I want to do what Chris Mccandless did...sort of
musicismylife78
Posts: 6,116
has anyone here done what he did, or wanted to do what he did, in a lesser manner. For instance, keep your money and id and whatnot, and instead of living primitive in alaska, maybe buying a backpack and tent and hitchhiking across america. buying a ticket to a destination on a greyhound, getting out, and the hitchhiking across america. One can emulate chris and his spirit and not do the living in alaska part right?
i am 25 and feel the pull of these desires. its something about this age, being in my twenties, its like we get restless feet, itchy feet or something. I am getting to the age where my friends talk about settling down. that scares the hell out of me. i have no desire to settle down right now, or ever.
For me, being happy, would be great, but maybe more important is a story. how many people lived life to the fullest like chris did? How many people would hitchhike across america? I want to feel like, when I die, I wont have regrets.
I have this fear that as I age, as I get older, this desire to live free, to travel, to find IT as kerouac would say, wont be an inspiration, but rather be a regret. I will be a 50 year old, wishing I had done all this. I am scared I will be some 80 year old grandpa, being asked by grandkids, "so grandpa what did you used to do", "oh kids, I was too scared to do anything, I settled down, gave up the ghost, gave up on my dreams, and became like THEM". Them, or they, is of course the masses, everyone else, the herd, the sheep.
I would be scared out of my mind, but is it feasible to do this? Spend the 300 bucks for a backpack and tent, and hit the local highway, thumb out, and travel across the U.S?
i am 25 and feel the pull of these desires. its something about this age, being in my twenties, its like we get restless feet, itchy feet or something. I am getting to the age where my friends talk about settling down. that scares the hell out of me. i have no desire to settle down right now, or ever.
For me, being happy, would be great, but maybe more important is a story. how many people lived life to the fullest like chris did? How many people would hitchhike across america? I want to feel like, when I die, I wont have regrets.
I have this fear that as I age, as I get older, this desire to live free, to travel, to find IT as kerouac would say, wont be an inspiration, but rather be a regret. I will be a 50 year old, wishing I had done all this. I am scared I will be some 80 year old grandpa, being asked by grandkids, "so grandpa what did you used to do", "oh kids, I was too scared to do anything, I settled down, gave up the ghost, gave up on my dreams, and became like THEM". Them, or they, is of course the masses, everyone else, the herd, the sheep.
I would be scared out of my mind, but is it feasible to do this? Spend the 300 bucks for a backpack and tent, and hit the local highway, thumb out, and travel across the U.S?
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I stayed in Fort Lauderdale and San Fransisco for a period of time. The rest of the time was mostly short visits.
I always thought I would do it again, after I raised my kids, but I am just too old to do it like I did back then...and times have changes and it isn't as easy or safe.
It was great back then though!!
If you're interested in traveling abroad, I suggest the Peace Corps.
Just go. You can't live life with regrets from the past.
while I think the whole thing sounds like it would be great and oh the stories you could tell.....
I live in a place where it's just not an option, the place is called reality. I wanted to do this when I was your age, but didn't. Do I regret it ? Not one bit. Had I done it, I would have missed out on a lot of things that mean a lot to me now. I would not have the relationship that I have with my nephews, who make me smile, and more proud than anything I could have ever done in my own life. That is true joy. I would not have the connection that I have with my sister and bro-in-law that I have now had I just got up and left when I wanted to do this when I was 20ish. I also would not have been around for the last years of my mothers life. That would be a huge regret.
This life is not some fucking movie, I live in the really real world of responsibilty, love, and family and friends. All of which would not be what they are now had I left to "see the world".
ed says " there is a lot to be said for nowhere" that's great. I agree to a point.
I say, " there is a lot to be said for security" securtiy other than financial. secure family, secure friendships. If that makes me a part of the herd, a sheep.....
BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA ( translate from sheep speak to "so fucking be it" )
"To question your government is not unpatriotic --
to not question your government is unpatriotic."
-- Sen. Chuck Hagel
I couldnt agree more. McCandliss died and Im sure being a lover of Life in any capacity means that actually living is the most importanat thing. I learned to live being mindful of the present no matter what or where you are...always wishing to the future is not a good thing.
Yeah, I'm sorry. Perhaps I'm cynical, but I really agree with this sentiment. I think there is a lot to be said for some of the ideas McCandless embodied (i.e. shunning material wealth, getting to a place of simplicity and quiet, appreciating nature and man's place in it) but for all of the noble qualities he aspired to, dude had a lot of fucking problems. I think they have been pretty well covered here, so I won't rehash them.
I think aspiring to a life of simplicity and peace is a worthwhile and noble goal. I just think there are a lot better ways to go about that (i.e. Peace Corps as someone earlier mentioned...or hell, even a monastery or commune).
Some people get off on routine, security, safety, unfulfilling relationships... Damn those that long for better, right?
I don't think not having a plan and disappearing from the world is wise, nor do I feel that the op wishes to that extreme. Doing things that Chris did is just being unprepared and plain stupid now. I think everyone is viewing it from the "let's move to fucking Alaska and live in the wilderness with next to nothing." I believe its the journey along the way and the relationships established that the op might be looking for and the freedom in it all. Not a death wish.
it always should be about being true to yourself and who you are ... if that person wants to live a nomadic lifestyle for 1 week, 2 years or 50 years ... then you do it ...
if you live in the states - i think the best way is to get a car and camp ... there is BLM land everywhere where you can basically sleep for free ... find odd jobs in areas you want to spend more time ... forge relationships and learn from your experiences ... it'll be a wonderful thing ...
Rawr! You're feisty!
I see what you mean though. I think this is just a topic that hits close to home because, well, it has everything to do with the basics of how you choose to live your life. And as I've learned from being around so many people who have different viewpoints than me on fucking everything...sometimes you just have to agree to disagree.
But yeah, like you said...the relationships you establish along the way (whichever way that might be) are the key to everything.
I do understand what he was about... selfishness.
He put his parents and his sister through untold mental anguish for a belief only he wanted to fulfill. The guy was an arrogant loser.
oh and by the way, i want a house, wife and kids because i do.. I want a family that i can love daily and a house I can see them grow up in... what i didnt fancy was causing my parents and my sisters to spend months worried about me because i decided it would be a good idea to go fucking mountain climbing in a pair of sandals. :thumbup:
his sister understood what he was about ... he is selfish and an arrogant loser only in your eyes ... do you think that everyone who got to meet him think that way? ... i'm pretty sure not ...
he died because he got the wrong information from a field guide ... that is it ... who's to say where his life would be if he had gotten better information ... chance can play havoc in all our lives ... you can decide you want to goto a PJ show and die in a car crash ... are you selfish for wanting to go to a show and causing grief to your family?
Bunch of ignorant fucks here this monday morning.
There is nothing wrong to want to experience new things or not living life by the norms of society...
This guy gets it.
well the thread should be entitled "should i spend 3 months hitch-hiking across America?"
not entitling it to some guy who 99.4% of people only heard about on here because Ed did the fucking soundtrack
Man, from the sounds of it, that person is in for a WORLD OF HURT!
/backs slowly out of thread....
I completely echo your sentiments. There is no "right" or "wrong" way to live, yet it definitely feels like there is when talking to certain people. Relationships and experiences shape people and are invaluable. The problem is, you can't plan for them. Even if you say, "Fuck it, I'm quitting my job, packing up and doing some travelling," well, you're still going to be planning. You're still going to have expectations or notions of where you want to go and why, and also hopes and desires that can be left unfulfilled once there. But I feel you're closer to reaching your goals going that direction than the "other" way.
I also think the McCandless comparison is a bit of stretch, which brings me to:
How do you know if hitchhiking across America would remove all of your regrets? If that exact activity is a personal goal of yours, then I can understand. But if you're just searching for IT, how do you know this will be IT? Maybe your fulfillment lies elsewhere, maybe just around the corner from where you are now. I think the point is, is to never give-up your search for IT, and not necessarily let a book/movie/what someone else did influence you so greatly. You don't necessarily need to travel across the country for a great story to tell your grandkids...
you must have read a different book than me? His sister understood to a point, but she had no idea where he was and spent a lot of time attempting to contact him.
I can only go by his eventual outcome and what he did prior to that, so I think ultimately he was a selfish moron who pretty much killed himself... i'm sure he touched many many lives of the people he met on his travels... shame he didnt spend as much time reassuring his own family of his wellbeing, but instead spent his time ensuring the guy who he worked with picking potatoes knew he was a swell guy.
me going to a PJ show via car might take me a day or two.. the guy fucked off for months on end and never informed his family... not even comparable in the selfish stakes amigo. :thumbup:
I dont know the whole story, but I assumed that Chris M. didnt really know that his sister was trying so hard to contact him. and if his whole priority was to escape from his parents for a period of time, then being in contact with his sister might have made him not feel "on his own" from the whole family and his life that was weighing him down.
I do diasgree with how Chris handled himself, but I can see how time might have got away from him. I mean, the guy didnt die on purpose for godsake, he intended on coming back at some point! calling him selfish is ridiculous in my opinion. he was young, and had he come back, maybe his parents wouldnt have railroaded him into tryinbg to live life 'their way', and appreciated his individuality.
yes, he made a big mistake and people around him suffered, but it was a mistake.