But driving past his mobile home - a beaten-up old van parked on the corner of a busy highway in Wagga - it appears the pendulum of life may be swinging the other way.

Mr Skewes is homeless.

He’s also an internet sensation.

How those two states can co-exist in one person is a story as unique as the man himself.

When The Advertiser stopped to chat to him this week at the side of the Olympic Highway, Mr Skewes came galloping across the road to greet us, cradling a half-empty bottle of Carlton Cold like a newborn.

Shirtless, with a skin-head mohawk and footy shorts, he introduced himself as “Pockets” - “I’ve got short arms and deep pockets,” he snorted.

He gave us a fittingly brief tour of his “home” - a single mattress in the back of the hollowed-out van, a milk crate with peanut butter, biscuits and other snacks, an old suitcase with clothes spilling out.

On a disability pension for a sleep disorder, Mr Skewes lives on about $800 a fortnight and has been roaming the country since selling his Narrandera home nine months ago.

This innocuous patch of grass has been his camping spot for the last few weeks, but he plans to move on soon.

In conversation, he oscillates between humour and anger, often in the one sentence, and waves at cars as they toot their horns his way.

“Everyone knows me here, they love me,” he said.

“I like putting myself on display … it’s just the way I am.”

Born in Leeton 61 years ago, Mr Skewes has spent much of his life in the Riverina, working for more than a decade at Sunrice in Leeton.

He admits his unquenchable thirst for beer - and ladies - has tripped him up a few times.

It’s hard to know whether his lifestyle is a way of living out a Peter Pan fantasy or simply self-medicating the pain.

“I just like the freedom … I’m happy,” he said.

“I see all these people rushing around in their cars; they’re worried about everything and nothing.

“I just do my thing, no mortgage, no job, no stress.

“I get free meals when I need them in Wagga … it’s great.”

Suddenly, he disappears into his van and emerges with a pile of pennants and trophies.

A Group 6 rugby league player for Yanco in the 1970s, Mr Skewes was also a handy boxer and water-skiier, and remains a hot rod enthusiast.

His trophies are among the few possessions he has left.

He has “the odd girlfriend on the side” and still parties with the local 20-something set.

He claims to have collected more than two tonnes of rubbish in the Riverina, spending hundreds of hours cleaning up roadsides.

But his latest claim to fame came in January with the launch of a Facebook page called Where’s Larry?

Through the power of social media, Mr Skewes quickly became a local cult figure, with the page already attracting close to 10,000 “likes”.

The premise is simple: when you see Mr Skewes, snap a photo of him - or better still grab a selfie with him.

The page features dozens of photos of Mr Skewes in varying guises.

There’s Larry helping change a tyre.

There he is again posing with a pretty girl.

Larry’s walking through the Hungry Jack’s drive-thru, Larry’s shadow boxing, Larry’s trying on costumes at the adult shop...

One video of Larry has had close a million views on YouTube while one fan has started a “Larry for mayor” campaign.

He shrugs off the new-found fame with a wink, a grin and the sip of his beer.

“They love me, what can I say?” he said.