This is not by choice...but...

[MobileHomeMaker]

Hello from pennsylvania!

I am 21 and as the title says, this living situation was not by choice. I lost my job, my apartment and eventually my long time girlfriend of 5 years. But i still have my chevy blazer After losing my job and everything i had nowhere to stay except my blazer.

And i gotta tell you, the first month was extremely hard for me- i was eating once or twice a week and just when i thought it was not worth trying anymore, i decided to try somewhere else. So i moved 80 miles from where i was staying at the time to a new area. I had found a job that paid good enough to get by and now here i am.

My first 4 days in this new area i was scouting around for places to park at night and eventually got the attention of the police. I was sleeping at a church in the middle of nowhere one night and woke to a state trooper knocking on my window. After making sure i didnt have any outstanding warrants, he told me about a walmart not far away where others like me are staying. So here i am at this walmart, working from 5:00 am till 6pm and going home to a walmart parking lot But i have adapted and i really am starting to enjoy myself as much as possible. There are regulars here at night also, id like to meet them but dont want to invade their business.

Only thing i dont care for is the lonelyness out here. im not exactly outgoing or social but i really do wish i had someone to kill time with. Thats part of the reason i joined the site, to have some interaction. So if anyone is around the chester county area sometime, give me a shout. id enjoy meeting you!

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums! It sounds like you had a very rough start. I'm glad things are a little better now. Please feel free to ask as many questions as you'd like. There are forum members who can help you with almost anything from getting food to finding places to stay.

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips & Tricks" post lists some helpful information to get you started. We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[MobileHomeMaker]

Ill check it out right now, thank you.

 

[Bdog1]

Glad to hear your situation is improving.

 

[Patrick46]

Great to hear that you got tired of sitting on your hands, got back up, and now have a new life....OUTSTANDING!!

You're pretty young, so try not to get too wrapped up in losing your gal. There are ALOT of great girls out there, and by being pro-active in your life, you'll soon meet many others.

How are you taking showers?? Try joining a fitness club. It's a great way to get alittle excercise, take super long hot showers, and you may even meet a few ladies there too!

Going to the library is another excellent way to spend your free time. There's lotsa books and magazines to read, of course, but they also have Wi-Fi, and again...a great place to meet folks.

As for your Walmart neighbors...when you see them outside, go on over and introduce yourself to 'em. Trust me...they already know who you are. (at least by face, by your Blazer, and by your work schedule.) They're likey wanting to meet you too, as it always helps to know who your neighbors are. Even at a place like Walmart...there can be a sense of community.


Welcome to the forum!! We have a great crew on here, with years of experience for you to draw on.

Hello from the Oregon Coast!!

 

[MobileHomeMaker]

A "shower" for me involves a army backpack,a collapsable pail, a quiet bathroom stall like the ones in community and county parks and a sponge. I take a 1 liter water bottle and fill it with sink water and over the sink i wash my hair quick with shampoo, using the bottle to rinse. after thats done, i take my pack and go into a stall and scrub down with body wash and a sponge. some places have drains so i rinse over them but the ones that dont i just wipe off with a towel.

I thought of joining a gym, i miss my little gym i had in my apartment, just a little room with weights, treadmill and boxing bag. Thatd be a nice place to mingle and socialize but i usually spend my days after work fishing haha.

---

And id really like to meet with these other people around me and hear their stories and tips but everyone spaces themselves way apart from each other, like theyre all avoiding each other.

The coolest part of all this is i was stealthing it for a long time but that cop told me as long as i park on the far side of the lot, they dont bother anyone who sleeps there. this was a shock to me because ive heard stories of cops being really ignorant to people like us and fining them tons of money for trying to fulfill a basic need. I feel very lucky.

 

[GotSmart]

In most cases, the cops are wanting a quiet safe shift without any drama.

The health club is a survival necessity. By utilizing public showers you are keeping your sanity and eliminating the loneliness. It is ahead of fishing at least two days a week, preferably more.

Vandwelling is a lifestyle, and those that do it out of necessity need to learn the tricks right away. One key is to not smell like you live in your car. Keep clean and wash your clothing and blankets.

The vandwellers I have met were mostly clean and well spoken. They had a regular schedule they operated on.

 

[MobileHomeMaker]

Theres a truckstop right up the road by my work, they have showers open to truckers mainly but anyone who can pay the $11 is free to use them. thats where ill be going from now on. The nearest laundry mat isnt too far either. I make decent money and i work side jobs on saturday washing semi's/trailers so i can definatley afford it. Theres literally everything i could need within a 15 mile radius of this walmart. I could get another place soon or i could take the cheaper route and save money...and im already experienced in the cheaper route

 

[Terry]

Good on you. You seem to be picking yourself up and making great strides forward. If I were in your spot, I'd save the money from any rent and get a trailer. Even a small one that is paid for can give you a luxurious feeling after being cramped up in a Blazer. And you can find a cheap place to park a small trailer for real cheap if not barter for some small chores. Good luck to you.

 

[SoulRaven]

Anytime fitness is $10 a week (24/7) vs. one truck stop shower they have a location in extreme NE Delaware.

http://www.anytimefitness.com/find-gym

 

[Theadyn]

Hi and Welcome!

So glad you are doing well after some bad luck hit ya. You are already seeing the benefits of living cheaply, which is awesome!!! I'd say, bank most of what you are earning as a back up, cause life happens, you have felt that already, and it's not such a major catastrophe if you have some emergency funds available. Maybe even consider looking for something you can buy in cash that would afford you a bit more living space while still being able to stealth and blend in while not paying for high dollar rent. Tons of resources on her about the how's.

You're doing great!

 

[wagoneer]

Welcome aboard. Being resourceful flexible and smart will keep you on the path. Oh and honest.

 

[MobileHomeMaker]

Thank you for all your replies
My blazer is a 4 door. its a little cramped but with my seats folded down in the back its got plenty of room. im looking into getting one of those big foamy pads for the back. when its time to sleep i put all my clothes up front andmy 5gallon bucket of canned food on my roof (i have a BIG metal rack on my roof) i also keep a toolbox and foldable ladder up there, so it just looks like i do carpentry work or something. Now that its cooler out at night, i open my glass hatch a little bit or all the way and its really nice somenights, reminds me of camping.

 

[Terry]

Sounds nice. I made sure that I could lay down in the back before I would buy the Blazer I have. It is a two door. It has the V6 4.something engine and will easily tow a small trailer. I would really look for a better place to put my tools than the roof. But I have been a mechanic for over 40 years off and on so my tools are pretty important to me. Good luck.

 

[Patrick46]

$11 for a shower is way overboard to me.....but that's just me.

I'd rather pay $30 - $40 a MONTH for all the clean showers I want. (oftentimes they'll even give you a free towel to use too!)

I'm with DTFuqua and fiind myself a cheap, small travel trailer.

 

[MobileHomeMaker]

Sounds nice. I made sure that I could lay down in the back before I would buy the Blazer I have. It is a two door. It has the V6 4.something engine and will easily tow a small trailer. I would really look for a better place to put my tools than the roof.

Yea the 4.3 liter vortec. Its a sweet little motor. I use a hea vy duty cable lock, wrap that around my ladder and toolbox and lock it to the rack. Toolbox weighs like 100lbs so someone would have to be very VERY quiet to get it off the rack without waking me. Plus its only grabable if you climb up the back bumper. But i have a STUPID alarm on my blazer, and it has tilt sensors so the slightest shift in the vehicle sets it off. Try rolling over in the back with that alarm armed... I set it off at least once a night haha

 

[light trip]

So many people here giving such good advice I really can't add much. Sounds like you're very capable and intelligent person.

I lived up there decades ago and know how cold it can get. If you've look around on this form you'll see some are using a utility trailer,,, and would really seem to go with your carpentry stuff. They're pretty cheap to buy, even new, and insulated can be pretty comfortable in the winter. Some you can get with an RV door and windows. Just an idea but as I said, you seem to be very smart, just didn't see anyone post this or you talk about it.


procrastinators unit – tomorrow

 

[MobileHomeMaker]

Thank you for your post Light Trip, and yes, theres TONS of good info on here (not bad for an intro post,eh?)

Yes it does get cold out at night but i have taken a liking to it. I worked at a poultry processing plant in shipping and it was a steady 38 degrees in there at all times and i was know as "that guy that wears shorts" and for some reason cold doesnt bother me and prefer that over heat and humidity anyday.But that doesnt mean i want to freeze to death when the temperture really drops. For now i have a sleeping bag and a big heavy blanket. Im looking into some kind of heat source for winter though. just to be safe.

 

[Prisoner Of Knowledge]

Enter the Mr. Buddy "Little buddy" propane heater stage left! ...complete with CO2 detecter, and available at the find establishment you've taken to parking at.

Seriously, so many dwellers use them that I think we are the ones keeping them on the market. Side note: if you do decide to go the trailer route (highly recommended), even the Little buddy will heat it.

Either way, stay safe my friend. Be well - Slim.

 

[light trip]

Prisoner of Knowedge is right. I've had good luck with little buddy heaters,,, accept when I connected to a RV propane tank without a filter. I learned the filter thing here on these forms afterwords. I won't make that mistake again.

Please be careful this winter. Bob Wells has a great recommendation on getting a RV smoke / O2 detector. He says the RV detectors hold up better to the motion and bumps over the ones you buy at WalMart or Home Depot.

Cool thing about WalMart you probably get most everything you need there, including site to store. You also could put two or three sleeping bags inside one another. I saw a T.V. show where a guy in Alaska claimed to sleep in six sleeping bags.