Becoming Independent Without A Job Or Money

[Principium Nexus]

In the future I want to largely abolish money because it seems to run our lives to every extent and knowing that I can live and provide myself without earning or having it is a freeing thought.

So I made a smallist of requirements to become fairly independent of work.

-Shelter, having some sort of roof above our head is needed. Some low-cost ideas to create a home are building a house from shipping containers ($2k-4k) for very large one, they stack easily, expanding over time possible and fun! You also need some isolation and things like water/electricity supply (solar pannel/rain or well), furniture and things like shower cabine, toilet and stove. This kind of home takes longer to build, is pretty cheap $15-40k depending how expensive you build it.

Can be sustainable and place anywhere, in forest, top of mountain or close to lake/sea. It's also rigid, can get hot in summer if not well isolated. Look up "Container Homes"!

Next alernative, Vanlife.

This is a more flexible and traveling style of life. I see lots of people buy a decently sized Van, convert it so they can live in it. Disadvantages are space, fuel costs (if you travel), don't get stolen! However I like the Vanlife idea very much, as a person in his 20's I like freedom and want to explore the world. Combining this with working online or on the road somehow would be ideal. I think one can build a van for travel/living for about $10-20k (depending on the van and stuff you put in). Solar panels should provide you with energy for basic needs like led light, music, laptop/phone charging, etc. A wood stove for heat in winter might be more convenient.

Another idea I haven't really looked at is living on a boat. I saw a documentary where a couple bought a catamaran and traveled the world with it. Fish on sea provided them with food, fresh water was taken with them or filtered?

Some pros is that sailing doesn't cost anything, no fuel needed, the boat can take you anywhere (no customs ?). But for longer timeframe, I don't know if I would want to live on water.

Next, if we go for something like stationary home, food can be grown locally. If theres some plot of land available I can imagine that you can grow all your needs with proper farming, beside that, earning some side money with selling some of your goods for additonal items.

The idea is to be completely independent of a system of work/money, because I see jobs disappearing and feel that, and be able to provide all basic needs oneself.

So does anybody have any experience with this?

I need knowledge of all subjects, from people who know something about farming, online working/on the road jobs, fishing, costs of traveling with a boat or car/van, building alternative sustainavle (budget) homes. Anything is welcome and I encourage you to have a discussion.

Many youthful people probably want to do the same, lets get the basic ideas/requirements so we all have a clear picture what we need/can expect/or what is possible!

 

 

[TimStr]

If you're a nature outdoorsy kind of person, and want to grow your own food Iwould have the following suggestion:

Get yourself familiar with permaculture. It's basically a very systemic way of agriculture, where you design ecosystems by remodeling existing, stable, functioning ones, like the forest, that don't require tons of fertilizer or water input to  produce food. 

Rather than imposing on the earth, its about finding our place in it. 

You could sell most of your stuff and buy a piece of land and turn it into a garden, that produces most of what you need. Other stuff you can barter. 

If you want some inspiration, watch the movie Inhabit. 

Edited September 29, 2017 by TimStr

[I Am That]

I've been looking into an off-grid lifestyle for the same reasons you have stated. Reducing waste is another. Hopefully next year i'll have the ball rolling.

I can't say i've considered living in a van or bus, it's a little cramped for my liking and my plan is to buy 5-10 acres of land. With a container home you would probably have to build a large corrugated roof over the top of it to make sure you are going to get enough water and this would also double as a barrier from the sun in summer. I'm looking at locations with a decent amount of annual rainfall- not exactly sure of tank size as yet.  

You can get granny flat/kit homes for pretty cheap nowadays (not fitted out). I've been looking at a flat pack dwelling 4x10m for just over $10k AUD. Obviously that's not including assembly, power etc. Another thing is that if the dwelling is demountable/relocatable you'll probably get away with not having to pour a big slab (fucking expensive) and obtain council permits. I looked into a ready to go tiny home just for the convenience but they're a bit too expensive in my opinion, $70-80k, 50-60k if you build something decent yourself. 

Humanure is something worth looking into also. No need for a septic tank and flushing good rainwater away, just compost your own crap. There's a good channel on YouTube that goes into this system called off grid with doug and stacey. Their toilet setup is easy and super cheap- the composting toilets worth 2 grand seem to me a major rip off.

If you are going to reside near major chain supermarkets, dumpster diving can net you large quantities of perfectly edible food. Go on the night before the bin gets emptied and make sure you have plenty of bags with you. I routinely pull $50-100 worth of groceries from only ONE or TWO Aldi bins. I never walk away with less than 3kg of bananas.

As the other poster suggested, look into permaculture. Consider a course/seminar. Start growing plants to eat now to transition into this lifestyle. Another cool channel on YouTube is Edible Acres. They explain how to keep chooks really cheap via a composting system.

[Nahm]

@Principium Nexus maybe a job in the forestry service. and a van. You'd be working, but living outdoors, in the western states, moving around a lot. 

[Principium Nexus]

@Nahm That's an idea however I'm from Europe. I was thinking to move to bali with my girlfriend and live there. I want to work online or as a developer which can be done anywhere in the world and still earn good living. Costs in bali are lower than in europe, and the weather is nice and sunny

[Nahm]

@Principium Nexus sounds delightful ☀️

[Principium Nexus]

@Nahm Do you have any experience with sustainable living?

[Nahm]

@Principium Nexus  not as in living off the earth, no. 

[SFRL]

@Principium Nexus go with the Van. Absolutely. I traveled all over the US the last 8 years and I lived in many different rooms and apartments. If I could do it all over I would haven't gotten a Van from the start. 

Or go slightly bigger. You can also go with a pick-up truck with like a RV behind it. Then you can put the RV places and drive the truck for transportation. Then you don't need to take your home to your work or the store. 

Living in the wild sounds cool. But if I were to do that I would go live deep in the Alaskan wilderness where nobody can find me. And come out once in a while for supplies. 

Edited September 30, 2017 by SFRL

[Principium Nexus]

@K VIL Yeah.. I should have changed it ? I mean after I get settled. Initial investment is neccessary ofcourse.

[Principium Nexus]

@SFRL They have some great videos about living in schoolbusses, where they have kitchen, shower, toilet, enough storage space and sometimes pretty large bedroom or living room. I wonder how much fuel that would consume because I have no experience with driving such a vehicle.