Dispersed
I landed in a dispersed camping space that doesn't cost anything, but reportedly stays pretty strict to the 5 days in one location and then you gotta move thing. I get it, trying to keep it from appearing as though it's a homeless encampment. But, big news!, that's precisely what it is, more or less. I've only engaged with one family that wasn't here out of necessity.
I don't know if these kinds of places exist outside of the Midwest USA, especially when concerning the rest of the world, because it feels like such a particular kind of thing. You either know and get it, or you don't. And there's no real way to fully illustrate how this shit goes unless you've done it. I think the southwest, especially New Mexico and Arizona have something similar, not sure about the rest of the country and world, though.
Not too terribly far from where my truck landed out of gas is a couple that's in a very similar situation as myself. It's like a 10 minute walk, so we're not super close, but close enough that if a bear decides to attack any of us, we agreed we could scream loud enough to get help - or at least get found once the bear had its way with us haha. Somehow their 5G hotspot reaches me and allows me to stream music from Bandcamp and surf most of the web. Video ain't it, not surprisingly. They're only here for 2 more days, though.
Losing my dog has been the hardest part of this fucking chapter. Mostly because I don't know what the deal is. I feel like they just took her - along with my phone - and shut off the water and internet to get me outta there. Like, probably hoping I had some bucks and trying to get one over on me, but finding out all I got is a cute dog and outdated iPhone and being pissed about it. If I had the gas money and time, I would be staking out that place so hard. I have it pinned. One day.
Went to Fleet Farm to price some gear a few days back, when all that shit happened, and found out I've lost 4 inches on the waistline in the last two months. Certainly makes finding clothes easier and I have a few more inches to give yet, so that was kind of gratifying to find out.
It's hot. Battery dwindling.