Advice for people Living on the Road

stealing is stealing even if it is from wal-mart, kmart, or your mother,
makes you no less of a thife,
just because they are, evil, or wrong dosent give you the right do to something to them that you would not what done to you, (Here i am just assuming you dont want to be stolen from)
unless of course you are a thife and proud of it, then thieve on, just dont discriminate or weakly justify your rasclyiness

 

I was poking around in here & didn't see something mentioned...

Morel mushrooms! For those of you on the road & in the woods anyway, this could really REALLY help. My dad & I go out every spring & go Morel hunting. Once you know where they grow, just come back at the same time every year. You've gotta know your mushrooms pretty darn well, but there are pics online & all and you really can't miss a Morel once you've seen it.

These babies sell for something like $50 per pound. And a good patch will yield you about 2-3lbs

Or you could just eat them... that's what Dad does at least

Oh, also... if you're near a medium-size city, check for the bread warehouses. You can get a whole grocery bag full of bread labelled "bird food" for 50 cents that's just the week-old stuff. My husband & I buy it to feed the geese, but quite often we open the bag to find a loaf or 3 that is still perfectly good for eating. And when times have been tough, we've tested that theory without getting sick.

Oh... one more. In Colorado & the nearby areas there's the pinyon pine nuts. I was down there last fall when the pinyons were in season and we brought back 4 gallon-size bags of them. Now I'm gonna eat 'em all myself, but it looks like these things are worth something like $10-15 per pound, shelled. We picked 'em up off the ground; 4 adults over about 8 hours' time, but I've seen people take an upside-down umbrella & give the tree a good whack with a stick to get them out quicker. Whether you're eating them or selling them, this could be another option
love,
mom

 

hey good good thread

though I couldnt find anytging about socks...
any road dog knows socks are gold, bring as many as you can and also plastic bags to keeo youf eet dry in the rain.

I read a bit a bout flying signs,
heres how its perfected,
gfo to mid size cities and suburban areas to fly, get a firend or two and scatter the exits of a "super walmart"
walmarts dont work as well as super wallmart, in about three to four hours you should net 4 or 5 hundred. This does not work in or very close to maor cities.

cities suck for making money , toomuch compitision a million other cats running up to folk hustling, hit smaller towns, I know with selling hemp you'll make bank donereio

want a bit more work for your buck
grab up a cAN of spray paint and a stencil
hit up Urban centers and suburbs, go door to door and offer to tag there street number on the curb in front of there house for 15 $
you will make hundreds guarunteed.
as well in the same areas grab up a pole and squeege and do ground floor window cleaning...usually worth 20 25 bucks
easy and simple work.

free gas
ok this is where I am god,
I have travelled accross canada twice with no goas money getting free gas as I go
many folk bitch thats its wrong...you argue the ethics.

way #1
hit up shell gas stations, fill your tank, walk in to pay oprder a pack o
smokes and then look frantically for you wallet,
shell's gas stations policy is to write promisary notes,
the idea is you give them all this info and they can collect later...nevr ever ever happens...its more looks legal and designed as a system to influence folk to come back and pay
thats a no hassel score
if y9ou cant fin a shell or your in some town state without one, hit up pawn shops buy up electronic crap, that "COULD" look like there worth something,
leave that with them and you set
heres the thing NEVER drive off without first talking to the cat behind the desk, once he says you can go there is no way he can get thje cops invloved it then becomes strictly a civil matter, but a civil matter not worth the expense in persuing.

get a crap load of copies of "ids" library cards, B certifigats, in some plavces there free to replace so over a period of time I collect them, then give them to gas stations as "civil collateral"

DONT GIVE THEM YOUR DRIVERS LISCENCE

they cant take it by law, and if they try argue that you cant drive legally without one.

the worst thing that has ever happened is they siffened back the fuel.
cops have been called many times but in ALL cases when they get there, I have done nothing wrong, just forgot my wallet
thats not illegal its an inconvienince......

ok for the more sheepish
get a fuel gerry can and walk up to folk fueling and bum a gallon or so off of each
youll get kicked off the lot but not usually before getting kicked down a few full gerry cans, and a wack of cash..
my boy tim did this accross the states like 3 times.....

lots and lots of folk wil give you work if you play it right,
bums bum around but travellers trave around
the difference is only up to those looking and ldealing with you.
how you persent yourself will make you much miore money get you further down the road.

many cats get to a town fall in with soem gutter punks and start guttering it for maybe survival or companionship....
althouh I have the highest respect for train riders and gutters
throw away small town survival, throw away working....actually throw away all I said except the socks.

the way you come accroass is everything!!!

riding trains is a good way to get around as well as a good way to loose a leg or die...
.....ummmm I started to explain about this nifty guide ......
then I remembered the rulles....
talk to the local gutters about riding rails just be carefull!!!


when I started this I di9dn it by myself, I love travelling, hitching alone,
as years went by I started buying buses and shit,
touring in a groupe as long as you can organise is fucking EASY!!!!!!!!!!
say you get a bus
all your shelter is done, kitchen is there so food is easy
you have folk always wanting to get on the bus so you hlways have companionship, you gain good media and attention making more coin to get you further......group and organise...


just avoid the drama,
Ive been doing highway child now for ten years (see comunal living)
drama can really cause you stress.....but I still think travelling like that and living out on the road works best if you bring community with you



happy highway fuckers!!!!!!!
peace
drew

 

Informative! However I See You Lost Your Thread To The Pigeons. Via - Question, Answer, Comment. Something Tells Me That Was Not Your Intent. - Good To Teach - Not So Good Herd The Sheep. Keep Trying And Good Luck With Your Next Attempt.

 

Blinkin I love your posts, everytime you post i love your even more
And Nice informative thread in general...

 

Nah, aside from that little off-topic morality debate a page ot two back it actually turned out Ok.

Thanks for all the comments and contributions everybody.

 

Samples in grocery stores...I used to go when they'd put them out..I admit, I used to grab a few green beans on my way out too. :&
Dandelions, amazing anti-oxidant properties, edible.

 

hopefuly Looking Follword To Hitting The Road.... Just A little tierd of the scean In Jersey And I Never really Left New Jersey.... I Have Live All Over this Egg Sandwich smellin state i call Home.... I Got To Get Out And Travel See Whats Better Out THERE...... Looking For Some Company to Hang With... Some Cool People to come with Me And Have Some Good Times With..... im Still Taking Care Of The Plans And Getting The Car Takin Care Of First... blah... If Any One Is Intrested Drop Me A PM... Oh And I Still Have To Quite My Job.. And I Do Like My Job........... What!!!! Did I Just Say that.... nonnoononno.........


ANd The Name Is Jessica.......
CherryAnn420@aol.com

 

Speaking of... if you don't have a copy of the Guide, then look for people that seem pretty hip. It's not like they're hard to spot. heh. A good many of them will at least let you use a hose to clean up with, if not shower. I've talked to my fiance a couple of times about letting people stop by our place to clean up, and/or even camp a night or so in the back yard. We can't afford to feed anyone (well, at least not any more than a bowl of ramen, if we have it), but we've got a big back yard. heh. (She's alternates between being okay with it, and uneasy with it *shrug*)

Try flat out asking people that you talk friendly with for a bit, if they have a back yard you could use for (x) nights (where x is no more than 3.. if you're staying longer, find a shelter, or another yard, heh). It never hurts to ask. Be direct, be nice, and be as clean as you can when you ask. If they decline, thank them anyway... say something like, "Okay, oh well. No worries, then. It never hurts to ask, though," and smile.

In smaller towns, try to stay away from the parks inside the city, and stick to the larger parks, and national/state lands at the outskirts. I've had friends say that "Will work for food" signs don't always work in small towns... A few of them have said that "Will work for anything" work better. One even had a sign that said, "Will work for food/shelter/clothes/money/anything!" He almost always found something before each day was out.

Oh, and if someone offers you money, and asks what you're going to use it for, be blatently honest with them. If you're going to use it on food, tell them. If you're going to use it on a bottle of alcohol, tell them. If you're going to use it on a kite to fly on the next warm day, tell 'em. =)

Alternatively - and this works more often in a big city, but smaller towns work to - you can find a convenience store, and go up to someone and ask for food. When you go up to them, stand a polite distance away (twice arms reach, if possible), and excuse yourself to get their attention. When they turn to you, give them the quick/condensed version of the "I'm down on my luck" and ask them, "Could you maybe help me out with some food. Even if it's just a loaf of bread, or a package of bologna. Something that I can share with others. (or "my friends" if you were in a group)". If you are in a group, elect the most well-spoken, clean person to go up.

This works more often than you would think. A lot of people are reluctant to give money to seemingly homeless folk, as they think they'll just spend it on alcohol and/or drugs. If you point-blank ask them for food, instead of money, you'll often score at least a candy bar out of the deal.

 

Get a can of white paint, and a can of black. Find some glass laying around in various places (clear glass is best, stay away from amber and green), and find a way to crush it up into fine pieces. Then, mix the tiny pieces into the white paint (you're aiming for "beads" of glass). Then paint down a black backside, and come back the next day (or if doing a lot of homes, later in the day), and do the numbers in the white glass-ridden paint. The glass causes the white numbers to sparkle in headlights, of a night.

$15 - $25/each home is a good number for this. $15 for a curb, and $25 for both sides of the driveway (on the curb, if possible, as it curves out of the driveway).

 

If you don't have one of those self-warming reflective shower bags at the outdoors store, then you can towel bathe yourself, even with your clothes still on! Less water, less soap, less fuss.

Take a large bowl and pour a lot of warm or hot water. Boil it on your vanagon propane stove if you have to. Take a bar of clear glycerine soap, swish it in the water enough to make it mildly soapy or sudsy. Take some SD-alcohol (usually like 95 cents per bottle) and pour a capful or more into water. Use a washcloth soaked in the water to wipe yourself thoroughly, squeezing out the towel and pouring a little more water on it should be good enough to clean off any soap residue on your skin. Then apply natural deoderant bar to arm pits and now you are fresh!

Gotta eat on a budget and don't have cook ware? Cereal and powdered milk. Cheap, no cooking, often fortified with vitamins, and good fiber. Just add water! Also good are 98 cents stores with food or discount food stores, where you can buy all sorts for cheap. If you are buying to satisfy your dietary needs you should always be able to buy yourself some things, no matter what you do for the money. Spend at least SOME of your time in the pursuit of food. It's what helps us continue to roam the earth. No reason to live like ghandi full-time.

Like the feeling of sitting on a toilet but there is not a public restroom near you for miles? Cut a hole in the bottom of a bucket, optional toilet seat attached, place either over a small hole you dug or just the side walk, wrap a shirt or something around you and let it all go! *oops!* :] Also fits nicely in your outfitted van, bus or truck. The simple port-a-potty.

Want to stay warm? Throw in some egg crates, you know in your vanagon. Great either as a cover to the bed, or up against the walls shielding the cold.

Thas all I got for now.

 

Great thread lots of interesting info
I hope to get on the road about Oct going around Australia

 

what i have to contribute to this is..

before you full out live on the road, go on a few roadtrips first, like a week or two
make sure you know what you're doing and can handle yourself on the road for short periods of time before you actually hit the road for good. there's alotta people out there who started off as being travellers and end up homeless livin in an alley because they threw everything away and hit the road without being ready. we don't want any casualties.

go on a roadtrip alone for a couple weeks, or if you have some like-minded friends, bring them along, make sure they're people you can get along with for long periods of time and aren't gonna get on your nerves when they're with you all the time in a vehicle.

i too wanna live on the road, just travel from place to place and see the continent, not entirely live off the land sorta thing, i'm gunna get a camper van (cliche maybe, but VW did it right, minivan with a kitchen) and just travel around. check out what's goin on across the country and cross the border and check out the states, i think it'll be a great experience.


peace to all

 

great ideas and really good thread.

i do some of the stuff already and have learned a lot.

there are some chain restaraunts that besides ketchup have guldens & gray poupon mustard and helmans mayo packets!!! those are a find!

re: a toilet for your van, at our camp we use a plastic 5 gallon pail w/ a seat on top...put a small plastic bag in and wrap it over the top of the pail....do #2 and when finished, sprinkle in sawdust (a big bag is available at markets...ask the manager or free from lumber yards) to dry it out..... when 1/2 - 3/4 full, take out, tie up and dispose of.

 

For those that do not live on the streets , please pay those people unfortunate enough to be in this situation some respect even if it is acknowledging thier exsistance.
also sitting down and chatting to them for a little bit, but instead of offering money, its better to offer them food.

I know this myself as i was one of the unfortunates for a long time, but now have my life in order. from 16 to 25 i was on and off the streets so thats where my experience comes in.


they are people , but down on their luck.

 

Cool ideas in this thread. Here's another:

Get a F'ing job and earn your money befpre you hit the road. Sponge bob mother F'ers. hehehe

 

Laundrymats are sometimes goldmines, those dryers on the wall with the round door usually has a good amount of change. you COULD get poked by something sharp/infected so you might want to use a pencil. I've made over 300 in one place, and sometimes you find jewelry too.

Craigslist etc is good is you have to sell/trade on the road and you don't have a phone, but have internet access at the library or something.

 

Sell Lemonade Hey,it worked when you were seven years old.

 

This is a good thread..



A water key can be handy a lot of places in the cities take the handle off of the outside water taps water keys are a dollar or two at the hardware store. That way you can always get drinking water.
Refried beans and cheap bread can keep you going for cheap that’s about the cheapest food you don’t have to cook.
A P38 army can opener is a must about 25cents at an army surplus store.
If you have a stove beans and rice is very cheap and you can dumpster dive vegetables and cut out the bad spots. You can live on that for a long time and feed a lot of people for almost nothing.
If you get really desperate a lot of times you can go to McDonalds or Burger kind and tell them they forgot some food on your order the other day and their policy is to say I’m sorry and give you the food. Wendy’s doesn’t do this they ask for an address and say they will send you a coupon.

Keeping clean is very important if you can’t get a shower washing your hair and arm pits with a gallon water jug and soap can get you by for a while or if you can find a bathroom that locks you can take a hippy bath with the sink and soap. Keeping you feet clean is very important!! Wash your feet often or you sleeping bag will smell and make you smell bad and you will develop foot problems that are hard to get rid of. If you don’t have enough socks you can always wash them in a small bucket or container with some soap from a public bathroom.
If you have somewhere to stash your backpack and make up a local address you can go to private health clubs and act like you are interested in a membership and they will usually give you a week trail membership for free.

If you leave places clean and respect places you go people will usually be nice to you or leave you alone.
.

 

love this thread very useful for a young guy like me