There was a presentation in my department today about a graduate student's project on the homeless. It got me thinking about what "homeless" is and how we define what homelessness is. By many people's definitions, I'm "homeless." I pay rent as needed, I don't live in a house with a foundation, and my house has wheels and an engine. I have a roof over my head, but no real reason, other than the price of gas, to not roam. Am I homeless?
I realized while thinking about this that I'm the least homeless person I know, despite the fact that many people would classify me as such. The reason I came to this conclusion is that I own the roof over my head outright. Nobody can take away my house because I'm not paying rent -- if I don't want to pay rent, or can't, I unplug my utilities and wait until I can afford rent. I don't have a lease and my mortgage is no longer the roof over my head...
So, who's homeless? I don't think it's me. As I see it, I'm not homeless for more reasons than just owning the roof directly over my head. I also realized that I would actually be willing to camp year-around. My tents are homes in themselves. It seems that I'm realizing that I have a functional view of the world and have broken down the barriers of what "home" is and what it is to be "homeless."
In a nutshell, what I've learned is that the definition of homeless is narrow and kind of ridiculous. Why would I be considered homeless when my living situation involves so little risk from being lost to wealthy bankers or landlords? By definitions, even of academics studying the issue, I am homeless... and I disagree.
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