{"podcast":{"title":"Dirtbag Rich","slug":"dirtbag-rich-7077841","podcast_index_feed_id":7077841,"rss_url":"https://media.rss.com/dirtbag-rich/feed.xml","website_url":"https://dirtbagrich.com","image_url":"https://media.rss.com/dirtbag-rich/20241031_091017_c40e9888b384066270fc1cd3710de960.jpg","author":"Blake Boles","episode_count":49,"summary":"How do you build a life of freedom, travel, nature, and meaningful work? Join author Blake Boles ( blakeboles.com ) as he dives deep with working adults who have managed to strike that elusive balance of time, money, and purpose—without giving up on their wildest dreams. These vulnerable and provocative conversations reveal how everyday people create lives filled with wilderness adventure, creative expression, frequent exploration, and financial stability—no trust fund required. Each guest shares their unique flavor of \"dirtbag rich\": a way of living that prioritizes time wealth, personal relationships, and transformative experiences over luxury, comfort, and excess security. (\"Dirtbag\" is a badge of honor in climbing and hiking communities, describing someone so devoted to their passion that they trade conventional success for the chance to do what they love, full-time.) Visit dirtbagrich.com for full transcripts and updates on Blake's forthcoming book, Dirtbag Rich: Low Income, High Freedom, Deep Purpose .","last_synced_at":"2026-09-13T20:20:27.634349+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/dirtbag-rich-7077841"},"episode":{"title":"Morgan Sjogren: writer, desert rat","slug":"morgan-sjogren-writer-desert-rat","published_at":"2025-06-08T07:22:12+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/dirtbag-rich-7077841/morgan-sjogren-writer-desert-rat","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/dirtbag-rich-7077841","url":"https://rss.com/podcasts/dirtbag-rich/2063752","audio_url":"https://content.rss.com/episodes/298082/2063752/dirtbag-rich/2025_06_08_06_59_49_1d486af7-7828-4805-9aa2-f2de6f3360e7.mp3","summary":"Morgan Sjogren is a 38-year-old environmental writer who has spent the last seven years living as a modern-day desert nomad, crafting a freelance journalism career while residing primarily in the remote wilderness of Utah's Canyon Country. ( morgansjogren.com ) After growing up in Southern California suburbia and spending her twenties pursuing a marketing career, Morgan left her more conventional life at age 30 to live full-time in the back of a Jeep, sustaining herself on dumpster-dived ingredients and gas station burritos. For the past seven years, she has made the Colorado Plateau her home, spending much of her time in solitude among the sandstone canyons and mesas, with just a fraction of her year in actual cities. She explains how nature became her true home rather than a playground, and how this relationship with the desert has shaped both her writing and her sense of purpose. We discuss her path from suburban trail runner to high desert hermit and how she cobbles together income through freelance writing, photography, public speaking, house cleaning, and modelling. Morgan describes her two books—the dirtbag cookbook Outlandish and the historical narrative Path of Light —and how retracing 1920s expeditions through Glen Canyon helped her find both community and her current partner Aaron. She explains why she feels called to advocate for public lands through her writing, and how the desert has repeatedly shown her that even in apparent solitude, she is never truly alone. For Morgan, being \"dirtbag rich\" means having clean water, clean air, healthy ecosystems, and places that are open and welcoming to all people. Full transcript: dirtbagrich.com/morgan","meta_description":"Morgan Sjogren is a 38-year-old environmental writer who has spent the last seven years living as a modern-day desert nomad, crafting a freelance journali…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3406,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/dirtbag-rich-7077841/episodes/morgan-sjogren-writer-desert-rat/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/dirtbag-rich-7077841/morgan-sjogren-writer-desert-rat.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}