Help! Can I give up my stuff to liveaboard?

[Dennis.G]

We got rid of most everything except for what would fit in a storage room. I figured that we would go back in a year and clear the storage room out and be done with it. It was as "what if" solution that made the wife agreeable.
This summer we put boat in storage and traveled up to Northern Michigan. We ended up buying a small summer lake cottage and are fixing it up. New plan is to spend summers in the cottage, winters on the boat. Did not see that coming, and glad for the things we did keep.
Lots of ways the future can unfold.

[goat]

Maybe this will help;

https://www.google.ca/search?q=hoard...ed=0CAYQ_AUoAQ


You're welcome,

goat

[Cheechako]

One of the things I hate about coming back from cruising is the accumulation of stuff. Life seems so simple without al that crap... but it's sooo easy to collect! Last time we went cruising, we had yard sales etc, then we got rid of everything but what would fit in a 10 x 10ft storage unit. When we came back we couldn't believe we paid to store about 50% of it! We'd open boxes and go "why in the world did we keep this?"

[Julie Mor]

A couple of months ago, I took all the clothes I hadn't worn in a year or more and threw them into a pile. It took two 35-gallon garbage bags and a big box to stuff them all in. Then I took them to the local Amvets drop-off and haven't missed a thing since. I couldn't even tell you what I threw away. It was so freeing, I knew I had to do it again. The second purge is coming soon.

[aisling222]

Having read you shot post I conculdeyou are in no frame of mind to LIVE aboard. Maybe a week here of there, but you personal possession are important and that is understandable. Save the marriage and rent for now or 3 week or more. A cheap investment into just a tiny bit of the life.

[meirriba]

Originally Posted by JulieMac

Tell me how you did it. My partner has a lifelong desire to sell the house, put our essential "stuff" into storage and live on a 40' something sailboat.

Don't get me wrong. I love sailing. I love traveling, and could do so while the money lasted.

It's the whole minimal "stuff" and living conditions idea. A few items of clothing, and your provisions-that's it.

Reminds me of the classic George Carlin video:

Can our sailing dreams come true?

The issue with the answers on this thread is that most of the posters are already cruisers who made the decision to dispose of their "earthly" possessions.
You obviously need to decide for yourself how much you are attached to your home, family, friends, books, etc. You may fill the questionnaire calculating your "Ulysses quotient" in the excellent book 'Sell up and sail' by Bill and Laurel Cooper.

[JPA Cate]

Originally Posted by JulieMac

Ha, you're probably spot on, as is the country song.

For me, I've never spent more than an afternoon sailing here and there. My retired SO has sailed 10,000 miles over the years and has now been without a boat for a long time. I'm still dabbling with work, and a bit younger.

When I've sailed, it's been very pleasurable. However, it's the all or nothing leap that's hardest. The kids are all grown, and the house is too big. So we're downsizing. If we buy another home or condo, the boat might not be financially feasible.

So here I am, sitting on our pile of stuff, pondering our course. Unfortunately, I can't find this spot on the paper charts....

I don't know how much consideration you've given to why you are still "dabbling in work". Reading that reminded me, though, of an issue I had not considered before Jim and I left the second time (first was only for a year). I found I missed the external validation that receiving a salary had given me, as well as the comfort of watching a savings account build.

Developing a hobby that you can take aboard with you is one successful way of addressing the need for self validation that we all have. Several women friends knit, or do needlepoint; others make jewelry from found objects, another does beautiful beadwork.

A side issue is that focusing on "stuff" may be distracting you from paying attention to other concerns you might have.

Ann

[JulieMac]

Originally Posted by George DuBose

Who is the famous sailor who when his girlfriend first moved aboard was asked "Where do I keep my stuff?"

He gave her a shoe box and said when it was full and she wanted to add something, she would have to take something out of the box...

I'll bet he's on the "companion wanted" section trolling for a new shipmate!

[Sandero]

Interesting topic. I cast off my lines as a single man at 43 or so. I had a loft in Manhattan had to deal with lots of stuff. I gave most away to a Russian relief charity which sprung up after the USSR collapsed. Most of the clothes I had no use for... I saved a few nostalgic pieces in a suit case or boxes stored with my brother along with lots of tools I could not take. I gave my art collection....collectibles and so forth to various friends for safe keeping and stored some with bro.

I was quite happy to be out of the rat race and not having to wear anything but some shorts and a T. I was only out there for 3 years and didn't miss stuff... but did miss culture... and there wasn't the type of culture I missed in the tropics. But I sailed up north during hurricane season and got a fix.

Honestly I don't know is I could do this for more than 5 or six years. But getting rid of stuff was wonderful. Now back my present wife loves stuff and despite that declares every once in a while she needs to get rid of it...or is it to get new stuff?

[Julie Mor]

A Zen Master lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening, while he was away, a thief sneaked into the hut only to find there was nothing in it to steal. The Zen Master returned and found him. "You have come a long way to visit me," he told the prowler, "and you should not return empty handed. Please take my clothes as a gift." The thief was bewildered, but he took the clothes and ran away. The Master sat naked, watching the moon. "Poor fellow," he mused, " I wish I could give him this beautiful moon."

How many beautiful moons are you missing while protecting your stuff?

[accomplice]

If "stuff" keeps you from pursuing your dreams, do you own the stuff, or does it own you?

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by JulieMac

Ha, you're probably spot on, as is the country song.

For me, I've never spent more than an afternoon sailing here and there. My retired SO has sailed 10,000 miles over the years and has now been without a boat for a long time. I'm still dabbling with work, and a bit younger.

When I've sailed, it's been very pleasurable. However, it's the all or nothing leap that's hardest. The kids are all grown, and the house is too big. So we're downsizing. If we buy another home or condo, the boat might not be financially feasible.

So here I am, sitting on our pile of stuff, pondering our course. Unfortunately, I can't find this spot on the paper charts....

Is it possible that your real estate values where you are now will allow you to sell and buy smaller somewhere like Florida at much less $? Then you could have both worlds. During the recent recession I considered a house on a waterway with it's own moorage in Eastern Florida for as low as $165k. Probably higher now but....

[Birdseed]

I came here 20 years ago with a pickup truck with a tool box on the back. Three months ago I decided to move to a boat. I now am waiting on selling a 3800 sq ft home and a 2500 sq ft garage. I sold as much as I could on CL, gave away a lot more. I paid off all business short term debt. The only problem I have is some inexpensive art work, family pictures, etc. I'm hoping my boy will keep that stuff. I'm glad to be in a empty house. Can't wait to get outa here.

[Jeraden]

I agree with accomplice! When we decided to move aboard (3 months ago) we made the decision to only keep family heirlooms, a few paintings, which are stored with family and may end up on their walls - hopefully :-) and our kids lego's, in which we invested thousands of dollars in and plan to give to future grandkids. We also decided to keep a few pieces of furniture in a 10x10 storage room but are now questioning "Why?". As you begin to go through the process of getting rid of "stuff", take it slow. Start donating or selling a few items at a time. You may surprise yourself and say "To think, I was allowing STUFF to prevent me/us from fulfilling a dream". There will always be someone who needs it more than you and there will always be a Walmart on every corner :-) Happy Sailing:-)

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Escape - Linda]

Wow, everyone makes it sound like a no-brainer, but it's not that simple for many of us. I have a few hobbies, and so does my husband, and you need stuff to do stuff. (Beer making, quilt making, genealogy, woodworking, for example).

Instead of jumping off a cliff, we decided to take a more gradual approach. We're cruising 9-10 months of the year, and we kept our house (the real estate market where we live makes this much easier to do than selling, anyway). Maybe next year we'll sell it, or maybe the year after that. We'll see how we feel.

We used our last visit home to have family visits and to do a lot of boat upkeep and retrofit in a place where we have tools and can get deliveries.

Bottom line, it doesn't have to be a white-knuckled, sleepless nights, all-or-nothing decision. You can go cruising without throwing out everything you own.