Tribe.net. Local Connections $item.owner.firstName http://homesonwheels.tribe.net/thread/595e645a-11d9-4d4d-8138-42392edbbca0#d0e08186-fbec-4904-9b2c-56f61940a9e7 2007-08-12T07:38:13Z 2007-08-12T07:38:13Z

so, the story goes like this...My Dad & Brother own a distribution route for a local Potato Chip company, Tim's Cascade. for years, they ran the route out of a Gruman stepvan...it died, so they replaced it with another Gruman, a Diesel Dually retired Frito Lay truck. last year, after the rear end differential going out for like the 3rd or 4th time in 2 months, my brother, who was running the operation solo by now due to my Dad being forced to retire from diabetes-related disablities, decided to retire the chiptruck in favor of a new utility trailer to tow behind his brand new Dodge Ram 1500 Hemi V8. so, the Gruman sat a few months ignored, when one day my brother comes up with the idea of eventually, over the course of a year or so, converting it. he bought a cab-over camper to use in the meantime, & I got one that was damaged but usable to eventually gut for the conversion...the project pretty much went totally cold...& then, this May, after deciding to go back to college for Environmental Sciences & Sustainable Living Systems, my roommate & brother's girlfriend, Paula, came to an impass while trying to find an affordable housing situation near her new school...afger a few weeks of nothing stacked on nothing, the idea sparked & went inferno in the course of an hour...she would convert & live in the chiptruck, thereby resolving her housing issue & also providing her with her Thesis for her degree, as she is planning in stages to convert it to Biodiesel & then eventually straight veggie oil. you can view her journal & photos of the conversion here: http://chiptruck.blogspot.com she is progressing rapidly & will be living in it full time by September 24th. it's pretty amazing to see.

$item.owner.firstName 2007-08-12T07:38:13Z