# Survival Guide to Homelessness



## BillS (May 30, 2011)

http://guide2homelessness.blogspot.com/2004/10/introduction-to-project.html

Here's just one part of it:

Advantages of Homelessness

You'd be surprised how many advantages there are to a homeless lifestyle. While there is an aspect of difficulty and hardship, there is also an element of easy living. I was made homeless by circumstances, but I stayed homeless by choice.

Imagine working two weeks to pay for your expenses for two months. You can easily go to college with an income requirement so low. My expenses, excluding food, averaged $300 per month for the five years I was homeless. That included storage, mailbox, telephone or pager, gasoline, vehicle insurance, health club membership, dry cleaning, laundry, new clothes, and entertainment. I went to the movies a lot. Imagine what you could do with the time if your work week was two days and your weekend was five.

I went to museums, libraries, volunteered, went to concerts, went to college, watched trials at the local courthouse, spent time with friends, played chess, practiced yoga, read, went to movies, and spent time just thinking.

The freedom is awesome. It is also somewhat daunting. It is hard to be prepared for so much time on your hands. In a strange way I felt a kinship with prisoners. The time can draw out and overwhelm you, so don't be surprised by this experience. Depression can sometimes attend this amazing freedom. In the end, the freedom to do as you please is addictive.

There are advantages to homelessness. You are no longer slave to a wage."

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It's really too long to post it all. It was also written almost 10 years ago. Some things have changed. For example, if you're homeless or without electricity you can get a gym membership for as little as $10 a month. That gives you a place to shower everyday.

You can use a computer at the library to look for a job. If your cell phone has a USB connection you can charge your phone while you surf the web.

I still think you could rent a storage unit, and depending on where you live and the time of year, you could secretly sleep there from time to time as necessary.

The good thing about the guide is that it will give you a lot of good tips if you suddenly can't afford to keep your house or apartment. If you're single you can make enough to feed yourself and keep your car running if you still work as little as 10 or 15 hours a week or get some government check.

I don't advocate a homeless lifestyle but I found the guide to be fascinating.


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## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

Huh?!?

Too little information. 

If he buys gasoline he owns a car?!?!

Work two days - - - - doing WHAT?


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## gam46 (Jan 24, 2011)

Think I read this on another forum where people pointed out that the suggestions for surviving mostly involved taking, not directly stealing, but taking that which many of us would not choose to.


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## BillS (May 30, 2011)

LincTex said:


> Huh?!?
> 
> Too little information.
> 
> ...


If you lose your full time job you could still have a car that's paid for. Or you sell whatever you have in order to get a car you can pay for in cash.

You could work at a retail store or do temporary part time office work.

There's more information to be had if you check out the link.

So basically if you're young and healthy, you sleep in your car. Get up in the morning. Go to Wal-Mart for a small container of milk so you can have cereal in your car. Then go to the gym. Shower there after your workout. You have clean clothes because you go to the laundromat. You have a part time job. Nobody knows you're homeless. You're really not homeless because you live in your car. I wouldn't want to live that way but I can see how you could if you had to.


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## BillS (May 30, 2011)

gam46 said:


> Think I read this on another forum where people pointed out that the suggestions for surviving mostly involved taking, not directly stealing, but taking that which many of us would not choose to.


I read most of his blog. He didn't take anything. He still worked part time. The only thing he did that was illegal was sleep in his car. He used to wash up in gas station bathrooms. But he bought his own food. Paid for whatever he wanted. But because he didn't have an apartment where he had to pay rent he had more freedom to work less if he wanted to.


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## IlliniWarrior (Nov 30, 2010)

we used to call them bums ....


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## mosquitomountainman (Jan 25, 2010)

As long as he isn't taking from others how he lives is none of my concern. We live a large portion of our year in an RV. We know lots of people who do it full time in everything from vans to huge motor homes. It can be done much cheaper than most people think as long as you are frugal. You can get free wifi lots of places and purchase a Trak Fone for a telephone number (needed for employers to contact you). A post office box will give you legitimacy and a place to have your mail sent. Finding a good place to stay can be a challenge but if you will do some volunteer work (about ten hours a week) many government organizations like lakes and national parks will provide a camping spot with hookups. We just boondock camp in free areas. Most have a day limit so we do some volunteer work and they waive the daily limit on staying in one place. We have solar and wind power and only need to empty holding tanks a couple times a year. It isn't a bad life. living in a car makes it harder only because of the cramped space. I wouldn't call anyone living like that a "bum."


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

I have never been much of a traveler. Always seemed to be best at growing roots in the form of family, animals, people that I like helping, etc. Plus I have always been a builder, stickler for private property, privacy, and personal space.

Still, the periods of time I spent away from all that were great in a lot of ways too, if not exactly for me. Packing a bag or a vehicle with everything was always a stimulating challenge, and sometimes fun. Even/especially when on the road I was a huge fan of redundancy of essentials. It is where I really got used to always having a bag with me, not a BOB or anything with an acronym, just a bag with everything I *needed*.

It can definitely be a liberating feeling to have everything you need with you. However, for me it was even more liberating to have a piece of land that I could come home to. As much fun as I had on the road, coming home for me is something else entirely, beyond my ability to describe.

As for others, sure a lot of people who "couch surf", are "digital nomads", or whatever cheesy term they have these days, are lazy. So what, they don't take anything from me and mine that we don't give willingly, if they take from government programs or charity that is something else entirely unrelated to whether one is "homeless" or not. Many people who live those lifestyles, for part or all of their lives, are the opposite of a "drain on society", many of them live efficient, healthy lives and are even willing to move to places where labour is in short supply or take jobs others might not be bothered with.


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## mosquitomountainman (Jan 25, 2010)

We like having a home base for security. When living in a vehicle or on the road there is always that fear that laws or enforcement of current laws may change and you can end up with no place to park your rig. Of course, a lot of places have such rigid zoning laws and/or high property taxes that it can become impossible to keep your home or property. There is no real security anywhere and the "mobile homeless" may not be in any worse shape than a land owner who is only renting from their tax assessor or retaining possession in compliance with the zoning office.

One thing we've found helpful for living on the road is to be a good neighbor. Obnoxious people tend to get hassled a lot more than those who blend in.

We also know of people who have a mobile existence to keep from being found by certain people. In some cases it was an abusive spouse, in others it was from nosy relatives, in other cases it was for "other" reasons including just to be free.


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## bigg777 (Mar 18, 2013)

This thread reminded me of this:


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## tsrwivey (Dec 31, 2010)

I spent waayyyy too much time reading at that website. I know a couple who spent a few years living in their Airstream with their two kids. At first they did it to get out of debt, said they just couldn't make any progress while paying rent, etc. After they got their debt paid off, they decided to travel around awhile. The husband was a nurse so employment was very flexible. They saved enough money to buy a small piece of land & a used single wide trailer where they now live. They're saving to build their own house on their land without debt. There are RV parks that have popped up all over the place around here, so they're not alone.

Living without a home would definitely be easier with certain vocations. If you worked day labor a couple days a week at $9/hr, that would give you $140 a week. If his expenses were $300 a month plus food, that would give him $300 a month for food. He wouldn't be living large, but it's doable.


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## RevWC (Mar 28, 2011)

I have lived out of my car and bathed in the streams, no phone, no mail, no bills, no TV, and I had a Labrador. Not a bad life! I worked 2 nights a week as a bartender that paid for fuel, food and books to read. We would all be better off with less, in my humble opinion! Of course I was a lot older then I'm younger than that now.


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## jimLE (Feb 25, 2015)

LincTex said:


> Huh?!?
> 
> Too little information.
> 
> ...


a person can do all those things within a certain distance from where they work 2 days a week..in which that'll put them within walking distance of every thing else.like where they get their clothes,their food,,to everything else..so that means,no car is needed,and no insurance.and thats money in the pocket for other things..and maybe a bicycle for longer trips to where ever..bicycle frames wheels handle bars and seats can be found dumped out some where.and can be found in yard sales.


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## Viking (Mar 16, 2009)

BillS said:


> If you lose your full time job you could still have a car that's paid for. Or you sell whatever you have in order to get a car you can pay for in cash.
> 
> You could work at a retail store or do temporary part time office work.
> 
> ...


This is basically what my SIL did for a few years, only she got on a health related Social Security income, she's now living in a low to now income apartment, before that she was living in her Chevy S-10 until the police started bugging her, I think they wanted to push her into a shelter, but the shelters are pretty tight as to what you can do and how long you can stay and she had some issues as to who she wanted to be around. I think that she has been offered to stay in a home with a woman that silk screens T-shirts and makes pretty good money at it, that woman had previously given he food and perhaps other needs. All I can say is that living in your vehicle in the middle of winter in the Denver area cannot be fun. There seems to be a big psychological situation that comes about in being homeless, it certainly twisted her thinking. Then there are those that are homeless because of being booted out of homes for the mentally ill, I've seen that and it's rather spooky.


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## TheLazyL (Jun 5, 2012)

Son had a college classmate that lived too far away to commute (or didn't have the means) and couldn't afford rent. Classmate camped out in a woods within walking distance and accepted classmates offers to use their dorm shower.


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## Grimm (Sep 5, 2012)

TheLazyL said:


> Son had a college classmate that lived too far away to commute (or didn't have the means) and couldn't afford rent. Classmate camped out in a woods within walking distance and accepted classmates offers to use their dorm shower.


My folks did this when they were in college in Kansas. When they took summer classes they camped in a tent and their van at the edge of the sports fields and used the gym showers. They had a Brittany and a cat with them. When the regular school year started back up my folks would go in the next town over rent a house and work at the middle and high schools as teachers. They were working on getting their Masters.

I grew up hearing these types of stories so when I was in my 20s I lived in my 74 Ghia for a while with my cat. I worked 4 days a week at a record shop and Sunday nights at a night club for extra money. No phone but I had a pager so I could be reached. I showered at friends' places and even went so far as to break in my folks' house to shower or do laundry when they were at work. I didn't have a key but I knew how to open the locked back door and would let myself in. Not my proudest moment.


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## Balls004 (Feb 28, 2015)

There is probably more than one thing that the "homeless" could teach the rest of us about survival. You do what you have to do.


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## kinda (Sep 8, 2015)

I lived in a van for 10 months, on food stamps and selling my blood plasma. I also ate at the mission and churches and got food bank staples. During that time, I got 17k of student loans and 7k of grants. Because I took nursing as a career, the loans are forgiven. I used the loans to get a 3rd world wife, who is a dentist in her home country. Here, she has to attend 2 more years of dental college, but she makes $30 an hour as a dental hygienist, while also getting 10k of loans for college (half time) and 3k per year of loans and grants. Guess who she gives 35k per year to, cash?  If you know what to do, you CAN get out of the rat race.


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## kinda (Sep 8, 2015)

an older, 1k mini-van is a huge help. I built a light-tight box out of 2x4's and particle board. 3x3x7ft. when I was not in it, the milk cartons and plastic storage bins were in the box. When I was in it, the stuff was covered with blankets. remove the rear seats and the passenger seat. You'll be AMAZED at how much room you gain by getting rid of the passenger seat. When you have WHEELS on your home, you don't have to suffer from heat or cold and you can go where the work is. Have as much sense as a bird, and move twice a year.


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## Gians (Nov 8, 2012)

kinda said:


> I lived in a van for 10 months, on food stamps and selling my blood plasma. I also ate at the mission and churches and got food bank staples. During that time, I got 17k of student loans and 7k of grants. Because I took nursing as a career, the loans are forgiven. I used the loans to get a 3rd world wife, who is a dentist in her home country. Here, she has to attend 2 more years of dental college, but she makes $30 an hour as a dental hygienist, while also getting 10k of loans for college (half time) and 3k per year of loans and grants. Guess who she gives 35k per year to, cash?  If you know what to do, you CAN get out of the rat race.


Sounds more like you found a way to join the rat race.


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## kinda (Sep 8, 2015)

why do you think that? I'm retired.  I do only what I feel like doing.


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## AdmiralD7S (Dec 6, 2012)

kinda said:


> why do you think that? I'm retired.  I do only what I feel like doing.


Apparently what you feel like doing is stealing money via those loans you've stated you're not going to pay back.


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## Gians (Nov 8, 2012)

kinda said:


> why do you think that? I'm retired.  I do only what I feel like doing.


Retired too, although busier now more than ever.


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## Starcreek (Feb 4, 2015)

Our family of six lived in 2 or 3 different buses and an RV while we were travelling the country doing Christian street ministry. The two most difficult things about it were not having a yard for the kids to play in, and parking someplace where you think nobody would mind (a Walmart parking lot or down next to a river) and then having somebody come along and tell you to leave. The rejection becomes difficult to handle.

Worse was after the kids were grown and we were between homes and slept in the car for a couple of nights. That's the only time I can honestly say we were "homeless."

In the process of doing street ministry all those years, we met a lot of homeless people, and I think the most difficult thing is dealing with the attitudes of other people. They see you as a "lesser species" of human. It's hard to resist getting depressed about that.


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## Gians (Nov 8, 2012)

Since May there have been 34 fires along the American River Parkway, a good many traced to the homeless building fires. I can understand wanting to live along the river rather than in a shelter, it'd be my choice, but they won't have much cover if they're not more careful.


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## kinda (Sep 8, 2015)

I didn't set up these laws, or the rule about when loans are forgiven. Disabled vets get many benefits. Why should I not take them, hmm? Compared to the 50 million that they OWE me for what they did, this little $50,000 is nothing.


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## dlharris (Apr 3, 2011)

So my husband and I found ourselves in major debt and slaves to our debts. I was working and my husband was a truck driver. So we sold our home and almost everything in it (10 x 15 storage unit is all that's left ...... after 35 years of marriage ) and I quit my job. We purchased a new truck with a large sleeper (full kitchen, bathroom, shower) we have been living on the road in this for 4 years in another week. We have been able to pay off every debt we owed....2 more years and the truck will be paid for. It has been tough at times but the feeling of freedom from the debts is amazing. Had we not done this we would have been in debt forever.
Now that everything is paid we can start saving for a home....I am so glad we did this but can't wait to have a home again....at least not one on wheels. 
Our idea of what we need has changed considerably....we are looking for small home with a couple of acres....but one we can pay cash for! We will never make the mistakes of the past again.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

kinda said:


> I didn't set up these laws, or the rule about when loans are forgiven. Disabled vets get many benefits. Why should I not take them, hmm? Compared to the 50 million that they OWE me for what they did, this little $50,000 is nothing.


Ethics and morality have no dependance on laws.


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## kinda (Sep 8, 2015)

ethics are bs, set up by gov'ts to control you, but NOT them. THEY get to kill and steal, but you can't get away with it.


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## dlharris (Apr 3, 2011)

Ethics and morality also have no dependence on others. Those things come from within each of us.


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## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

kinda said:


> ethics are bs, set up by gov'ts to control you, but NOT them. THEY get to kill and steal, but you can't get away with it.


Thank you, now I see you for who you really are. Have encountered many with the same thought pattern. Ethics are in no way created by the government, in fact, they very often run exactly counter to them, but that is not really the issue here.

Unless you open your mind, which you most assuredly will not, you will never have a comprehensive understanding of history, the world or humanity in general. Stuck in a mental trap of your own making. You will likely also never have any truly meaningful relationships with others, which is perhaps the saddest thing.

Anyways, no reason to take this thread off-topic any further.


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## VoorTrekker (Oct 7, 2012)

I was homeless and living in my pick up truck. Glad I bought that camper shell. Lived in the emergency housing shelter two winters in a row and managed to get into the 90 day program at the community service center. 

Been there living out of my pick up truck three times and now maybe the curse has been lifted. 

Some people do hold the disadvantaged homeless as toxic. Most truly homeless people are not homeless by choice. Some people have sympathy for the disadvantaged homeless, but few do anything to help where it is within their power. 

The "Homeless" culture championed by the liberals are not homeless. They are on assignment for "the Party" as an excuse to re-distribute wealth. 

I used the track and shower at the community college, attended night school and was signed up with a few temp agencies. Rents were outrageous and wages low. Studio apartment $500+ per month, wages @ $6.00 to $8.00 an hour for non-skilled clerical and up to $10.00 for super skilled clerical. Cost of living including car insurance, gas and groceries was at least 600+ per month. 

One layoff and one is homeless, the alternative is boring and desperate poverty juxtaposed with a multitude of yuppies with inconspicuous consumption.


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## Cotton (Oct 12, 2013)

cowboyhermit said:


> Thank you, now I see you for who you really are. Have encountered many with the same thought pattern. Ethics are in no way created by the government, in fact, they very often run exactly counter to them, but that is not really the issue here.
> 
> Unless you open your mind, which you most assuredly will not, you will never have a comprehensive understanding of history, the world or humanity in general. Stuck in a mental trap of your own making. You will likely also never have any truly meaningful relationships with others, which is perhaps the saddest thing.
> 
> Anyways, no reason to take this thread off-topic any further.


Pearls before Swine...


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## Dakine (Sep 4, 2012)

VoorTrekker said:


> I was homeless and living in my pick up truck. Glad I bought that camper shell. Lived in the emergency housing shelter two winters in a row and managed to get into the 90 day program at the community service center.
> 
> Been there living out of my pick up truck three times and now maybe the curse has been lifted.
> 
> ...


There but for the grace of God, go I. -John Bradford (maybe)


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## ashiq123 (Oct 11, 2015)

*Survival alone.*

*MMMMM , here a lot of advantage,But its also damn true that you can not continue this situation for a long time* :2thumb:


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