And no, please dont suggest homeless shelters, those are just unsafe and very demoralizing.
The very first thing I looked for (and forgive me for this, this is gonna be a controvertial one here) is the military, because thats just what lots of reddit threads mentioned, and like it would be an immediate exit from a toxic household, and yes, that would mean enduring an institution thats also kinda toxic, but thats only a few years and you're free, and its much more predictable. Except they dont accept anyone with depression and you have to prove you're "fine" for probably 36 months to even get a waiver. So that's crossed off as an option.
Jobcorps, well thats for low income families, and being a dependent means your parents income is what counts so i dont qualify
Americorps NCCC, well that seems seasonal and the next thing doesnt start till like months later (not sure if I'm even reading the website correctly)
Ngl I lowkey just thought of enlisting so once I finish that, next time we meet, I could stand in front of my toxic brother just staring at him menacingly, like whatcha gonna do, fight with an ex-soldier? Not to mention the prestiege of veteran status. And btw its only 1% thats acrually ever gonna face real combat so its not like WW1&2 trench warfare, its mostly just logistics, and like a civillian job, you'd be contributing to shareholder value anyways so there isnt really much of a "moral highground" either way, except working a retail job or some shit is very demoralizing but military has the reverance. And also
But anyways I'm not eligible anytime soon anyways. I doubt I'm even "manly" enough for it.
~~Bruh idk what to do really, you know that one movie, Parasite where like they work in a rich person's mansion and that shit. I'm not a fan of rich people but like I lowkey wanna like just "housesitter" and chill in some nice mansion with great views, and maybe even find secrets and become a movie plot.~~ (edit: okay this part I'm half joking, its more like a fantasy daydream of "I get to be in a movie plot" probably unrealistic for someone that never been in proximity of high wealth)
I'm in Philly, PA btw.
(Also should I pack light with just a backpack and just one or two change of clothes and laundry often or just carry every clothing I could fit in a suitcase?)
I mean, in theory, I think you're right. But while a $200 build out is possible & miserable, a $2000 build out can be something actually enjoyable.
Also, you should always keep some escape money in case you get injured and need a hotel for a night or two. Even for things like hard tack, while technically possible I guess, you would still need some mechanism to make hard tack at scale. I would not encourage this option for people that aren't able to dedicate $3k-$5k for all gear/food/permits/hotels/etc.
Hard tack is just flour mixed with water baked into an oven until it's dry. Easy enough to make at home, but you'd have to carry it, and if you wanted to make it on the trail, you'd have to carry a pan and the flour and the water and how you can get some firewood.
I still think your $2,000 price point is past the point of comfort and into luxury for fair weather camping, but I haven't priced anything out in a while. I think I got a decent pack for $200, boots for $150, bag for about $100, tent $300. Water filter. I don't want to bother with cooking, so I never bought any cooking equipment.
What are these permits? When I was looking into the AT, there were designated camping areas which maybe you could reserve or occupy, but there were stretches of trail which were just designated as "go ahead and camp anywhere around here."