Why live in a pod?

People are incredulous when we say we would rather live in a van than a house. Both of us have had members of our respective families tell us that we "need" to have a house. My mother, for instance, can't possibly see why I would want to live in a van.

For me the pod truly feels like home, I'm unsure if it's just because it's where Pod boy is or whether it really is the draw of the pod. The nomadic nature of vandwelling appeals to me because it's cheap, fun, ever changing and it doesn't hold the stresses of bills. Lastly for me the pod offers a lifestyle that is totally unencumbered - you take nothing with you that you don't need and you can easily rid yourself of your own personal judgements, norms and values making you totally free.

This is what Pod boy says about living in the pod: "I guess I don't want to be a slave to the money lenders and I don't want to work for the lords of the land. I don't want to be in bondage. I can afford to live in a house, I just choose not to. When I buy a house it will be an honorable transaction. Something changes inside you when you don't have a home to rush home to. It took a while to understand that I was at home wherever I was. It was an adjustment to realise I was at home in my own skin."

For our families who live very traditional lives these are very hard things to understand. They are rigidly set in their values and norms which are all about security and doing the approved thing. The sense of needing approval from those around us is exactly why I like living in the van. There are times when I just want to make love in the rain, or shout to the clouds or bask naked in the sunlight: the pod allows me to do this without judgement of myself. I'm slowly learning to let my self judgements go, I've been non judgemental of others for a long time but I have firmly held self judgement that I'm working hard to get rid of. One day I want to be intimately acquainted with my true self, I want to hold acceptance for each and every part of me. Living in the pod allows me to do this.

An example of this is a discussion that Pod boy and myself had about 20 minutes ago. He said "I love your sense of style" in a tone that told me he was lightly mocking me. It got me to thinking and I realised that when I'm in the van with him I only put clothes on so that I am covered. I don't worry about being "put together" or about making a statement with my clothing. At home in New Zealand I definitely think about what I'm going to wear, how my hair will be done and I put my outfits together with a sense of style. In the van I usually grab a top and a bottom, I don't care if they go together, I don't consider what accessories I will wear or whether my shoes match. This is completely freeing, but it does lead people to believe you have no style!

At the moment vandwelling is perfect for the work I have to do on myself, and it's great for our relationship. If one day Pod boy and I decide to live a more conventional life I know I will take so much from our days in the pod.