Eudaimonia in Jupiter

I said goodbye to my Yamaha V Star as she finds a new home

I feared that when I sold my motorcycle I would lose an important part of myself. But when the doctor told me I needed to get off of two wheels, I knew it was the right thing to do. Until that time, riding my motorcycle had been the most fulfilling part of my life.

The Ancient Greeks did not believe that the purpose of life was to be happy; they proposed that it was to achieve Eudaimonia, a word which has been best translated as ‘fulfilment’. What distinguishes happiness from fulfilment is pain. It is eminently possible to be fulfilled and – at the same time – under pressure, suffering physically or mentally, overburdened and, quite frequently, in a tetchy mood.

Life on the road has been incredibly challenging, but certainly is a life worth living. We had started by traveling around the U.S. on our motorcycles and living in hotels, eventually moving into our toy hauler 2 years ago. Now that we have the truck, Steve's motorcycle and the trailer, I was facing a life without my own set of wheels. I need my own wheels. Even though I love traveling with Steve, I've cannot live a life of Eudaimonia without my own wheels.

Then came Jupiter.

A 2011 Chevy Suburban 1500 4WD, Jupiter is my new Overland Camper. I purchased Jupiter on December 30 with the intent of tackling the ALCAN, the Alaska Canada Highway. I had often thought of riding a motorcycle up, but I knew that it wasn't something I could physically do. Since I travel to Alaska every summer to visit clients, I decided to build this vehicle into a camper so I can make the trip.

The first thing we did was take the second and third row seats out and find a great team to do the build. I went to David and Shelli Stovall in Murrieta, CA to plan and build out the camper. The whole family pitched in and got the whole build completed in record time.

David is not only a great contractor, but my nephew, so I got pretty lucky.

Zachary put in many hours,

And Joshua did too.

Jupiter is my new version of Eudaimonia

The tall cabinet behind the driver's seat houses the sink, toilet, baskets and water jugs. I'm currently using an cooler for cold food, but eventually I'll buy a refrigerator.

The water jugs flow into the sink, which I use for dishes and washing up. 

The sink drains outside. The toilet is a cartridge toilet, accessible from the driver's side back door, so I can take it out to dump and clean.

Beside the tall cabinet is a long set of Cubbies that tuck into the window. The bed has storage underneath as well.

The Cubbies, as I call them, are great for storing clothes and need-it-quick essentials.

Under the bed is a large storage area which can be accessed by the doors that lift up under the bed. 

In the rear is large drawer where I keep all of the kitchen items

Above the drawer is a sliding table. It's covered in beeswax so I can use it for food prep without any concern of the food being tainted by the stain. I have the 2 burner Coleman stove and a 1 burner stove as well.

 We sought out the assistance and advice from Boondoctor to set up the electrical system. My electrical set up includes a "House" battery, separate from the "Start" battery, and a 2000 watt inverter. The battery is charged by the alternator when the vehicle is running. If I am camped for a couple of days in a row, I only need to run the engine about 10 minutes a day to have all of the power I need. 

Jupiter is still a work in progress, but is road ready, as am I. We are ready to find some spots of paradise on the black bejeweled byways of North America.