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crofter

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 2, 2017
Messages
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Location
on the bench
I am thankful that Carolyn put up this video.



It's kinda long, but very real. Be safe out there!   ~crofter
 
when she first came out I subscribed to her channel but it didn't take long and I unsubscribed. I can't watch her it's like fingernails on a chalkboard. highdesertranger
 
She is one of my heroes, altho I like Bob's video's better also.

That she received such a graphic threat or really any threat is chilling. I always like to see where she is camping, and now we can't know that anymore.      ~crofter
 
Her sadness is heart wrenching. I've had my dog for about 10 years, and I feel a bit panicked with each passing year as his face grays and I know ... anyway, I feel her pain at losing Capone. I've heard other channels badmouthing her and I know I'd never have the emotional strength to not be hurt by such ugliness. Her depression and hurt really comes across on her video. I couldn't do it. Just all very sad.
 
Really sorry she's going through such a hard time. I would not go to RTR if there could be a violent stalker. Part of the benefit of the traveling existence is to be able to drive away whenever needed. When I make my travel videos I won't be telling people exactly where I'm going. I'll go there, then upload the videos from where I used to be. I know it is easy to attract strangely antagonistic people, just from being on this message board.

Well, this looks like as good a place as any to say this ... no big deal since none of you know me IRL but I've decided not to go to WRTR/RTR this coming January... for multiple reasons. Health is the biggest consideration. Since I'd have to be in a car/tent situation, it could be dangerous. I'd feel better about it if I had my home in a van. But also, since I met a few angry people on this message board (and haven't even been here very long) I think it would be better to stay away from a huge group of strangers. That's a very small reason compared to other considerations, but it is something I've thought about in the last month, and is part of what influenced my decision to stay away.
 
travelaround said:
 I would not go to RTR if there could be a violent stalker. 
We will all miss you at RTR.  It is a concern that this particular stalker could be around targeting people.  ~crofter
 
crofter said:
We will all miss you at RTR.  It is a concern that this particular stalker could be around targeting people.  ~crofter

Thanks, Crofter. I'll try to make it another year. 2019, I'm just getting started.
 
Travelaround - Have you considered renting a van for those events - or meeting of with others you click with on CRVL?
 
I am sad for Carolyn, and what she is going through.

Having traveled half to three quarters time for 12 years or so, the past 5 as a widow, it has been my experience that our country is overall very safe and that most people mean you no harm.

Use common sense, keep your radar up, greet everyone and don’t be generally fearful, is what works for me.

Travelaround, it sounds like your health is going to hold you back right now, and I understand that, too.

You don’t want a medical crisis, if you can avoid it, when you are vulnerable and far from home, been through that, too.

But don’t let a few negative or hostile people turn you off to traveling, as they are just not representative of most you will meet.
 
I'm not a fan of drama oriented, monetized YT'ers. And this is one of the reasons, fear mongering. Not that that was her intention but drama sells. Same reason I stopped watching the news.
And I never thought of ranting as being gendered but the dismissal of expressions of emotions, especially females', is real. I stand w/ her on that.
The issues of being a solo woman on the road are real and, being a large, white, streetwise male, there are some of those issues I'll never completely be able to understand the depth of. However, being stalked happens even when you're someone like me, just not as often and it looks different.

WanderingRose's offering is spot on, imo. Be aware/mindful of you and your surroundings, develop and trust your intuition/gut then listen to it. Develop a safety routine that you adhere to for different situations, crowds, new isolated spot, seedy urban locations, noticing unwanted attention, etc.
Fear is not a bad thing, quite the contrary, imo. It helps us 'act' to remedy a dangerous situation however being paralyzed or ruled by fear is different.
 
? You have met a few angry people on this forum? Strangely antagonistic people? Or do you mean online in general? I have not seen any scary folks here. Maybe that is thanks to our moderators.
 
PattySprinter said:
Travelaround - Have you considered renting a van for those events - or meeting of with others you click with on CRVL?

I don't want the expense of a van rental... and I'm open to meetings later when I get my van... that will be springtime.
 
MaTaLa said:
I'm not a fan of drama oriented, monetized YT'ers. And this is one of the reasons, fear mongering. Not that that was her intention but drama sells. Same reason I stopped watching the news.

I have to agree with this ... not to minimize her situation - as I know what it is like to have your life threatened, and I believe the stress and emotions are real. I thought the grief over the dog was overdone but really, that's probably reflective of how I would handle it. I didn't grieve that much over my dogs. I still do miss them sometimes, but she looked a lot more affected than I probably would be. I actually admire someone who cares that deeply about a dog.

I got the impression from the video that she needed someone to talk to, to process what's happening, and she chose YouTube viewers, and that's fine. Also, she got an important message out there about safety. I hope all will go well for her.

Also, about the ranting being gendered - I also never thought that was for women only. The one person I was around who was prone to extensive ranting was a man. He was also the one who threatened my life.
 
Weight said:
? You have met a few angry people on this forum? Strangely antagonistic people?  Or do you mean online in general? I have not seen any scary folks here. Maybe that is thanks to our moderators.

This is a very well run forum, and for that, I'm grateful. I don't want to say too much about these two situations, but for one, all the antagonism was mainly in private mail so nobody could see what was going on. The other was deleted from the forum quickly, by a moderator. Neither of these people are long term or frequent writers here. I felt it was strange because I've used the internet for many years and this kind of thing rarely happens to me. Last time was quite a few years ago.
 
travelaround said:
 grief over the dog 
My travel buddy, a German Shepherd Dog, passed about a year ago and I can feel for her grief.  I know my animal was in pain before he passed, and that is something I have to live with.  When you have an animal, a lot of your time is around their schedule of walks, getting fed & watered, etc.  My buddy had a large fan club, and we got a lot of attention when out and about.  I probably don't get that much attention now that I am on my own, not that I miss it.  I have a lot more freedom now without an animal, and get to sleep in wheras he got me out of bed every day at 5am.
I think people who post videos on YT are quite brave and I am thankful for their experience and expertise that they share that way. I am a very private person and try to protect my privacy and also others by not posting pictures of people at all. I'm not sure if that makes any difference.  I think the occurrence of stalking is a random thing and not related to what you do or say. I think it would be a rare occurrence for a stalker to be able to travel and live the way we do, while stalking.      ~crofter
 
"You know what?  Rant, I don't like that word.  Is that a sexist word, Rant?  Do men rant?  Not very often.  Rant and rave, right?  Whenever a women -- a woman -- is passionate, and honest, and forthcoming, it's a rant.  I see that a lot."

I bet she does.

The internet is the natural home of ranting.  :D  It's almost impossible to avoid -- even news media does it -- and sometimes it's even funny and fun.  Virtually everybody does it at least once in a while and some sites are nothing but.

I never thought I'd see men accused of not ranting. :p
 
Watched about halfway through before it froze on the same small circle of thoughts one time too many. That was a rant if ever there was. Not that there's anything necessarily wrong with that ...

Couldn't at all buy into all the credit she gave herself for making youtube her "life's work," either, nor the idea that she sacrificed so much by giving up "consulting." Downsized or fired executives routinely call themselves consultants whether they have clients, or any chance of getting them, or anything to offer, or not. My dad was a consultant for two years. Had cards made up and everything, and a little office. He'd put on a suit and tie and go to "work" every day, just like normal. Luckily, he finally found a job so he could give "all that" up.
 
Dingfelder said:
Couldn't at all buy into all the credit she gave herself for making youtube her "life's work," either, nor the idea that she sacrificed so much by giving up "consulting."

I thought that was a bit too much . . . also, the insistence that she was on YouTube to help people. That's a good reason to be in business - but how much does her channel really help people? I don't know because I haven't watched her videos, except for two. She could have a lot of other helpful videos I'm not aware of because I haven't searched her archives.

I'm very happy she's making enough money on YouTube to support her travels. I don't think she needs to justify that by saying she's just doing it to help people. There are YouTube creators who are vloggers opening up their lives to entertain people and make money at it. That's good enough for me. We all need to make money to live on and that's one way some people found to do it. More power to them. They don't have to convince people of their helpfulness.

I am reminded of George4Title ... anyone remember him? George Hemminger of Riverside CA had a thriving YouTube channel in the aftermath of the recession - showing abandoned properties in Southern CA, tent cities, and the homeless, and related topics. He was earning a steady income of about 1500 monthly when some of his fans turned against him and destroyed his channel. He lost his income and never could recover from it. That could happen to any YouTuber. Really sad to see. The more popular you are, the more people try to tear you down.
 
Yeah I'm okay with her making as much money as she likes. Nothing wrong with it, but there's nothing saintly about it either.

On another note, and I'm not sure exactly how to think about this, but ... is it really your "life's work" if you haven't been doing it long and you started in, what, late middle age? Do you still get to call it that?

And is that different from just having a job, or a hobby? I had always associated that term with things that were pretty ... grand. Like if you discovered the Higgs Boson, wrote a beloved series of prize-winning novels, or learned to juggle ...
 
^
Could be end of life work if your juggling chainsaws.
But probably pretty popular on the tube ;)
 
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