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I find there are 2 types of people. One loves to live out in the middle of nowhere where the further away the neighbors the better, the fact that they need to drive an hour on unpaved road just to get to town to buy food don't bother them at all.
The other type realize that they need to live nearby a city or suburbs to survive. They need the infrastructure for food, internet, and the modern day conveniences to live. It's not that they "need", more like they "prefer" this lifestyle.
I think I belong to the 2nd group. Although I love to watch how people live off-grid, on a farm, or on the road with fascination, but realizing that's not what I am used to, or aspired to live. I admire the innovative ways people come up to get around various problems in their daily lives. But I just assume to take advantage of innovations people have already come up with to make my life easier.
Yes, I agree with this. 2 main types. I kind of feel like I am in between the two, and figuring it out. When I lived in New Mexico I loved it but it was too remote for me. Lack of access to goods, and especially lack of access to medical care. It takes forever to get an appointment in Santa Fe and forget about Las Vegas. There are no specialists in Las Vegas. It's a long drive to "civilization" in terms of modern life. Las Vegas is an interesting little town, and a lot of filming goes on there. I lived in the outlying areas, and while it is beautiful, one needs a sturdy home and conveniences to be able to withstand the weather.
It seems that there are very few dyed in the wool long term nomads. Bob Wells interviewed an elderly woman recently who has been on the road for 38 years. That's the age of my oldest child. I can't imagine that. It was an interesting conversation.
Yes, I agree with this. 2 main types. I kind of feel like I am in between the two, and figuring it out. When I lived in New Mexico I loved it but it was too remote for me. Lack of access to goods, and especially lack of access to medical care. It takes forever to get an appointment in Santa Fe and forget about Las Vegas. There are no specialists in Las Vegas. It's a long drive to "civilization" in terms of modern life. Las Vegas is an interesting little town, and a lot of filming goes on there. I lived in the outlying areas, and while it is beautiful, one needs a sturdy home and conveniences to be able to withstand the weather.
It seems that there are very few dyed in the wool long term nomads. Bob Wells interviewed an elderly woman recently who has been on the road for 38 years. That's the age of my oldest child. I can't imagine that. It was an interesting conversation.
Yes. A good point about medical care. It's funny they seldom mention this on nomad videos.
Interesting that you mentioned Las Vegas as I was considering it as possible one of retirement locations. The state has no income tax and it has the conveniences of a city. I would have prefer it over other southwest cities like Phoenix/ Tucson, etc. But I've heard the medical care was so-so and didn't realize a lacking of Specialists. We're fortunate living in the LA area with some best medical care available in the country. Both of my doctor & dentist are UCLA graduates and my orthodontist is a U Penn graduate. My parents have access to some top Specialists for their health care as well. For obvious reasons, top doctors are attracted to big cities like LA.
I saw one of videos Bob interviewed this woman. IIRC, she has been on & off on RVing for the last 38 years. But her rig is very well equipped, you can tell she put a lot of money into it. She mentioned she worked as LEO previously so she's very security minded about her safety. Her RV is equipped with motion activated sensors & lights and I am pretty sure she's armed and know how to handle a weapon.
I am very familiar with this guy. For years I always thought it would be cool to buy an old van and convert it into a camper. I never wanted to live in the thing, just for camping and travel. So I visited his site often. I learned that seniors who like to travel take advantage of places like Walmart and other stores who allow overnight camping in their lots. Obviously a good way to save on your travel budget.
As a young man, the idea I can just sleep in back of my truck and not pay for a hotel room is very attractive. Like you, I would have start out with traveling and/or camping on weekends. As a "dude", I can live several days without taking a shower and can just wipe down myself if gets a little ripe.
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Then the person related to me by marriage informed me that she has no intentions of spending her golden years sleeping in a van in a Walmart parking lot. All in all not an unreasonable position to take.
Yes. Having a spouse changes that equation. First, back of the truck maybe too cramped for 2 people. Second, a woman (my DW anyway) has a lot of "routines" before going to sleep, mostly they involve taking care her face. But this will require big counter space and a large mirror. Third, she gets up in middle of night to use bathroom a lot so it has better be conveniently setup. Fourth, she requires absolute darkness without noise to sleep, so a well lit Walmart parking lot or a truck stop is out of question. Fifth, she will insist on a hot shower every night. A pack of baby wipe is not going to cut it. Sixth, she's very particular about AC control in the room, not having an AC in back of truck is no bueno. Then finally it will be difficult to convince her to do #2 in a bucket.
I wish I could find a way to live in a different city or town for about a year at a time. I guess I could theoretically do this "in a van by the river" (or in a series of long-term RV parks), but I unfortunately find myself attached to quite a bit of stuff and reluctant to either part with it or pay storage fees on top of the RV park site fees. It's an albatross around my neck, and I envy people who don't feel similarly anchored and weighed down. My advice is: if you don't own anything, never start! Buy an inflatable bed and live on it. It can travel in the van with you...
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Originally Posted by TheShadow
What???!! She doesn't want to be "living in a van down by the river", What's wrong with her? LOL
River view and no property taxes!
But... W/ spouse, I understand. My top retirement state got axed very quickly... (you're gonna be real lonely living there".)
Van or small RV is just too tight for two as FT living. IMHO
Our mini-motorhome is very comfortable for road trips and a week out in the forest or beach, (as a couple)
But it's great solo. I really like the FS shower, but usually use the outdoor shower version to keep humidity down inside. It has a generator, but I only run it seldom, not to keep AC running at night.
Fortunately it gets 18-20 mpg. Maybe 30mpg when I convert it to diesel. Then I can use home brew fuel, and trips will be very cheap. Golden Access pass discount at NP is a real camping benefit.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,705 posts, read 58,022,681 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by otterhere
I wish I could find a way to live in a different city or town for about a year at a time. ..... My advice is: if you don't own anything, never start! Buy an inflatable bed and live on it. It can travel in the van with you...
Consider house / plant sitting for snow birds or travelers. Or renting a MIL cottage for extended stay. I used to get great deals on Home-Away, before it was bought by VRBO. I imagine there are still ways to find LT rentals from owners who seldom use their vacation homes. I always have a free place to stay at any of my homes that I arrange this way.
Stuff.... Yep that's a problem. I keep a shop with apartment and RV hookups. That way my stuff is in the shop, and I can rent out the RV spot, or the apartment while I travel, and there is someone around to watch the stuff, water the plants, get the mail, mow the grass, blade the snow.... and fetch me from the airport when I occasionally come home.
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