T-shirts, button-down shirts, etc.
  • Dress Clothes – 50 items, including suits, ties, dress shirts, etc.

“That’s everything I own. 288 things. Count them if you’d like. The nicest thing about creating this list is that I actually use everything I own. There is not a kitchen item or a piece of furniture or an article of clothing that I do not use regularly. It’s an amazing feeling.”  Click here to read the full text of his excellent essay.

Next time: my move toward Minimalism and the search for balance.

Jed and Hilary’s Power Wagon Vardo

~ George Crawford ~ Leave a comment

As unveiled at Winter Count 2014 near Maricopa, Arizona.

DSCN4000This classic kite shaped beauty is built into the bed of an old Dodge Power Wagon.  Like all projects of this nature, she’s a work in progress but is already and awe-inspiring thing of beauty.

DSCN4001The layout is a traditional elevated cross-bed with a kitchen down one side with additional storage and seating down the other.  A clever table is concealed under the counter and pulls out to be utilized from side-by-side seating.

DSCN4002The tail gate porch is an excellent addition to the space.

DSCN4003 DSCN4004Best of luck to both Jed and Hilary in their future adventures.

Road Check

~ George Crawford ~ 8 Comments
Safety Check!
Safety Check!

For those who know the Snail, you might notice something different.  I’m making a little post about the new look but I just loved the sunset picture from today after work.  I have a very short window of light at the end of the work day but try to use it best I can.  More changes to come in the very near future.

I am hating my job so much right now I’m ready to jump in and run away.  Bad people can really ruin your day no matter how much you try to make things better.

I’ll get more pictures up soon.

The Conklin House Bus

~ George Crawford ~ 2 Comments

15conklin_gypsy-vanRoland and Mary Conklin of Huntington, N.Y., made house-car travel a family experience. Their bus factory built the Gypsy Van, shown above, and in the summer of 1915, the Conklin family set out to see America.

Photo & caption courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution,
the Huntington Historical Society (New York),
and Home on the Road: The Motor Home in America,
a book by Roger White

Found at http://www.oldwoodies.com/gallery-rv.htm