The Alternative Lifestyle

I just read a post on imgur about a guy who decided to live in a van. I clicked it because I’ve spent some time living in my former 1978 VW Bus and I have a number of friends who live and work out of their buses, vans, sail boats and RV’s.

The story was short and cute. Not much detail, but that’s how it goes on imgur. The real story, the sad story, is in the comments.

The comments can be broken down into three categories, though there were the funny comments about the Van down by the river. Is it sad or strange that I have never seen that skit?

The Deadbeat: (Get a life you Hippie!)

The Doubter: (How does he make money?)

The Dreamer: (I would do this if it weren’t for X, Y or Z excuse)

I get the Deadbeat comments. Those are people who will never understand anything or anyone who is different from them. I will just write them off and let them live in their shallow world where the purpose is to work, make money, save it in a bank and then die. Hopefully these people have had offspring that will repeat the Wash Rinse Repeat cycle.

It’s the other two groups that I want to reach out to and show them a world beyond belief. A world of amazing beauty, love and respect. A world where working is not the goal, but just one small part of living. A very small part. We don’t aspire to be rich in the monetary sense, but we strive to be rich with experience, emotion and sensory stimulation. We celebrate diversity and creative thinking. We live outside of the box, though some may call our vans, buses, and RV’s boxes while others actually live in boxes, shipping containers to be exact.  The point is to be different, live different and experience the world outside of ‘the norm’.

Some call this an Alternative Lifestyle and by definition, I guess it is, but I look at those working 5-6-7 days a week and hoping to get a chance at a two week vacation this year, or perhaps next year. I even know some who have not had a vacation in 3-4 years. I look at these people and think; That is not a Lifestyle, that is a machine. Is this the entire point of being alive? Sadly for some, it is. Even sadder are those that of free will, chose this Lifestyle on purpose. Perhaps it is what they were taught, how they were raised and it has become all the know, but when I see those comments on a post like ‘Guy quits his job and travels in his van’ and I realize that not one of those posters actually went to this guys website to see the whole story; if you do, and I suggest it…here it is: http://vandogtraveller.com/, for each and every one of us who has done this will usually talk about it, tell others how to do it and most importantly, be supportive of those wanting to tackle it and make that change, but yet there they sit, on a computer, just a click away from uncovering the so called ‘secrets’ and they just comment on the why’s and hows it can’t be done.

It can be! I tell anyone who is interested how to do it. It takes hard work, dedication, commitment and bravery to do this. You need to be willing to walk away from all the things you were taught about blending into society and be willing to stand out, be different, but most importantly, be happy.

The headlines on all these stories are always the same: Man Quits Job, Couple Quits Job, Woman Quits Job. Every headline is the same in one regard… they quit their job, but that isn’t true. Every single one of the people I know living on a sail boat, in a bus, van, RV, living in a tiny house, living in a shipping container, well they all work, but they don’t work for a living; they ‘Live for a Living’ and work to support their lifestyle. What’s the difference, you might ask? The difference is that our commitment is not to the job, but to us, the human, the person, the experiences, emotions, the sights, smells and sounds. If that means we work 15 hours a week, so be it. If it means we work 50 hours, so be it, but make no mistake, we are all working it’s just that we’ve figured out that we don’t need to work 40+ hours a week every week to enjoy life. Sometimes we work more and most of the time we work less and experience more.

Some people think they can’t do this because they have kids and this is where I get very specific. This Lifestyle is not limited to single people or childless couples. I know families who right now are sailing around the world. They are homeschooling their children while giving them unprecedented access to Geography, Weather, History and Politics. The same is true for traveling around the country. In fact, there are very strong arguments to be made for Homeschooling your children. Does it take a lot to live in very small quarters, you bet it does, but I ask you this; would you rather be living in a 5,000 square foot home and have all your kids locked into their bedrooms socializing on line with who knows what and if you are lucky, you only see them at breakfast or dinner? Is that really a Beautiful Life? Sure, having a child or three living with you in very tight quarters will be an additional challenge, but what we find is that except for bad weather or sleeping, everyone is usually living outside. Experiencing the outside world and contributing to the household in some manner out of necessity. Is that really so bad?

This Lifestyle is not for everyone and anyone who tells you it is is lying, but for some, many more than are actually doing it, its amazing. It’s highly unpredictable, its fluid and sometimes you will find yourself broke down, Everything, be it a boat, a van or even a house, will need serious repairs from time to time, but we take these in stride. We view them as challenges to overcome. Sometimes we do get stuck someplace and just have to work through it. It’s all part of the journey. Its about experiencing Life and everything it throws at you without hiding behind a desk or trapped under florescent lights.

That’s where I am today, Stuck! Stuck in the beauty of Vermont as I nurse my travel companion, Lexie in her final months with me. Stuck as I await a time that I can recoup from the financial hardship due to her medical expenses and yet being stuck someplace isn’t bad, I surly don’t want pity. Lexie and I are living an amazing life full of amazing experiences and this is just one of life’s experiences.  I’ve been lucky to be able to experience everything I had and if not for this lifestyle, I would not be able to spend 24 hours a day,  7 days a week with her in her final months. How lucky am I for that opportunity, to be able to give her that level of commitment. For now, she and I just travel locally for you don’t need to ride, sail, walk or drive thousands of miles to live this lifestyle…

You simple need to open your door and step outside. Live free my friends for life is too short to be boxed in with rules and walls.