#get ready for photo dumping galore the next few days!

[spirk-trek]

This weekend I had the pleasure of attending my very first Trekfest in 📍 Riverside, Iowa [future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk]

[probably-writing-x]

Working progress

It had all started with the little things. Like how your hand would shudder slightly when it brushed underneath his eyes. Or how you found yourself letting your fingers linger in his hair for just a moment too long when you fixed his already perfect curls. Or maybe in the tap of your foot as you waited for his arrival and the mundane nature of the rest of your day without him. It was all of those little things that made you realise that you were falling for Mr Holland.

"You don't get it!" You groan through the phone to your sister as you fish for the keys to your trailer, "It's not just like liking someone normal,"

"How is it any different? Because he's famous?" She questions and you envy the home comfort she is surrounded by - especially in the Atlanta chill that currently engulfed you.

"No it's not that!" You shake your head, "It's just- he's like my boss! I'm just his makeup artist,"

"What does that matter? That makes things even better!" Your sister laughs and you press the phone between your shoulder and your ear as you listen to her gleeful giggle at her own joke.

"You're not helping, at all," You roll your eyes, unlocking the door and stepping inside the dark trailer.

"You're the one that called me," She points out and you hear as she turns over in her bed, "But, it's far too early so I'm going back to bed,"

"Isn't it like midday over there n-"

"Bye sis, love youuu," She prolongs before hanging up the call.

You let out an exasperated sigh and drop your phone onto the chair, dumping the bags in your arms down onto the counter in front of you. This little trailer became like a second home to you when you were shooting - it was your pride and joy so you'd made it your own. There were plants filling the corners, lights adorning the tops of the walls and photos scattering everywhere there was a bit of space - photos of anything and everything.

"Right, what do I need today?" You mumble to yourself, checking the schedule to see what this early start would entail. For the re-shoots of Chaos Walking, this was one of the more important days as you had to prepare the actors for their appearances in the aftermath of action - meaning fake blood, scars and bruises galore.

Just as you begin to spill your products across the counter, you're interrupted by the sound of someone at the door, "Anyone in here?" The familiar voice of Tom calls and you turn to see him walking up the few stairs to your trailer, "Hello, darling,"

"Hey Tom," You smile, "I didn't expect you so early, I don't need you for another hour,"

"I know, I actually checked the schedule today," He beams with evident self pride, "But I thought you could do with some company. So, enter Tom!"

"Well, thank you," You eye him as he jumps up onto the counter, letting his legs dangle aimlessly in front of him, "I'm just going through what I need for you,"

He nods in understanding and picks up one of the products beside him, "What does this do?"

"Tom, that's concealer. I use it every single time on you," You laugh, "How do you not know that one?"

"I don't really pay attention to what you use," He shrugs, "I prefer to look at the faces you make when you do it,"

You glare at him as soon as he makes said comment, "Is there any need?"

It had become a habit for Tom to make fun of your extreme concentration when you worked - a concentration that came with facial expressiond he found highly amusing.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," He laughs, smiling and his water bottle as he takes a sip, "It's cute, honestly,"

You roll your eyes and turn to busy yourself with another bag of products, thankful for the opportunity to hide your blush.

"Hey," Tom says before you turn around and get caught with a sponge being thrown right at you, "Oooh good shot!"

"Do you mind?!" You exclaim, throwing the sponge back at him and catching his jaw.

Tom laughs, the kind of laugh that echoes in the creases beside his eyes and the clap of his hands.

You find it far too contagious to prevent yourself from laughing too.

"I thought you were coming to keep me company, not completely distract me,"

Well, he could have not shown up and he would still distract you...

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, let me help you," He encourages, jumping down from the counter, "We'll get it all done and then we can relax,"

"Alright, I need you to set these out in the shades for each of you, they have the letters on the bottom," You explain, handing him enough foundation shades to overload his hands as he drops them all onto the chair in front of him, fishing through them to set out the shades in front of each corresponding face.

"Wow, you're very prepared," He laughs as he stands back from his work, having arranged the shades into a smiling face.

"Are you literally a child?" You exclaim, struggling to contain your own smile at his jovial nature.

He pouts and shifts a few of the shades to make it a sad face, "Look what you've done now!"

Tom got like this when you were working early mornings or late nights, it was like the presence of the sun was enough to quantify his maturity. Meaning six am starts were prime time to see the boy that found everything amusing.

"Alright, alright," You sigh, setting down the few products in your hands, "You go get us some coffee and I'll finish up here,"

Tom smirks and grabs his jacket, tugging it over his arms and heading out into the cold to hunt for the catering that would provide you two with some much needed caffeine for the day ahead.

As he walked out, you couldn't help but let your eyes linger on him for a little longer than necessary...

~~~Tom's PoV~~~

Shit, shit shit. Why did it have to be you? Of all people, why did you have to be the one to make his heart flutter a little too much or his hands feel like they'd tremble at your slightest touch. You were his makeup artist for crying out loud! And you'd never go for him...

Just before he can let his thoughts consume him any more, Tom is stopped by the ringing of his phone as Harrison's name flashes on screen.

"Hey man, I figured you'd already be up by now so just wanted to check in. How's it going over there?" His best friend's voice sounds overly awake on the London end of the call.

"Yeah, it's all good," Tom nods, scratching at the back of his head, "I'm here early for makeup and hair and then a busy day of shooting,"

"How's all that going? With (Y/n)?"

A lump forms in Tom's throat at the mention of your name as he stops in his tracks, "I don't think it's really going anywhere. I told you, dude, she'd never be with me,"

"Why do you keep saying this?" Harrison sighs, guilty that he couldn't be there to slap the sense into Tom personally.

"Because," Tom starts but hears the difficulty in his words, "I've seen the other guys she's worked for and I've seen the guys that approach her and, hell, I've seen her! They're all way, way better than I am,"

"What, because they're bigger or have more muscle than bone? Because they're taller or they make better jokes?" Harrison questions, "(Y/n) likes you! Not those other guys,"

Tom pauses and part of him is desperate to believe what his companion was saying, "Anyway, how are things back home?"

And for a moment, just a moment, he lets himself forget about his self-doubt or his insecurities...

~~~Your PoV~~~

You flop down into the chair usually designated for your clients and let out an audible sigh, allowing your eyes to scan across the photo wall in front of you. Subconsciously and somewhat consciously, you find your gaze settling on one of you and Tom. You'd just finished working on his untameable hair on the set of Infinity War and he'd come up behind you to lift you from the ground, his spiderman suit pressed flush against the sweatshirt you wore - one that belonged to him, in fact. And then another of the two of you out for his birthday. With a beer in his other hand, he had one arm slung around your waist, tickling at your side to make you swing forward in fits of giggles, laughter that echoed in his own grin.

Damnit. You'd actually fallen for this boy. This one that was loved by a million and one girls and could get any girl his heart desired. A guy that could make anyone laugh and brighten up any room he walked into. And you were... You. You were the makeup artist hiding behind the fame of her clients, the piece of a huge puzzle that generally got forgotten in the production of films. People came into your trailer and left to forget all about the importance of your role. Sure, Tom might care now, but one day you'd become a forgotten name on a list of credits for a film he was in years before. You'd become one of the rest. And accepting that was tougher than it seemed.

God, why did it make you so upset?

"Alright, two coffees all ready," Tom smiles as he walks back into the trailer, "Fancy watching something?"

And with that, he's settled into the chair to flick through Netflix and the two of you huddle round his phone to watch an episode of whatever he has chosen.

~~~The Next Day~~~

Tom didn't show up early to your trailer the following day. He didn't bring a coffee to you or make smiley faces from your products or let you catch up with the cliffhanger show he'd opted for yesterday. And it started to make you think that your suspicions were correct. That you were really just another one of the crew to him.

But, seven o'clock hits and its time for his makeup and hair slot.

"Sorry I'm late!" He exclaims as he walks through the door, dead on seven am.

"Right on time, actually," You chuckle, spinning the chair round, "Take a seat,"

He checks the time on his phone, "I guess I am,"

Taking a seat, he throws his phone to the side and settles his head back against the cushion for you to begin with his shortened hair.

"So, what is it today?" You ask him, collecting some pomade into your hands before running it into his curls.

"I didn't check," He chuckles, eyes focusing on your every move. Normally, your clients shut their eyes or scrolled through their feeds whilst you worked. Tom never did.

"You really should start doing that more often," You roll your eyes, flicking over to check what your schedule says, "It's just a few hours today apparently, you should be done by midday,"

Tom grins, "See, I don't need to find out because I like to give you the pleasure of doing it for me,"

You move around and bend down in front of him, hands running along the sides of his head to fix the shorter hairs in place, "You won't have me forever, Holland,"

Tom takes in the view completely. The way your lips are slightly parted with concentration and your tongue is just caught between your teeth as though it would heighten your focus even more. The way that one curl falls down the side of your face no matter how many times you try to push it back. He feels the way his heart feels a little too accelerated when you're within his reach and the way he finds his eyes darting to every moving part of your body - trying to absorb the image to remember long after you'd gone.

"You're staring," You mutter and you don't realise you've actually said it until it's too late.

Tom jolts his head up and widens his eyes, "i need to tell you something," He snaps upright in the chair, his hands gripping the armrests.

"Jeez Tom, what's going on?" You frown, heart racing a little alongside his panic.

Tom stops and looks at you through the mirror, perhaps too fearful to say this to your face properly.

"God how do I say this?" He runs a hand through the hair you had just fixed, and then he shrugs his shoulders, "I like you (y/n/n),"

Your lips part and you have to stop yourself from externally screaming, "You-you what?"

"Fuck," he groans, "Okay, you know that feeling when you see someone attractive and you think of what they'd be like on a date? You'd think about what you'd talk about and how it would go. Well, I did that with you when I first met you,"

It made you smile. You'd done the same to him.

"But then I realised that I could plan a thousand dates with you and I still didn't get bored, I thought about all of it and I realised I didn't find you attractive anymore, it was more like falling for you," He admits and he is yet to break eye contact through the mirror before he stands up and spins to face you, "I know I'm pretty scrawny compared to the other guys and I'm not that tall and I always-"

"Don't Tom," You shake your head, "You've said enough,"

With that, you cup your hand across his cheek and bring your face to just centimetres from his.

"I have?" He says and you can hear how his words shake in their whisper.

You hum in response and he closes the gap between you, kissing you with the emotion of all the falling doubts he'd forgotten about now.

"T, I mea- you- we-" You stutter when the connection between you breaks.

Tom keeps his hands settled on your cheeks, thumbs ghosting your jaw before letting his head shake quickly, "Don't. I don't care how it's going to work,"

You smile and lock your lips with his once again, feeling his hand fall to find yours as he laces your fingers in his.

"God I've wanted to do that for forever," He mumbles into your lips.

~~~

Tags: @imarypayne @sunshine112 @bringmethehorizonandpizza @supernatural-girl97 @vibhati123 @butithasntkilledyouyet @faefictions @carisi-sonny @trap-house-homiecide @shamelessbookaddict @tommydaspidey @oneblckcoffee @darlingtholland @fanficparker

[pantrypressinc]

We received a Hymer pun challenge from our friend Patrick!

Most of us in North America are raised to follow the same recipe for life: get an education followed by a good job, buy a home, get married, raise children, work until retirement at 65 taking regular vacations. We weren’t really any different than this except that being self-employed we didn’t think we’d ever really retire.

We’ve never been big at planning. Change happened organically every five years or so since we started working together in 1990. When we sold our home and printing equipment in Toronto in 2014 we couldn’t have foreseen the trajectory our life would take: living largely (punctuated by stints with friends and family and Airbnb rentals) full-time in an old VW campervan for three years and part-time for one year; buying and renovating a small co-op apartment in Toronto and then selling it a year later; inheriting Julie’s dad’s dog, MacDuff; choosing to move back into a van and then deciding to upgrade to something more comfortable; stumbling upon an apartment in Julie’s hometown and deciding to rent it on the spot. Ask us where we’ll be five years from now or one and you’ll hear crickets. When we rented the apartment in Amherstburg the owner told us they weren’t really lease people and asked if that was okay. We both replied, ‘absolutely.’ There’s comfort for us in knowing we can make a change at any time. And renting is perfect for us right now. We find ourselves wondering if we’ll ever own a (non-rolling) home again. Maybe we’ll try renting in different places every couple of years. Anything is possible!

After selling the apartment in Toronto on July 26thand making way too many commitments we began driving long, un-air-conditioned distances in record-breaking temperatures for a solid month.  We darted from destination to destination in extreme discomfort while dealing with a single ongoing and seemingly impossible to diagnose mechanical problem with the van. We were towed twice, grateful both times for CAA+ coverage. In four plus years in the van we were never so hot or so frustrated. This ultimately lead us to purchasing a new, more comfortable, bathroom-equipped and air-conditioned van with a six-year transferrable warranty – the 2018 Hymer Aktiv. We had actually been researching van upgrades for about a year, however, August in Ontario provided us with the motivation to act on our desire for a more comfortable vehicle particularly since it would be our full-time home, studio, kennel for the foreseeable future.

https://vimeo.com/296463685

Pick up day, CampOutRV

The 2018 Hymer Aktiv

The new and old vans

The kitchen. Lots of storage. We added a photo sticker to the backsplash using a photo we took in Duncan, BC in 2015.

Bench seat with folding table. Front seats swivel.

Pull down screen at rear keeps the bugs out and the breeze in; Murphy Bed in stowaway position.

Three piece bathroom with wet shower, cassette toilet and folding sink.

Cassette toilet is accessed outside of the van.

Dumping the cassette toilet is easy.

Murphy Bed set up for a comfy night’s sleep.

Just after purchasing our new home-on-wheels we stumbled upon a beautiful apartment, smack dab in the centre of the river front park in the town of Amherstburg. This is the town in which Julie was raised and where her dad still lives. We’ve been spending more and more time here these past few years supporting Bill as his Alzheimer’s Disease progresses, so the apartment seemed like a great solution, for now. It will allow us to continue to travel and live in our new van and while stationary provide comfortable support for Julie’s dad. It’s large enough to accommodate house-guests including Julie’s siblings when they visit Bill and we have a dedicated office/studio space which is something we haven’t had since selling the house and studio in 2014. Sometimes things just feel right. We have learned to trust those gut instincts. The apartment is on the second story of the old town newspaper building, the Amherstburg Echo. It’s kind of neat to be living in a building that was once a printing office given our own printing career. When Julie was 10 years old she skated her first solo in the ‘Our Town’ ice show. Her title was ‘Little Miss Echo.’ These kind of coincidences always bolster our decision making.

The Amherstburg Echo Building. Our apartment is the top floor.

March 6, 1974 edition of the Amherstburg Echo.

Julie as Little Miss Echo in the Our Town Ice Show.

We have yet to decide if we’ll sell the Volkswagen. We are currently contemplating potential businesses. Plus, it’s still mighty fun to drive. If you have a hankering to travel in a super sweet VW and want to buy one that has been lovingly maintained and restored give us a shout. It’s got a lot of life left in it.

Here’s why we bought the Hymer:

it has a three-piece bathroom with a cassette toilet, sink, shower and amazing two-way fan (we have yet to test the shower!)

a great kitchen which includes a sink with hot and cold running water, AC/DC bar fridge with a freezer compartment, two burner propane cooktop and lots of pantry storage (we love being able to wash our fruits and vegetables and our dishes in the van)

air-conditioning and heating in the cab and in the living area (having AC means we can carry on a conversation or answer the phone while driving)

250 watts of solar on the roof (constantly charging)

400 amp hours lithium battery (charges while we drive and by solar while stationary)

the solar and lithium battery will allow us to camp off-grid and enable us to charge all of our devices

fresh and gray water holding tanks

lots of electrical and USB outlets

a comfortable full-size murphy bed with an actual mattress (feels like a king size compared to the VW)

table seating for four

front swivel seats (a bit of a workout to get them to swivel but we can use it)

blinds and screens in all the windows and retractable screens in the side and rear doors (keeps the bugs out and the breeze coming in from all directions)

built in sunshade in front window plus magnetic window covers for the front three windows

LED lighting throughout

An electronic awning with LED porch light which we would never leave on all night! Best thing about it is that the lighting is on the inside of the awning so illuminates where it is needed

Bonus features: an LED television, microwave and Sony GPS/DVD player/radio, cable hookup, spare tire, cup holders galore

This van is a VERY comfortable space in which we are able to work, cook, live and move around in all kinds of weather. This is not something we can really say about our beloved Volkswagen.

The thing we were looking forward to most of all was a maintenance-free vehicle. But, let’s be real… is there really such a thing? Regardless of age! Since picking it up the battery has been replaced and the tire pressure adjusted. As of this morning we now have heat in the cab! On the 30thHymer is going to have a look at a moisture issue in the cassette holding area and a malfunctioning back up camera. It is fortunately all covered by the extended warranties but we seriously hope that’s it for maintenance for the next little while. Funny thing is that the dealership where we bought it kept it for two weeks to allow for enough time to thoroughly test the vehicle and, ‘make sure it was perfect.’ Makes us wonder what testing was actually done or their definition of perfect.

In the meantime we moved all of our belongings out of storage (yay!!) and into the apartment. One thing we’ve learned in the past few years is how to get comfortable in a place fast. We could be somewhere for a few days, a week or a couple of months and we can feel ‘at home’ from the get-go. We are surprised just how ‘at home’ we feel in this apartment. We’re enjoying everything about it including our office, the kitchen, which is perfect for entertaining family and friends (old and new), the ensuite laundry (oh how we’ve missed that), the living room complete with a sofa and just having space in which to spread out. We continue to support Bill and attend to his health, take him to appointments, manage his care, finances and insurance issues, etc. And, of course, the warranty issues on our brand new van. Life. We sure are looking forward to hitting the open road and experiencing some new peaks, valleys and switchbacks before too long.

A Tour of the Apartment:

Hymer ready for the open road We received a Hymer pun challenge from our friend Patrick! Most of us in North America are raised to follow the same recipe for life: get an education followed by a good job, buy a home, get married, raise children, work until retirement at 65 taking regular vacations.