Blog du Wren

Sleeping Around 2017-18

It's that time of year again, time for me to take stock of my life through numbers: it's Sleeping Around Round-Up time!! As I'm sure you all know, I track where I sleep every night and post it for the world to see. Then, every year, I dive into the number to see what it can tell me. Being that this year's data is year 10, perhaps a little extra analysis is warranted.

Firstly, as compared to last year and much of the year before, things are a bit skewed. Comparatively, housesitting is way down. But this due to the "Mansion effect", i.e. no longer having the longtime Bellingham stint (posted about here). Looking back to pre-Mansion time, housesitting is up and travel is a bit down, but not too far from normal all around.

Other observations:

I had 8 nights in my cabin at the Quarry, but still not as many as I hope for.
Another year of no nights in a tent. That makes a total of 2 nights in the last 4 years. That's too much of a trend to not notice.
Both international travel days and # of countries visited is lower than I like, but a break is acceptable.

Additional Stats
# of housesitting houses	11(!)	At least 3 new "clients"
# of states (other than WA)	8	OR, NY, CT, GA, FL, NC, TX, NV
# of countries (other than US)	1 :-(	Jamaica
Longest stretch at home	8	Averaging about 3 nights
Longest stretch away from home	31	On two separate occasions
# in car	33	Hotel Toyota
# in hotel/hostel	36	For work and play

As always, I encourage you to examine the data yourself and to look back at previous years' posts (which can easily be found from the archive page.)

TEN YEARS

Just for funsies, I did a bit of a 10 year analysis as well. The numbers are remarkably...well, predictable. I guess it turns out that I lead a pretty regular life in some senses. Sure there are spikes in travel or housesitting various years, but afterward, it seems to return to a steady average.

A few interesting facts pop out at me, like I've spent 261 nights in a car in the past 10 years and almost a year outside of the country. And some trend emerge, like downward slide in travel and the aforementioned lack of nights in tent. But overall, this data is becoming what data sometimes has a tendency to do: boring. But even thought it may be predictable and/or boring, I still find it incredibly informative. And I hope to have a second 10 years' worth of data to compare to this first decade down the road.

(I originally did this graphic with in-state, domestic, and international travel all separate, but the graph was a bit unwieldy (though still informative))

Monday August 20 2018

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Breakdown of Earnings 2017

Last year, I made a post that summarized my earnings for the year. It started with all sorts of caveats regarding the taboo of talking about money, etc. etc. All the same caveats apply for this year, so feel free to go back and review them. But basically, I'm posting a summary of my yearly earnings for the same reason I post about my sleeping around data—because I think it is neat and an incredible tool for self-analysis.

In last year's post, I talked about achieving a life goal (of sorts) of having no more than one quarter of my income come from a particular source. This year, I guess I juggled my way out of that one. But I think it's good. With this data, I can see that I'm succeeding as a juggler and I have no small amount of pride in that. Other numbers–housesitting, trivia, labor, crosswords–aren't changed too much. It's neat to see that those elements aren't necessarily suffering from juggling's big takeover.

I look forward to continuing tracking, analyzing (,and probably blogging about) this data in the upcoming years. It is truly mind-boggling how much interest I find in these simple numbers. But for now, it is just nice to have an answer to the question "What do you do for a living?".

Thursday February 22 2018

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Sleeping Around 2016-207

I shall start this year's sleeping around post as I do almost every year's, with an explanation. My Sleeping Around project (now entering it's 10th year!) is my attempt at capturing and quantifying my life through where I rest my head. I attempt to summarize the year's data around this time every year and tease out the secrets that it holds. Let us begin.

This year's Sleeping Around data is the least diverse to date, by far. In fact, it is so boring that I had to make the pie chart into a pac-man in hopes of even getting myself to care. But even in the most boring data lies interesting tidbits.

Interesting Tidbits:

Housesitting accounts for nearly 3/4th of my nights
One housesitting client accounts for 65% of housesitting nights and almost half the nights overall!
Not a single night in a tent nor at my cabin at the Quarry
28 nights in hotels/hostels and 18 in a car (3/4ths of which were in the last month)

Additional Stats
# of Housesitting Houses	7	65% of these nights was at home client in particular
# of states (other than WA)	4	OR, OK, NY, CT
# of countries (other than US)	2	Costa Rica, Nicaragua
Longest stretch at home	5	I was away so much my poor spider plant nearly died
Longest stretch away from home	119	This only includes nights away. I'm sure I visited home lots during that time.

Years from now, when I look back on all my Sleeping Around data, will I see the 2016-2017 year as an anomaly like it feels now or will it be the beginning of a trend? The only way to find out is to keep collecting data. And that's exactly what I plan to do!

(Previous year's analyses: '08-'09, '09-'10, '10-'11, '11-'12, '12-'13, '13-'14, '14-'15, '15-'16. And this year's data)

Wednesday August 9 2017

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A Breakdown of Earnings

They say money is a taboo subject. And while I see that, I'm somewhat inclined to disagree. I love talking about money and actually find exchanging ideas on the subject to be insightful. So it is with that spirit that I present my latest data collecting project.

For the past 3 or so years, I've been taking data on my various jobs the same way I take data on my sleeping around, which is to say meticulously. I've recently taken all the data and categorized it and entered it into a database for easy analysis. The result? Well, for one, I got this fancy pie chart representing my income streams for 2016. I've left off amounts because 1) that starts to creep over that taboo line and 2) you never know where lurks the tax man. (Note for the tax man: you're wasting your time. Small potatoes doesn't even begin to describe it.)

Similarly to the Sleeping Around Data Project, this bean counting has led to some great analysis. Some obvious noteable trends over the past 3 years of data: web and labor income are down while juggling and trivia income are up. Also, I can see the breakdown of housesitting by client which can cross reference with the Sleeping Around data nicely. Basically, there are a bunch of numbers that I really like looking at.

Many years ago, a friend asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up. I responded that I didn't want any job that accounted for more than a quarter of my total earnings, so as to avoid burnout and maintain variety in my life. Now, some 16 years later, it seems that that's pretty much where I am. Pretty dang neat!

Friday January 20 2017

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Sleeping Around 2015-2016

Another year, another year's worth of sleeping around data. This brings me to 8 years worth of data on where I slept every night. That's 2922 nights. It's kind of crazy having a log of something so simple for so long, but I love it. And I love analyzing it. So, without further ado...

Observations:

Housesitting is off the hook, almost doubling from years past.*
Nights At Home, correspondingly, are way down at less than 40% of average
Domestic Travel (travel outside of Washington state) is at an all time low, meaning that while I may not be at home much, I'm sure staying close to home
International Travel is up nicely, reflecting that rambling trip to Egypt, etc.
Car nights are down, due in part to the uptick in housesitting and Della getting the Green Room*
Another year of just one tent night, though it is almost cheating because it was quite a deluxe tent out in the desert in Jordan

Additional Stats
# of Housesitting Houses	8	Some were Della's, some were mine. Some were one off, some were long-time clients
# of states (other than WA)	5	OR, AZ, WI, NY, CT
# of countries (other than US)	7	Hungary, Israel, Jordan, Egypt, UAE, France, [International Waters]*
Longest stretch at home	8	The longest stretches away from home, though, were 60, 58, and 45

If you care to have a look at the data yourself, do so here*. And if you really want to get into the weeds of data, you can look over my last 7 Sleeping Around posts: '08-'09, '09-'10, '10-'11, '11-'12, '12-'13, '13-'14, '14-'15. Otherwise, I hope you enjoyed my analysis even a tenth as much as I enjoyed making it. Really, nothing better than this data set helps me encapsulate my life in numbers.

Wednesday August 3 2016

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Sleeping Around 2014-2015

If ever there was a case of data being both boring and exciting at the same time, this is it. Data from my Sleeping Around calendar from the last year both captures my imagination with its simple encapsulation of a life and almost puts me to sleep with its predictability.

First, the predictable stuff: as has been the case for the last 3 or so years, my time comes out almost evenly split between the 3 major categories. Nights spent housesitting changed by less than 2%. The division of travel between its 3 sub categories stayed more or less similar, thought a 9 day trip to Dominican Republic boosted the international numbers. All in all, this year was a lot like last year.

As for the exciting stuff, just analyizing and presenting the data makes me smile. Little differences like a drop in nights in a car or a jump in nights in a hotel reflect little excitements that make this year different than last year.

Additional Stats
Nights in a Car	18	This number is significantly lower than last year due to Della getting a place in Bellingham so the van not being our primary spot when in town.
Nights in a Tent	1	This one's significantly lower. the lowest it's ever been. With no Chautauqua and only a day trip to Lopez Juggle Fest, I barely squeezed one night in at a frisbee tourney in Friday Harbor
Nights on a Boat	2	Nothing quite as exotic as tropical live-aboards in years past. Instead, just a conveient layover spot in Seattle on a friend's moored 33-footer
Nights in a "Hotel"	31	A full month sleeping in hotels and hostels. This includes a week long work trip to Mt. Rainier, my Wheel of Fortune trip to Hawaii, that DR trip, and various other quick trips. Good thing I didn't have to pay for them all!
Longest Stretch at Home	14
# of states (other than WA)	8	CA, OR, NV, NY, CT, MD, CO, HI

As my database* grows with more years of data, the more I like looking at the trends slowly emerging. Here's what 7 years looks likes.

And, with past years to compare this year to, setting goals for next year is easier. Resolved: I will spend more than 1 night in a tent, and my international travel numbers will go up*. But most of all, I resolve to keep logging the data!

(For recaps on previous years sleeping around, check out these posts: '08-'09, '09-'10, '10-'11, '11-'12, '12-'13, and '13-'14.)

Wednesday August 5 2015

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Sleeping Around 2013-2014

Who's ready to nerd out on the most insignificant details and break them down statistically!?! Everyone? Good, that's what I thought. So without further ado, here's the breakdown of my year of Sleeping Around™, the industry standard for tracking one's itinerant life.

Some interesting observations: this year takes the cake for most nights spent at home, up 20 nights from the previous high mark (and up 37(!) over the 5-year average). I attribute this to the settling that Della and I have been doing in the Outback (covered here).

Also notable is the record low number of travel, down almost a full month from the previous low mark (down 50(!) nights from the 5-year average). While there's a twinge of regret in seeing that number, I also know that it's low because I've got a pretty dang good life for myself here on the home front so there's less fun to be had in leaving. But still, I hope to see this number rise for the '14-'15 year (esp. that peskily low international travel number).

Other fun data:

Travel Breakdown
In-state*	75 (66%)
Domestic	29 (26%)
# of states (other than WA)	6 (OR, NV, FL, WI, NY, CA)
International	9 (8%)
# of countries (other than US)	2*

Additional Stats
Nights in a Car	39
Nights in a Tent	10
Nights on a Boat	3
Nights in a Hotel	11
Longest Stretch at Home	22*

Since this is year number 6* of data collection, I thought I'd throw a fun little Over the Years graph, a fun way to compare year to year.

To have a further look at this year's data so you can run your own graphs and charts, go here. Posts on previous years sleeping around can be found here: '08-'09, '09-'10, '10-'11, '11-'12, and '12-'13

Monday August 4 2014

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Sleeping Around 2012-2013

Anyone familiar with this blog probably knows about my favorite pet project, my sleeping around page, so I'll save you the ramblings about how I feel it encapsulates my life, how much fun I have making it, and how I hope to keep on collecting data for a long time to come* Well, my ubicational year has recently come to end and it serves as a great time to sum up the data.

From a general categories standpoint, things look pretty average*, either a testament to how predictable my life has become or evidence that over the span of a year, even erraticness can average itself out.. On the subcategory level, however, we see a dramatic increase in international travel over last year which brings it up to about the 5-year average.

An interesting, yet unsurprising, rising trend is the number of nights spent at the quarry (47). I can only imagine that with the impending completion of my cabin, that number will continue to rise.

Travel Breakdown
In-state	86 (56%)
Domestic	28 (19%)
# of states (other than WA)	2 (OR, HI)
International	37 (25%)
# of countries (other than US)	5*

Additional Stats
Nights in a Car	40
Nights in a Tent	20
Nights on a Boat	10
Nights in a Hotel	26
Longest Stretch at Home	15

While I could probably go on about the ins and outs of this data for hours, I'll spare you the pain. If you're really that interested, play with the full data yourself.

Previous years' posts can be found here: 2008-2009, 2009-2010, 2010-2011, and 2011-2012.

Thursday August 22 2013

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Sleeping Around 2011-2012

Overall Stats
Nights At Home	101 (27.5%)
Nights Housesitting	112 (31%)
Nights of Travel	153 (42%)

One of the things I most look forward to on this blog is the collating of my year of sleeping around. It, better than possibly anything else, encapsulates what my year was like. And, since it is so nice and quantifiable, it serves as a great comparison to previous years. Did my housesitting business go up or down?* Did I travel more or less than last year?* The fun I have with looking through these numbers is really quite ridiculous.

Today represents the end of the fourth year of data, 1461 days of logging where I slept. I've presented this year's data in various ways here, some specifically for consistency with previous years for comparison. To see a breakdown, check out the calendar

What, in my eyes, is notable? Travel is WAY down, esp. international travel which is down from an average of 65 nights to just 4. Nights at home is higher than normal, partly due to [happily] playing live-in nurse for Ma when she got a new hip. Nights in a car is up, which is what happens when one's girlfriend lives* [by choice] in a car.

I very much like the transient nature of my life, at least for the time being. And I like numbers and data. So I trust this über-nerdy habit of tracking and analyzing will go continue for years to come, possibly to the point of it being the only post per year on the ever waning* Blog du Wren.

Previous years' posts can be found here: 2008-2009, 2009-2010, and 2010-2011.

Travel Breakdown
In-state	91 (59%)
Domestic	58 (38%)
# of states (other than WA)	5
International	4 (2.6%)
# of countries (other than US)	1

Additional Stats
Nights in a Car	37
Nights in a Tent	39
Nights in a Boat	0
Nights in a Hotel	9
Longest stretch at home	7

Wednesday August 1 2012

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Sleeping Around 2010-2011

Overall Stats
Nights At Home	78 (21%)
Nights Housesitting	78 (21%)
Nights of Travel	209 (57%)

Travel Breakdown
In-state	45 (22%)
Domestic	75 (36%)
International	89 (42%)

Additional Stats
Nights in a Car*	25
Nights in a Tent	22
Nights in a Boat	3
Nights in a Hotel	58
# of States (other than WA)	6
# of Countries (other than US)	9
Longest stretch at home	11

It's that time of year again, one of my most looked forward to blog posts of the whole year: my recap of the year of sleeping around! As I've explained and posted about before, I keep a calendar of where I lay my head every night of the year and categorize it in different ways. It is my way to see my year, where I've been and what I've been doing, in numbers. I find a ridiculous amount of interest in it and it helps me answer the question "where do you live?" much more easily.

Now that this is my 3rd year of keeping stats, I have some interest data for comparison. For example, I realize that this past year, my housesitting numbers are lower than the last 2 years (by over a month(!)), but my international travel nights are almost triple last year.

I plan on (and am downright giddy about) keeping this borderline-OCD record keeping going for as long as the data stays interesting enough to warrant it. And I've already started looking forward to next August when I get to run the numbers again.

Wednesday August 24 2011

File under: stats, travel

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