Beach Bum

[Yppej]

So that I can relax and not worry about my things getting stolen while I am in the water I am a beach bum. Today I am bringing an old raggedy towel with loose threads, my ugliest sandals with the color peeling off in places, the over 10 year old sunscreen, a gallon of Market Basket water, the last styrofoam cup in the cupboard, and a mug I do not like. My coverup T shirt is a logoed freebie I do not care for. If any of these items are taken it will not bother me. My outfits will be mismatched and shabby.

In what ways does the opposite of conspicuous consumption give you peace of mind?

[rosarugosa]

Driving a car that nobody would want to steal and not repairing car damage that is merely cosmetic.

[razz]

I so agree with this. Wearing a basic fanny pack, old T's and shorts, basic haircut, older birkenstocks keeps me inconspicuous. I am clean, neat but not very interesting. It is a nice and wise stage to not care what people think.

[sweetana3]

The only real downside is being treated as poor by sales staff or ignored, etc. I am short and have grey hair. I do not dress fashionably. We were once confronted at the first class section of airport check-in because they clearly thought we did not belong. It clearly shows who is trained to treat everyone the same.

Years ago, the oldest and ugliest car in the parking lot outside the office in Gary, IN was the one stolen from the fenced parking lot.

[ApatheticNoMore]

Years ago, the oldest and ugliest car in the parking lot outside the office in Gary, IN was the one stolen from the fenced parking lot.

I believe it, my dad drove an old car, a beater, one where even the paint had become damaged by a bad car cleaning product, an eyesore. It got stolen. But who would want that? It became the getaway car thieves used to steal other cars. It was found with a ton of theft tools in it. Usually my car is not that high value just like my possessions at home aren't, but I carry insurance against car theft and lock the car and use anti-theft products.

[Teacher Terry]

I have never had anything stolen at a beach, public park, etc.

[Ultralight]

As a solo traveler who loves the beach I have to be careful about my belongings when beaching it up alone in a foreign land. In Tel Aviv I would lock my things up in my Air BnB and just take my US state ID and cash for lunch. I would stuff these in my swim trunks pocket. So I would show up to the beach in a t-shirt, trunks, and flops, and towel in hand.

One day when I was there I was out in the water swimming all around. Then I went back to the beach and my towel, flops, and t-shirt were gone.

I was annoyed but I remember thinking to myself: "It is going to be embarrassing to walk back to my Air BnB like this. But nothing taken was that big of a deal."

Plot twist: I had swum down far enough that I was in the location on the beach I was the previous day. So once I realized this I went back down the beach and found my things right where I actually left them.

I did something similar to this in Uruguay too, where I would leave my stuff in the Air BnB and then hoof it to the beach in just the each essentials.

For me, this works.

[catherine]

I love this topic. Nothing puzzles me more than an obsession with security over one's possessions.

I remember when DH and moved into our first house. We had nothing. Nonetheless, I asked him, shouldn't we be locking our doors? And his response was "Why? If a robber came in he'd probably feel sorry for us and leave us a couple of bucks."

My anthem for concern over material possessions is embodied in "I Got Plenty o' Nuttin'":

Oh, I got plenty o' nuttin'
And nuttin's plenty for me
I got no car, got no mule
I got no misery
De folks wid plenty o' plenty
Got a lock on de door
'Fraid somebody's a-goin' to rob 'em
While dey's out a-makin' more
What for?
I got no lock on de door
Dat's no way to be
Dey kin steal de rug from de floor
Dat's okeh wid me
'Cause de things dat I prize
Like de stars in de skies
All are free

I have lost material things, so I have been tested. I had a computer stolen out of my car but it did nothing to tarnish that particular day with my kids--it was a great day despite the theft. I lost an heirloom diamond once while weeding around corn, and I never gave it more than 5 minutes thought. I had diamond earrings that my DH gave me for our engagement stolen by drug dealers in Patterson, NJ, but the only reason I was upset was because I didn't want to have to tell DH.

I truly don't have much that I would not want to lose. As Janis Joplin said, "Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose." It's not that I don't have much. I just don't want to care about it too much.

[iris lilies]

Oh sure, taking old clothing and towels are not a problem. But I don’t know what you all do with your things like your passport and your wallet when you’re in the ocean.


UL says he locked it in his Airbnb. So was there a key that he had to carry with him? Or was it passcode entry which would be great because that reduces the need for a physical key.


If you all drive to a beach I guess you can lock it all in a car but that is a signal for thieves if everyone has their wallets locked in their car. Kind of like everyone who locks their guns in their car when they come to baseball games here or hockey games. The law says they can’t take it into the stadium, so law abiding citizens do not take it in. Non-law abiding citizens take advantage of that