Being a Newby isn't easy.

But as you read this my wife and I are happily camping away, enjoying the Lifestyle of the Neither Rich Nor Famous.

Since we bought our 1971 Airstream, Safari model, last November we have had many lessons. We have learned, for instance, that while plastic may last forever if you find it on a beach, its useful lifetime as a functioning trailer part is well short of eternity.

I am still reading manuals and buying tools. I continue to hope that if I read enough, the tools will somehow know what to do. For better or worse, I have learned once again that the best tool in my toolbox is a well-worn checkbook.

It can do amazing things.

Here are some of the lessons (and attendant costs) that we have learned.

Parts wear out. Most of us are in denial about this. We like to think that nothing we own will ever suffer the need for a replacement part. But while the beautiful aluminum shell of an Airstream may be virtually immortal, you would be stunned at the number of parts that can need replacement. Basically, it's anything that a house can need; only it will be smaller and harder to reach.

In our case the pre-purchase assessment was pretty good. We knew, for instance, that the waste valve had a small leak. Since the waste valve sits under the black water holding tank that, in turn, sits under the toilet, the fact that the leak was deemed "small" didn't matter. The valve had to be replaced. Ditto, the running tires and spare, a variety of gas valves, faucet valves, and plastic slide handles, etc.

So we spent another $2,600 (beyond our original $5,900 purchase price) in getting most of the basics to working order. We now have a furnace, refrigerator, stove, and water heater that work nicely. Our vent fans all work. Our electrical connections all work nicely, etc. We have yet to attack the morass odd hoses, pipes, and connectors under the sink, a mess that looks like the web of a psychotic spider.

Improvements are inevitable. Our Airstream came without an awning. Ralph Lauren would never allow this on any of his $120,000 remodels of the beloved 16' Bambi. Neither would we. So we ordered a beautiful striped awning from Zip-Dee, the Illinois manufacturers of retractable awnings for trailers, fifth wheels, and motor homes. With freight, it was about $1,300. Installation was another $200.

The awning adds an extra room, which is very important when two people are living in a space that otherwise measures 20 by 7. To put that in perspective, our Airstream quarters--- kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and living room--- are significantly smaller than many walk-in closets.

Beauty is only skin deep. The year our Airstream was built, 1971, wasn't memorable for fashion and design. The colors of the period were Harvest Gold and Avocado, sometimes applied to Nehru jackets and bell bottoms.

So my wife and I confer. Let's go light on this, we agree. No custom upholstery. No Flash Gordon stainless steel interiors. No hand painted interior mural inspired by the Sistine Chapel. We'll tear up the existing carpeting. We'll replace it with inexpensive throw rugs. And we'll make the whole thing so it can be stripped, cleaned, and changed easily.

Thanks to Target and a handful of western memorabilia stores, we now have bedding, throws, towels, dishware, silverware and some nifty antique pictures. All put together for just over $1,500.

Yes, even an Airstream can be accessorized.

So our basic investment is now about $11,500, approaching the top end of the $10,000 to $12,000 range I expected. My wife, who is both wiser and less of a tight-wad, had estimated $12,000 to $15,000.

Are we done yet?

Not quite. Perhaps not ever. Our first weekend in Red River revealed a leaky pipe. And winter may have killed our new battery, creating doubts about the converter/charger… So, no, we're not done yet.

But it doesn't matter. Like the rest of life, it's not the destination, it's the journey.

On the Web: Tuesday, February 28, 2006: Airstream Angel keeps things simple

Reader: Investing in an RV lifestyle

Reader: Living Lite column series

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Personal finance writer Scott Burns is syndicated by Universal Press. His twice weekly column appears in newspapers from Boston to Seattle. He is the Chief Investment Strategist for AssetBuilder, Inc. Readers can register at www.scottburns.com. Questions/comments can be posted directly. They can also be sent, without registration, to scott@scottburns.com. Questions of general interest will be answered in future columns and on this blog.

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