Initially the sound of sleeping in a car may sound awful to some, personally I never found it that bad. It tends to be a bit boring and as a tall guy it can be hard to stretch out, so I wake up pretty sore sometimes. Luckily for me I have a mid sized SUV so it’s not all bad. When I was sleeping in my car for the first time last fall, I found sleeping in the back seat was the best option for me at the time. Back then though I had a lot more stuff in the car because I was still in the process of moving. Last night however, I decided to give the trunk a try for a couple of reasons. First of all I have the kids’ car seats are in here now, if I wanted to sleep in the backseat again I’d have to unhook them and put them in the trunk. The backseats were actually pretty comfy. The only real issue I found was it can be tricky finding a comfortable spot to put your head. More often than not my neck would become contorted during the night. I often found myself waking up and just laughing at the ridiculous positions I’d find myself in.
Another reason I tried the trunk is because it has one of those covers so you can hide the contents of your trunk. Turns out, it’s perfect for not wanting to be seen by the world if your sleeping in the middle of a Wal-Mart parking lot. The trunk was pretty good at first. I don’t get out of the car and get in the trunk that way. I’m a firm believer that If I’m basically homeless I’m going to act like a child and climb over the damn seats haha. Plus I find it funny seeing footprints on the ceiling from me making my way from the drivers seat to the trunk. The first time I did it I thought sure that I was going to break something, whether one of my bones or something in the car.
One thing I quickly realized when I was new at this was if you don’t put your windows down a little bit while sleeping, they’ll begin to fog up and it’s an instant give away that your in there. Depending on the location your that may be a safety issue if you too are taking part in the car lifestyle. I choose Wal-Mart specifically because there are always lots of camping trailers and RV’s in those parking lots with people in them, so if worst comes to worst someone will hear a cry for help or whatever the case may be. With that being said, Wal-Mart opens pretty early so I wouldn’t plan on sleeping in if I were you. It can be all kinds of weird to wake up and see customers walking by and looking at you on their way into the store. Being an early riser can most definitely help prevent one hell of an awkward “good morning”.
With the aforementioned putting the window down while sleeping to prevent the windows from fogging up thing, make sure you check the weather too. You may want to opt for the foggy windows instead of getting drenched if there is a tropical storm for example. Another thing to keep note of is how cold it can get at night. For me it’s a good time of year for this to be happening because the weather is perfect temperature day and night. Getting into October it can start to get really really cold at night so you’ll want blankets, and more than you think you need too.
My biggest struggle is definitely the entertainment factor. There’s only so many places I can go and sit for hours on end without getting into trouble. I’m limited on money too so I don’t want to spend all of it driving around wondering what to do. I honestly still have no idea what to do besides staring out the window and writing this. Thankfully, I grabbed my laptop from work and brought it with me so I am able to write. I am trying to conserve data right now so I just use enough to load a page to the point I can type, and then I turn it off again. I’m always worried about the car battery, even though I shouldn’t be. I only use the radio for no more than 30 minutes and I charge my phone and that’s it if I can help it.
I don’t have any eating hacks or anything, something cheap and easy. You’ll get tired of it really fast but you’ll get used to it. As for bathroom needs, toilets are available at pretty much any gas station and retail store. Showering I always did at my ex’s, she’ll also let me do laundry there if need be. Living in car again wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if I had to do it for a little while, like a few weeks at most. It’s not ideal but it’s just a matter of finding a routine and adjusting to that. Adaptability is definitely going to be useful here too.
If possible I probably wouldn’t recommend doing it. I mean like if you want to try it for a night than hell yeah, but definitely don’t go and put yourself in a situation where this is the only choice. I think it’s fair to say that the only advice from me you should take it when I tell you not to do something. I am one of the dumbest people I know and I wouldn’t take advice from myself other than warnings, I’ve done a lot of stupid things over the years.
I hope everyone has a great day, keep your chin up. Till next time.