Life Online

One of the things that should make life on the road easier is the ability to do business online. There are bills to be paid and all that.

When my lovely wife and I first started traveling, Internet connection was still mostly dial up. As long as I could get at least one or two stable Internet connections a month I could do what needed to be done. Internet access was sketchy enough that some of my business was done over pay phones. Remember pay phones?

Now there are cell phones and wifi hotspots that allow connection to the 'net from most places. That part of the equation has definitely improved. Unfortunately, those we connect to on the other end often have terrible service.

My bank still hasn't straightened out my online accounts. Ideally I should be able to transfer funds between my accounts. The problem is that for some reason only one out of three accounts actually can be accessed. The others have just disappeared. I've got to physically go into the bank with a wad of cash money -like a barbarian. That won't help me on the road. No doubt the holidays might have caused a business backlog, but it is disconcerting. Nothing sends up red flags like a bank that won't allow depositors access to their money.

Then there's government web sites. Everyone remembers the healthcare.gov web site fiasco. Well now the US Census sent me something called “American Community Survey.” They claim I must fill it out by law. (maybe, maybe not, but I'm going to pick my battles) They threatened me with penalties if I don't fill out the survey, but their web site does not work. I've been trying to log on repeatedly for days. Recently I got a card in the mail stating that if I don't fill out the survey on line they'll send a paper survey. Fine, but I'm hitting the road soon. Eventually, my mail will catch up to me -maybe.

The first year my lovely wife and I spent the winter traveling, we did very little business remotely. We simplified our finances. Some bills were paid up front. We had bundles of cash hidden in our car. Our daughter picked up our mail for us. When we called her she'd tell us of anything important that came in.

Ever since we got back home from last trip in March I've been trying to simplify our business for this winter's trip. It's different, but not simplified. Everything takes longer than it should. I'll have something cobbled together for when we are on the road but it won't be pretty.

Maybe some day I'll travel with a boat loaded with provisions and trade goods. The heck with this modern online world.

-Sixbears