How people react to your petsitting or nomadic life?

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Something I’ve been thinking about lately… How do your friends and family react when they find out you change homes all the time or host people you don’t know “yet” in your home?
In our case, after three years of doing this full-time, we still get all kinds of looks, from envy to total disbelief (and even a little pity sometimes!).

Initially, everyone around us thought we’d last only a few weeks. Now, they can’t believe it’s been years and we’re still loving the ride. Some people give you that “wow, you’re really living the dream” look, while others sort of feel sorry for you or just don’t get it at all.

How about you? How do people in your life react? Do you openly share your nomad/petsitting lifestyle, or do you sometimes avoid talking about it? Any funny (or awkward) family stories or reactions to share?

Sometimes it feels like we’re living in a different universe from everyone else…

And then there are those people who bombard you with questions, or who drop the classic excuses like “If I didn’t have kids…” or “If I were younger…” as if those things are the only reason you’d live this way. Sometimes it feels like they just can’t imagine it at all. Have you experienced that too? How do you usually handle those conversations?

Would love to hear your stories and how you navigate the mix of reactions, from curiosity to scepticism, that come with living this life!

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Great topic @MyrCar - I added a stock image to your post so that I could feature it on our Forum homepage :slight_smile:

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Super! Thank you Jenny

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At my age most of my friends and family don’t get it. They say wouldn’t you rather stay in a hotel that has room service and you don’t have to scoop litter. The answer is NO! I don’t like one room hotels while listening to people run up and down the halls. I like the warm and cozy of a house, a full kitchen and I am a big animal lover! I like being in a local neighborhood with local restaurants and not on hotel row with restaurants that cater to tourist. I am grateful this type of travel exists.

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I really get a kick out of sharing my experiences with my cousin. She.Does.Not.Get.It.At.All.
But for her, salt and pepper are the height of spicy.

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:100: I totally feel the same way about hotels. You really can’t compare traveling and staying in someone’s home to being at a hotel, where the vibe just feels like you’re passing through. Doing pet sitting lets you slow down your travels and actually feel the energy of each place, all while enjoying the comfort of a home and the company of lovely pets.

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Hahaha, :joy: I think I can totally picture your cousin. I have that cousin too!

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Some folks might be jealous, envious, etc., but some folks are genuinely stumped — they can’t imagine why someone would want X. It might look unappealing, uncomfortable, etc. But that’s true for various lifestyles that vary from norms.

Most people look at X through their own priorities, preferences, etc., rather than yours. They might even want what they think is “good” for you, but their version wouldn’t work for you.

The key thing is, you don’t need them to agree or buy in, unless you’re dependent on them for important things that you can’t get or do for yourself. Like do they support you financially?

Personally, I’m not a digital nomad, but I’ve made atypical choices starting young. It doesn’t bother me that I don’t have anyone else’s agreement, buy-in or such, because I’m independent and what I do works for me.

I don’t owe anyone an explanation, even loved ones. And because I’ve never bothered, they’ve learned that their judgment has no effect.

To me, such conversations are pointless, because you have no need to convince them. But if you want to bother, you could start with points of agreement, such as: I know you want me to be happy. Well, this works for me now.

How you want me to live my life wouldn’t work for me. That’s why you should respect my choice. I might change my mind later, and I can always do that. Or not.

Otherwise, do you want me or anyone else to tell you how to live your life? I don’t think that would make you happy, either.

… It’s useful to repeat a script like that, because it wears them down and gives them no further room to argue. Then it becomes a repetitive loop, which they won’t likely repeat endlessly.

Every time they bring it up, you shut them down with the looped script.

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@MyrCar

Fourteen years, 155+ sits, and countless adventures around the world — not bad for something “they” said wouldn’t last! Then again, “they” said the same about our marriage… and here we are, 32 years strong. Maybe “they” were right — guess we’ll just have to wait and see :wink::woman_shrugging:t2:

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I’m pretty certain this has been discussed before on the forum.
In my case some friends don’t get it at all, why I would Housesit and not be paid. Others are envious of the lifestyle.

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Most of our friends know we are nomadic by nature and while our lifestyle doesn’t fit with their “norms” they are very encouraging and follow our adventures through social media. We even started a YouTube channel (shameless plug EVNomadlife🤣 ) which they really like as it’s more story telling in nature. The people we meet on the road and endlessly fascinated and we have “converted” several. At the end of the day I think most people are happy if you are happy.

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Have you just started your YouTube channel?

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At first people find it unusual , something they’ve never heard of , ask lots of questions. After hearing our experiences they usually ask how do I sign up ?

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Hi. Yes but we only have two episodes up so far. It’s been really enjoyable.

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Wow, 155+ what a record! I’m pretty sure you must be some of the veterans with the most sits. There should definitely be some kind of ranking for that! :joy:

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Thank you for your thoughtful answer. I want to clarify that I never intended to convince anyone or the other way around about their lifestyle choices, nor did I mean for there to be any disrespect. These are just informal conversations, like chatting over coffee or a beer. As humans, it’s natural for those kinds of comments to affect us in some way, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop doing what I do or that I owe anyone explanations. I don’t think others are necessarily wrong either, everyone should live their life as they wish, as long as they’re not harming anyone. I actually find these conversations really interesting, not pointless, because it’s fascinating to see how each person can view things so differently, yet all perspectives can be valid.

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@MyrCar Aw, thank you — “veterans” and “ranking,” that made us smile. We’ve been lucky to share so many lovely homes and happy paws along the way :paw_prints::heart:

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Most family and friends are truly fascinated. We also do Home Exchange, which is equally fascinating. The most common refrain: “I am going to do that when I retire.”

We have some friends who say they would NEVER do it. My thought: narrow-minded, spoiled, introverted, etc. To each his own!

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If some pity you, how is their POV “valid”? At best, they’ve misunderstood your circumstances and judged you accordingly.

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Hahaha, I honestly didn’t even know THS existed 14 years ago! I bet you have a ton of stories and memories from all that time. Compared to you, we’re absolute beginners, with just over 60 sits and 8 years in the game!

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