Decision made?

I know I have an innate wanderlust and craving for novelty, always have. Not a problem if you can afford holidays and outings but for me settling down on a low income means forgoing any sort of recreation apart from payday takeaway. Rent and bills come first. Im a smoker and we have the most expensive cigarettes in the world and also the most expensive electricity. I’m also very isolated as I don’t know anyone in the area and people here are very insular and would rather be lonely than make new friends. I grew up in this state so I have a fairly good idea what it is like.

For me nowhere is home and I have no real family left but I thought at my age I should forgo the road and settle down. Found a nice little place near the beach in a picturesque wine growing area and thought it would be great, walking and swimming on the beach and touring the local attractions. Turns out the beach can get a bit tedious after a while of being there 5 times a week on your own, and the local attractions quickly run out if you haven’t got much money or anyone to enjoy it with. 

On the plus side I am warm/cool when it matters and have a comfortable bed and recliner chair. I am also relatively safe. Then I realised I had the neighbors from hell, loud bogans who harass me and have all night parties, even screaming at my windows late at night to keep me in a state of fear and anger. I was told when I looked at this granny flat and expressed concern how close it was to the main house that only an old bloke lived there and I would have no problems. Outright lie. They forgot to mention his arsehole son and the dog that barked day and night at my window because it was neglected and abused and wanted to live here after I showed it kindness.

I really want to retire to Mexico but have 2.5 years before I qualify for the age pension and the Australian govt allows me to live overseas. I calculated how much I could save in that time by living in my car and it’s substantial. I need to take my dog to Mexico with me and that’s going to cost a lot. But with fires and floods plaguing the east coast it’s not going to be easy and it’s uncomfortable sometimes living in my hiace van. 

Plus side is a lot of people will socialise more on the road. Damned if I know what to do.  Did a positive and negative list and it’s about evenly balanced. I decided to look for signs to guide my decision, not sure I believe in them though. 

First sign-I got a request from the real estate agent 3 months before my lease is up asking me to sign for another 12 months but with a rent increase. Hmm, no. They haven’t looked after me very well and I don’t want to be even broker for the next 12 months. I know I’m an ideal tenant but the neighbors on the same land aren’t good neighbors..no wonder the real estate agent chased me to take this place. Then arsehole neighbor sarcastically mimicked my coughing from asthma this morning confirming that the bullshit hasn’t stopped. Another sign?

Negatives for travelling again are my age... damn! struggling to think of negatives..the hiace is old, my dog is old. We all seem to be good considering though. I don’t want to romanticise life on the road, carting water, disposing of your own toilet waste, being too hot or cold sometimes, noisy campgrounds on holidays and school holidays. No freezer and can’t cook a lot of things I want to eg. bread. No garden. 

I think my sense of adventure will win though. I’ve lived off the grid before in the remote outback Northern Territory, carting water and fending off ferals, both animal and human. No electric, running water or tv, intermittent cell phone, surely I can live in my car for 2.5 years? I’m starting to look forward to it again, I’ve done it before for shorter periods. I think I have been giving into ageism and believing I can’t do this-I can and I will.