Aging and Camping Out Instead of Paying High Price Rent

Rents have skyrocketed in the last year, forcing some people out of rentals as no fault of their own.

Photo by Ján Jakub Naništa on Unsplash

Rents are Outrageous!

For many retired women, camping out in the desert in their vans, campers, and trucks is a way of life. It's a way of reclaiming their freedom, a freedom that may have been lost when they had to give up their normal jobs and live on less income.

But since the pandemic hit back in 2020, rents continue to rise that are out of control. If your income stays the same, you cannot afford to pay the outrageous rent and put food on the table. There has to be a better solution to the problem.

While I was camping out in East Texas, I met Cathy, who told me she was tired of paying high rents for a tiny apartment in the city. Her income was barely enough to cover the bills and she had no savings to fall back on in case of an emergency. So, Cathy decided to buy a minivan and build it out to live in.

Cathy started traveling around the Southwest U.S. looking for places where the cost of living is affordable, and the scenery is beautiful.

The women I talk to who have chosen this lifestyle tell me that it's not always easy. They have to be resourceful, finding ways to manage their health care needs, preparing food, taking care of personal needs while living in their vehicles. It’s manageable and a skill that can be learned.

They often face the challenge of finding places to camp that are safe, and they have to be creative with their limited budgets. Some live on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands for free. You can stay there for up to 14 days at a time. There’s no charge.

Internet and Cell Phone Hotspots

In this day and time, there are cell phone towers everywhere. A nomad can be connected from almost any direction. We live in an age that we must have a cell phone for communication and doing simple tasks for living.

Cell plans are reasonably cheap now and the government is giving seniors free cell phone service if you qualify. I pay $25 a month for unlimited data with a service called Visible. It’s an independent company headquartered in California who rents space from Verizon wireless. I’ve been with Visible for three years and used their hotspot for all my social media and email. I’m pleased with their customer service.

So, if you are someone interested in being nomadic, there are plenty of you tube videos to help you get started. One that I particularly like is Butterfly Tracks, which relates more to single, retired, older women. Butterfly Tracks creates YouTube videos to teach you essential skills for nomadic living and makes connections with other like-minded women.

Writing tips

I’m reading a book titled: How to Write an Awesome Novel, by Rick Wood. It’s a short book, but well written and gets straight to the point. As writers, we continuously look for inspiration and we’re always honing our craft. Rick Wood resonated well with me.

I want to introduce you to a simple strategy he teaches that may click with you as it did me.

Write a statement at the top of your page summing up what your story is about. Then answer the questions and and so what again and again, until you have reached a set number of sentences or reached a time limit.

This will not only help you come up with ideas but will help you get to the crux of your story.

For example:

Luke Skywalker wants to go to the Death Star.

And?

And rescue Princess Leia.

So what?

Because it is important to him.

And?

And if he doesn’t, he won’t discover what he is capable of.

You just keep on going until you reach the crux of your story.

I hope this writing tip helps you as much as it helped me.