How'd you get here? | Squat the Planet

How'd you get here?

dirtman

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Just general discontent with industrial society? Political inclination? Traumatic life event that just caused you to up and leave?

What lead you to your nomadic lifestyle, whichever strain you prefer? I wanna hear it all!

Alternatively, what keeps you going? Can't always be easy living without a home.
 

Jimmy Beans

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I'm by no means living a "nomadic lifestyle" currently but I'll try and briefly tell my story of how I got here(as in this community).

I grew up in a very chaotic environment. When I was 10 years old(mid 80's) my mom got on amphetamines real bad and brought a guy into our lives that just completely sucked. He used to beat her really bad, like breaking orbital bones in her face and shit. Not justifying anything but she did start a lot of those fights because she was kinda crazy too. Anyway, my home life sucked real bad. When I was 15 I discovered the band Fifteen and many other Berkeley scene punk bands and just kind of became aware through song lyrics that I didn't have to stay at home in that toxic environment anymore.

Most of my friends came from fucked up homes as well. We all hung out on the streets in the Tower District spanging, robbing soda machines using a salt water hack, running from cops, fighting gangsters, experimenting with various substances, scamming etc. We began busting open abandoned buildings and squatting them or just sleeping in the park. I realized in those days that I'd rather stick tight with my friends as a pack than go back home. Even though much of what we did was illegal or dangerous it truly felt like a much better environment than what things were like at home.
I lived that lifestyle throughout my teen years and into my early twenties.

When I was 22 my friend Sandra(of 7 years) hit me up one day and said she was confused by all these feelings she was realizing she had for me and that she thought we should hang out. Fast forward a month and she's pregnant(1998). I was selling weed and acid in these days and doing alright but that just didn't seem logical when we had a baby on the way so I got a job in a machine shop and started fabricating metal and whatnot. Became a "working man", second baby on the way(1999) kept on the grind.

2004 we have two young children and I'm driving to my job when I just kinda notice to my left all the trains there in the yard. The thought "I wonder what those guys make?" crosses my mind. I turn around and pull into the yard office, walk into a building and ask them about applying. They tell me apply online so I do and like 8 months later I get a call to interview. Got the job as a conductor for Union Pacific. I work as a switchman and conductor for about a year and build up enough seniority to bid on engine service. I'm awarded a seat in the next firemans class to become a locomotive engineer(2005).

This was difficult because my wife didn't want to move out of town but in order to work as an engineer I had to work out of Roseville 200 miles from home. Being away 90% of the time from my family created a wedge between my wife and I. We separated, I continued to work for the railroad and send money home to support her and the kids. One day I'm bringing a train into Roseville from Oakland and I see 6 hobos under an oak tree. This is a lengthy saga I'm not going to tie into this story but you're more than welcome to read that story here.

I'd hopped trains when I was about 9 years old, nothing hardcore I mean this was a local that just went a few miles. I wasn't afraid of them though, especially with all of the railroad training and knowledge I'd acquired. So I met those hobos and rode with them and basically yeeted my career for boxcar adventures. Ended up meeting a number of train riders in that jungle in Roseville, one being Matt Derrick. He interviewed me with a digital recorder, I think that audio is somewhere on this site. We became friends and I joined this site and yeah.. here we are.

I haven't rode a train since 2019(story told here). Nowadays I mostly just live vicariously through friends adventures but I'm still definitely open to dabbling in a nomadic lifestyle. It's complicated for me right now because I have a an awesome neurotic dog that just wouldn't do well on a train so I'm more or less housed up doing DoorDash delivery as little as possible to scrape by without making myself miserable working a lot. I think I work like 20 hours a week or so and spend the rest of my time throwing a ball with my dog and gaming. When my dog passes on I plan to get a small van to build out and I'll just travel the country DoorDashing/Van Dwelling.
 

dirtman

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Sweet story! sorry about your home life but it sounds like you've had some pretty sick adventures. I'm excited to read some of those posts when i get some free time. Definitely interested in doing some train hopping but I think some more experience drifting first.

Cheers
 
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moderntrivia

I'm a d-bag and got banned.
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Just general discontent with industrial society? Political inclination? Traumatic life event that just caused you to up and leave?

What lead you to your nomadic lifestyle, whichever strain you prefer? I wanna hear it all!

Alternatively, what keeps you going? Can't always be easy living without a home.
>redacted
 
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