knocked some sense into me

[amw]

I'll open this entry by saying i have recovered somewhat from whatever it was that caused my blackout the other day. I spent a few days inside, not drinking, not smoking, just resting. Then i slowly restarted that stuff, and some exercise too, and yesterday i did about a 50km ride along the river so i think i'm back to normal, plus a few scrapes

Comments

[wanderingmogwai]

I spent several months onth dual diagnosis ward at the Beth Israel Hospital in Manhattan. There's a whole population that purposely gets "committed" in the fall so they can fatten up and layer up the scrubs under their street clothes to face winter on the streets. Then they live on the underground where it's always heated and dry. I actually lived that life for a few months coming off of March 2006. My partner and I were then "lucky"enough to find permanent lodging in a Hostel. No-one should have to live like that. The very worst part was not having a safe place to sleep.

Have you thought any about the 'Tiny House' fad that's going on? Some people can really make it work.

[dadi]

I don't know if you are a novel reading kind of person...but there is this guy, Jack Reacher, you remind me of somehow ;) and not the TomCruise movie version, the books.

[amw]

I'll put it on my list! I used to read an awful lot as a youngster but since the internet i while away the time reading shorter (but more) stuff online. I do have a Kindle, though, and i keep meaning to get back into it...

[sunshine_two]

go check out Vancouver Island for a mobile home.

[amw]

It may still end up on my list! Lots of my friends (especially hippie types) have recommended i go over there. It never really appealed when i was looking around for places to visit, but i might give it a shot on the winter if i don't feel settled anywhere nearby.

[anonymous_b0y]

I have felt with anxiety myself, I hope you seek help.
I find it interesting that owning things causes you stress, usually the little things that cause us stress have a deeper meaning and connect back to an early unpleasant life experience.
I also appreciate how honest you are, I added you.

[amw]

I have been in and out of therapy a lot over the years. I have found that i have much less anxiety when i am alone. I realized that i am not really the type to have a big family or friends group, i find that just adds so much pressure and responsibility. When i am alone i feel much freer and less stressed about everything. I think one of the things i have come to terms with is that i don't need to seek that sort of lifestyle, even if it is considered the norm. It's okay to not have it, you know?

[geminiwench]

If you have a tiny home on wheels, I have somewhere you can park it!

I bet my Mom might offer the same.

I've been wanting to make this offer to people... where rather than charging lot rent... I want to make people the deal where they give me first dibs buying their tiny home when they think of selling it and give a good deal when they do... in lieu of dealing with monthly charges. More like an exchange of trust and services instead.

Those desert winters are REAL around these areas! I only know the central Washington (100 miles south of you) kind and winter is **nasty**! I like it over here in the foothills, better... the desert is 20 miles one way.. the mountains are 20 miles the other way... milder winters but it's still a cold/snowy season.

[amw]

This is a great offer! And i imagine a great way to meet people. I've been poking my nose around sites for vagabonds, and there do seem to be some ad hoc networks of land-owning folks who offer their property as places to stay over for RVers, bike tourers and traditional wanderers. Of course there are also strange arrangements that i feel a bit uncomfortable with ("work for room and board" vs "work for cash, also we offer a place to put your tent"). It's an interesting world that i never really poked my head into much

[geminiwench]

I'm in the Spokane area... so we have mild winters compared to the prairie and deserts that are on one side of us, and also milder compared to the mountains that are on the other side of us.

I don't think I'd like winters ANY HARSHER than what we get!

One year we had over 90 inches (around 2.5 meters) of snow! It snowed, truthfully and literally... 24/7 for 6 weeks.

Another year we had 2 inches of ice covering **everything** in a 30 mile radius... people went without power for *weeks*.

Another year we had a week straight of -25F (-31.6C) lows.

Those are extremes... but this is also the most temperate, mild winter area for 250 miles in any direction!