I got “the knock” this morning. It’s something that every van lifer dreads; someone knocking on your vehicle to let you know that you’re doing something that society frowns upon. I have been very fortunate in that my job has a covered garage, and I have been taking advantage of the close proximity to not only my job but my shower as well. The gym is conveniently inside the same building complex, so I have really had it made, especially over the winter, with wind chills and snow storms. I would park in random spots at night and move it in the morning when I had to work. Not wanting to be there for 24 hours, I would leave after work every day, run errands, go to parks, etc. But at night, I would return and find a spot to park that I felt safe.

Last night was hot and humid, with thunderstorms hanging not too far in the distance. I decided to leave my windows open a decent amount, turn on my trusty little rechargable fan, and leave the curtains open to the light show mother-nature was providing. I went to sleep, up on the third level, with the comfort of knowing that no one would reach in my windows, and no rain would fall on me. The design of my van is such that I don’t have windows in the back at all. I normally block off the front with a blackout curtain at night, the intention being that no one knows I’m in there, but last night I left them open to allow the cool breeze to come in.

Thank goodness I had already done my morning business and was preparing to go to the gym to start my day when I heard a knock on my door! I leaned forward to see the night/weekend security guard standing outside my drivers door. “Yeah… my boss sent me to tell you… you can’t do… whatever it is you’re doing here…” he told me, looking like he really didn’t want to be the one telling me this. “Aww…. uhhh…” I wasn’t sure what to say. “I work in the building!” I thought that would help somehow. “Yeah… we’re aware that you work here. You just can’t… you can’t do this.” He nodded with his head towards my van, knowing full well what I was doing. “Uh, okay…” He didn’t say ‘have a good day’ or anything, and as he started to leave, I was like, “uh…” He returned. “Do you have a question?” He was as unsure how to navigate this as I was.

I proceeded to kind of explain myself, beg even, without being annoying. I told him I’m not a drug addict, I don’t drink. I work in accounting and I’m 45 years old! He told me that I don’t look like I’m 45 (thank you). I told him that I gave up my apartment last June so that I don’t have to give the landlords my money anymore, and he said that he totally understood that. While it wasn’t enough to give him the authority to allow me to park there, it touched his humanity and empathy enough to recommend some other spots nearby that could be suitable. I was very grateful for his advice, though disappointed that the jig was up and I was no longer going to have a cushy covered parking space.

I would like to remind anyone reading this that honey gets you more than vinegar. I am experiencing something in my life that is testing the limits of the unconditional love I preach, and I will talk about that in another conversation, but I recognize that life is smoother for you if you just don’t act like a dick. I could have been argumentative with the young guy who was just being told he had to do it. He confessed to me that they had known what I was doing “for a while,” and he just didn’t want to knock on my window. I guess seeing my windows open and the curtains drawn back gave him the courage he needed? If I had argued with him, given him an attitude instead of telling him my story, what I was doing there and the basics of who I was as a person (life energy exchange from communicating tells a person more than just words alone!), I would have been kicked off the property and possibley worse. Instead, my response illicited a replacement suggestion, and understanding agreeance, words of advice (how I got caught), and good will feelings between the both of us.

All in all, I have to say that my “knock” wasn’t that bad. Yeah, I lost a covered spot to park at night, but what van lifer has that? One more push into the future for me! One more part of life to navigate.