Returning To Living In Auto After 3 Year Break

Hi fellow VanDwellers and allies. I’m new to this forum. Nice to meet ya’ll online. I lived and traveled out of my SUV from around 2010-2017 and took the past 3 years off.

I recently bought a cargo van to live and travel out of and will be returning to the road full time in a few days.

Back in 2011 I had a YouTube channel primarily on another topic yet I would include videos about me living out of the SUV and interviews with recession refugees who lived out of autos – but not by preference. I’m making videos again but online 2021 is not the same as the more-free internet era of the early 10’s.

I enjoy making vids and living in an auto so may as well combine both passions.

It’s amazing to see van life get more mainstream attention – for example: Nomad movie, American Dad episode about Hailey and Jeff trying to become vanlifers, and the recent NYT report about van life in the 2020-era.

I look forward to getting to know ya’ll online and doing what I can to be mutually supportive.

Thank you for riding along!

-Roadside Resident

1 Like

Greetings & Welcome!

I’m not sure vandwelling is becoming more mainstream, more noticed yes, due mainly to the bad actors, who are turning more & more communities & laws against us.

Instead of stealth & hiding, we need to focus on being good neighbors and good ambassadors for all vandwellers. Everybody needs fully self contained rigs, and be self supporting instead of being leeches on society.

The problem has never been about our choice of living in a camper van or RV, it’s about the actions of the bad actors, who vastly outnumber those of us who try to be good neighbors. We need to be honest, open, up front, and quit trying to hide. Nobody’s fooling anybody but themselves, and making things harder for themselves and everybody else.

We need to differentiate ourselves from the homeless people who live in vehicles involuntarily. If we act like them, we will be treated like them, with disdain. If we act like responsible members of society, we will get treated accordingly. I mainly dwell in cities, on city streets, so that’s the area I know the most about…

Cheers!


"Beat Murphy's Law with a KISS! (Keep It Stupidly Simple)" ~ Van_Dweller