Homeless students and families living in storage facilities

[Doomsteader]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/education/chi-homeless-studentsoct28,0,7967162.story

I'm on my way out the door to run some errands, but will comment on this story later this afternoon   Their story is somewhat related to mine, which I'll share with y'all when I get back later on this afternoon.

[zenobia]

What the hell are they going to do when it gets seriously cold?  OMG.

[SabreKai]

Scrounge up some insulation and learn to cuddle up when sleeping. Build a very small room, well insulated and heat it with a kerosene lamp. Learn to live the rest of the day at outdoor temperatures. If it was a container then it would be somewhat different. But living in a commercial storage yard type garage limits what they can do.

I have a 20 foot container, n pay $105 a month for its storage. 24 hr access, and it would take me about a week to make it habitable. I noticed that people were living in them and in old vans n buses on the lot back when I bought the can in 2003.

Sabre
33 days n a wake up.

[Doomsteader]

Ok, I'm back  

First off, a note/suggestion/request for TPTB here on this forum to consider:  We have a "Doomer Transportation" catagory, but no "Doomer Housing" catagory   Considering the importance and expense of basic shelter, I think the admin(s) really should consider creating such a catagory.  There's a whole world of creative, alternatives to apartments and run-of-the-mill "traditional" housing, such as slip-form, straw bale, yurts, shipping containers, earth-berm, vehicular-living, live-aboard boats/barges, ect and who knows what else others have come up with, that would make an interesting topic catagory all on it's own, with no shortage of material regarding ideas and experiences.  How about it?

That said, I had (up until the end of last year) been living in a commercial storage yard here on Long Island for about 6 years running, and although "unusual" (and at times, inconvenient), it was generally a happy and definately the most financially-beneficial arrangement I could've hoped for, considering the situation I was in at the time.  For me, it was a majorly positive experience with tangible benefits derived from living this....some would call it a "crude" or "rough" lifestyle, because it not only allowed me to do a lot more with less, it also taught me some valuable skills and endowed me with the confidence that only dealng with adversity on a daily basis(and getting not only used to it, but damn GOOD at it ) could do.

There is MUCH MORE to this story, but between having been up since around midnight(don't ask;), and being the (*forced*-by the Christo-facists - alcohol is NOT my drug-of-choice) lush that I am, I am starting to fade, and have to get up all too early in the AM to start the work-week, so I'll post more details later on this week, but ONLY if others here are interested in how someone with 5-figure CC debt, no job,  no car, no money, and no physical address, could become debt-free in only 2 1/2 years, buy a car 3 months later, buy his first piece of RE(waterview!) for cash 3 months after that, take 2 months off(unpaid) from work, go back to work, buy a home(with no mortgage) 6 months later - all on nothing but a P/T income of less than $12 bucks an hour(after taxes)

[perdition79]

What the hell are they going to do when it gets seriously cold?  OMG.

How to keep warm for free is the easiest survival problem to solve. Layered clothing, oversized outer layer(s) filled with old newspapers. Keep face wrapped in scarf to prevent losing nose to frostbite. Sleep with dogs and other people for warmth.

Or you can just live in Florida, where the weather's warm, and dinner can be caught in ten minutes with 100' of fishing line tied to a beer can.

[urbanfarmer]

but ONLY if others here are interested in how someone with 5-figure CC debt, no job,  no car, no money, and no physical address, could become debt-free in only 2 1/2 years, buy a car 3 months later, buy his first piece of RE(waterview!) for cash 3 months after that, take 2 months off(unpaid) from work, go back to work, buy a home(with no mortgage) 6 months later - all on nothing but a P/T income of less than $12 bucks an hour(after taxes)

Sell drugs? 

[alaskat]

My thoughts exactly!!!

[LuaHasFreedom]

Ok, Doomsteader, I'll bite. I'm curious about how you did it. Say the words MLM and I'm oughta here though...

[Bruce]

 As I wrote about back in the summer. I purchased a 40 foot storage trailer that was in good shape. I applied cool seal to the top, painted the exterior white to help keep the heat down. I installed electricity (commercial code) and it has a 12,500 BTU air conditioner. Installed a 10'X12" porch over the front door. I semi permanently sealed the main doors and installed a 36" steel entrance door. The door frame is 3" angle iron with hinges on the inside. You are not getting in to this baby without me knowing. You'd have to cut your way into the damn thing. I presently use it for storage and a work shop. However, within a day I could make it livable. I soon plan to buy a small wooden stove $239.00 at the local hardware store for heat and cooking. Even with the white paint and cool sealed roof I don't think you could sleep in it at night during the summer without AC. The winters would be a breeze. Due to how airtight this thing is I think heating it would be very easy and actually require considerably less BTU's then you'd think......................Bruce

[LuaHasFreedom]

Bruce I sure hope you have ventilation in the thing. For air. When wood burns.

[Dot]

I may be heartless but I'd be damned if I made my kids go through that just to keep a pet. I'm sorry but man do people get too hung up on pet's and things.

It's a CHILD...it should come first.

[skymetalsmith]

Dot, Have you considered what trauma it would be for the Kid (first) to put down the family dog?

  I know of a guy on a bicycle living in a storage unit.  He gets up way before management comes in and he leaves.  They never see him.  He keeps a low profile.  Army makes a sleeping bag  (Mummy bag) good for 20 below zero.

[Ellie]

I may be heartless but I'd be damned if I made my kids go through that just to keep a pet. I'm sorry but man do people get too hung up on pet's and things.

It's a CHILD...it should come first.

The child is far better off living in a storage unit with two parents who understand loyalty, responsibility, and committment than he would be living in a McMansion with someone like yourself.

[kafkaesque]

I would live in a storage unit with my dog over a house without him. When I was a kid I had a dog that meant even more to me at the time. If my parents asked I would have taken a corner of a concrete room and slept in a sleeping bag on a stack of cardboard before choosing to get rid of my best friend.

[Bruce]

Yes, It does have two covered ventilation points. However, they may not be large enough?..............................Bruce