A Facebook friend sent me a message saying that I wasn’t really homeless. That I had options. I agreed with him, to a point. But what is homelessness? He has lived in a shelter for the last few months. Isn’t that kind of like a home? I mean, he’s not sleeping outside and has a place to return to everyday. I lived in a shelter for most of a year, but had to chip in for the rent.
My situation now is; 1)I have a van that I call home, 2)I do have a limited amount of savings in the bank, 3) My income is minimal and sporadic in nature, 4) Paying rent would eat up my savings quickly.
I chose to move into the van to slow down or stop the bleeding from my savings account. If I chose to work more and was able to get a job (or 2), then possibly I could again afford to rent again. My inclination would be stay in the van, even if I was earning more, in order to rebuild my savings.
When I encounter street people, they think I’m rich and lucky because of having a vehicle to live in and adequate money to drive places. In fact, there have been a number of homeless women who offered to move into the van with me, basically trading sex for a place to stay. I haven’t done it but I can understand why they would want to. I mean, it IS a nice van.
iggyvandweller 