So this is my first real opportunity to sit down and write for quite some time. A melange of distinctly boring events have lead me to a point where a months salary will not even touch the sides of what I need to achieve my goals and continue with my quest. So it is for this reason I have chosen this suitably dramatic title for this post. I will be rambling on about how the heck I intend to pay for this new nomadic lifestyle.
Two Months In!!!!
Moving onto the boat full time has been a much easier process than I had initially anticipated. The main thing I have noticed, it is incredible how you muddle through when your budget is so servilely limited using improvisation to bridge that financial chasm. In the first few days the boat was a mess. With a flats worth of possessions crammed into such a tiny space life was chaotic to say the least. Looking back now listening to the rain pattering outside with the heating on sat typing at my new nav station I think I have earned the right to feel a little smug (Only a little, for reasons we will invariably get to later).
Sorting through my entire life I have binned the vast majority of things which have absolutely no use either to man or beast condensing down to what is important. The boat has changed little from the outside but I have managed to build a new nav station as well as making the starboard side of the main saloon into a storage/work area. Getting order in place in such a tight space has improved the whole experience massively and I think this can only be a good thing for the most shambolic person in the history of mankind to have to learn.
As the deck leaks quite badly I have been living with a tarpaulin up inside the boat to keep drips diverted away from my bunk so my next major goal is to get my hands on enough fibreglass to re cover the old canvas deck which has been going since 1951. This need and my inability to cover the cost of vital work required has prompted me to stop and take stock of what the f am I going to do long term? I have had the following thoughts so far....
Sustainability
As I am intending on working whilst sailing I will be experimenting with how this whole enterprise might become sustainable long term. I think it will be interesting to see what works and what does not. Something I will talk about in future posts. With my finances in ruin and a particularly rocky and turbulent few years behind me I am sure people think I have lost the plot. But I need to get off the grid and live life by the values I hold dear and not remain hooked into a system I feel is broken and rotten to the core so I best come up with a plan fast (Not having a fallback option is daunting but quite a kick to get motivated).
Watching quite a few sailing vlogs I notice that people intending to live this life have considerable means behind them when starting out and the most common theme I tend to see in online forums is make sure you can afford your boat and have savings. Is it curlish to think I can buck this trend, that is something surely only time will tell. As this is something no one can avoid what is Sylmaras budget for 2018 going to look like?
Income
Producing an income is not proving as obvious as you may think and it has become clear that I will need yet another new job with the goal to cut out the use of my car. (For sale very soon, no true live aboard owns one any way.) Low income jobs as most people know do not leave you flush at the end of the month so cost cutting is key. As well as losing the car I have stopped all subscriptions but still do not have the funds to work on the boat and continue to live and eat. The work situation in the Torbay area is dire for the most part at this time of year. Salaries are generally minimum wage which has been a major sauce of concern, that was right up to the point I realised that if I am going to be working on the way round, all jobs will likely be unskilled and low wage so I might as well adapt as quickly as possible to the financial situation. I will need to boost a basic salary to achieve my long term goals and keep a trickle of money coming in whilst cruising.
Short Term Goals
Get a job close to the boat!
Medium-Long Term Goals
Photography
I intend to spend as much time as possible into getting a web store together to sell my photography if this can tick over in the background I hope this will provide a small income.
Vloging
I think as soon as I get my head around vlogs I will be using this medium to communicate the adventure however I want the vlog to be epic so I will have to wait before I roll that bad boy out. As well as being a fantastic project to keep me sane the vlog I hope will produce an income through Youtube subscribers. I am well aware that this might take time to build.
Sponsorship
I hope to showcase through my vlogs and blogs items which I find useful this will hopefully lead to sponsorship or testing deals.
Cargo
Laugh all you want but this has to be a consideration. I will be looking into the rules surrounding sail cargo and despite the lack of space available I think small light weight cargo trips could be potentially profitable. I will visit this idea in more detail in my blogs as I find more information.
Crowd funding
If you would like to sponsor the project please feel free to use the button which is already a feature on the site.
Do It Yourself
The only way this dream will become a reality is if i get the job done myself. The skills I have been taught and picked up in the five years I have owned the boat mean that I am at least not a complete novice however I will be bringing you some interesting posts in the near future including the installation of an engine for the first time!
Will any of this work!?
I hope that my experiences will show that this sort of project is possible and that you can break the cycle of eat sleep work repeat. If you have any suggestions or tips please feel free to let me know!
See you on the water...
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