#vandweller

My truck is legal.

My truck was legally parked.

My truck hadn’t been in the same spot even 48 hours.

I wasn’t leaving trash, setting up a ‘yard’, or other ʎʇʇᴉɥs behavior like running loud AF generator…all night.

The SFPD/SFMTA are simply waging war on the unhoused.

I work here.

I pay into the economy here.

I pay for my SFMTA MUNI rides instead of hopping turnstiles or ignoring the clipper tag like a lot of unhoused folk and a fair percentage of others regularly do. I park legally, get around honestly, and don’t bother anyone with nonsense or BS. I stay in my lane.

My children live here. I stay close for them.

I had housing up until nearly five and a half years ago.

The city didn’t bother me while I had housing.

Now I don’t. I have a truck as what was meant to be a temporary housing situation. Very temporary.

I lived here for fifteen years and the city loved me, and I it. Fifteen years a roof and a place to hang a hat.

Divorce and financial hardship changed that.

I am still the same guy. I’m older (this life ages you) and I’m physically older anyway. The same adopted local who went to school, married, labored, divorced, labored more and ended up unhoused in this city.

My kids are growing up here and live with their mother. They are the third generation to be born here.

There’s no illicit activity. No drugs (mehbe a bit of medical MJ) of the scary sort, certainly no alcohol. No shady ʇıɥs going on.

I’m just trying to live my life…work hard to support my children…stay near them to still be present…and maybe begin to get out of the cesspit of despair this ƃuıʞɔnɟ city seems determined to kick me further down into.

This ƃuıʞɔnɟ city which I love, it would seem to my own detriment, which happens to be named after St Francis of Assisi. You know. The guy who was all about helping the poor and fed birds at his monastery or some ʇıɥs?

Now San Francisco is a mockery of its namesake with how it treats its unhoused.

This is the third time I’ve been unjustly harassed like this. Specifically for parking longer than 72hrs but having been there for less than 48; All since the city decided the undesirables had to go.

And all I want to do is stay here for my kids and return to a housed situation. I’m working hard in hopes to do that but have been stymied at every turn. But I still work and have hope I can find a roof and four walls with a place of peace to return at the end of the day and have my kids with me half the time, like a normal broken family!

I don’t like living vanlife. I’m good at it but that doesn’t mean it’s good for me long-term. But it’s better than being on the street. SF REALLY hates you if you live there. I just wish they didn’t make it so difficult on people trying to bootstrap it.

ʞɔnɟ the Taraval station and their heartless ʇᴉɥsllnq policy of blindly targeting the struggling families out here.

Anyway it’s going to be super cold in the Midwes,and a snow storm is likely coming. I took the time this weekend to prepare.

1. I got food and water because a gal gotta eat!

2. I got hot water bottles for my feet in bed.

3. 2 heavy blankets one is wool and the other is heavy cotton.

4. I got a buddy heater for when I am awake.

I was on the fence about getting the heater because it’s propane in my van. I originally bought a 20 lb tank of propane but I got home and realized I had no place to put it! I returned it easy peezy. I was going to take the buddy heater back to the store too, but once I heard about the storm I figured I better keep it for now until I can find something better.

The other alternative is a Camco Olympian Wave 3 heater. It’s slimmer and only puts out 3,000 BTUs and the Buddy Heater puts out as much as 9,000 literally 3x more heat. Because I get drafts from the doors I thought having something with a higher heat rating would be better. So far I am right.

I even got a cooler. I revamped my food storage . I have more access to food in my van. So far I am starting to feel cozy and prepared for the season. My work isn’t done yet.