Vanlife Log: Campervan Fire Mishap

The days of California are filled with warm sunshine.  The mornings and evenings, however, can be a bit brisk.  Before we climb into bed, The Husband will stock our Dickson Marine Fireplace with crumpled newspaper, and chips of Duraflame Log.  Come morning, all we have to do is light a match.  Instantly the van will be warm, and cozy.  Today, this method of lighting a fire in the dark, led to our first campervan fire mishap.

Just before light began trickling in through the sunroof above our bed, The Husband begins preparing for work.  He shuffles about in the dark with his flashlight and lites the fire.  Pulling the makeshift curtain, hung from our indoor clothesline, he disappears to the front seat, with his computer.

The fire burns a low flame until it simmers out by its own demise.  Morning is here, and I begin the tidying up process.  Passing by the fireplace, I notice a black blob of something, sitting on top of it.  I reach over to further investigate, and find that it’s stuck to the fireplace.  Pulling at it, the blob flakes off in layers of melted plastic.

Oh…..that’s where I set my small reusable grocery bag.

Each time we switch environments, it’s takes a minute to reclaim our surroundings.  During the transition, mishaps can happen.

Little mishaps seem to be natures gentle way of boosting our awareness.

Murphys Law states, “whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.”

But I like to think of it more as this:

Whatever can happen, will happen.

Each day has new possibilities.

Luckily, the slow heat was not enough to actually catch the grocery bag on fire. After a bit of tugging and scrapping, the fireplace is back in full working order. Hopefully this campervan fireplace mishap is not something we will repeat!

Have your travels ever thrown you a surprise? Have you had a little mishap or accident on the road? Please share with us in the comments!