As I blogger the other day, I was researching conversion vans. I posted about how I was looking at Mercedes Sprinters and then I narrowed it down to the Nissan NV2500.
What I liked about the Nissan was the price and the high roof that came with it. I spent hours on the internet looking at videos of people describing them, and sitting in them, and even driving them.
Yet, it’s not the same as actually going to see one.
That obviously proves to be a big problem for me as it is hard for me to get anywhere do to the back pain. It’s why I need a conversion van!
Imagine my surprise as I walked down the street and … boom! There was one. High roof and all!
I got home, laid down for a bit (I had to, I just walked), and then peeked out the window. Sure enough. It was still there. I thought, how fortuitous. I quickly wrote a note describing my situation and the fact I couldn’t get to the dealership to look at one and if they wouldn’t mind calling me so I could simply peek inside to see what it actually looked like in person.
Son of a gun if they weren’t gone in the five minutes it took me to write the note!
Ack!
That was a couple days ago. Last night I went for my walk and low-and-behold … it was back! I hurried back to my apartment (well, hurried for me), and prayed I still had the note accessible. I did!
I left the note on the windshield and hoped for the best.
The car was gone this morning, and no one had called. I was a bit sad.
Then, this early afternoon, they called! I spoke to “J” and he said they usually throw things like that out, you know, paper stuck under windshield wipers, but his wife read the note out loud to him and said they agreed they should for sure call me back.
He then said it was pure luck that they had returned to San Mateo because it was not their intention! I’m so glad it all worked out!
“J” and I spoke for a good fifteen minutes on the phone about how it handled, about how he converted it, and about how it might be utilized for me. We left the conversation that he did not think he would be returning to the area, but that if things changed, he would stop by.
I kind of figured it wouldn’t happen, but then he called late this afternoon! He said he had to go to the UPS store near here, and so it afforded him the opportunity to stop by. I’m not sure if he just went out of his way though, he’s obviously a really great guy and I could see him doing that.
He parked in my parking lot and called. I came out and we shook hands. Very nice guy. He opened the side door for me, telling me that might be the best way for me to get in and out, as opposed to the back door. His rig was so beyond cool. He had bikes strapped to the ceiling and some off in the rear. He had built a twin bed platform on the left side of the car, furthest from the door, with some 4 x 4’s and some wood planks. He them put hinges on it so you could lift it and store stuff inside. He has a blow up air mattress on top. Pretty comfy looking, actually. He then has a twin bed frame above that that hinged up and down so that it could be flush with the wall. Lastly there was some built in cabinets closest to us that he used for storage.
We chatted for a few minutes about the stairs — a big problem. The stairs come up to about my mid thigh. I would need to either figure out a step stool situation, or get some kind of lift. It’s pretty high, seriously.
Other than that glitch, everything else looked really good. There is no way I would be able to fit my queen in there, so that’s out. Yet, that was the kind of thing that I needed to know. I could see myself romanticizing that it could, in fact, fit — had I not seen it. He said he tried, but then there was no room to walk.
The other reason it was really good for me to see it myself was that I could see one of my friends going to the dealership and saying that I would need a step stool to get into it, and then once I saw it, realizing that I might need much, much more than just an extra step, which, I really think will be the case.
I’ll end this post with this. What a great guy. Way to come through for a stranger. I mean, he did not have to call me back. He certainly didn’t need to talk to me for fifteen minutes, and he absolutely did not need to drive out of his way to come show me his van — for a stranger. He proves that there are still really great people in the world. I told him he might not realize what a big deal it was for me for him to do it, but that I was so beyond grateful. It was a really huge thing to do for someone who otherwise would be completely out of luck for being able to see one for herself.
Thank you “J”. I hope Karma serves you very, very well and something extraordinary comes your way. Blessings to you, dear stranger.
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Madeline Fresco is a novelist who lives in San Francisco. She is the author of CROSSED THE LINE, available for Kindle at Amazon.com, for Nook at Barnes & Noble, and as an ePub at other eBook retailers. You can also listen to her novel as a free, serialized audiobook at madelinefresco.com. Her second book THE CHOICE, is available on Kindle at Amazon. Her third bookANGUISH, is available for Kindle at Amazon.com
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The one thing that I find the most relaxing is a 
I hate my back 