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Living in my Car

August 30, 2015

Starting on Tuesday, September 1st, I will be living out of my car.

I'm excited and nervous. Excited because I've always wanted to try this, just to see what it's like. Nervous because I'm rushing headlong and unprepared into a cloud of unknowns. Fortunately, I don't have to continue living in my car if I hate it. But this is the perfect opportunity to try.

Planned Daily Schedule

  1. Wake up around 6am
    • Sleep in my car in the eBay parking lot
    • Wake up when the sun rises, which should be easy because it'll get really bright
  2. Go to Planet Granite every morning
    • Exercise (indoor bouldering, gym, or run)
    • Shower, shave (towels provided)
  3. Go to work
    • eBay has free breakfast every morning, which is great
    • Also, free fruit
    • Lunch will be cereal, leftovers, or eating out
  4. Go to a library
    • Northside Branch Library or Santa Clara University Library seem solid
    • Read and/or work on side projects
  5. Hang out with friends
    • This will be a big one, and an area where I'm anticipating my life to improve. Since I don't want to go home (aka sit in my car), it will propel me to spend more time with friends
    • No more video games (no more desktop PC)
  6. Eat dinner
    • Cooking out of my car might be difficult
    • Eating out isn't very healthy; Whole Foods buffet is a notable exception
    • I'll likely cook at least a meal or two each week at Vanessa's and eat with her
  7. Go to sleep around 11pm

Anticipated Difficulties

  • Cooking for myself and doing dishes
  • Keeping my car (and its contents/inhabitant) from smelling bad
  • Doing laundry
  • Regulating temperature while sleeping

But my biggest fear going into this endeavour is that I'll be too dependent on Vanessa's house as a "home base". Being cognizant of this will surely help, but it will definitely be a fuzzy line since I want to spend a lot of time with her. I don't want to mooch, but I want to be with her a lot. We've agreed to be very open in our communication about this.

Things to Have in my Car

I have to immensely strip down the amount of stuff I bring with me, since my car is pretty small. Vanessa has graciously allowed me to keep most of my stuff in her basement storage room, so I won't have to rent a storage unit. The few things I plan on always having with me are:

  • Laptops and chargers
  • Mouse and mousepad
  • Power inverter
  • Clothes (maybe 10 days' worth)
  • Workout clothes
  • Duffel bag
  • Laundry bag
  • Ziploc bags
  • Trash bags
  • Toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, floss picks, retainer
  • Shampoo, body wash, washcloth, towel
  • Electric razor, comb, nail clippers
  • Hand sanitizer
  • Paper towels
  • Spork
  • Knife
  • 24oz, 40oz, 64oz Hydroflask water bottles
  • Headlamp
  • Futon (this is my current bed)
  • Blanket
  • Pillow