The Joys of a Fixed Income

[jeweledvixen]

It is April 30th and I'm down to three chicken breasts, six corn dogs and some frozen dinner I got by mistake. It's sweet and sour chicken with peppers and onions in it, which I hate. My bank balance has been overdrawn for at least two weeks. My electric bill is now over $800. I need to get my car re-registered (it's due this month, so tomorrow it will be illegal). I do not get my next disability check until Friday. I've been living on chicken breasts and Ramen noodles for several days. I don't mind either one, but day after day, it gets to be too much.

If you're poor, they want to make you poorer. I had two 401k's from when I worked, but in order to get help, I can't have that much money, so I had to cash them both out and spend down until I had no more than $2000 in extra assets. Several hospital visits, one car repair and some dental work later, that's gone, so I'm living from check to check and there always seems to be some unexpected bill that does me in for the month. I can't remember the last month when I didn't have to worry about food at the end of the month or that I had a surplus of money in my account of more than $5.

I've been checking out the local food bank and I would go today if I had the gas. But I'm going to go to Wally World on Thursday afternoon and write a check to get some food that's not chicken or noodles. I'm also going to get some gas so I can get back home. I'm also going to go to the food bank sometime in during the month to get some food so I have something to fall back on if things get tight again in May.

This is just a rant/whine post. I needed to get it off my chest. Thanks for listening. :)

Comments

[amethyst_hunter]

I haven't been able to touch French toast for a while for this reason: back in February/March, that was literally all we had to eat in the house. I think I ate that for about 2 weeks straight, breakfast lunch and dinner. I like French toast, but as you said, eating the same thing over and over gets old real fast.

It is disgusting how you have to be at such an income before they'll give you any help - and then what you do get is just barely enough to hold on.

*offers hug*

[jeweledvixen]

Thanks. Hugs are great. :)

[ophelias_heart]

That sucks! Hugs and I would definitely check out the food bank.

[jeweledvixen]

I did. Turns out that's a food pantry, which supplies the food for the local soup kitchen. You can't go there and get a bag of groceries. So, I called the local general help for the poor agency. No help with heat until November. But she did give me the phone numbers for a food bank right here in my town and one for the town 5 minutes down the road in the next small town. I called the one here and got a fast beeping noise, not a busy signal. It's located at a church, so I thought that was odd.

Then I called the one down the road. It's also located at a church. The pastor answered and told me about the one here in my town. I told him what happened and he got sort of upset and said he was going to complain about me not being able to get hold of them. He didn't have their number, so he told me to look it up in the phone book and if I couldn't get hold of them, call him back.

I looked them up on line and the number was the same. I called information and there is NO listing for this church. I called that pastor back. He told me where the food bank is here in town and what the hours are. He said if I can't get food there, call him again. Yeah, right buddy. I ain't calling you back for anything. I'd rather go hungry for a couple of days than call your sorry ass. You are 5 minutes down the road from me and I have to jump through all these hoops before you'll give me one bag of groceries? I don't thing so! I'll try the one 10 minutes up the road in the other direction (also at a church).

Ok, rant over. That got kinda long. Sorry! :/

[ophelias_heart]

Did you ever get a hold of the one? What about the one 10 min down the road?

[jeweledvixen]

No, I never got hold of either one. It's ok now. I went to Wal Mart and got some food and the meds I was out of. I don't get my check until tomorrow, but I wrote a check dated tomorrow and am hoping they don't try to cash it until at least tomorrow. I just got enough for a few days. I'll go back again next week and get more groceries. Now I can eat and I have the meds I've been out of for a several days.