Many have Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome from alcoholism and will lie about absolutely anything. If you are bored and stuck hanging out with vagrants, you can make up a story that involves you and them, and they will jump right in. Like, "remember, what was it 5 years ago... that we took the trip to Alaska to go moose hunting." They will remember and fill in the details. A very strange disorder from a lack of thiamine. Even though the conversation is complete fiction, they enjoy the story time.
I just think "being tired" in all senses of the word is a pretty impactful thing. As a young person I never understood why people would complain about xyz, to me, through my ignorant ass teenaged eyes I thought everyone was just weak-minded and dumb.
When you are young you are invincible sorta thing. And hell I'm still young but now I seriously think .. damn I'm tired. Damn it sucks to get sick. Damn what if this, what if that. I overdosed on caffeine recently. That sounds pretty "funny" actually, but caffeine is a real drug and suffice to say I completely tripped out. One of the worst experiences. Long story short it made me really really really really prioritize a healthy lifestyle. I don't want to feel unhealthy, its not worth it.
Mom was right. Eat your vegetables, balanced diet. Exercise every day. Take a minute to relax. Love your friends. See the sun.
Ok shutting up now.
I'm currently living in Toronto, Canada (I'm from Australia). I don't really know anybody here so I have nothing better to do than work. I take time off for the gym, food and when my girlfriend has time off work. This way she stays happy and I get to work as much as I want.
I moved up to Portlandia from LA to intern at Vizify and thought it would go according to the plan as well. I was also going to document my process as I thought it would make for some interesting content.
I thought the condition would create a pressure that would make me perform and produce more--all it did was create a pressure of homelessness, which killed my productivity. I was always tired and depressed AND dirty.
You're plan makes sense conceptually--but wait till you're actually there and homeless. Figure out an alternative otherwise your productivity will suffer big time and you might as well stay home and make shit happen there.
Good luck!!!
OP, SF is an epicenter of car break-ins. Chances are high that you're gonna get your stuff stolen. If you're lucky, it won't be your tech gear cuz you'll be in a coworking spot (good luck finding parking - I have memories of driving around for an hour+). But it would suck to have your clothes, blankets, sleeping bag, and other things stolen. Thieves in other cities won't bother with that stuff, but SF is different.
But then again Silicon Valley is moving closer to mirroring bullshitty Hollywood scene. I see you got some hits from hackey tech news blogs so you're already up a few. Ride the hype for as long as you can.
I would rather in 4 months time smile seeing you write a blog post about how you sold your company for a mil than anything.
Take care and good luck.
Biggest takeaway: the idea bordered between impractical and stupid. But I was 24 and I thought I knew better. Also, I was 24, I could tolerate being stupid.
Other takeaways:
1. Buy a Costco 24 Hour Fitness membership. You now have access to facilities around the country.
2. Make friends with 7/11 clerks, the nice ones got your back at night for a few days at a time.
3. Pack a baseball bat. Seriously.
4. Bring a tent and camping chairs.
5. Very few bums and vagrants have good stories but the ones that do are worth their weight in gold.
At the end of the day you're going to spend more time and effort figuring out how to survive than working. This becomes a huge drag after the magic fades the first week.
And, oh yeah, if you want to be full on relentless: make friends with big corp employees in Mtn View and Palo Alto to partake in their cafeterias. Or figure out how to do the tailgating dance.