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[in theory] Leaving it all behind...
Dennis
Member #1,090
July 2003
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Let's assume for a moment that for whatever strange and twisted reasons you want to leave your current way of living behind to try something completely different.

Let's also assume the path you've chosen for change is quite extreme and that you do not seek to do something as simple as just switching careers or trying a new hobby.

Let's assume you want to turn your back on 'the world'/society and that you seek a life of solitude for the peace of your own mind or maybe just to see if you could actually pull it off successfully.

In short:
You have decided to sell all your stuff, to abandon your home, friends and family and to go outside to live the free life of the rover without any responsibility other than that for keeping your own physical shell healthy and your mind happy.

To get the thought experiment started, assume the current situation is..

..situation A0:
You have sold most of your stuff already, you have around 1000 Euro available/left to spend on whatever last equipment you want to acquire from the real world before wandering off into the unknown (let's assume for a moment that living outside in the wilderness is legal or that you don't give a f* if it's not).

..situation B0:
You have literally nothing left, except for the clothes you're currently wearing or you have to leave quickly and you can't keep/take anything other than that.

(sidenote: While I'm theorizing about this stuff, I can't stop thinking what a great beginning for a story or a game this would be.)

..situation C0:
You haven't sold anything yet, you could still go on for almost a year continuing your current life from your savings.

Pick one of the situations above and describe your next steps:
What do you do to prepare yourself for your new life?
What equipment do you acquire?
How/what(if anything at all) do you tell friends and family?
Where do you go (assuming you could go anywhere in the world (albeit slowly by foot/bicycle))?

There are many possibilities here and lots of stuff could happen next, so to keep it all neatly arranged, format your post like this:
from situation <insert previous situation id, e.g. C0>:
<describe your actions here>
to situation <insert a follow up situation id, e.g. C1>:
<describe new situation here>

You can also at any time branch out on a situation already described by someone else and continue that but make sure to use a unique new situation id which hasn't been used before in that case. You may also make fun of the whole thing by describing ridiculous actions and whatever weird situations those might cause. You can also of course just comment on what someone else would have done and why you think that was or was not a good idea in the given situation.

I'll start (you can post multiple scenarios/continuations if you want to)...

from situation C0:
Make a thread on allegro.cc, inviting smart people to participate in a thought experiment about your vague 'plans' (of which you actually think you're probably not going to ever make them real but still think it would be fun to dream and theorize about it).
to situation C1:
You're sitting in front of your machine, hoping for a rewarding and interesting discussion and for many different stories and alternate reality paths to develop from the combined creativity of the community.

from situation A0:
Make a thread (just like in C).
Form a vague list of equipment which might come in handy (folding shovel, hatchet, sturdy tent, bedroll, backpack, rain clothes, compass, maps, knife, keep in mind to not get more equipment than you could carry) in your mind.
Plan to keep an eye out for any useful literature on the topic of surviving outdoors (without begging and stealing).
Plan to start training your body to be able to carry more equipment and to increase endurance.
Plan to cancel any subscriptions/insurances and whatnot (bank account/phone&internet/gas/power/rented room) and to pay off any last debts (you don't want to leave any unfinished business behind).
Plan to not tell anyone(friends/family) to avoid the inevitable 'are you crazy?' shitstorm and to just leave when the time comes, maybe leaving a letter though, telling them not to worry and that you'll write soon.
Wait for external input on the matter.
to situation A1:
Like A0 but with a vague plan of some things which would be essential before stepping out of the door.

Neil Walker
Member #210
April 2000
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Are you going through a mid-life crisis?

Neil.
MAME Cabinet Blog / AXL LIBRARY (a games framework) / AXL Documentation and Tutorial

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Specter Phoenix
Member #1,425
July 2001
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I was thinking more like depression.

Trezker
Member #1,739
December 2001
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I'm in debt and don't have enough assets to pay it off even if I sold everything I own. I'm not gonna do something like this until my total economic balance is positive.

AMCerasoli
Member #11,955
May 2010
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Even when I'm practically broke (that's what happens when you spend too many hours in front of your computer making videogames) that makes me want even more do something like what Dennis just said.

I'll chose just option A0. The A0 option, known by the "game over / apocalypse" option.

So I have 1.000€ which is nothing. First of all I'll need to live in a warm environment. Pretty difficult to find such thing here in Europe. So what I would do in my case if immediately buy a ticket to the "Islas Canarias" (a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. Courtesy of Wikipedia).

{"name":"Canariasl.jpg","src":"\/\/djungxnpq2nug.cloudfront.net\/image\/cache\/1\/0\/1081498502307866e3f3de8067808b93.jpg","w":425,"h":359,"tn":"\/\/djungxnpq2nug.cloudfront.net\/image\/cache\/1\/0\/1081498502307866e3f3de8067808b93"}Canariasl.jpg

A really warm and beautiful islands with a subtropical climate, with long warm summers and moderately warm winters... Ohh yhea... So that way I know I'm not going to become an ice cube eventually. Let's say that the ticket costed me 200€ so I have now 800€. Since the climate is not so difficult I guess I don't need to worry to much about where I'm going to live. I'll need to find a place like a cave to live while I build my own mansion in the Atlantic ocean.

I guess I will need to learn how to fish or I'll die. I think these are instincts that should "flourish" in my adventure to the "Islas Canarias". So with the rest of my money I buy an used solar panel four about 400€ and an used laptop with the rest of the money. Or I could just don't sell mine... So yhea the unique thing I'm missing is internet connection and women. If you make me choose, I would choose internet connection ahahahaha ;D.

verthex
Member #11,340
September 2009
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Moving to Tibet would be awesome.

_Kronk_
Member #12,347
November 2010

This is a good idea for a thread. I tend to think about things like this alot, although not usually so extreme.

Personally, I'd take A0. That leaves more options than B0 or C0. I'd buy some used equipment, like a backpack, tent, a bicycle, plus lots of water. Then I'd hitchhike/bike/walk my way to the West coast. Then somehow bum/stowaway(or buy a ticket) a ride to the Orient on a boat. Hopefully make it to Japan somehow and become a fisherman in some remote village where I can't be found for deportation.

--------------------------------------------------
"If only our dreams were fires to ignite, then we could let the whole world burn" -Emery

My blog: http://joshuadover.tumblr.com

Dizzy Egg
Member #10,824
March 2009
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Dennis said:

You have decided to sell all your stuff, to abandon your home, friends and family and to go outside to live the free life of the rover without any responsibility other than that for keeping your own physical shell healthy and your mind happy.

Been there done that, was fucking great.

----------------------------------------------------
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Derezo
Member #1,666
April 2001
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I've thought about this before, and my conclusion was that I want to wear this guy's shoes for awhile:

video

8-)

My real motivation is that I want to travel extensively and work from home. Home being wherever I park my van.

I feel like I thrive in disorder and chaos. I have no desire to cut grass.

I'm actually working towards doing this someday. When I do it, I wont be saying goodbye to my family forever or anything. It'll be "See you guys in a few months! I'm driving to Brazil to see how many clients I can find along the way."

"He who controls the stuffing controls the Universe"

Sirocco
Member #88
April 2000
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I've considered that, on occasion. Less so these days than a few years ago, mind you.

I think the only way I'd approach it would be to completely liquidate my assets and possessions down to absolute essentials + travel amenities (some clothes, a suitcase, etc), migrate to a distant land, then begin anew. Perhaps purchase a small plot of land somewhere vaguely scenic, fill it with livestock, then investigate the wonderful world of animal husbandry.

-->
Graphic file formats used to fascinate me, but now I find them rather satanic.

Thomas Fjellstrom
Member #476
June 2000
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I don't think I'd choose to give it all up. But I would like to be able to handle such a situation. Where shit goes tits up, and you're stuck fending for yourself. I'd like to be able to be self sufficient enough to survive long term.

--
Thomas Fjellstrom - [website] - [email] - [Allegro Wiki] - [Allegro TODO]
"If you can't think of a better solution, don't try to make a better solution." -- weapon_S
"The less evidence we have for what we believe is certain, the more violently we defend beliefs against those who don't agree" -- https://twitter.com/neiltyson/status/592870205409353730

Specter Phoenix
Member #1,425
July 2001
avatar

Only way I would leave it all behind would be if I became a government assassin that had to disappear. Otherwise I'm to outspoken to just slip away (may whine a little before I stop caring and disappear into obscurity though).

Arthur Kalliokoski
Second in Command
February 2005
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Wardriving sucks.

'Nuff said!

They all watch too much MSNBC... they get ideas.

Dennis
Member #1,090
July 2003
avatar

Are you going through a mid-life crisis?

I'm just exploring the possibility of living a free life in solitude away from society and without other people, depending only on my own ability to find food (think hunting/fishing/gathering plants and fruit). The goal is to have a good theoretical idea of how and especially where(anywhere in the world where this would be possible) to pull that off.

I find pleasure in thinking about these things and should it come to that worst/best (depending on your point of view) case scenario, I'd be prepared and could just follow a plan instead of having to think about all this stuff under the immediate pressure of sudden changes descending upon me.

It would be much better/easier to make a well planned transition (C0 actually is the most accurate assessment of the situation atm) than to suddenly find yourself thrown out into the cold (B0 which could be a follow up to C0 if I simply wait too long without taking any action of any sort (most obvious thing to do would be to seek a job and go back to the boring/annoying 40 hour a week wage slavery thing)).

For some reason, seeking a life in the wilderness feels more down to earth and realistic to me than hoping to live from making games/art.

Trezker said:

I'm in debt and don't have enough assets to pay it off even if I sold everything I own. I'm not gonna do something like this until my total economic balance is positive.

Yes which is why I would want to pay off any (financial) debts before leaving. Social debts/responsibilities are the bigger headscratcher: probably just have to be egotistical and walk away from them.

So with the rest of my money I buy an used solar panel four about 400€ and an used laptop with the rest of the money. Or I could just don't sell mine... So yhea the unique thing I'm missing is internet connection and women. If you make me choose, I would choose internet connection ahahahaha ;D

Well, in my plan, the main point is 'solitude' so I would not miss internet or people and I have no use for a laptop in the wilderness so I could spend those 400 Euro on more useful stuff or use them as pocket money while making use of civilizations means of transport until I reach my destination.

verthex said:

Moving to Tibet would be awesome.

Nah, their climate does not seem beneficial to living under the sky. Long dry periods and still not very warm.

_Kronk_ said:

Personally, I'd take A0. That leaves more options than B0 or C0.

Just to nitpick, C0 would leave the most options as both A0 and B0 could be future scenarios developed from C0.

Quote:

Hopefully make it to Japan somehow and become a fisherman in some remote village where I can't be found for deportation.

Yes, fishing would sound like the easiest way to get food though I'd prefer if it was away from humans so villages no matter how remote would not be an option for me. Still a nice idea. (Living together with other humans in a different country would also require learning their language and there is no guarantee they would even accept you as a member of their community.)

Dizzy Egg said:

Been there done that, was fucking great.

Got any stories to share?

Derezo said:

My real motivation is that I want to travel extensively and work from home.

My main momotivations that I don't want to have to work at all (at least not for a wage, just for survival and I would not consider that to be 'work', I'd do all that stuff simply because my survival would depend on it).

Sirocco said:

Perhaps purchase a small plot of land somewhere vaguely scenic, fill it with livestock, then investigate the wonderful world of animal husbandry.

I think I'd be more the hunter/gatherer type than the guy to settle down and do any real work. ^^ 'Owning' land would also mean to still have some sort of attachment to society and taking care of all those animals would probably result in much longer work days than what I could have in real life. In my dreamlike imagination I would instead spend just minimal amounts of time each day to acquire just enough food and then just be lazy the rest of the day, listening to the birds (the ones I didn't eat yet), letting the sun shine on my belly while monitoring the growth of the grass.

I'd like to be able to be self sufficient enough to survive long term.

Exactly.

Wardriving sucks.

That which I associate with wardriving does not match the topic at all. Is there another meaning to it?

...back to more practical theory...

In addition to equipment already listed in the OP, I think a hunting bow might be useful and knowledge about building traps too.
Depending on where I'd choose to 'settle down' I'd need to also know how to defend against predators (preferably preventing them from even coming near me) and I should probably avoid areas with poisonous insects and snakes.

I'm heavily leaning towards living near a lake for freshwater and fish. That would largely solve the food problem though I can imagine I'd have some problems with killing animals myself at first so the hope is that if the hunger grows big enough the rabbits will just miraculously stop being cute.

Arthur Kalliokoski
Second in Command
February 2005
avatar

Dennis said:

That which I associate with wardriving does not match the topic at all. Is there another meaning to it?

You expect us to give up internet? Or use one of those horribly overpriced 3G plans?

They all watch too much MSNBC... they get ideas.

Dennis
Member #1,090
July 2003
avatar

You expect us to give up internet?

Indeed:

Dennis said:

Let's assume you want to turn your back on 'the world'/society and that you seek a life of solitude for the peace of your own mind

I don't see how this whole life of solitude could work while still being connected.

Arthur Kalliokoski
Second in Command
February 2005
avatar

What? Contemplate the clouds whenever you manage to offload the worry of where your next meal is coming from? BOOORRR-innnggg!

They all watch too much MSNBC... they get ideas.

LennyLen
Member #5,313
December 2004
avatar

About 15 years ago I decided to just take off and leave. I'd been living out of a school bag for a year, moving from one couch to the next, so didn't have much to my name anyway. I told my family I was going on the road for a while, but didn't tell anyone else.

Before I left, I called in a few favours and debts owed to me and procured about two ounces of weed and a few dozen LSD tabs and then hit the road and hitch-hiked north to the top of the island. I spent roughly a year and half in the area, moving from one town to the next doing odd jobs, mostly working at orchards and vineyards. Occasionally if I had nothing lined up, I'd head off to a secluded beach or to the hills for a few days to a week, depending on how long it took me to get really hungry and how much LSD I had at the time.

Some of those experiences were quite surreal. The climate in the area was quite warm (in winter it would only drop to about 10 degrees Celsius at night), so the only protection from the elements I bothered with were plastic ponchos that I discovered at one camping store. They were just one over-sized piece of plastic with a hood attached. They went down to around my ankles and I probably could have fit another person or two inside them. I spent several days in a forest in the rain with the bottom folded up under me and was perfectly dry the whole time. But yeah, I'd basically sit in the middle of nowhere for a few days, fasting and tripping and thinking about whatever occurred to me at the time.

Eventually I decided I'd been on the road long enough and moved back to the city and got a job.

My girlfriend and I are in another similar sort of situation now, as after the Christchurch earthquakes we had to abandon our apartment and both ended up unemployed. And since the entire industry we worked in had been pretty much wiped out, sticking around didn't seem like too attractive an option. We sold what we could salvage and moved to Melbourne, Australia. That was just over a year ago, and we are now renting a $600/week apartment and have just finished off paying for a new bedroom, lounge and dining suite. We also managed to save up enough money for a 10 day trip to Thailand.

verthex
Member #11,340
September 2009
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Dennis said:

. Long dry periods and still not very warm.

I'm used to Chicago winters so its nothing too bad I'd bet. But no I'm staying in Hawaii, probably moving to Maui sometime within a few years.

Derezo
Member #1,666
April 2001
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Dennis said:

My main momotivations that I don't want to have to work at all

I can relate with this ideal, but it is hard to escape the allmighty dollar. Living off the land is quite difficult.

LennyLen said:

About 15 years ago I decided to just take off and leave.

That was a good read and adds realism to this idea. It sounds like you had a great experience... up until that whole tectonic plate business.

"He who controls the stuffing controls the Universe"

Thomas Fjellstrom
Member #476
June 2000
avatar

Derezo said:

It sounds like you had a great experience... up until that whole tectonic plate business.

Are you kidding? It sounds incredibly earth shaking! Possibly Earth Shattering! It was such a great experience the earth literally moved.

kekekeke

--
Thomas Fjellstrom - [website] - [email] - [Allegro Wiki] - [Allegro TODO]
"If you can't think of a better solution, don't try to make a better solution." -- weapon_S
"The less evidence we have for what we believe is certain, the more violently we defend beliefs against those who don't agree" -- https://twitter.com/neiltyson/status/592870205409353730

Matthew Leverton
Supreme Loser
January 1999
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The first thing I would do is come back here and read the original post to see if Dennis said anything interesting. :-[

bamccaig
Member #7,536
July 2006
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The thought of living an isolated life, entirely off the land is very attractive to me, at least in theory. I think the reality is that the land that can support you and is free to live on is dwindling due to overpopulation, consumption, and pollution. :-/ In addition, I think that the skills necessarily are foreign to most, and the people with the skills to train you are few. More so, I think that it takes years to develop these skills sufficiently to survive indefinitely on them.

from sitatuation C0:

I research wilderness survival training programs and enroll in the one that seems most promising within my budget. I specifically targeted something focusing on living off of the land indefinitely, not just surviving long enough to be rescued, as most such programs are oriented today.

I learn to start fires without tools.

I learn how to craft rudimentary cutting implements, spears, and bows and arrows from the land[1]. I learn to hunt and fish using these tools, just as North American natives did hundreds of years earlier. I learn to make traps for small game and fish.

I learn to understand the insect and plant species that are known to be nutritious and plentiful, and how to properly prepare them for consumption. I learn how to butcher and clean animals and fish, and skin them for their hides and furs. I learn to preserve perishable items in cold streams, underground, and in the ice.

I learn how to make clothing from animal hides and furs. I learn to construct shelters from timber and animal hides and furs. I learn to build canoes and sleds with only the rudimentary tools and materials available to the lifestyle.

I learn to survive in the coldest of cold, and how to find food when the land looks cold and barren.

I learn to navigate with the Sun and other stars.

I learn to manage a pack of sled dogs. How to care for them, provide for them, command their respect, and rear them.

to situation C2:

Knowing now how to survive on the land, I sell off my remaining assets, except for the tools acquired during my studies, and the finances needed to journey to my destination. I plan a journey somewhere North, where there are no people, stopping along the way to purchase a small pack of sled dogs from a respected musher. I travel with the dogs, setting up camp every day and foraging for enough food and water to keep us going. Eventually, I reach my destination and scout the land for a good place to set up a permanent camp. As the light fades, I lay around a fire, surrounded by my dogs, content with the new life that awaits me. I fall asleep. I am eaten by a grue while my dogs sleep. :-/

Append:

It's a lovely fantasy, but I don't think it's very feasible of a goal for somebody that doesn't already have the skills needed. I imagine it takes the better part of a lifetime to actually acquire these skills. Such a life would not be easy, but it would likely be devoid of the time to reflect on one's self. I don't think I'd actually enjoy the reality.

References

  1. This way I never have to return to civilization to buy repair kits or replacement parts.
Specter Phoenix
Member #1,425
July 2001
avatar

Hmmm....that would be an interesting thing. A fun thing (competition or something) where the entry is a game representation of this thread. A game representation of if you could leave it all behind. I'll go back under my rock by the box now ;). Don't know why I repeated that twice ???.

Trezker
Member #1,739
December 2001
avatar

The earth moves all the time:
1600 km/hr in the rotation at the equator.
107,000 km/hr around the sun.
70,000 km/hr around the center of the galaxy.

http://www.astrosociety.org/education/publications/tnl/71/howfast.html

Earthquakes are nothing!

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