> On a whim I went 'whole food, plant based', which means no processed foods or animal products
Plant-based can include some animal products, though. That's the definition I'm familiar with.
Anyway, I'm curious to know how you get your food without packaging. Do you literally grow and can everything yourself?
When I buy salad, it comes pre-washed in a large plastic container. Even when I buy the far more expensive locally grown stuff in the summer, it comes in a plastic bag.
I can get berries in small cardboard boxes, but only during the short window when they're growing locally. Otherwise, if I want berries, my choices are to get them frozen in a plastic bag, or fresh and in a plastic container.
I do buy some foods in steel cans, like beans. If I bought dried beans, they'd come in a plastic bag. Our lentils are shipped in a box and wrapped in a sturdy plastic bag. Then we can get tomatoes in glass bottles.
There are a few things I get without any packaging: bananas, apples, potatoes, onions, broccoli. But those things are in the minority. They are mostly shipped from far away, in bulk in cardboard boxes, I believe. There's another small window when you can get them locally.
Anthropology, physics, computer engineering have the three highest unemployment rates in Feb 2025. Computer science is in seventh place at 6.1% unemployment rate.
> They're angry that ... selfish older generations selling their homes (and therefore much of their generational wealth) to fund either lavish retirements or more medical treatments, etc, etc.
Wait, so they're angry because people are spending their money on themselves for fun stuff at the end of their lives? Or maybe even using it for un-fun medical care? Rather than handing it over to their kids? I don't know what to say. Except that I'm glad I never had kids.
Well, minimum wage in NY state is $15.50/hour. ($432/mo)/($15.50/h) is about 28 hours per month, i.e. 7 hours per week.
https://dol.ny.gov/minimum-wage-0
He also mentions other forms of employment, like raising rare herbs, so maybe he's got a little homegrown operation going that doesn't take much time.
Also what I was thinking! I saw the Home Depot on the map, and an International Airport (with daily flights to Boston no less), and thought, "Wait a sec, is this guy pulling our collective legs?".
https://flymassena.com/
> a low-frequency route means it's something you need to plan your entire day around.
Okay but the dude is making $5K/y which means he basically has no job and he sits around in his house all week or goes hiking etc. His most exciting day of adventure will literally consist of taking the bus to the library to check out a book, and bringing it back home (while reading it on the bus, perhaps). He can totally afford to plan his entire day around the event.
I think most of your points are fair ones. I also feel that it's rather cynical to drop out of the "rat race" by relying on the participation of lots of other people to pay for your Medicaid expense and so on. However, on average, there are just so few people doing this type of thing that I don't think we have to worry about free riders damaging the system. Most people who complain about the rat race aren't willing to take the extreme steps that this guy is suggesting in order to get out of it.
> The budget didn't include mortgage/housing cost
True, but I don't think you can get a mortgage for a $29K house. I'm guessing the guy is saving up for his house by sticking in the rat race until he's got his $29K saved up (presumably made easier with his wife?). Then, he shops around for a house on a bus route. I suspect it is possible, especially in a state like NY.
> if the author of this article gets cancer I bet they'll want to visit a hospital where doctors are working 12 hour shifts grinding out the era of "overabundance."
This is one point where I disagree. I'd really rather that doctors were working shorter hours. I don't want someone taking care of me if they're at the end of a 12 hour shift. Forget about the fact that it's so bad for her, it's also bad for me and the level of care that I get.
> Water is $0? Even well water requires some level of upkeep
Oh yeah, we just paid $800 to replace our pressure tank. His roof will need to be replaced one day, the gutters will leak, etc.
I actually think I detect a bit of tongue-in-cheek in the article. I think this guy will do this for a while, enjoy his adventure, and then go do something else.
> I think most of your points are fair ones. I also feel that it's rather cynical to drop out of the "rat race" by relying on the participation of lots of other people to pay for your Medicaid expense and so on. However, on average, there are just so few people doing this type of thing that I don't think we have to worry about free riders damaging the system.
It's one of those cases where the "freeloading" is more miserable than just working, which is why abuse isn't rampant.
The author mentions putting 20% down and getting a mortgage. Even with insurance, for a 10 year mortgage 29k is 430 per month. Or you live with your parents and save on $1500 rent for 2 years, bam you can buy it with cash.
Then the author proceeded to not include that cost in the example budget. They even had the gall to mention having a 700 credit score to buy such a house.
Not a lot of people with this kind of low budget have a 700 credit score.
> hope you don't need to see a doctor for anything serious, or go to a dentist for that mater.
That's the first thing I thought about.
His budget of $432/mo doesn't include health insurance. But $5K/y probably gets him Medicaid eligibility. Let's assume he's on Medicaid, then. In NY state, that covers quite a lot of dental care, if you believe this:
https://www.health.ny.gov/health_care/medicaid/program/denta...
Not saying it's a good option, but it's there.
> Taking the bus that goes 3 times a day is one thing, needing to move stuff is another thing.
What kind of things do you think he might be moving? He probably has just about no possessions with that budget (and a 600 sq ft house). In a pinch, perhaps he can rent a truck from Home Depot. Apparently, there is a Home Depot in Massena, NY, so maybe it's not quite so far out in the boonies as it seems.
Personally, I wouldn't do it - the lack of choice would get very unpleasant very fast. But it could work for some.
Yep, it could work for some. And I think that's his point. Depending on how much meatspace socializing / culture one wants/needs. Library internet, meh ... but working 3 more hours at Stewart's would take care of that ... and access to a hyuge amount of entertainment, news, online spaces. Readers, writers, painters, DIYers. At $0.04 per kWh, keeping a small room warm in the winter is trivial ... could be worse!
And working 5 more hours would get him a some better garden tools, and 20 more he could support a family of 3 And if he just got a higher paying job, he could even get a car!
>> But $5K/y probably gets him Medicaid eligibility. Let's assume he's on Medicaid, then.
If he is on medicaid then he isn't "living" on 432/month. That would be living on 432/month PLUS whatever medicaid is worth, likely well north of another 500/month.
Then the kids need schooling, either in-person or remote. that is another 10k/year/kid. And you need some sort of local police/justice system to ensure nobody boots you off your homestead. But even once you account for all those local costs, there are things like national security. Living a peaceful life on a remote farm is only possible because the country is ringed by police and armed forces. Those things may be a thousand miles away, but someone still has to pay for them.
That’s a fun topic. The US government pays just over 19k per person. This means you need to make 100-150k (I came up with 126 with a standard deduction and normal credits) to “break even.”
