9 Things I'd like to know before leaving my apartment to live on a boat

In 2016, my world has changed.

Unexpectedly, I lost my well paid job as a radio reporter in San Francisco. The entire newsroom was decimated in one day of dismissal. I rented a room in a beautiful waterfront apartment in Sausalito, which cost me about $ 1,500 a month, a rent I could not afford. It was out of the question that I was in debt or wasting my savings by buying a room. So I behaved in such a way that any prudent debt evader would do: I gave 30 days notice.

I planned to install on my boyfriend's sailboat, a 46-year-old ketch in full restoration. He had been working day after day on the boat for months, with no end in sight. I thought it would be like camping in an old wooden cabin without amenities. I've always loved adventure, the outdoors and living outside of the norm.

So, I did a mbadive purge, donated goods to Goodwill, hauled ferries to my mother's garage in Oregon and kept only what I needed.

Just a month after being laid off, I lived on a boat for the first time in my life. And it was not the glamorous vision that you could have in mind with the sunny happy hours and the dolphins playing in the waves. It was a struggle, especially at the beginning.

But living on a boat has also come with incredible achievements and an incredible closeness with nature, and it's now a lifestyle that I will not give up.

If you are also considering living on a boat, here is what I would like to know in advance.