"Unable to pay rent in L.A., I slept behind my desk. But what began as a quick financial fix soon became a lifestyle."

The pseudonymous Terry K. "secretly lived in my office for 500 days." (And by "my," he means the office provided by his employer.)

Living in the office had many unexpected perks. But it was far from a permanent solution. When the company started to show signs of budgetary collapse, I began to plan for my future. What did I want life to look like post-office?...

I had to read that last sentence 5 times before I understood it! I was like: What do I want my life to look like? Post office?!

Having spent over a year rent-free, I realized I valued how I spent my expenses differently. Dropping over a grand every month on a single budget item felt like it ought to result in overwhelming returns. Instead, the housing options were bland. Each had a laundry list of glaring flaws�aging units with no parking, thin walls with no outdoor space, poor walkability and a long commute. What�s more was the sense of entitlement on behalf of many landowners, like I was doing them a favor by handing over 40 percent of my income for a glorified doghouse. The transaction felt oddly imbalanced, a product of seriously misplaced supply and demand....

Ultimately, the company went under. I was part of the first round of layoffs. I lost my job and my home all in one, but I saved over $20,000 in living costs and 216 hours of commuting.

Terry K. now lives in a tiny house built on a truck... and blogs: here.

ADDED: I don't know how you can be a writer and write about this subject without mentioning "Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-street."