Nomad Scribblings and the Supposed American Dream

The Rogue in a secluded National Forest parking lot in Washington State.

Well after 58 people over 7.5 months telling me I really should see it I finally watched the movie Nomadland. (Exaggerated estimates of course.) Then I whizzed through the book, backwards in order or preference by most yes, but it was my sequence nonetheless.  Having been a nomad myself for about a year and a half (at the time) and something that began getting planned well over a year before that I feel I have a unique perspective. In this article I share a few nomad scribblings and the supposed American dream after reading the book and watching the movie. 

The “glamour story” of being a nomad that you mainly see on social media. Chasing waterfalls in Costa Rica!

First off…Jessica Bruder, the author, is simply unequivocally my new favorite writer. She is a master with her words and mission. And the forever endearing Frances McDormand takes you on a ride in the movie as well. This post has nothing to do with comparing the two, I just wanted to offer my praise to both of these talented women. I have much gratitude to them for their work on these projects, the world is better with this story being in the mainstream. 

Nomadland laid out a concept I have been struggling with, and many others I believe, like it was a Rubik’s cube in my hand for years. I think the concept was finally thrust into traditional society as a result of this book and movie.

You see I didn’t become a nomad to be a van life influencer (no one really does and very few make any sort of living off this glamorized world of van life high society that the internet loves to chatter about). Contrary to what Instagram and TikTok posts might lead you to believe.  I also didn’t become a nomad because I was forced into it due to the spine breaking gap between the super rich and the rest of us in the supposed wealthiest country in the world.

I became a nomad I think because I have felt for years that “The American Dream” as it was is dead and I wanted to attempt to create my own version of it.

Let me explain.
“The American Dream” as told in stories and speeches still by politicians and company C suite teams is that in America anyone can do anything and rise to the top through toil and hard work.

Taking the Alaska Ferry with bicycles, most of our current possessions we use are right here.

The idea (as I felt it was being presented) was this.
If you choose to work hard you will be rewarded with a home, fence, children, dog, free weekends to leisure as you wish, two weeks of paid vacation, medical care, and eventually a retirement to enjoy your “golden years.” You will then die peacefully in your sleep of old age and pass the legacy of the American Dream onto your children. That’s the story of the American Dream.

For the supremely rich this is still somewhat plausible and reasonable; and for outliers of the middle and lower class of America and those coming to live in the US from other countries it is still a chance. And for some in these groups it is definitely a chance worth taking and striving for.

For me…I felt as the dream was told at least…that the old dream was over but new opportunities and versions of it could happen.

I had no clue why I would take on debt to buy a house in a neighborhood with no diversity or character and story behind it. It seemed weird to me to work hard to move to a place where I couldn’t walk or bicycle to get groceries, but that’s what the US suburb has become. I saw friends die in my 30s from cancer (from a multitude of ages but most were close to my age), perish in fires in their sleep in college (two different fires two years in a row of different friends), hung out with many BIPOC folks who worked their butts off every day and could never get ahead, and finally I didn’t really like the idea of living in one place while paying a lot of money for clothes I found uncomfortable to wear to put on to go to a job I wasn’t all that interested in.

Then I read the Big Short, learned about Travel Hacking, got two great therapists pushing me to communicate who I am and what I want to become, reminded myself of what I learned running a food truck in college, began traveling overseas as frequently as I could save for it, volunteered vigorously in manual labor positions in disinvested neighborhoods, and re-immersed myself in my love of the outdoors that I had as a child.  Amongst a lot of other self hacking, random skill trainings, and diversification techniques of how to make money to live. 

Being a nomad doesn’t just mean jet setting to any place of your choosing.

The result of all of this tinkering from a decade or so was I finally opted out of this so called American Dream and pushed towards being a nomad. I had loved to see new places and cultures for years and I always felt a pang of wanderlust if I didn’t have another adventure planned. Our ancestors were all nomads and for some it still feels natural. It seemed like it would be something I would thrive as. 

I am privileged to get to choose to do this. I am lucky I am a white male as well where being a nomad is safer and easier. White males get offended often (hello white fragility) because they think it’s an attack on them when someone says they were privileged to get what they have. They talk about how hard they have to work, etc. They do work hard I am sure, but it’s hard work coupled with privilege and luck that makes it easier for us to make it in America. Not everything has to go perfect for white males, but it pretty much does for the BIPOC, LGBTIQ, and anyone from a disinvested community to make their dreams come true. White men should chill, nobody is attacking them that they don’t work hard. It’s just that hard work doesn’t guarantee great outcomes amongst other groups of humans that are marginalized and discriminated against. 

And that’s what Nomadland is all about. It’s about many people who either had or were working to get the so called American Dream through hard work. To find out all that hard work put them in debt, gave them crap medical, no dental, and was gonna work them until they died in an Amazon factory or a sugarbeet warehouse.

They are right. It will kill them. But nomads might get to have the thrilling adventure of a lifetime before that beheading. I kid but I am serious, it will be both a thrilling adventure and potential death for some. 

A gourmet breakfast on the side of the road is not unusual for us, nor weird anymore!

For me it always felt like there was no need to wait to retire, no need to accrue debt, and no need to believe that the government had any use for me or you except to grind us so hard until we couldn’t do it anymore.

This is not me being callas, this is me being honest. Our society is built and run to eek every ounce of work out of every person willing to do it. And to keep them in the grind game with debt while chasing possessions for a so-called American Dream that is built around wealth and money. 

The nomads get rid of the possessions, attempt to remove and pay off debts, and I think are trying to enjoy the ride rather than waiting for the dream that may or may not happen to them.

That’s what I wanted to, and ultimately, chose. I have seen too much death and unfair treatment to so many who are in the system that never get the Dream package. It seemed to me there was a different way to live and to measure who I was and opting into this other path was how I could swing it. 

We all have our reasons for doing what we do but I can honestly say becoming a nomad was the best decision my wife and I ever made.

We live more present and in the moment than we used to, we pay only for what we can afford for living expenses one or two months at a time to never be on the hook for something if we had a shift in our careers, we adventure more than we could have ever imagined, we do more service work, we donate more money to causes we adore, we spend way more time together and way more time with our families and friends that are close by (by measure of a 7 day trip instead of a 3 day visit for example), and we get paid to do more things we love than ever before.

We were so fortunate to get to do this out of choice rather than force but I see this as America’s new middle class and chance at an American Dream.

We are reexamining our goals for life and we get to feel the true joys of our life: the planet, love, community, giving, the outdoors, service, and true tribes to name a few.

There is a way to do stuff you love throughout your life. I have taken a realist view that you might die before 65 so to enjoy the ride now in case your ride ends early.

The American Dream is not dead, and it’s not a fraud. However, believing that it still exists the same exact way it did for a small period of time is the fraud and the lie. A new dream can be had I hope. But the old dream only works for the rich on a good percentage level, and much worse for the middle and lower classes. To me everyone outside of the super rich has a much better chance to win and find joy at their version of a new dream similar to what I am seeking, living, and dreaming about.

Well not everyone yet. Because it’s not very safe for the black, latino/hispanic, women, lgbtiq, and other communities to be nomads in the US. This is changing and improving but nowhere where it should be.

It’s also not possible for the extremely poor.

I hope to spend the rest of my working to eradicate and shift this. Through activism, perspective, work, and an upheaval in the systems that marginalize against them. “Nomadism” should be safe and accessible to all and not by force but rather by choice. 

The storage unit before being filled. Not missing much that is in there. Minus the air fryer and a few Outkast records!

And to me the fact I can safely write all of this and then work to live my life as a nomad and strike down hate and amplify underrepresented groups in the nomadic world without fear of my own life…that is an American Dream to me.

That’s what shook my spine from reading and watching Nomadland. The death of one dream and one class that has the chance to open up more doors and opportunities than we ever thought.

But one thing is for sure…the old dream is dead for many and there is a wave of suffering that is happening and will continue to happen to the middle and lower classes until we let everyone know about the real truth and current state of affairs in the wealthiest country (and most disproportionate income gap in a developed nation) of the world.

I’ll take my chances renting long term Airbnb’s and tent camping in the desert rather than hoping ageism or a catastrophic illness don’t strike me before I get to adventure or serve the planet.

See you on the open road friends, I never looked back and everyone you know but other nomads (and those cool ass people who let everyone just be themselves) won’t get it if you take this path. Who cares though for adventure, and your life, await!

Thanks for reading! More articles HERE!

Because Adventure Feeds the Soul,

Mike R