Determined

[Lizbit]

Hello everyone, I'm planning my 2nd attempt at breaking free and living the nomatic/van life. First time was an absolute fail. I'll save that long story for another post but it was mostly income related. I have 2 cats. One is an experienced traveler and camper (he thinks he's part dog) the other not so much. So the two things I need to secure before I can make the break (other than the van) are reliable online/freelance income and reliable climate contro
l would be greatful for any insights or suggestions about this or prepping ito make the break in general. Thanks everybody! Liz ?

 

[Lizbit]

Forgive the typos please. That question mark was supposed to be the namaste emoji. : (

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums Lizbit! You should find answers to your questions by reading through some of the forum threads but if you don't please feel free to ask about everything and anything. Someone here will probably have a good answer!

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[Lizbit]

Thanks rvwandering! I'm browsing the forums now.

 

[Elbear1]

I keep hearing about online freelancing. I even signed up for a few. They were exactly what I thought...a joke. Getting a real seasonal job is super easy. Partime camphosting for instance. Which comes with confortable weather and often electric.

If you choose that route an older class C is a way better option since youre not going to be burning down the roads. They're often just as cheap.

 

[Lizbit]

Thanks for taking the time to reply Elbear. It's much appreciated.

Gas mileage is really important to me so I know I want a small sized van. I'll be starting out as minimally as possible. No significant built in systems at first. Hopefully a portable solar set up early on, but basically starting with a shell and building as I go. My goal is to break free from my income being tied to a location. I want to travel and to be able to work from wherever I am.

 

[Lizbit]

...I've had similar experiences with the online freelancing thing. But people do it. I know it's possible. I've got the skills and background I would need. Just need to find the right combination of clients, maybe sperate and apart from the usual virtual "employers".

 

[travelaround]

Hi Lizbit...

I've been earning money online for more than ten years but I wouldn't call it reliable income. There's been a lot of ups and downs in the amount earned! For a while when my income was way-down I hired on at an online transcription site called Rev. I earned enough to keep paying my bills but it was extremely time consuming and stressful. Great for an emergency need. If you type at more than 100 WPM you might earn something equal to minimum wage for time spent. Unfortunately, I type only about 65 WPM. Most of my online earnings come from articles I wrote years ago.

 

[Elbear1]

Thanks for taking the time to reply Elbear. It's much appreciated.

Gas mileage is really important to me so I know I want a small sized van. I'll be starting out as minimally as possible. No significant built in systems at first. Hopefully a portable solar set up early on, but basically starting with a shell and building as I go. My goal is to break free from my income being tied to a location.  I want to travel and to be able to work from wherever I am.

If gas mileage is important a larger RV costs much less in fuel, especially if you haul a toad. 

A van doesnt hold many supplies so while you can get double the mpg you have to supply much more often. A class C can easily go a month. A van - tough to go a week.

The reality is youre going to be sitting in one place for about 5-6 months no matter what. In warm weather you can move around but if youre relying on good internet youre not going to be going far off the beaten path. Frankly, youre going to the mountains and whether you go to colorado or utah or idaho or california its mostly the same thing; youre finding a forest road close-ish to town and pulling over.

Then you have the issues of showering and dealing with poop bags piling up. In a van showers are a planned luxury. You cant just hop in the back and do your thing.


Just food for thought. Vans are pretty much only good for going deeper into usually no-internet zones and coming back out in 1-3 days. And most peoples budgets in a van are no different than in a RV.

 

[Nomadness]

Hi Lizbit,
Have you considered teaching English online?  Usually there is little or no experience needed other than being a native English speaker and the jobs are rather simple in and of themselves.  The income can be pretty good, although the hours can be difficult (typically very early morning).  And more often than not it involves teaching kids one to one or in small groups.   Not everyone's cup of tea, but maybe worth considering.

 

[maki2]

Money makes most anything possible! Making good money requires that you have developed some very good skills in specific areas. If you don't have any such skills then get busy learning them immediately so that it won't take as long for your entry level wages to become intermediate level and then experienced, highly desirable employee.