I'm seeking advice / help / tips / anything because I don't know much about van dwelling- in fact I just discovered it today.
And bless your soul if you read this, because I really do appreciate it.
Reasons for Considering I hail from a couple of adventurous hippies who didn't live life by the rules and ended up fine, so I have zero concern with doing anything considered culturally strange. As a traveling nurse will I earn a salary, plus a housing stipend anywhere between 1-2k a month. I want my spending to reflect the way I really want to live, so that gives priority to international travel, sightseeing in whatever city I am in, maintaining rock climbing and backpacking gear, and stashing some major money away for grad school / savings. That means spending as little on housing, car, and food (but I live off chicken, veggies and apples anyway, I don't go out often). And hell, I'm young! I can handle living in a van during my 20's.
My Concerns Of course, no surprise, the first thing that pops into my head is hygiene. Normally if I'm 4 days into the woods, I don't care what I smell like, and I'm no stranger to peeing behind trees in 30 degree weather. However, I was raised a middle class girl with running water galore, and I am going to be a nurse- can't be dirty in the ICU. Plus I really enjoy washing my face every night. My other concern is winter. I have never known a truly cold winter. I live in the southwest, where snow is rare and temps never drop below 0. I don't know how this will go. Finally, food. I am a stingy eater but a picky one. I prefer to cook my own food. I have no qualms surviving on cans of tuna and produce and I can do chicken via a camp stove everyday. I am also a habitual food prep-er and I suppose I'll be without a refrigerator, so that will take adjusting.
What I expect, and I'm ok with it Man I'd love to get my hands on some power tools. I don't know anything about construction, but my Dad is a bit of a handyman and I can get help from him. The idea of gutting and constructing the inside of a van sounds flipping awesome, plus fine-tuning my understanding of cars. I expect it to be hands on, and that's exactly how I'd like it. I also expect to get uncomfortable. I look forward to what this will do for me, learning that cold, heat, and extra work are not the end of the world.
Ok so here is my idea, and feel free to say "yeah no, that won't work, do this instead" or "easier said than done"- there's a wealth of knowledge out there, some that can only come from experience so that's why I turned to fellow Redditors!
I can "camp" in the hospital parking lot during the 3 days I am working. Go in for a 12 hour shift, come back to my vehicle, sleep, get up, and knock out the 2nd shift. For the 4 days I am not, I can go to an actual camp ground, maybe if I'm feeling like splurging, one with restrooms and showers. I'm cool with setting up an outdoor shower in good weather. Or I can take a mini road-trip and use public restrooms, get a gym membership and take showers there. Use cafes and such for the occasional wifi.
Seem like an ok plan? Also, is it still worth it if I plan to do this only 5 years tops? Any referrals to blogs and such of people who have done this before, or something similar? IDK ANYTHING ABOUT ALL THIS!
Submitted June 14, 2016 at 03:43AM by LilHippieInDisguise http://ift.tt/1Omgv5W vandwellers
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