☮ Social ☮ PD Social Thread: Trans-dimensional Hyperspace Cocktail Bar - Fractals Apply Within

[pharmakos]

laika -- if you seriously can't even afford food, you will qualify for emergency food stamps. walk over to the Department of Human Services and tell them whats up.

 

[xammy]

Laika: isn't there any welfare or something where you live? I couldn't pay my bills without it. It's kinda funny, here in Finland they pay all my bills at the moment because I'm out of job too. Well not internet or phone but electricity, water, home insurance etc. And on top of that I get 480€ per month for food, clothes, drugs, whatever. So im depending on social security, income support/supplementary benefit I don't know what is it in English but it's something that you can't get if you have any income. I don't have so I qualify.

 

[pharmakos]

in America if you have no job it is really easy to get food, semi-difficult to get decent healthcare, and very difficult to get any actual help with money or other bills.

 

[xammy]

^does it vary in different states? Which state would be best when it comes to social security?

Happy Mother's Day everyone btw.

Here, take some indie rock from Los Angeles

 

[coelophysis]

I should have mentioned, I do get foodstamps but for me it only lasts about half of the month, so the other half of the month is the starve-a-thon. I even try to buy sensibly and go out to a bulk store, but the food runs out eventually. Always sooner than I'd like.

I've tried for the whole free money thing but I'm pretty sure being a homeowner is holding me back. I was lucky enough to get temporary emergency funding for food 2 months ago when I had first hit this rock bottom. But I had also applied for monetary assistance and was denied of that. I don't even know how much people would get anyway.

I have no insurance on my house, which I really feel is putting my only single asset that I have in danger, especially as we creep up to hurricane season.
What do you do first? Work on getting a car so that I can have a job, or work on selling enough stuff to get house insurance and then work on the former things mentioned.
Honestly the house insurance thing worries me 10x more than not having health insurance, which I am also without, lol.. I was too paranoid to sign up for that affordable health care act shit. So now I'll be getting fined for not following orders. But imo, fuck those fines too. Do they generate warrants for your arrest or do they just go to collections? Because if they start coming, they surely will just be ignored.

Maybe it will all lead to a manic breakdown and then I will be able to get some gov't money. It doesn't seem that far off these days.

 

[pharmakos]

xammy -- idk which state is best, but it does vary to some degree

laika -- i lived for a long time on a $189 a month food budget. its doable. i even got fat on that budget, lol.

but imo the first thing to work on should just be getting a job. network with your family and friends and find out if there's any openings at any of their places of employment. maybe they know someone you can carpool with to start out. i'm currently riding to work every day with an old friend of my parents'. i pay him $20 a week.... which is gonna add up, but is still cheaper than buying/paying insurance on/putting gas in a car of my own.

 

[xammy]

Here is a pic of my house :D It's not so big compared to a typical American house (or that's the image I get of them from movies etc). But more than enough for me
There is this beautiful pond just almost next to it, I can see it from one of my windows

NSFW:

 

[coelophysis]

xammy -- idk which state is best, but it does vary to some degree

laika -- i lived for a long time on a $189 a month food budget. its doable. i even got fat on that budget, lol.

but imo the first thing to work on should just be getting a job. network with your family and friends and find out if there's any openings at any of their places of employment. maybe they know someone you can carpool with to start out. i'm currently riding to work every day with an old friend of my parents'. i pay him $20 a week.... which is gonna add up, but is still cheaper than buying/paying insurance on/putting gas in a car of my own.

I'm new to 189 food budget, so I guess it'll take some practice. I hope they don't plan to take it away from me soon.

I am definitely working on getting a job, but there is a big issue with trying to rely on people who live 1200 miles away from me. They can't really help me get to work. I don't have family left that I respect or would even give a shit about me because they are extremely selfish, not because of anything I ever did to them. My sister and mother despised my father, I was the only one who got along with him. I'm certain they drove him to suicide and I know they didn't give a shit about him dying except for when people were around and they wanted some attention on them. Once he died, I sort of took his place and suddenly they hated me and had no use for me. I wasn't living at home when they started to hate on me but I know they were always accusing me of some of the most strange things just so they had something to complain about me over. My sister is a compulsive liar, so I'm sure she thought up some good stories to make me look like an ass to any of my family members. Given, these family members are on my moms side to begin with and I always disliked them and I don't care what they think of me. My fathers side of the family is just barren. Everyone is dead, I'm actually the last to be able to carry on our last name.
So I really don't have any one that can help me out.

 

[Xorkoth]

I'm exactly the same as far as the parts I quoted go.
It's great to not have to worry about mortgages and to feel a bit ahead of others in the rat race in a way. But where I may have the advantage of still being somewhat young with a beautiful paid off house there are plenty of things to stress out about. I feel particularly stuck at the moment in fact due to me not having a car, being unable to rely on public transportation, and I lost my job a couple of months ago. I have NO money, zilch, nothing. It's to the point now where when something needs to be paid for, I need to pick something out of my beloved belongings to sell on craigslist or bring to the pawn shop. I just really really don't understand how someone gets out of a hole like this? It's not making me depressed, it just shows me a very bleak future. I can't ever afford food anymore. Most times I go 3-5 days without food, only water, and whatever kind of vitamins I have laying around for some half assed piece of mind. When the pain gets unbearable I mix flour with water I put it in the oven and enjoy myself a delicious lightly salted rubbery bread-like substance. What good does owning a house do me other than that I have a comfortable place to die in as long as I don't end up selling my bed too.

I really wish I knew the answer. No employer is going to pick me up from my house. I moved away to a place where I know nobody. I didn't have much family in New Jersey, but at least I had friends. Here I have literally nothing anymore. There is nothing in walking distance or bike riding distance that I could go try to work at. I think about forming a plan all day everyday but nothing pops into my head. And I used to pride myself on being clever, lol.

Wow dude, that's intense. No car makes things really hard unless you live in a big city. You're SO lucky you own your house outright, I'm jealous, my mortgage is $1250 a month (I bought it with the agreement from my ex that she would get a job and help, because we loved the house, but she never did, blah blah blah). I can afford it myself now, but I could have SO much more money if I owned it outright.

I kind of veered towards me there, sorry. :D Can you get a loan? Then you could get a car (and some damn food!), I mean you could get a rather small loan, after you have looked into car leases. Or what about a credit card? How is your credit by the way? If it's low, you would probably get a shitty low-limit credit card. But you could probably get a decent-sized signature loan regardless, with a pretty shitty APR if your credit is low. But if it was able to buy you the pay-up-front for a car (which tends to be I don't know, 1-2 thousand I think? I have never leased a car, I am just recalling commercials, but I cancelled TV a couple of years ago), then you could lease a car and have transportation, and get a job and be able to pay down your loan and also have money. I think that's what I'd try to do. Do some research, talk to a bank or look up loans (I had a Discover personal loan in the past). And before that, talk to a car dealership and see what they can give you for a lease.

And what about your girl? Or, same boat probably, I don't think you would have said you didn't have a car if she did.

EDIT: I just read your next post about the insurance... that's tough man, if you live where hurricanes hit. You could probably get a loan and car pretty quick and then once you have a job insurance is more affordable. But, if you're confident in yourself, you could sell some stuff and start homeowner's insurance, pay the first month, if the next month comes and you don't have a job yet, you can sell a bit more stuff or maybe you will have money from a loan (hopefully, you should move quick, immediately after thinking about it enough to have a solid plan). And you'll assume that in 1-2 months at most you'll have a job and you can pay for these things.

ALSO, about the car, you could use any source that would finance it for you, but generally dealerships all do this but private sellers don't. Plus you want a car that won't break down. So probably a dealership, a good slightly old used car would be the best bet. Some like Carmax even come with a warranty so you can be sure they aren't jacked cars. Get like a Japanese car or some others, I am just biased because I have only ever owned Acuras (currently an 04 TL which I love). Hondas are the same thing really, both brands last a long fucking time and are really well-made, and Hondas aren't that expensive either. Plus even if you buy it at 100K miles, it has a lot of life left. My first Acura ran til 196,000 miles, and was a bit tired feeling by then but I just traded it in when I bought a newer one.

 

[pharmakos]

I'm new to 189 food budget, so I guess it'll take some practice. I hope they don't plan to take it away from me soon.

i had mine for years. if florida is anything like michigan in this regard, then pretty much all you have to do is say "i don't have a job and i'm hungry" and you'll keep getting fed.

unless you're also receiving financial aid for school, in which case it gets harder to qualify for food stamps.

I am definitely working on getting a job, but there is a big issue with trying to rely on people who live 1200 miles away from me. They can't really help me get to work. I have family left that I respect or would even give a shit about me because they are extremely selfish, not because of anything I ever did to them. My sister and mother despised my father, I was the only one who got along with him. I'm certain they drove him to suicide and I know they didn't give a shit about him dying except for when people were around and they wanted some attention on them. Once he died, I sort of took his place and suddenly they hated me and had no use for me. I wasn't living at home when they started to hate on me but I know they were always accusing me of some of the most strange things just so they had something to complain about me over. My sister is a compulsive liar, so I'm sure she thought up some good stories to make me look like an ass to any of my family members. Given, these family members are on my moms side to begin with and I always disliked them and I don't care what they think of me. My fathers side of the family is just barren. Everyone is dead, I'm actually the last to be able to carry on our last name.
So I really don't have any one that can help me out.

eh, so no family around. what about friends? even bluelight friends.... i know there are quite a few BLers that live in florida.

 

[Xorkoth]

Here is a pic of my house :D It's not so big compared to a typical American house (or that's the image I get of them from movies etc). But more than enough for me
There is this beautiful pond just almost next to it, I can see it from one of my windows

NSFW:

Nice man. I'd love to see the pond. I have a natural spring that drips out of the dangling roots out of the mountainside at the top of my driveway. The previous owner had, for some reason I can't fathom, filled the whole indentation in where the spring flows. The driveway started leaking water after a while because it got stopped up. The second winter I was there, the water flowed so much that every single morning if it went below freezing, the ENTIRE steep, long driveway was covered in up to an inch thick sheet of slick ice, and it sometimes even made a huge ice patch on the street. The neighbors hated it. Well, that Spring an older neighbor of mine (who is great) came to help me, he said that there was a natural spring there that they all used to get water from when the water would shut down (way back in the day), when my house wasn't even there yet. So he helped me dig it out. Then I landscaped it and transplanted forest ferns of different species and seeded the pile of wood that had been stopping it up with a bunch of rich soil, so it would decompose over time and grow the little wildflowers and all the other awesome little plants of southern Appalachia. Now it's this beautiful little creek that keeps gradually over the years flowing with moire and more water. I even found a crawfish in there once (which was weird, how the hell did it get there, the spring comes out of the roots!) It's my favorite part of my yard now, I go there and walk the stone path I made next to it and find awesome rocks and see awesome plants and also a whole bunch of salamanders live there.

I'm new to 189 food budget, so I guess it'll take some practice. I hope they don't plan to take it away from me soon.

I am definitely working on getting a job, but there is a big issue with trying to rely on people who live 1200 miles away from me. They can't really help me get to work. I have family left that I respect or would even give a shit about me because they are extremely selfish, not because of anything I ever did to them. My sister and mother despised my father, I was the only one who got along with him. I'm certain they drove him to suicide and I know they didn't give a shit about him dying except for when people were around and they wanted some attention on them. Once he died, I sort of took his place and suddenly they hated me and had no use for me. I wasn't living at home when they started to hate on me but I know they were always accusing me of some of the most strange things just so they had something to complain about me over. My sister is a compulsive liar, so I'm sure she thought up some good stories to make me look like an ass to any of my family members. Given, these family members are on my moms side to begin with and I always disliked them and I don't care what they think of me. My fathers side of the family is just barren. Everyone is dead, I'm actually the last to be able to carry on our last name.
So I really don't have any one that can help me out.

That's heavy man... I'm sorry. But hey, you can carry on his name, from how I know you through Bluelight I think you'll do a good job.

 

[coelophysis]

Wow dude, that's intense. No car makes things really hard unless you live in a big city. You're SO lucky you own your house outright, I'm jealous, my mortgage is $1250 a month (I bought it with the agreement from my ex that she would get a job and help, because we loved the house, but she never did, blah blah blah). I can afford it myself now, but I could have SO much more money if I owned it outright.

I kind of veered towards me there, sorry. :D Can you get a loan? Then you could get a car (and some damn food!), I mean you could get a rather small loan, after you have looked into car leases. Or what about a credit card? How is your credit by the way? If it's low, you would probably get a shitty low-limit credit card. But you could probably get a decent-sized signature loan regardless, with a pretty shitty APR if your credit is low. But if it was able to buy you the pay-up-front for a car (which tends to be I don't know, 1-2 thousand I think? I have never leased a car, I am just recalling commercials, but I cancelled TV a couple of years ago), then you could lease a car and have transportation, and get a job and be able to pay down your loan and also have money. I think that's what I'd try to do. Do some research, talk to a bank or look up loans (I had a Discover personal loan in the past). And before that, talk to a car dealership and see what they can give you for a lease.

And what about your girl? Or, same boat probably, I don't think you would have said you didn't have a car if she did.

Thanks for the advice. My credit was ruined many many years ago and I just kind of forgot about it. I've thought about taking a loan out on my house to get a car but I know how I am with credit, and I'm afraid that is how I would be with paying the loan off and then I'd really be up shits creek. My girlfriend did just recently get a job. Ones thats 20 miles away, pays minimum wage, and she works 40 hours per week. And on top of that, some extremely odd hours. She has her things she needs to pay for so she is out of money pretty quick. She does great at keeping some order under this roof. But that makes me feel terrible, and that's why I've been selling my belongings any time I need money. I can borrow the car but it's hard to get the chance and it starts to get really rude to use someone else's gas, I try to return it in food of some money whenever I get my hands on any. But I can get the car about once per week and not for very long. Which isn't helpful in a place where everything is so damn far away.

 

[xammy]

Xorkoth: Where do you live if I can ask?

here is the pond btw, I found this from google image search. Its funny how I lived just across this pond for 20 years before I moved into this house =) The city centre is across this pond so this is one of the best areas to live in this city, everything is pretty close

 

[coelophysis]

I don't* have family left that I respect or would even give a shit about me because they are extremely selfish

^ Is what I meant to say. The typo made it sound so confusing that I had to read it like 5 times to understand what the hell I was trying to say lol.

eh, so no family around. what about friends? even bluelight friends.... i know there are quite a few BLers that live in florida.

Everyone I meet that I get along with ends up being too far away to hang out regularly and stuff like that. So it's always a planned meet up sort of thing where I'll invite someone to stay over my house if they'd like. The only friend I have here in town is worse off than me, lol.

Our last ditch effort right now (because I don't know what the following last ditch effort is going to be) is finding a roommate since we have so many extra bedrooms here.

 

[Xorkoth]

xammy: That's an awesome pond! Can you swim in it? And, I live in Asheville, NC (in the US).

Laika: I added a large edit on to that post, since it wasn't in your quote I think you might not realize.

 

[xammy]

xammy: That's an awesome pond! Can you swim in it?

Well, there is some alga in that pond (is that the right word?) I heard so it's not recommendable. Back in the days it was more clean and I have swam in it then but I guess it's still ok if u take a shower after it so you don't get a rash or something.

I googled Asheville because I dont know anything about it, seems to be a nice city! Not too big (~80k city population?) I live in a city called Kuopio, total population being ~100k

 

[Xorkoth]

Yeah last I checked a few years ago, it was 73k. It has probably grown, people love it here and vacation here a lot, I vacationed here and then moved here a year later in fact. It has a big, bustling downtown with makes it feel bigger. But I like that it's a small town, the sense of community is very strong. I've never been to another place like it, lots of awesome people here and everyone is always friendly. And the beautiful mountains of course. The town's motto is "altitude affects attitude", or also "the happiest place on Earth". I've seen both.

 

[abracadabra girl]

if you have no job you should be able to get medicaid for free. also perhaps you can get a home equity loan or line of credit to help with bills until you get a job.

 

[Dondante]

Asheville is da bomb.

So is my city, but I'd like to move to a smaller city/town someday.

p.s. abracadabragirl, are you east bay, like across that bridge on the left?

 

[coelophysis]

if you have no job you should be able to get medicaid for free. also perhaps you can get a home equity loan or line of credit to help with bills until you get a job.

The medicaid thing is something I can't get in Florida for some reason. I would just have to seek some alternative health insurance for broke jokes.

The loan thing seems sensible but I fear it will lead to a worse situation. I really want to save a move like that for when that is all that's left. It's starting to feel like it, but I'm still trying to hold onto the idea of something falling into my lap that makes life easier. I'm a giant doofus who seems to do everything the wrong way. It leads to embarrassment and people being confused as to why someone like me would not be more proactive. It's something that I've been doing since as far back as I can remember, a general disinterest in anything and everything for the most part. I never put my heart into anything and as shitty as a situation I find myself in, I'd just prefer to accept it than to try and change it.