I am determined.

My van is going to turn into a pretty legit mystery machine. It's going to happen. The plans are falling into place, and I'm hoping it will be done by Christmas.

Oh yeah. It's going to happen.

 First things first. The exterior needs to be painted. I only paid $400 for the van, so I'm not really excited about paying a ton of money to have it painted. So, I'm going to use my artsy friends and spraypaint. I know, it doesn't look as good as auto paint, done properly with a sprayer, but...for goodness' sake, it's going to be the Mystery Machine!

I worried at first that the patterns on the side would be difficult to paint, so I decided to make stencils. Our local paper gives away the ends of the newsprint rolls, and I think that I'll use that to stencil the designs. My friend Liz has already offered to help!

Giant paper...for stencils, and random fun activities.

The interior is important too! I'm planning on installing shag carpet. I'm not sure yet whether I'll order carpet by the square yard, or just get a rug and cut it to fit. I need to actually get into the van and take some measurements before I decide which will be cheaper. I don't know if the original Mystery Machine had shag carpet, but it just seems appropriate and awesome. I'm thinking I'll go with green carpet.

Groovy, baby.

I'd really like to change the color of the seats, but I'm not sure whether or not I want to drop the cash on seat covers. I might just start scouring junkyards for seats and door panels. I'd like to go with tan, but we'll see.

Of course, if I'm going to spend so much time and effort on making sure the van looks good, it's going to have to sound good, too. I already have a pretty decent sub, now I just need...umm...everything else. Luckily I work at Radioshack, so I have access to everything I need. The receiver I'm interested in has an input for my Ipod or my phone (yes please!) slots for USB and SD memory, and IT LIGHTS UP IN DIFFERENT COLORS. I think I'm in love.

So, that's the plan. We're going to roll in groovy, teenage-gang style. Rest assured that when this process gets started, there will be TONS of process pictures, and the finished product will grace the pages of my blog often. Who knows, maybe I'll start a Mystery Machine blog.

I'm off for now, to keep Google searching for anything that might possibly relate to my plans. Stay fresh, Internet. I leave you with this:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/75481959/original-scooby-doo-mystery-machine?ref=sr_gallery_40&ga_search_query=mystery+machine&ga_page=1&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

First day of work = success.

So...yeah. I think my first day at the Shack went well. I activated prepaid phones like a boss. I also did price audits, and vacuumed. Exciting stuff, right? I liked it though. Not too boring, but not too fast-paced either. I like my coworkers so far too, even though I've only met two of them. My supervisor, Christie, is really laid-back. My other coworker, Austin, whistled songs from the Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time while we worked. So yeah...I've pretty much got it made.

I go back in tomorrow, and I'm pretty much pumped. Now if they could just get me into the computer system as an employee...

I go back to school in less than a month. It seems strange, this summer really flew by. I'm excited though. I can't wait to get back to the coffee house, and to start bathroom decorating with Bianca. The classes...meh. Classes are just a necessary evil for college students.

In other news, there's no other news. Sorry for such a short post, but my life is boring.
Adios, Internet.

I fell off of the world.

Not really, but that's what it looks like on the internet. My computer is not functional right now (the saddest day ever!) so I'm only online when I can mooch internet and a keyboard from someone else.

I've also been busy doing important things like oh, I don't know, FINDING A JOB. Thank God (and my sister, who hooked me up with the interview) that search is over, I was getting really tired of countless, seemingly identical applications. I was offered a position at Radioshack, and I'm really excited about it. The people I'm going to be working with seem pretty cool, I can wear my black Converse, and, um....hello, can anyone else say employee discount? I'm going to use for EVERYTHING. Cell phone, computer, headphones, and even car audio. Just wait. My van is going to be pimped out in all the latest electronics. Oh, and I'm saving up to have it painted like the mystery machine.

It will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine.

That's the thing about having a job...I have a million things I want to spend money on! But, I have my priorities in line. First, getting my van's insurance taken care of, and tying up the loose ends so I'm driving again, instead of bumming rides like, well, a bum. Then, getting my own cell phone in my own name, instead of Dad paying for it.

Then, the van becomes the pimped-out mystery machine it was always meant to be.

My first day at work is tomorrow, so I'll try to post and let the WHOLE INTERNET know how it went. In the meantime, stay swag, internet.