“squatter In Los Angeles”

I thought I’d announce my new Kindle book to Dirttime. (Even Dude likes it — see below)

“Squatter in Los Angeles: Life on the Edge” is the true story of my year and a half as a squatter in the Highland Park district of Los Angeles. This book is not intended as a how-to guide, nor is it meant to encourage anyone to break any laws. It happens to be the true story of what I did during a very influential time in my life. I learned how to get more for less, and I realized – just like Thoreau at his pond in the woods – that we can live quite well and fulfilled if we attempt to differentiate our true needs from mere wants.

I share how I came to be a squatter, and some of the details of moving into an empty house. In the book I describe the concern of never knowing when someone would come up the driveway and tell me to get out (which never quite happened), and how I took the time to learn about gardening, permaculture, recycling of resources and water recycling.

It’s true I had no rent to pay so I was able to devote more time to learning things. But I also had hardly any income, which made it clear to me why most people get regular jobs. But I was in my early 20s at the time, and still trying to figure things out.

“Squatter in Los Angeles” is about 100 pages on Kindle, and it’s a fast moving story of the mixed experiences during this short period in my life: dealing with a ghost, a near-death experience, learning how to recycle everything, learning how to dowse, insights into sustainable gardening, an emergency toilet test, and also a rain dance in August with rain the next day. The book also includes a period of homelessness and how I dealt with it, and what I learned from it.

According to Dude McLean, author of “The Songwriters Survival Guide to Success,”
“Your story is filled with a lot of truth — some might even be uncomfortable with it. All that means is you have touched them in a manner they never thought of in the past. Few authors make you think. They are writing to please others rather than being truthful to themselves. I think this is a very interesting and unique book. The book has a great lack of desperation. I feel it is a very positive outlook. Good job!”

“Squatting in Los Angeles” is available as a Kindle download, and can also be purchased as Word document from the Store at www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.com.

P.S. You Dirtime members who really want to read this book, and really can’t afford the paltry 2.99 that Kindle asks, just send me an email and I’ll send you word copy of the book – my only bribe for this excellent read is that you promise to tell your mother and priest about it, and promise to post a review on Amazon. OK?