Author Archives: depolorization

Hittin’ The Road

Posted on by

If you have been following my posts on, then you already know that I had our Nissan NV200 mini van converted to a camper.

The van was completed in late November 2021. We had a local two-night trip planned in December to test everything out, but the rains changed our plans. Not really that fun camping in the rain.

So I decided to set up the awning in the garage. The awning is really nice, but I needed about four more arms to set it up. I wished that the spider pictured on the carpet could have helped me out!

Once set up, I had lunch under the awning while listening to the rain pound away on the roof. It was music to my ears!

While waiting for our next outing, I decided that I needed a road trip shirt. This is what I wound up ordering. It captures my likeness perfectly – don’t you think?

Finally, we took a short trip to the central coast of California – Morro Bay to be exact.

Here’s our first camp site – Morro Bay State Park. A non RV site, meaning no water or electrical hook ups. No worries, the van has a solar battery so we had power. Water was available at the campground, as well as on board in the van.

Without the pop top roof, life inside the van would be dismal. One can also sleep top side, but we did not try that. Maybe next time.

The first night’s sleep was decent, and the two of us were cozy-close but comfortable. We learned we need to purchase new sleeping bags. Our old bags are nylon and we slid all over the place, and not in a fun way.

Our dinner view from a local restaurant… amazingly beautiful!

The next two nights we stayed at Morro Strand State Beach – right on the ocean. Only one issue – no dogs on the beach. Kind of a drag, but there is a dog beach about a mile up the coast.

Here’s a typical beach view steps from our van. That’s Morro rock in the background.

We learned a lot on the trip. We came up with a list of needs that is bigger than the van! We will chip away at those a little at a time, and share some ideas with you in future Roadie posts.

Hittin’ the road made me think of Jack Kerouac-like adventures and my dream of owning an old VW van in college and traveling around the country.

Well, the NV200 is not a VW van, but pretty cool. While on the trip, I stopped at an antique store and found this reproduction print. Just had to buy it.

This is where it all began – van life!

Pallet Wood Knife Handle

Posted on by

As you may already know, I enjoy using pallet wood on my projects. So when a friend gave me a few kitchen knives with broken handles, I figured that I’d try making a handle out of pallet wood.

The handles were made out of very inferior plastic, which had splintered and broken off. These knives were likely offered for sale on an American television commercial – “Order these Ginsu carving knives now, and receive a bamboo steamer as a free gift.” I wonder if she has the bamboo steamer?

Anyway, I was able to salvage one handle as a pattern. I traced the plastic handle onto the pallet wood.

Some pallets are made of hard woods, probably walnut or oak. I chose a piece that seemed fairly hard. I cut out two handles and then cut each one down the middle.

Here you can see one of the original black plastic handles.

I drilled holes to attach the handles to the blade, then lightly sanded each piece and coated with Varathane,

I attached the handles using small screws. Unfortunately, when drilling a hole to countersink the nut, I chipped the wood.

No worries, this was my first attempt and is now a resident in my fishing tackle box.

A fun project reusing two items that would likely have found their way into a landfill.

Recycle and Reuse!