We all have to be somewhere. I, for one, am glad that most of us spend it clustered together, perfectly flat under foot, big roofs overhead. That increases my possibilities of spacious solitude shared with other forms of life. Safer than todays civilization?
J
on February 10, 2023 at 8:16 am
Security is an illusion.
Dodi Ely
on February 10, 2023 at 2:16 pm
This statement is more true then anyone can comprehend. We are not safe in a stick and brick home, a manufactured home, a vehicle, a cave, a tent or even lying on the ground. Living off grid is getting more and more popular however that requires as someone mentioned, the use of lithium batteries. To truly live off grid/nomadic style we should revert back to our ancestors.. horse for transportation, creek for water and washing, candle making for light and fire wood for heat.
Debra Pilkington
on February 20, 2023 at 9:28 am
Yes it is an illusion. I managed apartment communities that were gated. What a joke. You can just follow someone right through the gate!
Alexa
on February 10, 2023 at 1:23 pm
Everyone, nomad or otherwise depends on “civilization.” And yes, it is killing us in numerous ways everyday. I suspect that nomads think they are less dependent or eschew civilization. However, they have to shop for food and water and gas, etc just like most. They often utilize the most earth and environmentally destructive (mining) use of energy through lithium batteries. And then there is gas and vehicle maintenance. No of that is possible without “civilization”. There is no escape, nor should there be pride in having a vehicle over a roof. We are all dependent and live within this “civilization.
A few years ago Bob did a blog post about how he hated cities. My reply was similar to yours. I saw — and still see — cities and civilization as useful and necessary resources. However, as a nomad I have a greater choice of how involved I get in all that. My view of how involved I NEED to be has changed. And not being in the middle of it gives me perspective to see and avoid some of the ways it was harming me.
Susan Shearer
on February 10, 2023 at 10:43 pm
Agreed! And the older I get the more my nervous system is soothed by peace, quiet, and nature.
I really want to get out on the road this year. Now l I need is a plan. :).
Doug
on February 12, 2023 at 6:38 am
Susan, you need a plan for long term. Short term, just get out there and do it! Weekend camping and road trips are a good start. Don’t waste time waiting for that perfect moment/ perfect scenario. It may never come!
Susan Shearer
on February 12, 2023 at 6:46 am
Thanks Doug for helping me with the perspective that there are two separate goals; short term and long term.
LargeMarge
on February 10, 2023 at 4:35 pm
On trending discussion boards, much is written about the remainder of this collapse:
* “Stock-up! Hoard against the hordes!”
* “The only salvation is forming Mutual Aid Groups!”
* “The only fix is different government agents!”
* “Move to a friendly place before the balkanization!”
Sure.
.
I honestly truly believe this collapse was initiated by:
a — agriculture, followed by its evil sibling
b — civilization.
.
We can point fingers at some recent bureaucrat(s) or some recent bankers — or the recent catch-all boogie-man… ‘weather dithering’ — but I think this collapse is inevitable.
It started about ten thousand years ago as some random nomad settled for security in place of freedom… “my dirt!, my plants!, my rain!, my shekels!, and you can’t have any!”
February 2023, we are teetering at the edge of the waterfall.
.
And ‘yes’, I am optimistic about our species as an organism.
Individual cells, not so much.
.
.
Disclaimer:
* my religion is Pastoral Animist.
I thrive as a hunter-gatherer.
Although I enjoy opera, art, the challenge of science, I see very little spirit inherent in cities.
.
YouTuber and nomad ‘down2mob’ describes a city as ‘living in a sardine-can’.
Susan Shearer
on February 10, 2023 at 6:06 pm
WOW… This is fascinating. Your religion, your obse3rvations, your philosophy. Love it!
Susan Shearer
on February 10, 2023 at 6:04 pm
I am currently dying a ‘slow death’. I am planning to retire in 2023 and want desperately to start a new life. I don’t know how and I don’t know who to talk to.
Yes. This meme absolutely resonates. 100%
Doug
on February 12, 2023 at 6:43 am
You DO know how. You’re on this forum, and I assume you’re on cheaprvliving. The information is out here. Read some posts and watch some videos. Start slow. Keep it simple. Just get out there. You’ll make friends.
Susan Shearer
on February 12, 2023 at 6:49 am
Thanks Doug. I thought this was cheaprvliving. I have three major things I need to accomplish; retire, decide where I want to live, and buy a rig.
One of the reasons I became a nomad is that I couldn’t decide where to live. And I know some people who didn’t know where they wanted to live until they had traveled around a lot and spent a little time in multiple places.
Large Marge
on February 24, 2023 at 9:09 pm
For years, I was certain I could settle on a nice farm with a creek, nostalgic melancholy train-whistles blowing in the distance.
Someplace like East Palestine, Ohio.
.
Lately, not so much.
David Barnes
on February 10, 2023 at 7:12 pm
It’s a process of unlearning. We have been taught that certain things will make us happy. As I age, I realize the less detached I am about material things, the happier I can be. I
Susan Shearer
on February 10, 2023 at 7:35 pm
I agree David. I live out in the country by myself. I love it. I am in the process of clearing out 1/2 of what I own in order to find more freedom. I don’t know where I am headed yet but the rest of my life will be the best of my life.
Dave
on February 24, 2023 at 6:51 pm
It’s a privileged, post-industrial fantasy that 7 billion people could become nomads, or would be better off without technology. Earth’s pre-industrial carrying capacity might be 1 billion people, and its pre-agricultural capacity might be 100 million. You complain now when Walmart runs out of your favorite coffee. Imagine there’s no optometrist to make your glasses, no dentist to fill your aching tooth, no surgeon to repair that compound fracture. Nomads are “living off the fat of the land” of the highly advanced civilization that surrounds them, some despising the very hand that feeds them.
We all have to be somewhere. I, for one, am glad that most of us spend it clustered together, perfectly flat under foot, big roofs overhead. That increases my possibilities of spacious solitude shared with other forms of life. Safer than todays civilization?
Security is an illusion.
This statement is more true then anyone can comprehend. We are not safe in a stick and brick home, a manufactured home, a vehicle, a cave, a tent or even lying on the ground. Living off grid is getting more and more popular however that requires as someone mentioned, the use of lithium batteries. To truly live off grid/nomadic style we should revert back to our ancestors.. horse for transportation, creek for water and washing, candle making for light and fire wood for heat.
Yes it is an illusion. I managed apartment communities that were gated. What a joke. You can just follow someone right through the gate!
Everyone, nomad or otherwise depends on “civilization.” And yes, it is killing us in numerous ways everyday. I suspect that nomads think they are less dependent or eschew civilization. However, they have to shop for food and water and gas, etc just like most. They often utilize the most earth and environmentally destructive (mining) use of energy through lithium batteries. And then there is gas and vehicle maintenance. No of that is possible without “civilization”. There is no escape, nor should there be pride in having a vehicle over a roof. We are all dependent and live within this “civilization.
A few years ago Bob did a blog post about how he hated cities. My reply was similar to yours. I saw — and still see — cities and civilization as useful and necessary resources. However, as a nomad I have a greater choice of how involved I get in all that. My view of how involved I NEED to be has changed. And not being in the middle of it gives me perspective to see and avoid some of the ways it was harming me.
Agreed! And the older I get the more my nervous system is soothed by peace, quiet, and nature.
I really want to get out on the road this year. Now l I need is a plan. :).
Susan, you need a plan for long term. Short term, just get out there and do it! Weekend camping and road trips are a good start. Don’t waste time waiting for that perfect moment/ perfect scenario. It may never come!
Thanks Doug for helping me with the perspective that there are two separate goals; short term and long term.
On trending discussion boards, much is written about the remainder of this collapse:
* “Stock-up! Hoard against the hordes!”
* “The only salvation is forming Mutual Aid Groups!”
* “The only fix is different government agents!”
* “Move to a friendly place before the balkanization!”
Sure.
.
I honestly truly believe this collapse was initiated by:
a — agriculture, followed by its evil sibling
b — civilization.
.
We can point fingers at some recent bureaucrat(s) or some recent bankers — or the recent catch-all boogie-man… ‘weather dithering’ — but I think this collapse is inevitable.
It started about ten thousand years ago as some random nomad settled for security in place of freedom… “my dirt!, my plants!, my rain!, my shekels!, and you can’t have any!”
February 2023, we are teetering at the edge of the waterfall.
.
And ‘yes’, I am optimistic about our species as an organism.
Individual cells, not so much.
.
.
Disclaimer:
* my religion is Pastoral Animist.
I thrive as a hunter-gatherer.
Although I enjoy opera, art, the challenge of science, I see very little spirit inherent in cities.
.
YouTuber and nomad ‘down2mob’ describes a city as ‘living in a sardine-can’.
WOW… This is fascinating. Your religion, your obse3rvations, your philosophy. Love it!
I am currently dying a ‘slow death’. I am planning to retire in 2023 and want desperately to start a new life. I don’t know how and I don’t know who to talk to.
Yes. This meme absolutely resonates. 100%
You DO know how. You’re on this forum, and I assume you’re on cheaprvliving. The information is out here. Read some posts and watch some videos. Start slow. Keep it simple. Just get out there. You’ll make friends.
Thanks Doug. I thought this was cheaprvliving. I have three major things I need to accomplish; retire, decide where I want to live, and buy a rig.
One of the reasons I became a nomad is that I couldn’t decide where to live. And I know some people who didn’t know where they wanted to live until they had traveled around a lot and spent a little time in multiple places.
For years, I was certain I could settle on a nice farm with a creek, nostalgic melancholy train-whistles blowing in the distance.
Someplace like East Palestine, Ohio.
.
Lately, not so much.
It’s a process of unlearning. We have been taught that certain things will make us happy. As I age, I realize the less detached I am about material things, the happier I can be. I
I agree David. I live out in the country by myself. I love it. I am in the process of clearing out 1/2 of what I own in order to find more freedom. I don’t know where I am headed yet but the rest of my life will be the best of my life.
It’s a privileged, post-industrial fantasy that 7 billion people could become nomads, or would be better off without technology. Earth’s pre-industrial carrying capacity might be 1 billion people, and its pre-agricultural capacity might be 100 million. You complain now when Walmart runs out of your favorite coffee. Imagine there’s no optometrist to make your glasses, no dentist to fill your aching tooth, no surgeon to repair that compound fracture. Nomads are “living off the fat of the land” of the highly advanced civilization that surrounds them, some despising the very hand that feeds them.