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How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

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Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#21

Post by SageRaven »

Ixiaus wrote: post #5

A mentor of mine did this, with $300,000.00 for four years. He bought a plot of land in Wyoming, built and underground cabin, and bought a Backhoe to help himself build it. He lived there for four years before moving on with his life...

I read about this kind of failure all the time in homesteading and survivalist circles. It takes a certain mindset to succeed, which involves adopting a bit of minimalism and humility.

One thing people have trouble wrapping their mind around is this: the more "toys" (tractors, machinery, etc.) that require consumables and maintenance, the less self-sufficient you will be. To be honest, even today's Amish are a far cry from true self-sufficiency.

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#22

Post by siculars »

mman wrote: post #15
kbob wrote: post #11

Commit a felony and go to jail. That will meet most of your requirements. You will probably be paroled early, so commit additional felonies as required.

Oh, by "escape the system" i meant escape the system we create here, as in keep my freedom, not be incarcerated, not be prevented from having sex or children for the rest of my life, etc.

This lifestyle will almost assuredly prevent you from having sex. Your budget will not buy you much of it either.

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#23

Post by mman »

lionhearted wrote: post #19

A thought - you might want to try this out for a month in a dry run before spending time building it. I spent about two months learning how to track, trap, and otherwise survive in the Southern Utah desert, which was an amazing experience that taught me a lot, but not as romantic as you might imagine. Before investing time, dreams, and resources learning about and trying to build this, why not go rent a remote cabin…

Again, I'm sorry as the title is a little misleading. I don't really care about being isolated or roughing it in the wilderness. I'd rather not spend time learning any survival skills whatsoever, or even how to farm. I want to minimize involuntary tasks. It could be in the middle of NYC for all i care. But no roaches or bedbugs are allowed.

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#24

Post by swah »

mman wrote: post #14
swah wrote: post #9

Respect if you do it because you're harmful to society, childish if its because society is harmful to you.

I think it is neither of these. Well, i am somewhat of an asshole, i guess, but I want to study math and physics.

For that, what are the advantages of a cave, comparing to a silent library?

Also, toilets instead of holes and toilet paper instead of leaves.

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#25

Post by mman »

SageRaven wrote: post #18

More parameters are needed, in my opinion. What you want is possible, but not with only $10k. That, or give up some requirements (internet, unless you want to walk to a public library) and be prepared to squat on someone else's property. I live close to your desired existence. I own my humble hermit's cabin outright, have no debt at all, and a few grand in savings. I grow some of my own food, hunt some more, but I st…

Hm, it looks like property taxes are amazing in louisiana. Does anyone know the net cost of getting set up with a crappy katrina cottage?

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#26

Post by mman »

SageRaven wrote: post #18

More parameters are needed, in my opinion. What you want is possible, but not with only $10k. That, or give up some requirements (internet, unless you want to walk to a public library) and be prepared to squat on someone else's property. I live close to your desired existence. I own my humble hermit's cabin outright, have no debt at all, and a few grand in savings. I grow some of my own food, hunt some more, but I st…

So is $100k and whatever you already own the minimum you would say this it's possible to do this with?

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#27

Post by lionhearted »

mman wrote: post #23
lionhearted wrote: post #19

A thought - you might want to try this out for a month in a dry run before spending time building it. I spent about two months learning how to track, trap, and otherwise survive in the Southern Utah desert, which was an amazing experience that taught me a lot, but not as romantic as you might imagine. Before investing time, dreams, and resources learning about and trying to build this, why not go rent a remote cabin…

Again, I'm sorry as the title is a little misleading. I don't really care about being isolated or roughing it in the wilderness. I'd rather not spend time learning any survival skills whatsoever, or even how to farm. I want to minimize involuntary tasks. It could be in the middle of NYC for all i care. But no roaches or bedbugs are allowed.

Okay, I understand better now.

Why not do a kind of work you find really enjoyable, and sell/trade that work with people whose company you enjoy? This is generally my philosophy to entrepreneurship anyways - there's a bit of involuntary time involved (taxes, accounting, errands), but I think you could get it down to less than one hour per day. If you didn't care about having extremely nice material comforts/status symbols, I bet you could make a decent life doing a skill/craft you like and enjoy being immersed in with minimum admin/involuntary time. Some kind of focused writing, craft, skill, or technology work maybe?

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#28

Post by SageRaven »

lionhearted wrote: post #12
fleitz wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you are willing to live on rice it's about $200 a year for 2000 kcal per day. This is at supermarket prices, if you were willing to buy by the tonne I'm sure it's much less, just buy a futures contract and bring your truck to the delivery point.

Serious question, not joking - wouldn't you die, literally die, without any protein, fat, or micronutrients?

Yes, he would suffer serious malnutrition. However, he could supplement with one or two other cheap bulk crops (whole wheat, corn, and/or beans). Still, it would be efficient to raise small grass-eating animals for food, such as rabbit or even guinea pigs. Grass and weeds are abundant and free, far cheaper than meat.

Trace elements and minerals are fairly easy to get. Many of those same weeds you can feed to rabbits are chock-full of all kinds of good nutrition. A book on edible plants is recommended reading. Lichens and wild mushrooms (tread carefully!) are great sources of such nutrients.

For $10, you can buy a 50-pound bag of mineral supplement for livestock (chelated, highly bioavailble raw minerals -- pretty much mined from old lake/ocean beds and ground to a powder) that should last one person most of a lifetime. Much cheaper than a case of One A Day or Centrum tablets.

Re: How do I become a self-sufficient old man in a shack?

#30

Post by mman »

swah wrote: post #24
mman wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think it is neither of these. Well, i am somewhat of an asshole, i guess, but I want to study math and physics.

For that, what are the advantages of a cave, comparing to a silent library? Also, toilets instead of holes and toilet paper instead of leaves.

I have to sleep somewhere that is legal and that doesn't annoy people, and also to not be dependent on others. This means no panhandling, etc.
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