More than 10,000 people live on canal boats in London.
Some people do it to love the way they live, while others choose to save money while living in the capital.
Then some of us find ourselves living on the boat and wondering how exactly this happened-I can't even change the fuse on the light, now I suddenly sleep in a floating metal that needs constant TLC on a giant.
No matter how you finally realize your dream of boating, you learn something subconsciously when you live on a waterway-here are some.
No matter what kind of toilet system your boat has, it won't be a plumbing system and the tank needs to be emptied in the end.
It's not as disgusting as it sounds, but it's a tedious, time-consuming, physically demanding job that you might try to avoid-or at least make the experience as rare as possible.
As a result, you find yourself having the incredible ability to sense the nearest toilet and make sure you make the most of it before you go home.
Every corner of your home needs to be maximized, and when most storage solutions are not built for ships, it's easier said than done.
The speed at which you learn to look at your space in a different way is amazing.
I have good authority and if so you can even find a way to yoga in a small barge corridor.
Nothing on board is straight forward.
If you want to set up a shelf, you need to find a way around the leaning wall;
If you decide to invest in a washing machine instead of going to the local laundry bravely, you need to consider space, water and voltage;
Even if you just want to buy a table, you need it to be a table, and you can fold it up if you have more than three people at any given time.
Professionals on board
There are very few related issues, which means that they usually have a long waiting list and charge a large fee.
So if your stove stops working at random, or your window leaks, or your engine temperature rises, your first stop will be a few hours of research, make you an absolute Google ninja who can find the answer to everything as long as you have an iPhone on hand.
People like to talk about "community awareness" between boat people ".
Although there is a very active (and helpful)
Facebook group, anything other than that is really a question of who you happen to be attracted to-the difference is that you may only have a few days together.
If you are lucky enough to have sociable neighbors, you will quickly internalize the rules of boating life: never ask for their toilets (see point 1)
If they invite you over for a drinkjust in case)
Also do not ask to borrow limited resources such as natural gas, coal or toilet bowl --
Unless it's an absolute emergency (
Hangover may not count).
There is no doubt that the ship has a sixth sense.
You can immediately tell if the water level has changed, if the boiler has made interesting noise, or if the wood you burn is slightly damp than usual.
All of this before others-even boat friends-can spot these signs.
It's like a mother knows the exact meaning of a baby crying.
It's weird and a bit creepy, but it's very satisfying when you nail it (
"I'm pretty sure we'll run out of water for three, two, and one . . . . . . ").
Yes, maybe half of you.
Recycling with all your heart in the past, but if you are, you won't tie yourself to a tree, but living on a boat will give you a wider understanding of the waste we take for granted.
When you constantly realize that your water is running out and don't know when you will be able to fill your tank next time, you are more likely to notice the time you take a shower.
When the next place to dump garbage is only four days away from you, you may go out of your way to reduce the garbage;
When your power comes from solar cells and the solar cells have little energy in winter, you don't leave the lights on when you're not in the room.
All of a sudden, the waste we have accumulated seems unfathomable.
Living on a boat will teach you how to look at things and stop taking the mundane for granted until the most basic thing.