An Animal-Loving Couple Transformed Their School Bus Into A Pet Paradise

Adam and Rachel Carbary have chosen to take a pretty unique path in life, and the vehicle they’ve taken along for the ride is just as unusual. When the couple decided to convert an old Bluebird All American school bus into a house on wheels, they had some pretty tough customers to please: their pets! Five of them, to be exact. As you can imagine, a compact, mobile space that works for both you and five furry friends has got to be pretty special, so this was no ordinary renovation. But life on the road isn’t always easy.

Escaping the rat race

In April 2020 the couple were interviewed by website Tiny House Talk about their bus, known as a “skoolie.” They were asked, “Why did you decide to go tiny?” That refers to the “tiny-house movement,” a push to simplify and downsize living spaces. They answered, “We decided to build a tiny home for ourselves as a way to get out of the typical ‘American-Dream’ rat race.”

Re-evaluating their lifestyle

“Adam owns his own business but was no longer enjoying the work involved,” continued Rachel. “It was time to make a radical change in our lives, to get out of our comfort zones and to create a life we loved.” Interestingly, though, she claimed they didn’t see tiny living as something they’d do forever, admitting, “This change just allowed us to re-evaluate our lives and decide what we really wanted.”

Adam realized he was unfulfilled

In a YouTube walkthrough video on the Tiny House Giant Journey channel, Adam explains, “I’ve run a home-theater installation business for the last nine years. Five years into it, I finally realized that it was just a job that wasn’t fulfilling me as much anymore. The answer of, ‘Well, how do we do something different?’ You change your bills, and you change your lifestyle.”

It’s all about freedom

In the Tiny House Talk follow-up interview two years later, the couple expanded on this, saying, “We went tiny for freedom. Freedom from the standard way of living, freedom from unnecessary bills, freedom from a regular 9-5 job, freedom to simply live life on our own terms. We know this life has so much to offer, but it’s hard to experience that when you’re wrapped up in a life that the rest of society tells you is ‘right.’”