For the record

[IanC]

Sweet Baby Jebus. How long until we find their frozen bodies in a van somewhere in the Dakotas?

It was Bob's YT channel and then his forum that gave me the impetus to try road life, and I am grateful for that.  I think most of us living the life of quiet desperation would love to find an escape route.  The problem is that for folks already living on the edge financially, it could be the next step on the path to 'under the bridge' homelessness. What happens when your 25 year old van bites the dust and you have no means to repair it or replace it? But, fairly elderly folks (women especially) who have never even checked their own oil are being encouraged to throw caution to the wind and cut their lifelines.  The "You CAN do it" attitude doesn't create the ability to do it.

I felt a real sadness for one such person featured in one of his videos - a noobie older woman living in her old car with a pop-up screen room for her living set-up. What happens when the wind hits and she has to load all that gear back in the car, leaving no place to sleep, or worse if all that stuff just blows away?  Or her vehicle dies somewhere out in the desert and there's no cell service? Yet, her lifestyle was presented as an uplifting alternative.  No doubt there were people who saw that video who saw that as a viable option, because none of the pitfalls were presented.  Actually, it was after I commented about that video on his forum that I found my posts being rapidly deleted (or maybe it's just because I run my mouth too much sometimes?)

But having said that, I get the feeling that many of the people posting on Bob's board are simply exploring and may never actually follow through. Perhaps reality strikes them before they make an irreversible decision.  If there would ever be a forum section for 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly', I'd have to chime in with the feeling of being parked on the outskirts of town as tornado sirens are going off and trees are coming down, or being in a State Forest in Florida with wildfires encroaching.  It sure isn't all sunny days on crystal clear lakes as it's sometimes portrayed.