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Therese Ambrosi Smith

Author

1954 Beemer

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Airstreams are the Cadillacs of tin can campers. In Wax, Tilly lives in a sixteen foot beauty in Parking Lot C. I found a 1948 Wee Wind, restored, for thirty-eight thousand dollars – about thirty-six thousand more than I intended to spend.

I reviewed my criteria: ideally mid-century antique, polished aluminum, light enough to be pulled by my Ranger and road-worthy. And of course cheap. Which ruled out anything called Airstream.I had to broaden my search.

A cruise through cyberspace brought me to a field in Peru, Indiana, and my introduction to the rare Beemer travel trailer. The owner, Dan Piper, has assured me the trailer will polish to a mirror finish if I put the time in. The tires are new and it comes with a spare. It's ready to roll. The work it needs is cosmetic and I can do it myself. I think I've found my tin can camper.

In "Wax" Tilly discovers a shortage of housing near the Richmond shipyards and is offered an Airstream ...

therese-ambrosi-smith

About Author

Therese Ambrosi Smith became fascinated by a remarkable collection of WWII oral histories at the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historic Park, and her debut novel, Wax, was born. Her short fiction has incorporated personal tales of work and travel: climbing mountains, surveying logging roads, designing parks and playgrounds, tending bar and selling fish. She completed the UCLA Writers' Program in June 2009, and is currently embarking on a "tin can camper book tour."