My Morning Routine

This morning I woke up a little after 6am. I had set my cell phone alarm for 7am but my bladder had other ideas this morning. It was still dark outside and the birds hadn't started their morning songs yet so I knew it was still pretty early. I poked my arms out from under my blankets and was happy that it wasn't too cold this morning. I'm not burning my wood stove yet because it gets the tent too damn hot this time of year. Instead, I'm using the kerosene heater, which means that mornings are cold in the tent.

I had slept well the night before. I always sleep well at my place, especially this time of year. I love the cold nights, just not the cold mornings. My bed is soft and warm and piled high with bedding. There's a futon mattress at the bottom, then a down comforter and a soft blanket. Then me. Then another soft blanket. Then two sleeping bags zipped together and stuffed inside two heavy fleece blankets that are also zipped together. Then a poly comforter, and finally another sleeping bag on top. I'm never cold at night.

My winter bed

But I sure get cold in the morning.

My morning routine takes about 90 minutes, but the first 30 minutes are all about warming things up. Warming up the tent. Warming up some bathing water. And warming up myself with a hot cup of coffee.

The first thing I do is jump out of bed, run over to the propane cook stove, and light both burners. That starts heating up the tent.

Propane cook stove puts out some quick heat in the morning

Then I go out onto the stoop and light the kerosene heater. It gives off a lot of fumes when it's first lit so I let it burn outside while I run back in and jump back into bed for a 5 minute snooze.

That's the coldest part of my morning. As I snooze and wait for the kerosene heater to burn clean out on the stoop, the propane stove begins warming the tent, so the next time I get out of bed it's 10 degrees warmer. This morning, that meant 50 degrees inside instead of 40, which wasn't bad.

After my first snooze, I get up a second time, run out to the stoop, grab the kerosene heater and bring it inside, and jump back into bed for my second snooze.

Kerosene heater in the early morning hours

That's it for the painful part. I snooze a second time for 10 minutes or so while the kerosene brings the tent up to 70 degrees or so. Then it's time to start getting ready.

The third time I get up, it's nice and warm in the tent. I put on a pot of coffee and a pot of bathing water.

Coffee and bathing water on the stove

It takes about 15 minutes to perk the coffee and heat the water, so I brush my teeth, use the toilet, maybe exercise a little, and wake up a bit. By now the sun has started to rise and the birds are singing. I check the temperature. It's still 40 degrees outside, but now it's creeping up toward 80 in the tent. That's bathing temperature.

Once the coffee is ready, I move the kerosene heater closer to the vanity and sit the coffee pot on top of it to keep it warm.

Keeping the coffee warm

Now comes bath time. I put the pot of bathing water on the vanity and start washing up.

Wash tub and warm bathing water

I take sponge baths, starting with my face and hair, then my underarms. Next, I put the wash tub on the floor and stand in it while I pour water over my entire body. Finally, I squat over the tub and wash my...other parts.

With my bath finished, my morning routine is about done. I get dressed, wipe up the vanity, and take the waste bucket from my toilet out to the tree bog. I take the kerosene heater back out to the stoop and shut it down as I leave for the day.

The Middle of Autumn

November. The middle of Autumn. Fall and Spring are the easy and comfortable months in a tent. Not too hot and not too cold. November is also when my living expenses peak due to heating costs. October days are still warm enough to leave the heater off on occasion, and by December it's time to burn wood, which I get for free. But in November I heat every morning and every night with kerosene, so my heating costs go up to $30 or $40 per month. It's a bit the same in Spring, but by then 40 degrees feels damn warm so I'll leave the heater off more frequently.

November is a time of acceptance. In early Fall, I felt cold when it reached the mid-50s, and I didn't want to think about the cold weather that was just around the corner. But now, a few months later, the trees are bare, the nights come early, and it's normal to see 40 degrees in the morning. I've stopped fretting over the coming of Winter and I'm enjoying Fall. I've accepted the coming of colder weather.

It's a time for rest and reflection. I think about all I've accomplished since my first night in Brandy Station earlier this year. Things were such a mess back then. But now, I'm ready for Winter. My rain fly has proven itself in some pretty good winds, so I'm confident it will hold through Winter storms. I've finished my interior make-over and winterized my front door. My big projects are complete for the year. I can rest.

This is also my second November living in a tent. My one-year anniversary is weeks away, and I've been thinking about that a lot lately. Now, for the first time, I know what's ahead of me. I've crossed the uncharted waters of Summer, and as I round the turn and head back into Autumn, I know what to expect. Winter is cold and dark. And it can be lonely, since those Summer visitors shy away a bit. It's a quiet time. A good time to read and meditate and play music.

November is also a time when warm-weather pests are gone. No more spiders casting webs across my path. No more ticks. No more stink bugs. Even the mice that bothered me so badly last Summer are no longer such a problem.

Once you hit November, there's no denying that Summer is over. It's gone. And when the occasional Summer-like day appears in November, you appreciate it as a gift. A gift that will be gone tomorrow.

Thinking about November, I realize that I am in the November of my life, too. I turned 54 last month, and the analogy is a strong one for me. The Spring of youth is more and more distance, but the Summer of my life, when I worked so hard and raised a family, is just there over my shoulder. November is a time in between. A pleasant, peaceful time, before Winter.

So I'm enjoying my November. I'm enjoying every moment. I'm not thinking about the cold winds of January. They'll get here when they get here, and I'll manage them well. Now is a time to give thanks and to enjoy what each new November day brings into my life.

Oil Lamps and Candlelight

Last night, it was already dark when I got home from work. The waxing gibbous moon lit the path to my tent pretty well, but I opened my cell phone anyway to help light the way. The day had been an exceptional one for late October in Virginia, around 80 degrees, sunny and warm. And the early evening was still warm. There would be no need to light the heater. Maybe just put on a sweatshirt.

I entered my home and, as usual, sat my cell phone on the kitchen buffet next to the kerosene lamp, leaving it open so that I could find the matches. I have three lamp. The one in the kitchen, another one on the end table near my bed, and a third hanging overhead at the back of the tent. I always light the kitchen lamp first since it's right by the door. With that first lamp burning, I can see well enough to go around the tent and light the others.

Kitchen lamp

Bedroom lamps

This night, I would be practising music and reading, so I pulled out all the stops and lit up everything I have. Although oil lamps put out a lot of light and are very economical, I find the light to be a little harsh compared to candlelight. I've really gotten used to soft lighting at my place. I have five big candles sitting here and there around the tent. One on the end table near the door, three in the bathroom, and another that I keep on a stool that doubles as a table. I lit them all. And I turned the oil lamps as bright as they would go. I don't usually do that, but this night I needed to read.

Bedroom workspace lit up for reading

Have you ever lost power and had to revert to candles and oil lamps for awhile? When I lived in a house, those were some of my most memorable moments. There's a sense of peace that enters the room when you turn off those bright electric bulbs and light candles. People often ask me about electricity. Do I miss it? Will I get it someday? No, I don't think so.

Financial Freedom

Here are some interesting financial statistics about people in the U.S.:

• Our average household income is around $4500 per month (after taxes)
• Our average housing costs are around $1400 per month (including rent, mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance, and so on)
• Other household expenses (like transportation, food, entertainment, and so on) are around $2700 per month
• Around 70% of us don't like our jobs

U.S Department of Labor statistics

That's how it is for the average American. Chances are that if you're reading this post, then you can relate to it. You can see yourself in those statistics. We're living one month at a time. Money comes in, and money goes right back out. What's left each month (around $400 on average) hopefully makes its way into savings or investments to help us secure our financial freedom at some point in the future.

But what is "financial freedom"? If you Google it, you'll see things like:

"Financial freedom happens when your wants and your needs are exceeded by your passive income".

You'll also get lots of advice about cutting expenses, increasing income, eliminating debt, increasing savings and investments, and so on. And like the old saying goes, "Freedom ain't free!", right? So the common wisdom is to work hard and sacrifice now so that you may someday attain financial freedom.

Work hard, at a job you don't like. And cut back so that you can save and invest more. That's right, cut back on those very "wants and needs" that you're trying to attain. Sacrifice now so that you can be free...later.

Later. When you retire. At age 65 if you're lucky, but more like 67 these days. That gives you about 10 or 12 years of "freedom" at the end of your life. Stay health, so that you can enjoy those final days of freedom. And pray that your investments in stocks and bonds and real estate weather the ups and downs of our volatile economy. That the politicians and financiers of the world that you've entrusted with your investments are indeed worthy of that trust.

So, how's that plan make you feel? Secure? Not me. It makes me nauseous. It's a bullshit plan.

For example, look at the whole "wants and needs" part of that plan. Most of the financial advice out there focuses on cutting back on your current expenses, and moving that money into savings and investments. Why? So that you can spend later. Spend now, and you can't spend later. Don't spend now, and you can spend later. Spend spend spend!

Enough!

There are "wants", and there are "needs". And you can't cut back on needs. Period. Otherwise, they were never really needs to begin with. I'm talking about enough food and water to keep you health, and adequate shelter and clothing to protect your body. Those are truly needs, and there are few. Everything else that we spend our money on are "wants".

Want true financial freedom? Start by thinking about your wants. Think hard. And stop wanting so damn much! The goal is to want exactly what you already have. To be satisfied. Maybe that's the true price of freedom: to work hard at not wanting so much. Or at least not wanting things that cost so much money.

But changing your "wants" is hard. And there's a reason for that. It's called society.

We see the material possessions that our peers have and we want those things, too. We see advertisements for products and we're compelled to buy. And if we can't have the things that we want, the things that others seem to have, we feel bad. We even feel like failures sometimes. Our society has even gone so far as to weave this message into our definition of "success". It's insidious, and it's hard to stand up against.

We even define "poverty" in this way, in comparative terms to the rest of society:

"Poverty is the lack of the usual or socially acceptable amount of money or material possessions"

We measure ourselves by what is "usual" and "socially acceptable". We are "poor" only in relationship to the society in which we live. Think about that. Think about it hard. In fact, work as hard on that concept as you do planning your retirement, or budgeting your expenses, or managing your investments, or working that extra job. Because changing your "wants" is just as important as all of these things. Maybe even more important.

And what about your job? Well, the standard advice with regard to financial freedom is to make as much money as you can. But if you're like most people you really don't like your job. At least that fact is recognized by the financial experts, with their focus on investments and passive income. At least they acknowledge that the main goal of financial freedom is...to quit working! Or more accurately, to not have to work, and to therefore have the freedom to do what you want with your life.

Hmmm, to do what you want with your life. So what does that look like to you?

I live in a tent, and I do it by choice. I have all the food I need. I have all the clean water I need. I'm safe and dry and warm. My needs are met. And I have all the extra things that I truly want. I have extra money. I have extra time. I'm able to do the work that I enjoy without having to worry too much about what it pays. I'm free. Join me.

New Kitchen and Bath

If you've ever taken a tour of my home, you've probably noticed that my kitchen and bath were pretty..."campy". My kitchen consisted of a piece of plywood resting between two pine shelves. My bathroom vanity was a piece of plywood on top of two wooden stools. My dump sink was a plastic bucket with a hole cut in the bottom for the drain. And my tent toilet was a plywood box.

Well, not anymore. Last week I put in a new kitchen and bath!

I really love my new stuff! The kitchen is an old wooden baker's table with plenty of storage underneath. I was getting tired of all the clutter on my old kitchen shelves. I still have one of the old shelves for storing food, pots and pans, and glasses and cups, but it's now tucked out of the way behind my closet so it's not such an eyesore.

My new kitchen

My new bathroom is awesome! I picked up an old oak wash table at an antique store. It's five feet tall and fits perfectly on my 5-foot side wall. I replaced the old plastic dump sink with a new porcelain vanity-top sink from Lowes. It's much easier to clean than the plastic bucket that I had.

My new bathroom

I even found an antique earth closet! With arm rests!

My new earth closet

Maintaining the Path to my Tent

My tent site is tucked in the woods about 30 yards from where I park my truck. In April of 2012, when I first moved in and began setting up, I followed a game trail from the parking area down to the tent site. Soon the game trail became a well-worn path. In May, I put down some mulch and pine needles, and over the summer I would occasionally pull weeds and sprinkle more pine needles here and there to cover muddy spots as they appeared. By October, the path was in need of some serious maintenance.

I live among pine trees, so pine needles are easy to come by. Especially in the fall when the trees start shedding.

Pine needles cover my "back yard"

I have around 50 yards of paths that run from my parking area, to my tent, and then down to my living area. The path from the tent to the living area needs less maintenance. It's not used as much as the main path, and it's on a good grade that drains well so there's not much puddling when it rains. But the main path from the parking area to the tent was in sorry shape after summer rains and general neglect.

Gathering pine needles is a bit of a chore. Even though they're plentiful, you still have to rake them up and separate out the sticks and pine cones. I just rake up a pile, then comb through it with my hands and separate out the big stuff.

Raking up sticks, pine cones, and pine needles

Separating the needles

It took a while but the results are worth it. I now have a nice, soft walkway. No more puddles when it rains!

Before

After

Stink bugs!

Holy crap! Stink bugs have invaded my tent! They're *everywhere*!

In my clothes. Crawling around the floor and walls. Up on the ceiling. Especially on the ceiling. They tuck themselves in between the tent frame and canvas. They're inside my kerosene lantern. Inside of it, damnit!

I've almost eaten them on several occasions. Picked them out of my food in the nick of time. Bastards!

I really hate stink bugs. I thought the ticks were bad in the spring, but I would gladly trade. I even prefer mice to these bugs.

I went to the laundromat today and started pulling my clothes out of the basket to load into the washer. I'd see a stink bug here and there and shake my clothes out and when I was done I looked down and there were dozens of them just crawling around at my feet. Embarrassing. People probably thought I lived in a tent or something :)