hey, yo. yeah you. how’s it going. get this picture above and hundreds like it (500+ and counting) over on nomad.pictures — all free, for anything you want to do with it. that’s pretty rad right?

4g, fuel and connectivity

internet went off last night at 23:00.

was not a surprised really, i'm on a 'pay as you go' dataplan on my ipad. i don't have a fixed address as such so i don't have any direct debits or payments from a 'bank account' - i have a banking card but it's linked to a digital provider rather than a bank, if i need to draw out cash i can do it. i get charged but i can get access to it. the internet was due to go off on the 16th. the 16th of each month is a good day because that is when i get paid from my online projects mainly. i do have the odd payment from udemy but the 16th is my main day.

i'm not sure how it happened but my connectivity bill is the same day. when this happens i can have a problem. you see i get paid in dollars so first thing i have to do is get to a local place that has connectivity so i can do the transfer. at the moment this means i have to go to a certain toilet in a nearby building to get on a wifi network i have the password for. i've tried the other toilet, it's too far away, the network range is better in the far toilet (i kid you not)

when you live 'in the sticks' as we call it, countryside things regarding your connection to the web changes, you realise how important, like water it is. it's basically the 5th emergency service, we need to have our connection as a node to that web. we work on it, we rely on it for information to be informed, it's our social networks. it's become a major part in our lives aside from the television set which is constantly figthing to stay alive. i don't own a television set. i don't watch television.

covering the bases

i have some fees i have to pay for where i'm staying, fuel, food and internet. outside of that i rarely have monies for much else, i get by thou, i buy reduced and discounted food at a fairly nearby store late at night when everything is on sale and i've got enough to feed my daughter when she stays over. the best thing about working from the web however is that i'm in control of the hours. i can work when i want and as hard or as little as i want depending on what i want to try to earn, what i want to put in place. most of the hosting bills for the sites are paid up for years in front. just so i don't have to worry about the costs. i screw myself every year when it comes to my transport/car however and that is always hard.

4g in the field

4g connectivity in the countryside for me was a gamechanger. when i first moved here i had basic 3g and could do very little, it was super interesting how over night the ability to work from here, to connect with the outside world like i had a broadband connection changed everything. i remember having to move the caravan to find a good 4g signal. on their network map it showed where the patchy connectivity was.

i spent a solid week moving my teathered ipad around the van finding the prime position. currently i hook up my machine via ipad teathering. i don't have a smart phone anymore, i wish i did. i just can't afford one and my ipad screen is smashed to bits. i'm hoping i can get enough funds in to get a new phone. i miss making videos and i need one for 4k video anyway for nomad.video in 2017. i'm hopeful i'll make that happen.

hey, yo. yeah you. how’s it going. get this picture above and hundreds like it (500+ and counting) over on nomad.pictures — all free, for anything you want to do with it. that’s pretty rad right?

my data plan is not unlimited for teathered devices but somehow when i'm connected through my ipad it does'nt see my imac so i basically get unlimited 4g connectivity for £25 a month which is pretty awesome. i get about 40 meg down and 20 meg up on a good day. basically good enough for me to work, watch videos, make courses and stay connected to the outside world. i guess that's a lot per year to be connected but it's not a bill i'm tied too. i like having some control there.

if i get desperate i can take a drive to a fairly nearby place for reasonably coffee and unlimited wifi. i'd be screwed without coffee shops. it's good to get a break out - once i've got a new phone i'll make sure that i have some level of funds topping up that sim so that i've got a backup so last night won't happen. it's a weird feeling to be disconnected especially so when your in the middle of a field. you rely on information, it's my income, i have to put work up. i had to send this. feels like you've had a limb removed! :)

cryptocurrency basic income ideas

crypto currency while still confusing to me in some ways. i'm not sure i want that information in my head, i'm not sure i want to understand how everything works. i'm super interested in the model, the ability to have value/currency in a digital wallet where i can pay for things in the 'real world' - value aquired from the time and effort i spend on something. i think that itself is empowering and makes me think about the basic income guys. i love that concept, people are given a flat amount by their countries government to live - to cover the basics.

in some ways i already have that kind of world view, i'm making my basic income however to cover my basics but it does open up more time to work on my creativity works. to spend time on my passion and removes the anxiety and stress of having to fight for money to pay for things that are constantly out of my control, especially when it comes to billing that is effected by inflation, lots of people are strugging because their wages are not inline with the price of the regular things they buy - fuel, food and mortages. the battle to keep your head above water.

that nearly killed me, i was depressed everyday. scared of bills coming through the door. i was a shell of a man and it was scary, i felt out of control and just a link in the chain to a system that just gorges on resources and throws gobs of money at the wrong people to do the wrong thing. i could not stand it anymore. i had to make a change, i had to get out onto the sidelines of society in some way. people made me feel that it was ok to exploit me for my talents and poisitiveity and tried to monitize me in the process. i hated it.

what if crypto could empower the basics

think about it. people need connectivity, you need digital assets making, we can track the time someone is working on something. i use upwork, they have a tray app that takes screenshots as i'm working so the remote client can see i'm working on their project. it's a great way of staying focused when you know someone is 'watching' - it works out great however. i've made courses and screencasts for clients on an hourly rate. it's proof i'm doing what i say i will.

what if then we had some kind of crypto empowering network where we helped key people cover the basics? - i'm not talking about funding a niche group, i'm talking about a squad/remote team of people that bring different skills to the table. what would happen when you had a group of people that could just get on with the work they do best knowing that they have their income requirements met. how we had better buying power when we could see how much a person was really spending on what services each month. if we could get better packages by being together in a group for connectivity for instance if we were all remotely using internet together in a field.

closing

it's my hope then that over time by showing up, taking part in a digital community that has a underlay of digital currency i can find a way to use my creativity and effort to shape myself a role in this next digital revolution. to bring to the table wisdom regarding sustainable practice that we can use to maintain this network of people instead of being the next aquired startup that used it's community numbers just to aquire investor money. i have faith that a crypto community can avoid that and build a very strong network. i'm super excited to be part of the steemit family. i hope you'll have me!