Squamish鈥檚 Amanda Shpeley says she wouldn鈥檛 live in a house if you gave her one for free.
Shpeley, 29 has lived in her 2001 Mazda minivan for more than a year with her dog Frank, a red heeler.
鈥淚t is about knowing what is right and living a lifestyle that honours that,鈥� she said.
The catalyst for moving into her van came when her last 麻豆社国产rental home was put up for sale 鈥� it was at least the third time that had happened to her.
鈥淚 thought, why should I be hassled so someone else can own more property than they need,鈥� she said, while throwing a stick for Frank at Nexen Beach on a recent sunny afternoon.
The interior of her tidy minivan includes a bed 鈥� made with hospital corners鈥� and neatly stacked plastic containers of her belongings. She keeps about a month鈥檚 worth of dry goods on hand and has a few basic cooking supplies and a few basic clothing items, which she repurposes depending on the season.
She parks in various places to sleep overnight for free and didn鈥檛 want to divulge her exact locations.
She showers at friends鈥� places or at the recreation centre and uses free wi-fi at cafes or the 麻豆社国产Adventure Centre.
Shpeley also came to the decision to live in her van because she wanted to cause less of a footprint in the way she lived, she said.
She said she grew up free camping in the back country to enjoy being outside, 鈥渁nd I just always had a feeling that this whole society construct was not the right thing to chase. I could always see the harm being caused to humanity by our consumption,鈥� she said.
There is a distinction, Shpeley said, between those who have to and those who want to live the way she does. Some people are homeless; others choose a lifestyle that includes living in a vehicle, she said.
According to Shpeley, there are about 12 other year-round van-dwellers in Squamish. In the summer that figure balloons to over 100, she said.
There is a community of people across North America living as Shpeley does, as an Internet search attests. There are forums, blogs and articles dedicated to the van lifestyle, which for the most part seems to be made up of university-educated 20 to 30-somethings who work less and opt out of the traditional life path of university to career to home ownership.
Shpeley studied earth and ocean sciences and geology at University of Victoria. She even worked for a time in coal and uranium exploration.
鈥淚 thought it would be a good idea and then I could pay off my [student] loan, and it hurt my heart, a lot. It is just not worth the money,鈥� she said.
Some people assume she is just lazy, but that couldn鈥檛 be further from the truth, she said.
聽鈥淭hey don鈥檛 realize how much harder I am working living this life. I am just not necessarily working towards a career. I am working towards making the world a nicer place for everyone,鈥� she said, adding she spends time picking up garbage and fighting for causes she believes in, such as opposing the proposed FortisBC test drilling through the estuary.
鈥淲ork keeps people busy and distracted and in a state of need so they can鈥檛 make the changes necessary,鈥� she said.
Shpeley works at paid jobs about three months of the year. She has done nude modeling for art classes and worked with dogs.
She is also an award-winning photographer and hopes to earn more of her income from selling her photos inscribed with inspiring messages.
鈥淗er photography is amazing, she has incredible vision,鈥� said her friend Jacqui Macey, 50.
Macey met Shpeley when they both worked at a local dog kennel, and the two clicked immediately, in spite of their age difference, Macey said. 鈥淚 just feel that she is a real free spirit that has a lot of courage to do what she is doing,鈥滿acey added.
鈥淪he is wise beyond her years.鈥�
To see Shpeley鈥檚 photos go to Tideline聽to聽Alpine聽Photography聽&聽Adventure on Facebook.
