I'm homeless and I've lived in my Honda Fit for months. Ask me anything.

[fuzzybabybunny]

You sleep next to a gas can?

e:

BEST GAS CONTAINER EVER.

I've had ones in the past that leak fumes, even the gas itself.

This one is tight and doesn't leak anything. And I only have it filled up a tiny bit.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

I don't think Bun Bun would've survived that motorcycle accident.

FuzzyBabyBunny is going rugged now.

EDIT: nevermind, Bun Bun is a resilient little beast.

I've been doing this for years. At least a decade. Started in high school.

Bunny wasn't on the motorcycle that day.

 

[SunnyD]

FBB's car?

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Do you eat out alot or do you have a cooler

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Do you eat out alot or do you have a cooler

I eat out. But I can just as easily buy a camping stove (actually going to get one for the motorcycle trip soon, the MSR one that uses all kinds of fuel) and make my own meals.

6 years ago when I lived out of my car I cooked everything. Mostly canned tuna, instant rice, canned veggies. That kind of thing. All I had was a Jetboil which is only good for boiling water.

I didn't have a cooler though. Free water is everywhere. Purify water from streams with a backpacking water filter. If you're by a body of water you can stuff your leftovers in a plastic bag and put it under the water overnight to keep it cool. When it's winter out you can obviously bury it in the snow.

People don't know. I sometimes laugh when I think about a random dude walking by and he has no idea that there's a half eaten rotisserie chicken buried in that snow pile that he just walked past.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

I eat out. But I can just as easily buy a camping stove (actually going to get one for the motorcycle trip soon, the MSR one that uses all kinds of fuel) and make my own meals.

6 years ago when I lived out of my car I cooked everything. Mostly canned tuna, instant rice, canned veggies. That kind of thing. All I had was a Jetboil which is only good for boiling water.

I didn't have a cooler though. Free water is everywhere. Purify water from streams with a backpacking water filter. If you're by a body of water you can stuff your leftovers in a plastic bag and put it under the water overnight to keep it cool. When it's winter out you can obviously bury it in the snow.

People don't know. I sometimes laugh when I think about a random dude walking by and he has no idea that there's a half eaten rotisserie chicken buried in that snow pile that he just walked past.

I'm guessing you eat quite a bit of grains since it doesnt really go bad. Like bread and bagels?

Can you post your daily routine?

 

[JulesMaximus]

Good luck FBB!

Post pics and updates of your journeys.

 

[Phokus]

I think a minivan or SUV would be a helluva lot more comfortable to live out of than your current car.

 

[brianmanahan]

you should do this on reddit man

post linkie if you do!

 

[postmortemIA]

where do you receive mail? do you do your taxes?

 

[PeeluckyDuckee]

Great undertaking and not conforming to the cookie cut lives many of us live in. Great way to save money if you have a car and can find ways to be pretty self sufficient.

I was told a cowoker that used to work with us was divorced, her wife took the house, and he didn't bother to find another place and simply chose to live in a tent nearby where he worked. He quit and went backpacking for awhile, haven't heard of him since. I've had my own adventure of sorts, though pales in comparison of what you're doing here, but I'm happy to have settled down. Would still be nice to have the financial means to become adventurous again, live life very freely and somewhat irresponsibly.

 

[WelshBloke]

I think a minivan or SUV would be a helluva lot more comfortable to live out of than your current car.

Yeah, I'm thinking you could have picked a better vehicle.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

I'm guessing you eat quite a bit of grains since it doesnt really go bad. Like bread and bagels?

Can you post your daily routine?

Well, right now I eat out a lot. But if I were to cook myself... I'm not sure. Definitely some instant rice. Bread because it's cheap (although it gets smooshed like nothing). But I get my fair share of meat and veggies. There are grocery stores everywhere and you can stock up every single day if you wanted to while traveling.

For serious backcountry stuff, yes, dried grains. Smoked meats. Trail mix. Root vegetables that keep well.

Daily routine:

1. Wake up
2. Check if I have any emails and pressing concerns with the business
3. Go to a Starbucks or to the hostel and work. Or tether inside the car.
4. Go ski.
5. Check emails on the lift rides.
6. Come back, eat dinner, go to a Starbucks or hostel and work.
7. Watch Hulu.
8. Sleep.

Sometimes it goes like:

1. Wake up, check work.
2. Work at Starbucks or the hostel.
3. Go to sleep.

I think a minivan or SUV would be a helluva lot more comfortable to live out of than your current car.

Gas is more expensive, plus I would have to buy another vehicle and even sell my existing vehicle. These are things that are generally easier to correct for before you've already bought a vehicle.

Good luck FBB!

Post pics and updates of your journeys.

I plan on it.

 

[ponyo]

Yeah, I'm thinking you could have picked a better vehicle.

I think the Fit is a good choice. It's small outside but pretty roomy inside and gets great gas mileage. Fuzzy is pretty small and short so I bet he can sleep fully extended if he folds down the back seat. Fit is also cheap and pretty reliable so that's another plus. I like his vehicle choice.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

you should do this on reddit man

post linkie if you do!

I don't use Reddit. What's special about posting it there? Actually, my case is not unique. Plenty of people that do this.

where do you receive mail? do you do your taxes?

Yes, I do taxes and everything.

Everything is on the cloud or delivered electronically. Taxes are done electronically. There are also freight forwarding companies that receive mail and forward it to where ever you are. Shipito.com is one.

Getting packages delivered is easy - ship it to the hostel or ship it to a post office C/O (Care Of) [your name]

Great undertaking and not conforming to the cookie cut lives many of us live in. Great way to save money if you have a car and can find ways to be pretty self sufficient.

I was told a cowoker that used to work with us was divorced, her wife took the house, and he didn't bother to find another place and simply chose to live in a tent nearby where he worked. He quit and went backpacking for awhile, haven't heard of him since. I've had my own adventure of sorts, though pales in comparison of what you're doing here, but I'm happy to have settled down. Would still be nice to have the financial means to become adventurous again, live life very freely and somewhat irresponsibly.

I've never been very cookie cutter.

It's not about the financial means in the sense of having a stockpile of money. It's much more about having a system to give you continual cash flow to support it and to be able to work remotely.

I really envy coders that can work from anywhere.

I lived in Mountain View for 3-4 years. I've always been a nomad and tumbleweed - it's in my DNA. Towards the end, living that way and being settled just became too unbearable on the psyche. Life is ticking away, after all.

 

[sandorski]

Urgent: How to remove fapping stains from Car Seats?

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

I think the Fit is a good choice. It's small outside but pretty roomy inside and gets great gas mileage. Fuzzy is pretty small and short so I bet he can sleep fully extended if he folds down the back seat. Fit is also cheap and pretty reliable so that's another plus. I like his vehicle choice.

I didn't plan on living in the car when I bought it. I needed a fuel efficient car for driving around town from house to house to house as I photographed them. And something that was big enough on the inside to haul my gear and toys (scuba, skis, camping), and yes, to sleep in.

I would drive 30K+ miles a year.

Plus it would have to look decent for clients.

If living in the car was the primary consideration and I didn't have work or the need to travel very long distances every day, I would have gotten a truck with a camper. But at the time, it was not the right choice.

 

[UglyCasanova]

What is your business?

 

[ElFenix]

is your business still photography?

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

What is your business?

We do real estate marketing - Realtors, home builders, property managers, and homeowners hire us to take photos and videos of their listings and put them on the web. I train the photographers and the processors and I manage the scheduling and the customer interaction. And obviously the other stuff like marketing, accounting, etc. We're not big enough at this point to have people dedicated to these individual tasks, but this year we will - hiring a sales person, or multiple. I simply don't have enough bandwidth to do everything by myself anymore.

 

[Svnla]

Yes, I do taxes and everything.

Everything is on the cloud or delivered electronically. Taxes are done electronically. There are also freight forwarding companies that receive mail and forward it to where ever you are. Shipito.com is one.

Getting packages delivered is easy - ship it to the hostel or ship it to a post office C/O (Care Of) [your name]

Tell me more about the mail/freight forwarding companies that you are using. How much per month/year? Any pitfalls? I am very interest in that.

I am having a PO Box now but have to pick the mail up by myself or a friend would do that. USPS folks only hold the mail for 1 month or less.

 

[FelixDeCat]

Do you have a particular church you attend or will any do?

 

[Red Squirrel]

How are you affording heat? I can't imagine leaving a car running 24/7 would be cheap.

 

[Imported]

SHOWERS:

Everyone asks about this.

In the US, a 24 Hour Fitness membership can get you showers. So can AirBnB and hostels and some inquiring around.

Right now I get to use the common area of a hostel, the fast internet, the kitchen, the dining room, the fridge, the bathroom, and shower, all for $10 a day because I go sleep in my car every night.

I've negotiated the same deal in a place in Silicon Valley, but that's even better because there is a power line going into my car at night from their garage so I can still work and watch movies in my car whenever I want. This is all in an area (Stanford) where the rents are $1000+ a month, easy.

BATHROOMS:

Public restrooms are easy - Safeways are open 24/7 around here. Grocery stores. Gas stations. It gets inconvenient when it's 5AM in the morning and you have to go take a pee, because normally you're parked on a street with houses around and you don't feel like firing up the car to drive to a bathroom. And you can't just stand out and pee in the neighborhood.

So I have a pee bottle. Pee inside the car into the bottle. Then open the car door and dump the contents into the drain on the road. Takes 5 seconds. No one notices. Go back to sleep.

Tell me where you're finding rentals for $1000 a month around Stanford. I work in the area and was looking at those new apartments off San Antonio and El Camino in Mountain View. Holy crap $2700/mo for a 1BD. Paying a bit less than that for a 2BD/2BA right now but its a 30 minute commute to work.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Tell me where you're finding rentals for $1000 a month around Stanford. I work in the area and was looking at those new apartments off San Antonio and El Camino in Mountain View. Holy crap $2700/mo for a 1BD. Paying a bit less than that for a 2BD/2BA right now but its a 30 minute commute to work.

http://www.zillow.com/homes/for_ren...-122.096686,37.407426,-122.212987_rect/13_zm/

The $900 one. On Zillow for only one day. CHECK IT OUT NOW BEFORE IT GETS TAKEN.

EDIT: crap it just disappeared.

$700 a month.

http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/Stanford-Ave-Menlo-Park-CA-94025/2114062388_zpid/