One last thing...

I received quite a lot of comments and messages off the back of my last blog, which I'm really appreciative of - however one comment struck a bit of a nerve with me, and I want to address that here for clarity. I'm paraphrasing a little bit, but the tone of the comment was along the lines of "only the financially privileged can talk about not worrying about money". I cant let that go unanswered.

I am privileged. Very much so. I'm extremely privileged in many ways relevant to living how I do. I'm a white heterosexual male for starters - any hardships and struggles I face are not furthered by or a direct result of my ethnicity, colour of my skin, sexual orientation, or sex/gender. I don't generally have to worry about my personal safety, or take additional steps in protecting myself. In all likelihood, I will never be a victim of sexual assault, discrimination or targetted bigotry. There is a level of stereotyping and discrimination towards "travellers" of course, but that's not really what I'm talking about. I'm fortunate enough to be in very good physical health and general fitness, all things considered, for a nearly-forty year old, and I take the time to recognise and be thankful for this. I am extremely lucky to have a supportive family and network of very good friends. These are the things that I'm privileged with - I am not nor have ever been privileged financially, I have never been gifted money, I am not funded by anyone. I don't have much, I funded my van build by selling a cherished car that I'd restored and owned for a long time, and I moved into my van with no immediate income and less than a grand in savings. What I do have comes from my own sweat and blood, taking pride in being good at what I do, living somewhat frugally, and a having positive attitude towards opportunities for work. As I write this now, I have more in rainy-day savings than I ever did when living conventionally - but I don't forget that I started out with nothing (big up, Steve!).

I've spoken before about how there are two "camps" in the vanlife community - those that live in vans because they want to, and those that do because they have to, for lack of a better option. There is some animosity between the two factions a little, with a perception that those who live in vans that are... a little fancier shall we say, or furnished to a level above bare basic essentials, come from wealthy backgrounds and are being financed by the bank of mum and dad. I have no idea if there is any truth in this, I've never asked anyone how they funded their builds - but I suspect it's spite ridden bollocks. Most definitely is in my case anyway! Financially privileged?! The fucking AUDACITY! 😅