Running Away...Have your kids planned/done it? Have you?

[HomeOnTheRanch]

I found out yesterday that my baby girl (6 next week) was planning to run away. Part of me thinks it is hilarious that she had this all planned out, and the other part is absolutely horrified. Especially given the recent news account of the 7yo that walked away from home, never to return.

 

But, she didn't go. Even if she had, she wouldn't have gotten far until one of our kind neighbors would send her back home At least that's the story I keep telling myself.

 

She now knows that it wasn't a good plan, and she needs to tell us if she's going somewhere (full details on our blog, linked below).

 

Tell me your runaway stories. Good stories only, please...I'm not letting my mind wander elsewhere.

 

UPDATE: DD has decided to stay put for a looooong time since we showed her pictures this morning of the new baby (pics on blog). She says it doesn't matter if it is a brother or a sister...at least she won't be the youngest.

 

Thank you all for the wonderful, cute stories. Just a phase...

:001_smile:

[ArwenA]

They've planned, but it's never happened. I've found out that the place they'll head off too is the library.:)

I'm not really too worried, I used to plan to run aways when I was a kid.:)

[mcconnellboys]

We've talked about it many times, with me cautioning till I'm blue in the face, so I hope it will never, ever actually happen.....

 

Regena

[AudreyTN]

My dh was about 7 or 8 and he packed every book he owned into his suitcase. (His mom even helped him.) He got down the street and decided it was too heavy and came back.

[Carol in Cal.]

That is all.

[ArwenA]

My dh was about 7 or 8 and he packed every book he owned into his suitcase. (His mom even helped him.) He got down the street and decided it was too heavy and came back.

 

LOL:smilielol5:

[Jackie in NE]

Every one of my dc have run away before. Luckily, we've always lived on ranches, so it's hard for them to actually GET anywhere.:001_smile: Most recently, my 2 little guys aged 6 and 7 at the time, ran away while I was out checking the cows. When I got back to the house, the girls told me "the boys have run away".

"Where did they go?" , I asked lightly.

 

"They headed up the draw behind the house".

 

I asked the girls to saddle up and go find them and tell them it was time for dinner. Sure enough, they were all back within 30 minutes, the boys full of stories, some true, most not so true. They had run away because they had gotten into a fight with one of their sisters, and were sure that I would take the girls' side.

 

I asked to see what they had packed. They both had their backpacks with them. Much to my surprise, they had taken all the normal stuff.... pj's, clothes, toys, snacks, and much to my surprise...... some schoolbooks!!!!:lol:

 

They said they knew that if they were gone for a few days, that I would want them to get some school work done.;)

 

It makes me chuckle even now. I told them that the next time they ran away, to be sure and tell somebody where they were going, and to leave enough time to make it back for dinner.

 

I know that I'm making light of this now.... but they were serious. I also know that our situation with living in the country is unique.... but I guess I've always thought that if I lived in town, I'd be sure that my kids had a running away plan.... Like "let me know which friend's house you're running away to".

 

Don't worry.... I think it's totally normal for little ones to run away, or at least threaten to.... The grass is ALWAYS greener at so-and-so's house:001_smile:

 

Hang in there,

Jackie

[beansprouts]

I've dreamed about it...

[Cheryl in NM]

Tell me your runaway stories. Good stories only, please...I'm not letting my mind wander elsewhere.

 

Our ds was 5 the first time this came up. He went to kitchen to make himself a sandwhich and I reminded him that he didn't pay for that food so he couldn't take it. I also reminded him that he wasn't allowed to leave our yard. So, of course, he didn't go anywhere.

 

When ds was 10 he tried the running away again. He knew he couldn't take food, but I upped the ante. I reminded him that:1. he wasn't allowed on pavement, only the dirt roads around our house 2. I owned all his suff, so he'd leave empty handed 3. I owned his clothes, so he'd leave naked. So he moved some of his stuff to the hay barn for the afternoon, until I figured it out and made him bring it all back in.

 

It is pretty funny, but it can be scary.

[Remudamom]

So far mine have just run away to college. My little brother used to run away regularly and camp out under my bedroom window so I could pass him food. He'd spend all day running away from home, eating yummies I'd sneak to him (with my mom's full knowledge, I'm sure!)

 

Does that count?

[mcconnellboys]

Oh, have *I*? I packed my bags when I was 3 and told my parents (who had been mean to me all day) that I was leaving. They took me to my grandma's to spend the night.....

 

Regena

[abbeyej]

My brother and I plotted together to run away many times -- usually only temporarily (once we planned to go live with our grandparents) -- but we never actually did. :) One time we really *were* going to go out at night (we had a picnic and adventure planned, though again, we only meant to go temporarily), but we were caught. Otherwise, I don't think we ever did anything more than think about it. :)

 

We were really happy kids and had good relationships with our parents. For us, it was really more a matter of seeking adventure than trying to leave home. (Well, except that one time when we were *really* mad and planned to live with my grandparents, lol...)

[Parabola]

My son, when he was 2 or 3, decided one evening he was going to go to granny's house. It wasn't running away, exactly, it was just something he decided to do. He had talked about it during the day. I was curious about how far he would take it, as obviously there wasn't a chance it would happen. I decided not to tell him no, I wanted him to figure that one out himself.

We got his coat on, he talked about how he was going to take the truck, he went out the door, I followed him, he was pretty matter of fact about his plans, then he noticed it was getting dusky and by the time he got to the end of the deck he had apparently reconsidered and decided maybe he didn't really want to see granny after all. :laugh:

I have no idea what posessed him, but to this day I get a giggle thinking about it.

 

And, I did actually run away when I was 17, a friend and I. We were going to take a bus to Colorado Springs. Luckily, we were found by the police on the 3rd day, before we managed to actually make it anywhere. My friend was running away because she truly had a rough situation at home, my home life was fine. I went with her to help her, and because I thought it would be a great adventure. I was fortunate not to find out otherwise.

[beansprouts]

Actually, I ran away twice as a teen. The first time was from my father's house to a boyfriend's house. I don't remember why, probably didn't want to do dishes, be bossed around, etc., etc., I brought all my books and planned to walk from his house to school every morning. Dad came and found me before the evening was over.

 

After finishing high school I went to live with Mom in another state. I was still a minor and couldn't even work full time. I got sick of Mom's (real) abuse one night, packed my car and left. I lived with various friends for about two weeks until Dad drove all the way down to once again bring me home.

 

I did move out permanently right after my 18th birthday.

 

My daughter told me once that when I lose my temper with her she wants to run away. :sad:

[Cindyg]

Yeah, my girlfriends and I had elaborate fantasies about various runaway possibilities. And I do mean elaborate. We wrote books about various runaway scenarios and spent endless time weighing the merits of each.

 

Once one of my gfs and I were packed and had the spot picked out where we thought we could survive indefinitely on our own. We headed out one day after school and were runaways for about two hours until we realized it was Wednesday afternoon, and if we weren't home in time for prayer meeting that night, our parents were going to kill us. LOL! We returned home with great regret. Our parents never even knew we ran away.

 

Sadly, my gf had real reason to run away, though I didn't know it then.

 

We were all quite unhappy with our parents, but we loved our church, our (Christian) school, our summer camp, and -- most of all -- our many pets. We couldn't quite figure out how to escape our parents without leaving the happy parts of our world. It never occurred to us that growing up would give us that very opportunity. And finally it did.

 

Oh -- no, my DS is not of that mindset. At least not yet. From ages 0-10, he's been very much a home body. He can hardly stand to be away from us. He may fantasize about having his own home filled with electronics and computer games :), but he doesn't long to get away from us. Maybe that stage comes later. But he's not like I was in that regard.

[Sue G in PA]

b/c we are so mean to him (read: we don't let him get away with what he wants). Dd11 decided in a moment of pre-teen hormonal melt-down that we no longer loved her and she would be better off elsewhere. So, she packed a small bag and went out to sit on our driveway. I don't know what she was waiting for. Haven't seen any busses go by our way since we moved here 5 years ago...:) Honestly, I don't tolerate this kind of nonsense. For our dd11...it was a manipulative trick and I.don't.tolerate.manipulation! For ds6...well...he has issues (Aspergers) which exacerbate the matter. For a young child...seems like an attention issue. Hang in there...I think all dc either think about it or do once in their childhood. I remember being around that age and running away...into the back seat of my parents car. :D Even left the door slightly ajar so someone would find me quicker! It was a ploy for attention and to make my parents feel guilty for punishing me for whatever I did. It didn't work. :glare:

[Trivium Academy]

I ran away 3x- each time a little farther. The first time, I returned home on my own. The 2nd time, I ran away to a friend's house . The third time, I was gone for a week and I had hitch-hiked 150 miles away from home. A person I confided in turned me in to the cops. The first two times were complete rebellion, the 3rd- I had just lost my grandmother and my parents left me (in SC) at home with my other grandmother (mean one) to attend the funeral in Maine. I was very close to my grandmother and had a sort of hero-worship, I felt abandoned by both her and my parents, add that to a military lifestyle...yep.

 

I never ran away again and I was very lucky. Nothing happened to me. Now I get guilt-tripped all the time by my lovely mother about the hell I put her through. She's my best friend. (boy that sounds sappy)

[JennifersLost]

A timely topic.

 

Ds15 wanders into the room today and says, "Mom - what would happen if you and dh died?"

 

Huh?

 

After I lovingly explained that either my family or his biological father would continue to raise him he got an annoyed look on his face. "Couldn't I take the other kids into the woods and just live there?" he said.

 

LOL. I knew there was a "real" reason for that question. He was probably sitting around day-dreaming about running off to live in the forest with his siblings and couldn't think of any scenario in which it would be okay to "run away" so he came up with the next best thing - us dying.

 

That is so like me. Even in my fantasies I can't put anyone out so if I want to daydream about something that doesn't include my family....you guessed it - I start off by day-dreaming they've died. And then I realize my extended family would probably want me to come live with them under those horrible circumstances and I can't imagine offending them, so....yep....they have to die, too. So every fantasy starts off with this horrible bloodbath that makes me so guilty I never actually get to the fantasy part.

 

No wonder I'm such a wreck. I didn't realize it was hereditary, LOL.

[JWSJ]

Actually, no. My son talks like he is never moving out.

 

He even talks of getting married and having children some day, but adds that he'll be living on the same farm to help and continue our inventions, etc...

[Remudamom]

A timely topic.

 

Ds15 wanders into the room today and says, "Mom - what would happen if you and dh died?"

 

Huh?

 

After I lovingly explained that either my family or his biological father would continue to raise him he got an annoyed look on his face. "Couldn't I take the other kids into the woods and just live there?" he said.

 

LOL. I knew there was a "real" reason for that question. He was probably sitting around day-dreaming about running off to live in the forest with his siblings and couldn't think of any scenario in which it would be okay to "run away" so he came up with the next best thing - us dying.

 

That is so like me. Even in my fantasies I can't put anyone out so if I want to daydream about something that doesn't include my family....you guessed it - I start off by day-dreaming they've died. And then I realize my extended family would probably want me to come live with them under those horrible circumstances and I can't imagine offending them, so....yep....they have to die, too. So every fantasy starts off with this horrible bloodbath that makes me so guilty I never actually get to the fantasy part.

 

No wonder I'm such a wreck. I didn't realize it was hereditary, LOL.

 

Your "bloodbath" had me snorting and then I choked on my drink.

What a hoot.

[WTMindy]

Well, yes (but not seriously). Only after they read From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler. I blogged about it here.

[myfunnybunch]

When my sister and I were 7 & 8, we announced to our mother that we were running away.

 

She said, "Don't forget your toothbrushes.":seeya:

 

We made it to the end of the looooong driveway, then we started crying and came back.

 

She told us much later that she watched us walking all the way up the driveway, wondering what she was going to do next if we didn't turn around. When we headed back she rushed into the kitchen acting as though she'd been completely unconcerned.

 

:lol:

 

A year later we made an elaborate plan involving borrowing the neighbor's horse, buying bread and peanut butter at the store...oh, and candy...and riding the horse to Grandma & Grandpa's house. We wrote our plan in the dark after we'd gone to bed. My mom found it at some point and saved it in my baby book.

 

Cat

[Aubrey]

Yes, but I never did because

 

1. I didn't think I could carry enough pots & pans to cook.

 

2. I knew I wasn't old enough to get a job, & I didn't have enough money to live on until then (although I figured I could let the hem on my clothes out indefinitely).

 

3. I knew I had nowhere to go. I was certain that I could make it to my grandparents' house 500m away, but I knew they'd send me home, too, & then things would be worse than they were already. I thought about going to live with the homeless people under the bridges, but I didn't know which bridges they lived under.

 

I had reason, though.

[umarider]

One day, the summer before my 6th birthday, when I was feeling put-upon, I decided to runaway. Now keep in mind that "running away" meant going to the gully in back of the house, probably about 150-200 yards away and this was in a small town (pop.2500) in New Jersey. I packed a bag w/ some clothes, toys, snacks. I took my pillow and a sleeping bag and a box of Cheerios (gotta have my "O's!"). Needless to say, I needed help carrying everything, so I enlisted the aid of my sister, who was 8.

 

My dad, recognizing that I wouldn't get running away out of my system unless I gave it a try, bribed my 8 yr-old sister into sleeping outside w/ me. He pointed out that as soon as it got really dark, etc., I'd be heading for the house. Well, he was wrong! I didn't get scared a bit, but had to convince my sister to stay with me all night!

 

Early the next morning, we woke up and decided that Cheerios just weren't enough for breakfast, so we walked downtown (about 1 mile) to go to the bakery. We must have gotten up really early, because the bakery wasn't even open, so we sat outside and waited for it to open.

 

Meanwhile, my dad had come looking for us down in the gully. He found our abandoned campsite (sleeping bags, etc.,) but no kids. He admits that he felt some panic at the time as he walked back to the house to tell my mom that we were missing. But in the meantime, someone downtown had spotted us (2 young kids hanging around mainstreet at 6AM would catch someone's eye!) and had called my parents. (REAL small town... we couldn't get away with ANYTHING!) So my dad hopped in the car and drove down to get us. We were really disappointed he didn't buy us any doughnuts, but I guess I should count myself lucky, 'cause in his relief he didn't punish us, either. And that is the only time I ran away! Dad was right, I got it out of my system!

[Colleen]

nt

[dalynnrmc]

HA! Some of these stories are priceless. ;)

 

I ran away when I was.. about 9 years old. My mother had left for work that morning, a Saturday, to work as a waitress in the restaurant her dad owned. I wanted to go, and she wouldn't let me!!

 

I packed a suitcase (the old style, heavy kind) with clothes, canned food (who knows how I thought I was going to OPEN the cans), and my roller skates (the old style shoe-type with two wheels in front and two in back - figured I could go faster with them on). Then I took off to Grandma's house. At this time, I had a sister (6 years younger than I), and my dad had worked an 80 hour week and was in bed. (It was still pretty early, too, in my memory.)

 

So I took off walking. At some point, I decided that my suitcase was awfully heavy with those roller skates in them, so I took them out and put them on my feet. I crossed the major road, not an interstate but 'The Loop' (Lubbok, TX) is pretty darn near one of the busiest highways you'll see. (Yes, with the skates still on, I crossed first an access road, three lanes of traffic, then a muddy median, and then three more lanes of traffic and another access road.)

 

I got another few blocks, to a tv station, before I decided that Grandma's was too far and I wanted to go home. I'd made it almost 3 miles. I tried and tried to get someone to come to the door at the tv station... but alas, no one was there on a Saturday just after noon. LOL

 

I turned around to go back home. Some nice lady saw me and pulled over. (To this day, I'm not sure why someone on the loop didn't stop and help me! I was an 8yo, on roller skates, with a suitcase! How could you NOT stop to help that girl??) Anyway. The nice lady - and realize, I grew up in the generation to which was preached "Stranger Danger" - was obviously EXTREMELY concerned about my well-being. Plus, she had a baby seat in the back of her car, and I figured that she was a mom and was probably okay. I burst into tears, and let her take me home.

 

 

I was lucky that's how it happened. I ran into the house (okay, well I tripped-skated into the house LOL hadn't even taken off my skates) and WOKE UP my dad to tell him I'd run away. My parents still like to tease me about that.

 

 

But, as someone here mentioned, it was totally about attention. I didn't want my mom to go to work, I wanted her to stay with me. If she couldn't stay, I wanted to go with her. And since I couldn't go, I threw a temper tantrum. ;) (I'd even left a note for my dad. LOL He never found it... well, until I handed it to him later.)

 

 

My parents like to talk about the time I ran away when I was 17, but... and I can't convince them of this... I WASNT running away! I simply went for a walk, and it ended up being a VERY long walk. We lived in the country, and I walked to town. Probably about 10 miles. I was tired when I got to my best friend's house, and she wasn't home! So I walked across town to my boyfriend's grandma's (where he lived). He'd been crying - they'd all been worried over me. I was so self-absorbed that I hadn't even considered that if I was gone from sometime in the mid-afternoon until after dark, people might be worried about me.

 

 

So, there's my two stories. Luckily, none of my children (the oldest is barely 9, all boys) have had the inclination to run away. My oldest threatens to "stay in his room for the rest of his life," or to "never talk again for a whole month!!" :))

[Liz CA]

I found out yesterday that my baby girl (6 next week) was planning to run away. Part of me thinks it is hilarious that she had this all planned out, and the other part is absolutely horrified. Especially given the recent news account of the 7yo that walked away from home, never to return.

 

But, she didn't go. Even if she had, she wouldn't have gotten far until one of our kind neighbors would send her back home At least that's the story I keep telling myself.

 

She now knows that it wasn't a good plan, and she needs to tell us if she's going somewhere (full details on our blog, linked below).

 

Tell me your runaway stories. Good stories only, please...I'm not letting my mind wander elsewhere.

 

...my little girlfriend and I decided we should spend a warm summer (school vacation) night in our favorite barn. This barn did neither belong to my or her family but we knew how to get in and it was filled with everything a bunch of ten year-olds could want - well in those days anyway. An old tractor, hay in the hayloft and countless other awe inspiring tools. We even packed a cooler with drinks and some food (sandwiches I think). By 9pm, we had pretend-driven the tractor and rolled around in the hayloft and run out of food - so we went home.

 

:001_smile:

[jkwynn]

The only thing I really remember about when I tried to run away was that I only got about 4 houses down the street.

 

They had a big dog. With a loud bark. Cured me real quick. :D I felt so much better that it never even entered my mind that there was another route, I guess, hehe.

[Rosie_0801]

It was the other way around for me. Mum kicked me out of home when I was two! No idea what I'd done, but I must have been persistant :) She did it twice! The first time I stood in the front yard and cried. The second time I took off up the road, so Mum panicked, came running after me and invited me back.

 

Then there was the time I wandered across the highway and down to the beach. I would have been 2 or 3...

 

:)

Rosie

[hsmamainva]

My husband said that when he was 5, he planned on running away.

 

He packed his pajamas and his Dr. Seuss books, and put them in the back of his little red wagon.

 

His mother even packed him a lunch and kissed him goodbye. ;)

 

He said that he got to the end of the driveway and said to himself, "Where am I gonna go?" ... so he went back inside, unpacked his wagon, ate his lunch, and stayed!

 

(Apparently, this was an "I don't like going to Kindergarten" protest!)

[st_claire]

I planned to run away in luxury! I must have been about 12 or 13. My plan was to use my bank card with my saved holiday money to check into a hotel :D But then I realized I would run out of money after a day lol, so I canceled the plan.

[JFSinIL]

once or twice got so mad at us that he packed fav. toys in his school backpack and stormed off to the local playground. Each time one of us caught it and was able to follow him (at a distance) and stay nearby until he was calm enough to come home.

 

I, on the other hand, made it out a bedroom window, over a fence, and several MILES away at NIGHT with my kid brother in tow (my sister stay behind to snitch!) when I was about 10. The police found us when we went into a coffeshop to order hot cocoa. I had undies etc. packed in my Little Kiddles plastic travel dollhouse. What do you think gave us away????

 

Another time, I got up, left the house, walked all the way to school, then back again, got back into jammies and back in bed, all before my folks woke up one school morning. They never knew.

[dirty ethel rackham]

Not a funny story.

 

I did run away when I was 10 or 11. I didn't plan on it, but after an argument with my mother (or should I say, getting yelled at) I walked out of the house and kept walking (a la Forest Gump.) I was gone for several hours and I remember going to church asking God for a way out of my miserable life (and, no, it was not a self-absorbed teen comment, but a statement of my life at the time - bullying at school and unpleasable parents at home.) I finally sat down to rest at a park not too far from my home to feel sorry for myself when my older sister found me and convinced me to go home.

[Tess in the Burbs]

when I was little(about 4 or 5) I remember packing my duffel bag and my sister's and sitting at the front door for hours waiting for the taxi to take us to the hotel by the airport ;-)

 

my daughter left at 3. my son walked to the front of our neighborhood once(with dh trailing him).

 

we now have the hotel type locks up high so kids can't leave anytime. And I never knew the garage door could be locked with the remote!!! so it's a prison here to keep them safe.

 

but yes, I think most kids think about it even when very young. they just don't realize how good they have it, lol.

[elegantlion]

I never thought about it as a kid, but I've been thinking of asking dh if I could take a night at a hotel by myself. I just need some time away from this house to clear my mind :001_huh: I always wanted to spend the night in the mall as a kid, I am a child of the 80's.

 

My ds doesn't even like to go outside by himself. I don't think it has entered his mind.

[Kelli in TN]

I wanted to find my own "side of the mountain" after I read the novel. I dreamed about it, I had a journal where I wrote down elaborate plans and schemes.

 

I never really ran away until I was 17 and I pushed my car down the road and then started it and took off.

 

The first was cute and fun. The second, not so much.

[cricket1178]

I haven't read all the other stories, yet, but I bet many of them are similar because, well, that's how the mind of a child works.

 

I was about 7 years old. My parents were sitting in the living room watching tv. I was kind of a dramatic child and wanted their attention. No matter what I did, they kept ignoring me (in my mind) ;) and watching tv. So, I finally was fed up! It was dark and cold outside, (again, in my mind, it was really summer) so I knew I needed my coat. Our closet was located in the living room, thus giving more dramatic effect because I could make a scene in front of them, so I opened the door and grabbed my coat and put it on. I turned to my parents and emphatically said while stomping my foot, "Nobody in this family loves me so I'm running away!" My mother and father got up and said I'd need more than my coat for such a long trip. They helped me pack my suitcase, led me to the door, kissed me goodbye, and gently set me on the porch. They closed the door and I just stood there looking at it. After about an hour (2 min. ;)), they opened the door and let me back in saying, "Home so soon? How was your trip?"

 

My mother often reminds me of how "cute" I was standing there in my sister's (who is 3 years younger than I am) coat! She says I looked like Lerch (sp) from the Adam's Family. Yep, he's pretty cute. :glare:

[Audrey]

Ah, yes... when dh was 5, there was one day that I guess was just a particularly bad day for him. He was pouty and sullen -- wouldn't talk me at all. He gave a little sigh (obviously trying to get attention) and ever so dramatically began to pack his tiny backpack with his blocks, his angel bear, etc. Dh asks him what he's doing. "I'm packing up my life. I'm running away today."

 

"Oh?" says dh, and at this point I'm very interested to hear this exchange. "Where will you be going?"

 

"To the library." says ds.

 

"Why the library?"

 

"Mommy works there. She can bring me food."

 

"Hmm..." I say. "Where will you sleep in the library? Just so I know and don't trip over you or anything."

 

"I will sleep under the craft table in the kid section, but you will have to read to me so I can sleep."

 

It kind of went like that... basically, he was going to live in the library so he would be near me during the day, but when we reminded him that I went home after just a few hours, he wasn't so keen on it anymore.

 

Really, he was just jealous of my work time (which is now a lot fewer hours away from home than it was then). It wasn't good enough for him that he still had Daddy at home with him all that time. He had to have us BOTH!

[CookieMonster]

I did attempt running away sometime around 9 years old. I got caught before I got out of the backyard. I couldn't believe how scared both my parents were.

[Sunny]

Sure, I was probably 8 or 9 at the time. My sister andI both packed our suitcase and went to a neighbors house where they had a super hiding place in the corner with bushes. No one can see us there. Well, we hung out for a couple of hours, and figured by 6 pm there would be dinner waiting, so we went home. I don't know that mom ever knew.

[HomeOnTheRanch]

Update in original post...

[Peek a Boo]

hm. i don't think my guys have ever really considered running *away*. Going to live w/ a friend? I'll bet, lol. i agree w/ the "prepping" part {best place to go, call when you get there, yadda yadda yadda}.

 

I did run away at 16. Home life was bad. Court didn't help. Lawyers were consulted and retained. Family couldn't convince my mom [divorced] to let me stay w/ other family. All options were exhausted.

 

i left.

 

i did have a network of people who helped me. I contacted my grandmother and gave her regular updates from various public phones :)

 

It worked out well for me, but i wasn't your typical teen and it wasn't a spur of the moment running away decision for stupid little stuff.

I certainly wouldn't recommend it for most situations.