Unite or Perish

When will there be new books? To answer that I need to go into my living situation. My boss (very generously) has been letting me staying in a (company owned) single wide this winter. After living out of the van, it has been great to have heat and a full sized kitchen. That is coming to an end April 1st. I will be moved to, what is now, a bare lot; a (company owned) travel trailer may become available or I may need to buy something of my own.

I’ve been on a “music kick,” recording songs in the bedroom of the affectionately nicknamed Brown Palace (if you’re curious about the music I do, I am including a link down below). As I have no idea what my living situation will be I am working to get as much recording done as possible which means I haven’t been working on any fiction/non fiction. I have a novel I need to go through and another that needs a bit of work, I’ve got a couple of things beyond that which are in various stages of incompletion and what may be the fourth American Outback book which is little more than idea at this time.

I think politics are a distraction. Honestly, I am weary of both the “right” and the “left.” My belief is that politics cloud the issues. I try to have no politics, I want to be as open to a conversation with a Red person as a Blue person. My personal views sometimes get in the way of this ideal of openness, but I am trying.

The fourth American Outback book is about the issues we face and exploring solutions or at least ways of making things better. It all started with Disappearing is a Young Man’s Game. That book was about looking at the “stick and brick” world of debt, and living in the suburbs, and the fast pace of stress of modern life—is that anyway to live? The second book, No Signal, was about my first year living out of a van and Where the Fires Are is about burning out on vanlife, going back to the stick and brick world for four months, and understanding life in the van is best option. These three books are strictly about my experiences and observations; but I don’t feel it’s just my story—I believe a lot of us are feeling that the way this world works is not serving us, struggling to survive, every paycheck critical, day to day anxiety. This is where the fourth American Outback book comes in.

My situation is this: I’m a working person, the security guard for a 700 site campground. I make minimum wage (in California it’s $15.50). I am fortunate not just because I am currently provided company housing, but because I have adapted to live out of my minivan; I’m a bit burned out doing so, but if I had to I can do it. When I am working 40 hours a week I take home around $2000 per month. My fixed bills (things I have to pay every month including a car loan and a loan left over from when I was married) are roughly $800 per month. So, that leaves $1200 for food, extras and savings—not bad, huh? If I have to buy and outfit a new vehicle I will be adding roughly $500 a month for a new loan and insurance. $500 is a chunk, but when I was renting a room in Sacramento my living expenses were a bit over a grand (rent and utilities); I was buying groceries on my credit card, which is not sustainable. My situation is close to the bone, but I am better off than a lot of people in this country. Imagine if I had a child or another family member to support on my wages? Imagine if I was back renting an apartment in a small town? There are more and more “working homeless” people every month. My friends who put the work and got an education are making better money but many of them are burdened with student loan debt. This is what the fourth American Outback book will cover.

I deplore all the Progressives who offer opinions but not solutions: “We need to tax the wealthy! This is not fair!” Okay, well…what can we do about it? I deplore the capriciousness of the Far Right, who bark the word “Communist” if you suggest we help people in need or subsidize education. To be honest, I do not have the answers at this moment; when I look at the situation in the United States I am overwhelmed by my own cynicism. I see a system that favors the wealthy and a political landscape where “Blue” working class folks and “Red” working class folks are so divided they are unwilling to recognize and act on the fact that all of us are, to be inelegant, getting the shaft. I will try to process this in the fourth American Outback book, speaking with both Blue and Red folks. I also want to address the mental health crisis in this country which—I believe—contributes to the mass shootings we have—basically I am tackling a wide variety of issues we face as we move deeper into the 21st century.

Wish me luck.

WHERE TO BUY MY BOOKS:

https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B00EG7OKUY

WHERE TO LISTEN TO THE MUSIC I DO:

https://www.facebook.com/izkfb