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Three part-time jobs. None with benefits.
I laugh when I hear about "education will get you out of poverty." Right. B.S. summa cum laude; M.A. in Clinical Psychology. So I teach online for a community college, work for a company that publishes psychological tests, and am trying to get an unrelated business up and running.
We are mainly heating with an inefficient old woodstove, four electric space heaters, and turn on the furnace only when the temperature gets below 20 degrees Fahrenheit, to keep the basement pipes from freezing. That's because propane has doubled in price from a year ago. I could only put 1/3 of a tank in it, and that was on a credit card. My personal income has gone down by 20%. And medical insurance has gone up by 20%.
I turn 50 years old in June. This was not what I had planned when I was the best and the brightest in 1980, getting my master's degree at age 22.
To say my fate is not tied to your fate is like saying, "Your end of the boat is sinking."--Hugh Downs
by Dar Nirron on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 07:34:25 AM PDT
And on very cold nights, my daughter sleeps in bed with me.
I don't drink, do drugs, or smoke. I don't go out. We do without. I buy a lot of things, almost everything, secondhand or on sale.
(I thank my mother for skills like cooking from scratch, canning and sewing. I've used every last one of them!)
We do not fit the stereotypical 'working poor' mold. This is why I speak out all the time.
The poor are not who you think they are.
by xysea on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 07:36:38 AM PDT
[ Parent ]
You are absolutely correct: "The poor are not who you think they are," especially these days. I think the people who believe that their rightful place is on top of the rest of us are counting on us to keep quiet and accept whatever they dish out. We have to share our stories-- that is the beginning of fighting like hell. Thank you for a great diary.
I could have been a soldier... I had got part of it learned; I knew more about retreating than the man that invented retreating. --Mark Twain
by NogodsnomastersMary on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 07:46:51 AM PDT
and sharing your story.
You are right, xysea, that the "stereotypical working poor" is a phantom that is conjured up for political reasons to vilify and blame the poor for, well, being poor.
The negative and hateful rhetoric against the poor has been around a long time.
And I, too, think the "stimulus package" is beyond outrageous; it's immoral and unfair, not to mention too little too late, funded by mortaging our kids' future. For many, the amount is only a blip on the radar; for some, it's survival for another month or two -- and, ironically, some of those (like you) don't even qualify.
I'm so sorry that you are in this frightening situation. That's how I grew up. I have no words of advice except to keep doing what you're doing: hang in there and look for opportunities.
My thoughts and prayers are with you. Keep us posted on how you are doing.
July 9, 2008 -- I watched helplessly while Congress destroyed my Constitution. R.I.P.
by bleeding heart on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 08:03:31 AM PDT
that!
From the Chicago Trib:
Michigan City woman found frozen in house MICHIGAN CITY -- The practice of turning off the heat to save on utility bills apparently cost a woman her life. The frozen body of Stella Chambers, 61, was discovered about 5 p.m. Monday under the covers in her bed, according to LaPorte County Deputy Coroner Mark Huffman. Police said Chambers had a hat and several layers of clothing on. (snip) Huffman ruled hypothermia as the cause of death from exposure to the bitter cold inside the ranch-style residence. According to investigators, her family said she had the money to pay her winter heating costs and, occasionally, used her stove as a heat source to save money. "She was trying to conserve energy. There was no reason financially to have turned it off," Huffman said.
Michigan City woman found frozen in house
MICHIGAN CITY -- The practice of turning off the heat to save on utility bills apparently cost a woman her life.
The frozen body of Stella Chambers, 61, was discovered about 5 p.m. Monday under the covers in her bed, according to LaPorte County Deputy Coroner Mark Huffman. Police said Chambers had a hat and several layers of clothing on.
(snip)
Huffman ruled hypothermia as the cause of death from exposure to the bitter cold inside the ranch-style residence. According to investigators, her family said she had the money to pay her winter heating costs and, occasionally, used her stove as a heat source to save money.
"She was trying to conserve energy. There was no reason financially to have turned it off," Huffman said.
A little rudeness and disrespect can elevate a meaningless interaction to a battle of wills and add drama to an otherwise dull day. - Calvin
by iconoclastic cat on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 09:50:14 AM PDT
by iconoclastic cat on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 09:52:15 AM PDT
and the cold rarely gets that cold for long.
My only concern is if I can't afford a large heating bill, they'll shut it off.
Then, I'll have real problems.
by xysea on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 09:52:33 AM PDT
and the autopsy was not done right. People always slept cold back before we got gas and electric heat.
That sounds like a way to make people afraid to turn down their heat.
The thing about turning off heat is your pipes will freeze. Never turn it down below 34 degrees.
by relentless on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 11:56:41 PM PDT
It sounds like you are a candidate for that benefit.
You really should look into it.
http://www.irs.gov/...
by Hesiod on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 10:56:13 AM PDT
They are supposed to have adjusted the dollars for that upward, so we'll see.
Lately, though, the years I haven't claimed it in my paycheck, my refund has been dwindling, too.
In 2002, it was $2800. In 2005, it was $2200. This was after the miraculous Bush 'tax cuts.'
by xysea on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 11:01:23 AM PDT
Advanced ivy league degree. Trying to get a Ph.D. so that I can take posts outside the country on faculties. But in the meantime, endless work, no benefits, no savings.
Three part time jobs, plus school (on scholarship, I don't pay tuition) but never any money. I work 60 hours some weeks, supposedly swank white collar jobs. But you add rent in a major city with gas and car (to get to work!) and insurance(s) and utilities and necessities and mass transit and doctor visits times one family (I'm not the only one here depending on me) and there's no time for anything nor money for anything.
I hate living in this compressed state. I never get to see my family anymore. I never get a breath. I sleep maybe four hours a night.
But we are just barely breaking even with my wife working also. One emergency and we're in full-on crisis. We're young. Hopefully it never comes.
-9.63, 0.00Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from idiotic American minds.
by nobody at all on Wed Jan 23, 2008 at 04:20:56 PM PDT
wide narrow
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