People Who Got Kicked Out

[Opteron_Man]

This thread is for anyone who has had to spend any amount of time homeless on the street. Share some tales of your experiances. It doesn't matter if you were 'out there' for a few days or years.

Share some stories.

[ThreeEyesOni]

I spent a 3 month period (during the winter) living out of my car once, do to the fact that I was in a new area for a good job and was having trouble finding a decent apartment ("decent" being one that wasn't over $700/month or liable to get me killed in my sleep. yes, i saw apartments where I felt safer sleeping in my car at the 24/7 walmart). I really wasn't bothered by it, so I can't complain.

[Opteron_Man]

I was only on the street for five days. But it still sucked ass!

[xParadigmx]

well, ive been "out here" for about 4 months now, and only one fo those was actualyl spent in a house. i had found a roommate, paid rent, and then she kicked me out. so its back to couch hopping and camping out till i get a new job. at least finding a place here thats cheap shouldnt be that hard. right? i did spend abotu a month living in this abandoned building behind the library here in town. now THAT was an experience i wont soon forget.

[GothicChristian]

For about a month, after hurricane Jean, my family and I were living in a crappy hotel that got me sick because of mold.
Why, out of all the houses in my area, was mine the only one to be destroyed?!

[Johnny Gnar Gnar]

I spent all of this last winter couch hopping/living out of a car. I was all over Wyoming, Utah, into Colorado a little bit, Montana, and into Idaho for awhile. Just catching couches wherever I could. Got harassed by the police quite a bit when I was living out of the Jeep in Jackson, had problems in Idaho. Basically, I learned that if you have a pony tail, tattoos, and political stickers on your vehicle, you are a suspected drug smuggler, so be prepared. It has been interesting.

[Beneath the Shadows]

I spent about five years living on the streets. New York, New Orleans, Los Angeles, San Fransisco. And a bunch of other places that I don't remember. Sometimes it really sucked (like one time when it rained so hard in New Orleans that the water was up to my knees in about 15 minutes. Fortunately, my tent was just high enough to not get flooded out), but sometimes it was a blast. You meet all sorts of different people, from sharing a space bag (bag of wine, if you don't know) with gutterpunks to getting a sugar momma in the form of a high-class stripper to doing Jaeger shots with C.C. DeVille.

I was fortunate to stay away from drugs, for the most part.

[Kristin]

I haven't, but my brother lived in his car, in Hawaii by choice for a while. He ended up getting a student's room with some friends that he met, but he loved living in his car. He started out knowing nobody, then working as a busboy and later a chef at two high-end restaurants and meeting some famous people. He also built up a fanbase as the guitarist of a local band. He has some pretty cool stories of his experiences in Hawaii, but now he lives in Oregon, has a girlfriend everyone loves, and is expecting his first baby.

[KontanKarite]

I've been having a weird feeling that I might have to do this kind of thing in the future. Not near future, but alas.

[emeraldlonewoulf]

Well, for me, it depends on what you consider "out there". I've lived in RVs for a significant portion of my life, travelling from place to place, bookdocking out in the desert, etc. THat doesn't really count though, because I was fed, had a roof over my head, and was reasonably comfortable.

I did live in my car for a week one time, started a new job in a new city, and used that first paycheck to get a room in an extended stay "hotel" where half the rooms shared a bathroom down the hall. Shortly after that I got divorced and moved into my mom's 10' X 12' shed for about a month, while I raised the cash to move up here.

The times I've lived in...ahem... unconventional living space, have been some of the best times in my life. It becomes really clear and simple what is truly important and what isn't. Basic needs, loyalty among friends, love among family, (or the stark contrast of the lack of these things) these are the things that get thrown into sharp relief.

[TopHaggardDoll]

My dad is homeless in Scotland right now, proper, no money, no car, no couches...it really sucks because I have no way to help him. All he has is his clothes and a bag on his back.

Bad times.

[xParadigmx]

yeah. no more couch hopping for me as of last night. spent the night in some guys backyard on a blanket under the trees. wouldnt have been bad really, especially when you have friends out there who have an eye out for you. they are really good people, some are brilliant, some are crazy. i guess alot fo them do mean well, they just dont see the point in spending all that money on things like a house and a car and water and food when they already have evrything they need. i guess everythign else is trivial. oh, and i finally got osme new clothes today. this shelter let me go in and pick out a bunch of stuff, cause when my room mate kcked me out a couple weeks ago, she gave away all my clothes and threw away everythign else. but whatever. long as i dont have to live with the Bi-Polar Drunken Bitch anymore.

[badteccy]

I think after college I'm gonna live in my car (if I ever get one) and travel the country for a year. I'd def go visit my friend in Miami, and vist Salem because I love that place. It be cool to go as far as Seatle but I'd have to see.

[Soakka]

i was 11 and with my family when we had no home for sometime. i dont know how long it was but it was nice and not nice. we had to camp at a friends backyard and it was summer break. we had to put our things in storage in which later we lost. i know what a homless feels like. and sometimes it still feels like im homless. we keep moving around, lasting about 1 year.

[xParadigmx]

yeah, still here. found a new building, about a block away. it keeps raining, but i found a shelter that let me wash my clothes there. i think i can sleep anywhere now. concrete makes me feel at home :P. but im going home wiht my new boyfriend in a couple of weeks, so ill get to see my mom at least. pray for me.

[Tam Li Hua]

Never had to live on the street, per se. In between summers when I was teaching overseas I'd stay with friends, but other than that, I've always had a place to stay.

I rather enjoy having the conveniences that the modern American life can provide, if I do say so myself.