There are TWO Kinds of Homeless
Tags: Homelessness, Familyhomeless, Homeless

My Rottweiler Koko and I in my van while I was homeless in 2006.

There are two kinds of “homelessness” One is by choice, the other is by circumstance. Just so we’re on the same page about what “homelessness” is, the United States government defines homelessness as “when a person “lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, and if they sleep in a shelter designated for temporary living accommodations or in places not designated for human habitation.” So, for the trolls out there who claim I was not homeless because I lived in a van, take your vitriol elsewhere. Millions of Americans live in their cars, RVs, trucks, or vans. They’re much better off than those who live in cardboard boxes, or shelters, and they are indeed homeless.

CHOICE

People are either homeless by “choice” because they choose, for whatever reason, NOT to live in a permanent structure. Or, they’re homeless because their choices, circumstances, or mother nature (fire, flood, natural disasters) have destroyed their homes. The difference between the two is twofold, one having to do with money and resources (choice), the other through a lack of money or resources. Being homeless with money is much preferred, obviously, that being homeless without. For instance:

I’ve been “homeless” by choice or circumstance off and on my entire life. At 18 years of age, I lived in a tent in the woods while working for a rafting company in Georgia. I was barely making minimum wage and couldn’t have afforded an apartment even if I could have found one to stay in. There was a bunk room for employees, with about 8–10 beds in it, but they were mostly filled with snoring, farting male employees, so I opted for the woods and a tent instead. I bathed in the river, ate at the office, and did just fine. I enjoyed my summer of being technically homeless, but happy.

After that summer I lived in my VW bug every summer during college. I traveled around the United States camping, exploring, and working. I never saw myself as “homeless,” but as an adventurer.

After my mother had a heart attack and I quit my business to take care of her, I came back six months later to no apartment, no business, and no car. So, I got a job and lived in the office where I was working. I worked late, then slept on a cot by my desk and showered at work until I saved up enough money to rent a place and buy a car. My cat stayed with a friend. Thanks, Victoria! I rode my bicycle everywhere, in every kind of weather for more than a year.

As I moved around the country I often found myself homeless, staying in campgrounds or hotels for days or weeks at a time while I searched for affordable housing. It was no big deal. I just did what I could afford to do.

At the age of 50, in 2006, I quit my job after my father died (See my TED GLOBAL TALK about it here.) I bought a $750 Chevy van and decided to tour the country while I still could. My father died of brain cancer and his one regret was not traveling and experiencing life more. He actually worked (he was a pedodontist) up until a couple of weeks before he died. What I thought would be an adventure, freelancing my photography, turned into 18 months of homelessness as I could never afford housing during that time even though I worked the entire time, sometimes part-time, sometimes full-time and part-time.

CONSEQUENCE

By “Consequence,” I mean being homeless because of decisions I made, or because of things out of my control. For me, choosing to live in Denver, Colorado was a bad decision because few people can afford housing in any major Colorado city on a minimum wage job. Once I moved to Tennessee I was able to find housing, a job, and do okay. I stayed in my van in a friend’s driveway, and couch surfed with friends until I had saved up enough money for my own place.

The main difference between the two has to do with attitude and resources. Are you choosing homelessness because you want to save money? Because you want to travel? Because you want to attend school, get medical treatment or start a business? That’s homeless by choice IF you can really choose to be homeless or not, depending on what your goals are. If you are forced into living in your car, van, truck, or a shelter because you lost your job, then that’s homeless by consequence. Either way, there are tips and tricks to make life easier, less stressful, and less dangerous. I’ll be sharing that with you here. I hope it helps.