How to be homeless

[owls8521]

Hi. This may sound a little weird, but here it goes.

I'd like to know if anyone has experience sleeping outside. I just recently moved to California and am sleeping on my friend's couch. I figured it'd just be easier to sleep outside than to get my own place because I don't spend much time at his apartment anyway. I already have everything worked out about being homeless; including a place to shower, shave, use the bathroom, a mailbox, and a place to store my stuff.

So the only thing I haven't figured out yet is how to sleep outside. Does anyone have experience doing this? Where is it best to sleep? Should I get a sleeping bag or something? Is it safe? I'm living in Burbank, so I don't think I have to worry about safety too much, but I'm not really sure. I took a nap in a park and the only thing that bothered me was that bugs kept crawling on me. I'm okay with that, but I'm afraid they're going to crawl in my nose or ears or something. Do I need to worry about that? Does anyone have a solution to this bug problem?

Sorry this sounds so weird. But this is what I want to do. So any advice anyone can offer would be great. I'm very excited about this new lifestyle, and this is the last problem I need to solve. Thank you so much!

[Vdesign]

if you insist on being homeless and sleeping outside.. they sell sleeping bags that close all the way up with a net so that bugs cannot get to you.

good luck??

[Buttercat Apocalypse]

You're cool! I don't have any ideas, except watch out for cops... I do believe there are certain fascist "vagrancy" laws to make sure no-one finds any cracks in the status quo.

Down with the Man, etc (:

[owls8521]

Thanks for letting me know about the sleeping bag net. I'll look into that. I bet I'll look pretty weird as a bundle of blackness in the park at night.

Hmm... I didn't even know there were vagrancy laws. That's pretty weird. I guess I'll find out soon if they're applicable here.

Thanks for the info guys. And if anyone has any other suggestions, please let me know.

[Dan.Linehan]

Originally Posted by owls8521

Hmm... I didn't even know there were vagrancy laws. That's pretty weird. I guess I'll find out soon if they're applicable here.

Yep -- illegal in my county. What county are you in?

[owls8521]

Los Angeles.

[LoA Life]

I don't know much about Burbank or L.A. County, but the city of Los Angeles is constantly ranked as one of the least friendliest cities towards homeless people in the nation.

Now, I am interested in this thread because considering my current financial situation, I might be homeless as well pretty soon. I am in Redding (northern California), and this is also a very unfriendly place for homeless people. If I do end up being homeless and I lose my small business, I will go down to Southern Cali, where the weather is nicer in the winter.

I was homeless for a few months in 2003. I slept in my SUV, and I was harrassed a lot. The security guards at rest stops catch on to you pretty quick. Same thing for shopping center parking lots. Most public parks close at night. And if you just park anywhere, the cops are bound to come by and harrass you. So even if you have a vehicle to sleep in, it's not an easy life.

I have been barely getting by for the past few months, and soon I might be faced with choosing between my office rent and my apartment rent.

If I keep my office I can sleep there (as long as the landlord doesn't find out). I will also join a gym (or two) to take showers, shave, etc, and get a storage unit for everything else.

However, I also need a Plan B in case my company goes out of business. Then I won't have an office or an apartment. In that case I will migrate to southern Cali and probably join you at a park bench in Burbank, so keep us informed of whatever you find out.

[owls8521]

I spent most of the night wandering around, looking for a place to sleep. I believe I found the perfect spot. It's in the dugout of a baseball diamond. It's covered pretty well, so I don't think anyone will see me there, and it will also protect me from rain (not that it rains much here.) So tomorrow I'll probably buy a sleeping bag and spend the night there. The only problem I foresee is that there might be baseball games late at night or early in the morning. I don't think they'll go that late though. I have an alternate spot though if there is a game going on. So I'll update you guys on the experience in case you're interested.

And LoA Life, you're welcome to sleep in the other dugout if you have to resort to Plan B!

[owls8521]

I slept under a table in a park last night. It was alright. But in the middle of the night, some sprinklers came on and I got sprayed. So I guess that's why people don't sleep in the park. I'm pretty tired. I'll try a different spot tonight and hopefully it will work out better. I felt like I was camping.

[Buttercat Apocalypse]

Originally Posted by owls8521

I slept under a table in a park last night. It was alright. But in the middle of the night, some sprinklers came on and I got sprayed. So I guess that's why people don't sleep in the park. I'm pretty tired. I'll try a different spot tonight and hopefully it will work out better. I felt like I was camping.

I love this! Keep with the updates, I might follow in your footsteps sometime!

[Dan.Linehan]

What happened to the dugout idea?

[Lauxa]

1. You rock, I can't wait to read more of your updates.

2. You should totally watch this video on YouTube:
YouTube - Who Can Stay Homeless The Longest? (1 of 3)

[carenkh]

There was a thread about this last year - Openeyes ended up using a tent hammock. Of course, this was in NC in the springtime...

[Orange]

Originally Posted by Buttercat Apocalypse

You're cool! I don't have any ideas, except watch out for cops... I do believe there are certain fascist "vagrancy" laws to make sure no-one finds any cracks in the status quo.

Down with the Man, etc (:

If i was going to be homesless i would be a nature kinda homeless.. I would live in a forest or mountains or somwhere beautiful.. It must be great to feel free like that.. really if your homeless the world is your oyster.. there are so maby beautiful places in the world you can go and live there. citys and towns are the uglyist smellyist places all nature provides and is ment for you. but. dont get eaten by a bear

[oBakasan]

I was homeless for about 2-3 weeks while trying to prove a point.

The most important suggestion is: Find allies.

Most homeless people congregate in small communities during the night and sleep together. It is much safer, and you won't be harassed unless you distinctly stand out (It's much different for someone to bully a lone homeless person than a whole community).

If you're polite you will be generally well accepted by the majority of them (being homeless you're "one of them" and allows for trust to be born).

Aside from the added security, they will give you LOADS of information as they have a lot of experience with this. Honestly, the 3 weeks were made worth it simply for the people I talked to. They can tell you where to get better shelter, clothes, blankets, food, medical assistance, etcetera etcetera. Pretty much anything you will need to know to survive on th Streets you can find out by politely asking one of its denizens.

You can find them at food drives, homeless shelters, churches or anyplace that offers nice sleeping conditions.

This is an interesting one: If you ever find yourself in a situation where you have no one to talk to and desperation starts to sink in, join an Alcoholic Anonymous support group. (I never drank in my life, but I was part of such a group during my trials).

Explain to them that your current predicament is a result of an alcohol addiction, and they will welcome you with open arms. The benefits range from psychological (talking on such meetings is like therapy, but free) to more material (if you tell them you're homeless they're VERY likely to offer to help and offer extra food, clothing, or a place to stay the night). And as an added bonus, you end up talking to people who went through a LOT in life and have a lot of valuable insight to share.

Again, my trials without a home were made worth it simply because I joined the AA group.

[Buttercat Apocalypse]

I'm bookmarking this page for future reference now.

[openeyes]

Originally Posted by carenkh

There was a thread about this last year - Openeyes ended up using a tent hammock. Of course, this was in NC in the springtime...

It was actually from May to December, with a couple breaks of house sitting and staying with a friend. Once it got into the 30s I did switch to sleeping in my car more often than the hammock though. I never took advantage of this, but apparently Walmart is one place that's generally friendly to people car/rv camping in their parking lots.

The tent hammock Caren links to includes a bug screen and a rain tarp. When rain and bugs aren't an issue there are cheaper, easier to set up hammocks to check out as well. Also there are quite a few car living sites (and some books) for people interested in that, though I hadn't come across any of them when I began my experiment:

CarLiving.com - The Survival Guide to Living in a Vehicle

TEN CONSECUTIVE YEARS LIVING IN CARS: The Ultimate Car Living Survival Guide Book!

As The Crow Flies » Cabin and Car living

CanaryIslandsPress - Off The Grid - Preview

Were I to try living in my car again, I'd get a windshield shade (Cool Tools: The Shade), and tint my windows, or take to sleeping in my trunk (I find I fit fine in it, and I can exit via a trunk latch or push the back seats down). Sleeping in the front passenger seat under covers for weeks, I was only bothered by police once, and that was when I made the mistake of parking somewhere where there were no other cars that night (there'd been plenty of cars there other nights).

[owls8521]

Hi everyone and thank you so much for all of the great tips/comments. I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. I completely forgot about this thread! I guess that's what happens when I'm always on the move. So I have been living this way for about a week. Surprisingly, it's pretty easy. Seriously, I was expecting to run into all sorts of problems, but everything has been fine. I'm not trying to encourage other people to live like this (unless you want to), but for now it is best for me.

I do not have a car, so I am one of the carless homeless people. I keep my stuff in a storage space that I pay $50 a month for. I use my bike for transportation and I shower/shave at the YMCA. I work out in the morning and then spend the majority of the day at the library. I have a laptop, so it is just like having a desk at an office or something.

I'll write more details about my experiences later if people want. But right now, the most annoying things are that I have to carry a lot of stuff with me all the time and that it gets cold at night. And sometimes the sprinklers come on, but this has only happened twice. I'm still just sleeping under a table in the park. I decided not to sleep at the dugout for two reasons. 1. Sometimes it's locked. 2. There are giant spiders in the area where I'd be sleeping, and spiders creep me out. One night I laid down to go to sleep, and then I turned over and saw a huge spider right next to my face. I freaked out. In fact, I got so scared that I spent the night at my friend's apartment. All the other nights I've been in the park though.

So yeah, this lifestyle is definitely possible if you want to save some money and are willing to give up a few conveniences. If I had money, I'd prefer to sleep inside, but for now, I'm okay with sleeping outside to save a few bucks. So it's been fun. If people want to know more, just ask. I'll bookmark this thread so I don't forget about it again. I was pretty busy last week setting everything up. I have a pretty good routine now though. Well anyway, thanks everyone and let me know what you want to know from me!

Hmm... I have a blog. I wonder if I should just blog about this. I don't know. Just a thought. Would anyone want me to?

[oBakasan]

Haha, I ran into the sprinklers once too. I was asleep and thought that it was raining, and after about an hour of trying to ignore it I noticed that only half of my body was getting wet.

Good times.

Things that I am interested in: Wh/at kind of diet do you currently have and where do you eat?

During my experiences in sleeping outside because my hygiene was significantly lower than usual I ended up developing some skin problems (greasy skin, pimples, etc..). Tell me if you experience anything similar or if showering at YMCA helped you prevent that.

[Buttercat Apocalypse]

Originally Posted by owls8521

Hmm... I have a blog. I wonder if I should just blog about this. I don't know. Just a thought. Would anyone want me to?

Owls, I'm hanging on your every word Right now I have no job and I'm only interested in working out what sort of world I live in so if I didn't have my parents I would follow in your footsteps. I would definitely read your blog for this. Hell you could make a new one: **** EVERYTHING: the diary of a hobo-by-choice.

Instant hit

[theknightwhosaysni-NI]

Originally Posted by owls8521

Hmm... I have a blog. I wonder if I should just blog about this. I don't know. Just a thought. Would anyone want me to?

Yeah that would be very interesting. What's more I think there's a lot of value in sharing personal experiences. That would also be a good reminder for those who fear losing material stuff that it's possible to still be ok without all the possessions. So you can really help the rest of us grow just by sharing your experience.

Have you seen this video from Byron Katie about the feeling of need for more money ?
I'd be curious to know if you agree with the video as seen from your personal experience.

She recorded this video to help people. However I'm sure some would say "yeah right" and would not think it's possible in real life to be ok with no money.

So seeing it in real time is huge value. thanks for sharing.

[funchy]

I love the theory. However, in the real world people sleeping outside or in cars are written off as homeless. Be very careful you don't get robbed or beaten.

There are anti-vagrancy laws in many areas. You may find yourself harassed by a cop, possibly jailed, or have your car towed. Do check the laws before you try this experiment. Some cities have set aside special areas for people living outside. Google Tent Cities.

The camping part is easy. When I travel, weather permitting, I'll camp rather than waste $50+/night on a hotel. I went to my local Big Lots store and found a nice tent for $20 and sleeping bag for $20. If you get rain much where you're at, spend a bit more money and find a quality waterproof tent.

For light, many places now sell solar powered lighting. I got a nice solar lantern for about $30. It recharges each day and gives me hours of light at night

[owls8521]

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna start blogging about this as well as some other experiences I've had / will have. I live differently than most people, and to be honest, basically everyone I talk to has no idea how I do it. The way I live is risky, but it is not impossible. So I think it'd be a great idea to share it with people.

I gotta get to work on setting up this blog and a few other things, and then I'll reply to people's questions. Sorry I haven't responded yet. I'm trying to set up a lot of things at once right now, and I can't work as much on the weekends because the library isn't open as long. It's just another challenge to overcome though. I'm going to be doing a lot of writing about some other topics as well. Stay tuned and I'll let you know when it's set up.

Originally Posted by theknightwhosaysni-NI

Have you seen this video from Byron Katie about the feeling of need for more money ?

I'd be curious to know if you agree with the video as seen from your personal experience.

I just watched the video. Yes, I agree 100% that you do not need money. She specifically talks about not needing more money, which I also agree with. More money is nice, but you do not need it. If you want to try living without money, go for it. It will probably be very difficult. But like she says, wanting more money will just get you stressed out.

I find the solution is to be perfectly happy with where you are now, but it is fine to have a goal to have more money. That is what I am doing. Do not resist the present moment, but set goals for a joyful future.