Live the DIY Life as Described in "Possum Living"

Have you ever wished you could break away from the ideas and opinions of the status quo, and start living as a truly free individual? You can. Your life belongs to you, and only you can define your life. You may use as many or as few of these ideas as applies to your needs; this is by no means a complete list.

Steps

 * 1) Read the book "Possum Living" by Dolly Freed. This book was written in the 1970s and is currently out of print, but Tin House Books will be reissuing the book in January, 2010. There are many other good books on the subject, but this one originally coined the term, which refers to the diy lifestyle as opposed to the diy political viewpoint, and it is one of the best books on the subject.
 * 2) Get a free homepage and email (webmail) at Google, Yahoo, or similar, so that you can access your email and links list from any computer with internet access (because you may not have internet access at your new home); then bookmark and regularly check informational sites about the diy culture. Instructables.com is a good site to watch, as is Youtube.com.
 * 3) [[Image:Treebones-yurt-cabins-in-big-sur-7711_284.jpg|right|200px]]Pay off your bills and find a cheap place to live. One of the best ways to do this is to buy a cheap piece of unimproved, unrestricted land and park a cheap travel trailer or old house trailer on it. Or you could even live in a wall tent, tepee, yurt, or plywood (or even cardboard, painted to weatherproof) shack. You may be able to sell your expensive vehicle and other non-necessary items to pay for this. Or, buy on a land contract and pay it off as soon as possible.
 * 4)  Keep your new home offgrid. Use an RV toilet, outhouse, or sawdust toilet to avoid the necessity of installing a septic system, with the permits and taxes that entails. Put together a battery bank and either use DC lights and appliances (preferably scrounged), or buy or barter for an inverter. If you are into electronics, you could even build your own inverter; they are simple. Build a wind generator, scrounge some used PV (solar) panels, and/or build, buy or barter for a gas or diesel generator.
 * 5)  Get a prepaid cellphone. That way you can stay in communication with family and friends, without having a recurring monthly payment. Buy minutes when you have money, conserve minutes when you don't.
 * 6)  If you get a diesel generator, make biodiesel or convert it to run on waste cooking oil. If you get a gas generator, make a methane digester to run it on.
 * 7)  Get a bicycle, preferably a cheap one from a yard sale or thrift store. Better yet, get two or three super cheap ones that have problems, and put together one good bike, and a trailer to go with it.
 * 8)  Get rid of your expensive car. If you need a car, buy a cheap one that you can pay cash for. A pickup truck is best for this lifestyle, better is a diesel pickup that you can make your own fuel (biodiesel or WVO) for, and best yet is an old non-running minitruck (Isuzus are cheap, and tough) into which you swap an old Mercedes, VW or other small diesel engine. Advantages? 35-40 mpg on home-made, cheap fuel; and the ability to haul home scrounged goods. You may be able to put together such a vehicle for a few hundred bucks.
 * 9) [[Image:IMG_0330_74.jpg|right|250px]]Buy tools. Carry a multi-tool, a knife and other useful items on your person, in belt pouches, fanny pack, backpack or whatever; and carry a toolbox of more serious tools in your truck. Have more tools yet at home, including a welder and air compressor. Better yet, especially if your generator isn't big enough to power these items, convert a heavy-duty alternator to double as a welder, and mount it in your truck. Also find an older piston-type automotive air conditioning compressor, convert to an air compressor, and mount that in your truck, too. These tools are for fixing your stuff that breaks, fixing other folks' stuff for pay, barter or just to help out, and disassembling cast-off stuff you find on trash day, either to pick off the good parts on the spot, or break it down to a more manageable size.
 * 10)  Quit your job. That's right; now that you have practically no bills, you can make what little money you need by picking up aluminum cans, fixing and selling cast-off appliances, odd-jobbing, etc.
 * 11)  Raise as much of your own food as possible. Have a garden and orchard on your small tract of land, and don't forget chickens and perhaps even pigs, which can be fed for free. You can also raise fish and crayfish in a plastic wading pool or similar.
 * 12)  Hunt and fish. You will be amazed at how well you can feed yourself on wild game and fish, if you live in an area that is conducive.

Warnings

 * You may be flying without a net, concerning medical insurance. On the other hand, you may be living a healthier, less-stressful life, making medical insurance less of an issue.
 * Other people may look down their noses and make disparaging comments about you, especially if they notice you hanging out at the beach at 10 am on a Tuesday, when the beach is otherwise deserted. Don't worry about it. That's just because they have been trained since birth to view themselves (and you, by extension) as belonging to a greater collective, rather than to yourself.

Related Tips and Steps

 * How to Live Life to the Fullest
 * How to Be a Hobo with a Web Based Income
 * How to Budget Your Money
 * How to Get Out of Debt
 * How to Wake up from the American Dream
 * How to Free Your Time