I wasn't expecting this severe an economic downturn in my own household so soon. We were coping with our current jobs and chipping away at our debt to the point that I could see it being gone within a few months. We had no idea my husbands hours would drop so severely. It really hit home recently when I put our checks in the bank. His was $37.00 for two weeks. Granted that will be the worst one since hours have picked up since those bad two weeks, but he is still scheduled for no more than twenty four hours.
I've gone in when others call out at work, so I've added a bit to my check. We have been super frugal in order to make ends meet. I bring lunches from home, and cook all of our meals from scratch. My husband doesn't need to bring a lunch as he is only scheduled for three hours a day. We do not go shopping much normally but now we don't go at all. Even groceries are really thought about now. I make sure the bills are payed before I buy juice and popcorn. Micro-frugality is practiced where I plan out each little expenditure.
We still enjoy one anothers company, read, and well we obviously still have all the American basics electricity, Internet, a car... We will survive. I'm glad we have these skills that enable us to live normally when our income has been so damaged. My husband was discouraged when he looked in the Sunday classifieds and there were no jobs. None that he qualified for anyway. Something will fall into place for us, it always does.
I was on the phone with a friend the other day who does make use of "the system" for medical reasons, plus she has children and honestly cannot work at this time. She asked me why I haven't applied for food stamps. I told her that my dad had gifted my husband and I with an IRA, plus I had a little savings. From my understanding you have to be rock bottom and have no savings at all. I once knew a woman who lost her job and became divorced and was very nearly homeless but was turned down because she had a newer vehicle. The social worker told her to sell her car (which she needed to find work!) and come back and reapply.
My friend seeing no other alternative said, "Can't you make that IRA disappear?" I gently explained to her that I'd rather be micro-frugal for a while until better opportunities show themselves. Programs are in place to help people who need it. The families that come to rely on assistance for generations must feel a sense of hopelessness and not see a way out of it. They may come to see it as a normal part of their permanent lives. I would turn to temporary help if needed, however, we're not there yet.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
An Increase in Crazy
I work in customer service. Wherever you are there will always be that one customer per month that goes berserk or starts cussing, or has a meltdown in the store. I've seen my share of unpleasant people. Usually there are no problems and just an occasional outburst every month or so. Here lately however, we are experiencing what I can only refer to as an increase in crazy.
There is a drunken woman who wears garden gloves and a child's cowboy hat that looks as it it's been run over a few times. She mutters to herself, and swings a cane around while she walks. She loves to buy various items and then return them. One day she threw her purse on the counter to rummage for her receipt and a roach crawled out of it. Two days later she returned two empty bug bombs and said they didn't work. Yes, empty! She had her receipt and the manager said to give it to her. Finally, on a different night someone told her "No." She was trying to return something with a receipt for a completely different item. She cussed at us and threatened us, and disturbed several others shopping at the time. The manager on duty said she hadn't abused us enough to be trespassed by the police.
We pay you to get sick. There's another lady that comes in and says I bought this sandwich meat, bread roll, roast, etc and I got sick after I ate it. We apologize and refund the money for the item. She then says, "I need to be compensated for getting sick. Who is going to pay me for being sick?" We call a manager and the manager gives the woman a free ten dollar gift card for our store so she can buy some more groceries and get sick again. Yes, she gets sick often.
Some people clean out their shelves at home and bring all their out of date products back to the store where they receive store credit. If I forget something on a back shelf I will throw it out. I guess they feel no embarrassment when they drag a bag of yellowed cereal boxes and roach encrusted cans back to the store. One man brought back a two liter of Pepsi from 1997. "I bought this here last week but I meant to get a diet Pepsi. Can I exchange it?" The manager said yes. The man very kindly offered to put it back on the shelf for me. No thank you. This will go right in the trash or perhaps a museum.
Other people will get angry because an employee doesn't smile enough. Some will tell a manager that the girl on register three didn't smile and was very unpleasant. Despite the fact that they may have been prompt with ringing the groceries, correct with the change, and courteous as well, their job may be in jeopardy because they failed to grin like a good corporate employee.
A few weeks ago I was working and an elderly gentleman approached me. He pointed at a coworker and said, "That girl down there, that little colored girl, does she work in this store."
"Why yes sir," I replied, "The nice woman helping out on register five? She's my manager."
"Humph." he said before shaking his head and stalking out. If only I could have spoken my mind with him, but I had to be a good little smiling corporate employee.
In months past we have had the occasional incident once a month or so. Here lately, every day has been crazy. We have had more than one person cussing out an employee per week. The service hasn't changed it must be something in the air. I wonder what tomorrow may bring. Sometimes I dream of a different life. Here lately I wish I trained to become a mortician. The customers would be so pleasant.
There is a drunken woman who wears garden gloves and a child's cowboy hat that looks as it it's been run over a few times. She mutters to herself, and swings a cane around while she walks. She loves to buy various items and then return them. One day she threw her purse on the counter to rummage for her receipt and a roach crawled out of it. Two days later she returned two empty bug bombs and said they didn't work. Yes, empty! She had her receipt and the manager said to give it to her. Finally, on a different night someone told her "No." She was trying to return something with a receipt for a completely different item. She cussed at us and threatened us, and disturbed several others shopping at the time. The manager on duty said she hadn't abused us enough to be trespassed by the police.
We pay you to get sick. There's another lady that comes in and says I bought this sandwich meat, bread roll, roast, etc and I got sick after I ate it. We apologize and refund the money for the item. She then says, "I need to be compensated for getting sick. Who is going to pay me for being sick?" We call a manager and the manager gives the woman a free ten dollar gift card for our store so she can buy some more groceries and get sick again. Yes, she gets sick often.
Some people clean out their shelves at home and bring all their out of date products back to the store where they receive store credit. If I forget something on a back shelf I will throw it out. I guess they feel no embarrassment when they drag a bag of yellowed cereal boxes and roach encrusted cans back to the store. One man brought back a two liter of Pepsi from 1997. "I bought this here last week but I meant to get a diet Pepsi. Can I exchange it?" The manager said yes. The man very kindly offered to put it back on the shelf for me. No thank you. This will go right in the trash or perhaps a museum.
Other people will get angry because an employee doesn't smile enough. Some will tell a manager that the girl on register three didn't smile and was very unpleasant. Despite the fact that they may have been prompt with ringing the groceries, correct with the change, and courteous as well, their job may be in jeopardy because they failed to grin like a good corporate employee.
A few weeks ago I was working and an elderly gentleman approached me. He pointed at a coworker and said, "That girl down there, that little colored girl, does she work in this store."
"Why yes sir," I replied, "The nice woman helping out on register five? She's my manager."
"Humph." he said before shaking his head and stalking out. If only I could have spoken my mind with him, but I had to be a good little smiling corporate employee.
In months past we have had the occasional incident once a month or so. Here lately, every day has been crazy. We have had more than one person cussing out an employee per week. The service hasn't changed it must be something in the air. I wonder what tomorrow may bring. Sometimes I dream of a different life. Here lately I wish I trained to become a mortician. The customers would be so pleasant.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
And the Aged Shall Rise Up
We made a new acquaintance via our last yard sale. He had stopped by purchased an item and left us with his business card. He had a lawn service and did small engine repair as well. Since my husband is attempting to supplement his meager income with whatever odd jobs he can find until he finds better employment he wanted to get his weed eater repaired.
We had to drive to the neighborhood across the highway, not that far. The homes and properties are probably worth about double what they sell for in our neighborhood. The first thing I noticed was everything was for sale. He wasn't exactly having a yard sale but he had furniture, lawnmowers, exercise equipment, and his boat all lined up with price tags and a phone number displayed. We talked a while and learned that he hurt his back and wasn't running a business any more. His wife had a job making four times what I make until she was laid off two years ago. He said she is about to run out of unemployment and is having difficulty finding a job because of her size and her age of 56.
It was like a meeting of the truly poor and the newly poor. They had been in a much better position than us before the collapse. They may have been overextended in their spending but they hadn't imagined a time when the work would stop coming in.
He told us his wife has been job hunting a long time. She has applied and interviewed and followed up in many places. He said the most frustrating aspect of this is when she goes back to the place she interviewed at to see their new 20 year old employee. He said there aren't as many jobs and from what he has witnessed more jobs are going to the younger generation.
We all need employment, young and old. I'm not agreeing that one should be hired over the other. Myself? In the past I could leave one job walk two doors down and have another the following day. I have never had a problem finding work. I have management experience and interview well. There are very few opportunities at this time. It's rough.
I applied at another company a while back on the recommendation of a regular customer of mine who works there. She gave me a glowing reference, I introduced myself and shook hands with the manager. He said as soon as a position became available he would call me in for an interview. I knew it could take some time. I found out recently he hired a 17 year old and I never even got an interview. Since then I've noticed several places that have said they aren't hiring will be training new people a week or two later all under the age of 24. It's frustrating. I am surprised to have less opportunities based on my age. I thought I was still fairly young.
I keep reading scare stories of how we will have to work until we are 70 to collect social security. Where? Just where are all of us going to find work? I wonder if we are coming to a day when aged gangs will start robbing banks and become cult heroes like the outlaws of the 1930's?
"Can you describe the robbers?" asks the detective.
"I don't know," says the terrified bank teller, "It all happened so fast. A couple of grey haired men came in with guns and started shouting orders and the next thing I knew I was tossing the money into a large sack attached to an old ladies walker. After she hobbled out to the get-away-car they ran out and were gone."
Another scenario is to lower the retirement age to 40. Hey, I can dream can't I.
We had to drive to the neighborhood across the highway, not that far. The homes and properties are probably worth about double what they sell for in our neighborhood. The first thing I noticed was everything was for sale. He wasn't exactly having a yard sale but he had furniture, lawnmowers, exercise equipment, and his boat all lined up with price tags and a phone number displayed. We talked a while and learned that he hurt his back and wasn't running a business any more. His wife had a job making four times what I make until she was laid off two years ago. He said she is about to run out of unemployment and is having difficulty finding a job because of her size and her age of 56.
It was like a meeting of the truly poor and the newly poor. They had been in a much better position than us before the collapse. They may have been overextended in their spending but they hadn't imagined a time when the work would stop coming in.
He told us his wife has been job hunting a long time. She has applied and interviewed and followed up in many places. He said the most frustrating aspect of this is when she goes back to the place she interviewed at to see their new 20 year old employee. He said there aren't as many jobs and from what he has witnessed more jobs are going to the younger generation.
We all need employment, young and old. I'm not agreeing that one should be hired over the other. Myself? In the past I could leave one job walk two doors down and have another the following day. I have never had a problem finding work. I have management experience and interview well. There are very few opportunities at this time. It's rough.
I applied at another company a while back on the recommendation of a regular customer of mine who works there. She gave me a glowing reference, I introduced myself and shook hands with the manager. He said as soon as a position became available he would call me in for an interview. I knew it could take some time. I found out recently he hired a 17 year old and I never even got an interview. Since then I've noticed several places that have said they aren't hiring will be training new people a week or two later all under the age of 24. It's frustrating. I am surprised to have less opportunities based on my age. I thought I was still fairly young.
I keep reading scare stories of how we will have to work until we are 70 to collect social security. Where? Just where are all of us going to find work? I wonder if we are coming to a day when aged gangs will start robbing banks and become cult heroes like the outlaws of the 1930's?
"Can you describe the robbers?" asks the detective.
"I don't know," says the terrified bank teller, "It all happened so fast. A couple of grey haired men came in with guns and started shouting orders and the next thing I knew I was tossing the money into a large sack attached to an old ladies walker. After she hobbled out to the get-away-car they ran out and were gone."
Another scenario is to lower the retirement age to 40. Hey, I can dream can't I.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Hard Times in Modern Day
My mother must have driven home the saying that "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all," because I've been silent an entire month. Times have been rough but I have been through worse. The bad part is it hasn't improved yet.
My husband should be home soon. He figured his hours up and he will have twelve hours tonight when he clocks out. This being the last day of the pay week means he will have a lovely check with five hours for one week and twelve for another. I can't wait to pay the bills with that.
We look for jobs here and elsewhere. Elsewhere hires occasionally but here never does. We may just end up traveling to elsewhere.
Ironically, as I was writing this my husband came home with his schedule for next week. He got his six days back.....with THREE HOURS each day. See why I haven't written?
My husband should be home soon. He figured his hours up and he will have twelve hours tonight when he clocks out. This being the last day of the pay week means he will have a lovely check with five hours for one week and twelve for another. I can't wait to pay the bills with that.
We look for jobs here and elsewhere. Elsewhere hires occasionally but here never does. We may just end up traveling to elsewhere.
Ironically, as I was writing this my husband came home with his schedule for next week. He got his six days back.....with THREE HOURS each day. See why I haven't written?
Saturday, July 31, 2010
When the Going Gets Tough...
We are in crisis mode at the working poor household. It's the lean season when the snowbirds are gone and business slows. When the corporations start bringing in less money they get onto their store managers to cut payroll, schedule less and send people home early when it is slow.
My hours are fewer than usual but I haven't worried because my husband has always had a pretty steady schedule and paycheck. This year we are both feeling the pinch. He was working six days a week and averaging around 42 hours. It was enough. We were surviving.
A few weeks ago the schedule changed. Two shifts were taken away and he had two days off instead of one. He was worried when he only had 34 hours but I assured him I could tighten up the budget. I was also sort of happy that he had two days off instead of one. We started tackling chores around the house together and even walked on the beach one day.
A few days ago the new schedule came out. He is down to 24 hours. My hours are down to 24 to 32 at this time. It is not going to be a fun little challenge. In fact it is costing us more. I'm sure the stress contributed to my husbands sleepless nights and sore back muscle. He went to the doctor to make sure it wasn't something more serious. Without insurance and without enough hours to cover frivolous things like health care it meant a trip out for the credit card. He also needed medicine which (you guessed it) went on the credit card. Here I was all set to be debt free in three more months. It's always something.
My hours are fewer than usual but I haven't worried because my husband has always had a pretty steady schedule and paycheck. This year we are both feeling the pinch. He was working six days a week and averaging around 42 hours. It was enough. We were surviving.
A few weeks ago the schedule changed. Two shifts were taken away and he had two days off instead of one. He was worried when he only had 34 hours but I assured him I could tighten up the budget. I was also sort of happy that he had two days off instead of one. We started tackling chores around the house together and even walked on the beach one day.
A few days ago the new schedule came out. He is down to 24 hours. My hours are down to 24 to 32 at this time. It is not going to be a fun little challenge. In fact it is costing us more. I'm sure the stress contributed to my husbands sleepless nights and sore back muscle. He went to the doctor to make sure it wasn't something more serious. Without insurance and without enough hours to cover frivolous things like health care it meant a trip out for the credit card. He also needed medicine which (you guessed it) went on the credit card. Here I was all set to be debt free in three more months. It's always something.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Silly Penny Haters
Last week I rang an order for an elderly gentleman who told me to keep his four pennies. He went on to say, "I have a whole jar of them at home and they annoy me. I just hate them!" He emphasized his penny hatred by smacking the counter with his fist. I rescued the innocent little pennies and placed them in my pocket.
Last night I had another order for a different customer. The total was $8.50. He handed me the money and said, "Here's $8.52 because I just hate pennies!" Two more trembling pennies landed safely in my pocket.
These pennies joined the discarded parking lot coins, change from my own shopping, and the 68 cents from the smoker with the new pack of cigarettes who couldn't wait two seconds for change. They stayed in a change jar for about three months, where they were very appreciated.
Why am I so pleased with pennies? I rolled them all up while I was watching a show and would have just been sitting there anyway. It didn't hurt. In fact it was very satisfying when I made my $200.00 deposit into savings. Go ahead and hate your pennies, I'll give them a good home.
Last night I had another order for a different customer. The total was $8.50. He handed me the money and said, "Here's $8.52 because I just hate pennies!" Two more trembling pennies landed safely in my pocket.
These pennies joined the discarded parking lot coins, change from my own shopping, and the 68 cents from the smoker with the new pack of cigarettes who couldn't wait two seconds for change. They stayed in a change jar for about three months, where they were very appreciated.
Why am I so pleased with pennies? I rolled them all up while I was watching a show and would have just been sitting there anyway. It didn't hurt. In fact it was very satisfying when I made my $200.00 deposit into savings. Go ahead and hate your pennies, I'll give them a good home.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Recovery of an Old Friend
Came back from our weekly (yes, weekly) trip to the vet today. She is on a new insulin and doing very well. In fact, I never thought I would see her in such fine shape again. She's has more energy and is putting on weight. Instead of sleeping in the backseat on the way there she hung her face out the window and let her ears flap in the breeze. She is almost healthy enough to have the surgery she needs. I didn't know recovery was possible. For a while every time she had an appointment I worried that it would be her last visit.
I just hope that no-one else needs health care any time soon. All spare money goes to the vet for special food, insulin, needles, and glucose checks. Soon a big chunk of savings will go toward surgery. It has been so worth it for extra moments of holding paws, well timed snorts in the middle of someones conversation, ears flapping in the breeze, and those magic smiles. I love you Chloe.
I just hope that no-one else needs health care any time soon. All spare money goes to the vet for special food, insulin, needles, and glucose checks. Soon a big chunk of savings will go toward surgery. It has been so worth it for extra moments of holding paws, well timed snorts in the middle of someones conversation, ears flapping in the breeze, and those magic smiles. I love you Chloe.
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