Fall 2011 Low Income Support Thread - Page 9

[zebra15]

Originally Posted by frugalmama 

Whn it rains it pours - went to turn on our furnace today to warm the house up for showers since we needed to be somewhere early - it's not working right and won't come on. It's $75 to have it checked and cleaned - I am praying I can barter with our fix-it guy again for all or most of it. We are behind on most of the bills, and it's just not getting better even with me really trying hard to bring in more income. 

I'm up early today waiting for the water bill help line to open at 7:45 in hopes of getting an assistance appointment - yesterday when I called at 8:15 they were already booked. 

About the furnace, have you checked the filter and the pilot light?  Those are easy fixes and 'usual' things that go wrong.  A new filter is under $10 at the store.

How did the water bill line go?

[gabbyraja]

I was thinking the switch on the outside of the furnace. I'm so home illiterate that I actually called a repairman and he just flipped the switch. I felt very stoooopid.

[frugalmama]

Originally Posted by zebra15 

About the furnace, have you checked the filter and the pilot light?  Those are easy fixes and 'usual' things that go wrong.  A new filter is under $10 at the store.

How did the water bill line go?

It turned out to be that our repair guy had turned the gas off to the furnace when he checked the AC at the start of the summer. I feel really stupid - I remembered him doing it but didn't know which way was on and off on the knob, so had to pay $30 to have him turn it on. At least he took it in barter so I'm not out any cash. I marked that sucker with a sharpie right away!

The county water bill line is out of funds - should have paid the water and not the electric, as they have funds for that. But I found another place that will pay $50 on our $95 water bill {two months bill}, and I know another that will pay the last $25, and I can come up with $20 to cover the rest. That's Monday's task - going to place #1 for the water bill. Debating signing up for holiday help from them too - normally it's a food box which I don't really need, but we could use gifts for DD. I have to go sign her up for Blue Santa too. 

FYI according to an article I read starting this coming summer all major cable / internet companies are going to be offering a $10 monthly internet for those with kids on free lunch. Not very fast speed, but hey it's only $10! I wonder how they plan to make that work with so many homeschooling low income families - obviously we don't have a letter saying we qualify for free school lunch. 

[worthy]

Originally Posted by frugalmama 
FYI according to an article I read starting this coming summer all major cable / internet companies are going to be offering a $10 monthly internet for those with kids on free lunch. Not very fast speed, but hey it's only $10! I wonder how they plan to make that work with so many homeschooling low income families - obviously we don't have a letter saying we qualify for free school lunch. 

Wow, that would be AMAZINGLY helpful to us.  We're homeschoolers but I wonder if they will count if you are on food stamps or something like that.  Hope so.

[mamaofprincesses]

Comcast already offers $10 a month internet for free lunch families, and it's pretty fast (my sister-in-law has it). You should check now! Maybe the school district would let you apply for free lunch just so they could send you the letter saying you qualify, I think that's all you need to get the cheap Internet.  

[jillybeans]

Originally Posted by frugalmama 




FYI according to an article I read starting this coming summer all major cable / internet companies are going to be offering a $10 monthly internet for those with kids on free lunch. Not very fast speed, but hey it's only $10! I wonder how they plan to make that work with so many homeschooling low income families - obviously we don't have a letter saying we qualify for free school lunch. 

They'll probably base it on income, which is all free lunches are based on. that would be great for so many people!

[worthy]

I found the info here:  http://internetessentials.com/how/index.html  Awesome, but you have to have had no Comcast service for 90 days prior, and it asks for "school lunch program documents."  Probably too many hoops for me to jump through, unfortunately - I currently have Comcast and need to keep it for work; I don't think I could go without high-speed for three months because of my job.  It would be a super helpful deal though.
 

Originally Posted by mamaofprincesses 

Comcast already offers $10 a month internet for free lunch families, and it's pretty fast (my sister-in-law has it). You should check now! Maybe the school district would let you apply for free lunch just so they could send you the letter saying you qualify, I think that's all you need to get the cheap Internet.  

[thatgirliknew]

Woo-hoo! I got an Opera browser for my phone and now I can finally get on MDC! Still haven't figured out how to quote people with this browser, but I can finally read the posts and reply!
Trying to figure out currently how I am paying rent for December, as dp has had to take off for an emergency dental appointment and court already this month plus the 3 day Thanksgiving holiday coming up, thats 50 hours of work we're missing out on this month.
Also, my sister and I went in half on thisamazing wardrobe and dresser with double mirrors. Based on other things we sold similarly we figured it was an easy $200 or more. And we only paid $15 a piece for it. We've had it for 2 weeks and advertised it everywhere with no responses, we put an obo price on it.

Good news, I got my electric bill in the mail this weekend, $40! And that was including my deposit installment payment! My actual electric was $14! And I signed up for a LIHEAP appointment before I got the bill not realizng how low my bills would be. With this household income the past 3 years i have done it we usualy got a 250 subsidy! That would last us over 6months!

[zebra15]

I had the weekend from he!!.  I was reminded yet again why I live 2k miles away from my family.  Now I will spend several days 'picking up the pieces' with my child.

I've spend the morning crying.  The stress of the aforementioned weekend was just too much for me.  I need to pull it together and function this afternoon.

[Nursingnaturalmom]

I am so sorry

what happened?

[zebra15]

Originally Posted by Nursingnaturalmom 

I am so sorry

what happened?

Family came to town.  Control issues and such.  My 11 yr old wouldn't comply LOL and I spent most of the time hearing how 'horrible' he is.  Just the usual BS.  My parents stayed at the hotel but sheezez.  

Nothing I ever do is good enough.  My decisions about DS are never good enough.  Homeschooling is a horrible choice, it just went on and on.

I really need to schedule a semi emergency psych appointment.  Its now Tuesday afternoon and I still can not cope with reality.

[Fnord]

Hi, I'm new here.

I'm 23 and my betrothed is 24.

He currently works about 35 hours a week in a management position at a fast casual restaurant that pays about $300 a week after taxes, and he also attends community college full time.

I don't work, due to social anxiety issues, but I do occasionally muster up the courage to find babysitting jobs. I also attend community college.

My SO only made $8000 total last year, so he got really huge grants for his first year of school and we just finally ran out of all that money and are back to living paycheck to paycheck, so I have to relearn all my frugal skills.

I used to coupon really well and when he was making about $200 a week I saved us so much money on food that he actually forgot to pick up his check one week and we didn't even realize it until his next check came in (which was two weeks later as he is paid biweekly). We didn't even need it! I would love to get back into doing that, as right now a little over half of our money goes to food each month.

I just applied for FS, but now I have to do a phone interview which I'm really nervous about because I have terrible anxiety about using the phone.

I also have Hashimoto's thyroiditis, which was recently diagnosed which means I have to visit a lot of doctors in order to get on the right dose of synthroid which I will be on the rest of my life. I'm still on my mother's insurance, but it's really terrible and so far I've recieved bills for $250, $380, and $700 in addition to copays, which I have no way of paying. I missed an appointment and have been putting off rescheduling for a full month now because of my phone issues, so I'm freaking out because I'm about to run out of meds.

When I filled out the Food Stamp application online, I put that my SO's mother sends us $750 a month, because she sends us $150 to pay for my SO's health insurance and then she also pays our rent, which is $600. But she sends that money directly to the landlord, and when I got the the Housing cost section of the application, I put down that she paid the rent of $600. 

Are they going to look at that and think she sends us $1350 a month? I hope I didn't mess everything up, the application was pretty confusing.

[gabbyraja]

Hi Fnord. I started reading your post and thought "She's got thyroid issues and needs magnesium." Lo and behold, in the net paragraph you mention the thyroid issues. I have done more research about the psychological effects of nutritional deficiencies than anyone I've ever known/see/heard of.

1. GET OFF SYNTHROID and ON ARMOUR THYROID. Find a Dr that will do this for you. DOs (Doctors of Osteopathic) are more likely to do this than Endos or MDs. Have a friend or family member make the phone calls for you if you must, and if you don't want a new doctor have them do the fighting w/your dr about trying Armour for you. Most Drs will give you what you want if you push hard enough. You just have to be willing to push, and you are not able to do this yourself right now.

My family doctor (a DO) believes in treating the patient, NOT the labs. If your labs are "within normal limits" but you feel like crap and show so many signs of thyroid disorder, you have thyroid disorder. Synthroid treats only 1 aspect of thyroid disorder, and doesn't even do that for everyone. Armour thyroid is the biologically identical hormone to the one your body produces. It is the only (well, there's one other brand name I can't remember right now, but still) thing that will make you feel better quickly. It will do amazing things for your anxiety, you will not believe it.

2. I would bet you good money that you are also Magnesium deficient (no matter what your blood tests say). Get yourself a supplement, NOT Magnesium citrate. At the very least use Mag Oxalate or Malate, but a blend f 3-5 forms would be best. Do you get facial ticks? Or other unexplained muscle spasms. If so that is your surest sign. Try the 500 mg at first, then increase it by one pill (500 mg) per day each week. So, week 1 you're taking one pill in the morning. Week 2 you take one in the morning, 1 in the evening (before bed, it's awesome for helping you relax for sleep). Week 3 you take one morning noon and night. If at any point you get loose stools back off one pill for a while and try again after about a week. You will see such an extreme change in your anxiety (plus depression, mood swings, anger/impatience, etc) that you will almost feel like crying. Except, you won't feel like crying anymore, so you won't actually.

Both things are pretty benign changes that won't hurt most anyone's health, so I'd bet any dr would not say "No" (I'm not a dr, though, so make your own choices). They'll just tell you it won't do anything, and that Armour doesn't work. Tell that to these people. http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/t4-only-meds-dont-work/ There are other sources of mag, too, so I can expand if you'd like. You don't get the problems you've got unless you're eating the SAD diet (Standard American Diet). Proper nutrition (and here's a hint, it's not the USDA food pyramid) will do LOADS for your health.

I hope that helps. Feel free to ask me any questions, here or by pm. I can point you at literally 20+ resources to support my advice. PLEASE try it? And do ask friends and family to make the important calls for you and/or go with you to the dr to speak for you. I struggled w/anxiety for quite some time before adjusting my armour dosage to my feelings and increasing my magnesium. I ended up selling a business I had worked SO hard for, because I could no longer deal with the customers. Not even by email. Just seeing I'd gotten an email made me feel like throwing up. I became completely unable to speak on the phone to anyone, even family and people I knew but especially strangers. And any outing with people I didn't know was impossible. No homeschool group meetings, no new classes, no job interviews, nothing. I've been there, and I'm a functioning member of society now. I still don't seek out outrageous opportunities to put myself on a stage or anything, but I do teach college classes once a year, attend meetings, classes (even answer questions or speak in front of the class), appointments, and every other day-to-day activity without fear or panic attacks. Hang in there.

Edited by gabbyraja - 11/16/11 at 5:38pm

[worthy]

I'm so, so sorry to hear this.  Be gentle with yourself and your kiddo, and put up those walls as thick as you need to around you both while you recover. 

You are a good mom, you know your child's needs better than anyone, you make thoughtful and loving choices that honor your family's needs.  There is nothing better than that!  Hang in there.
 

Originally Posted by zebra15 

I had the weekend from he!!.  I was reminded yet again why I live 2k miles away from my family.  Now I will spend several days 'picking up the pieces' with my child.

I've spend the morning crying.  The stress of the aforementioned weekend was just too much for me.  I need to pull it together and function this afternoon.

[CarsonBookworm]

It was a door slam day. I mean, it's people's decision on whether to open their doors to you or not. I understand that. They didn't need to be rude about it though.

So, I have a business license for a hobby business from the city (Which means that you make less than $3500 a year through your business). and went down to the Sheriff's Department for a $20 peddler's license so I could knock on doors and offer to clean windows, house, pull weeds, rake leaves or  whatever they need me to do so I can make rent once the amount that I prepaid through the end of the year runs out. I'm on CL too.

So, I went out today to knock on doors. There were a few nice people, who declined my services. Everyone else.....door slam after door slam. Also some cursing from this guy.

I spent all morning making phone calls, passing out my card, filling out applications, following up on applications. Every day is like the next. I keep praying and knowing that I'm doing whatever I can. Still, I cry. A lot.

Anyone have ideas? I have a prepaid cell phone, I use my laptop at internet cafes (It's old....and the pawn shop will pay me $30 for it....otherwise I would have pawned it already.), no home phone, cable or car. I walk or take the bus everywhere. We eat frugally....my unemployment is still based off the part-time job I had in Summer 2010 that was part-time and was temp..... I get $48 a week. I'm guessing that I may be able to do another claim sometime later based on what I earned at the temp job that I was laid off from three weeks ago.

So, we have places that we can crash if push comes to shove and I can't save enough to pay the rent and around here.....if you don't have a job, forget about even renting a room outside of one of the motel flophouses. I've earned nothing from my peddling of my services yet, but I don't know what else to do other than job hunt, network, do this peddling, and try to hold on.

[Momsteader]

If you qualify for food stamps, your kids qualify for free school lunch and they should send you a letter. You could use that letter for the internet service I bet :)

Originally Posted by worthy 

I found the info here:  http://internetessentials.com/how/index.html  Awesome, but you have to have had no Comcast service for 90 days prior, and it asks for "school lunch program documents."  Probably too many hoops for me to jump through, unfortunately - I currently have Comcast and need to keep it for work; I don't think I could go without high-speed for three months because of my job.  It would be a super helpful deal though.
 

[frugalmama]

Originally Posted by gabbyraja 

2. I would bet you good money that you are also Magnesium deficient (no matter what your blood tests say). Get yourself a supplement, NOT Magnesium citrate. At the very least use Mag Oxalate or Malate, but a blend f 3-5 forms would be best. Do you get facial ticks? Or other unexplained muscle spasms. If so that is your surest sign. Try the 500 mg at first, then increase it by one pill (500 mg) per day each week. So, week 1 you're taking one pill in the morning. Week 2 you take one in the morning, 1 in the evening (before bed, it's awesome for helping you relax for sleep). Week 3 you take one morning noon and night. If at any point you get loose stools back off one pill for a while and try again after about a week. You will see such an extreme change in your anxiety (plus depression, mood swings, anger/impatience, etc) that you will almost feel like crying. Except, you won't feel like crying anymore, so you won't actually.

I hope that helps. Feel free to ask me any questions, here or by pm. I can point you at literally 20+ resources to support my advice. PLEASE try it? And do ask friends and family to make the important calls for you and/or go with you to the dr to speak for you. I struggled w/anxiety for quite some time before adjusting my armour dosage to my feelings and increasing my magnesium. I ended up selling a business I had worked SO hard for, because I could no longer deal with the customers. Not even by email. Just seeing I'd gotten an email made me feel like throwing up. I became completely unable to speak on the phone to anyone, even family and people I knew but especially strangers. And any outing with people I didn't know was impossible. No homeschool group meetings, no new classes, no job interviews, nothing. I've been there, and I'm a functioning member of society now. I still don't seek out outrageous opportunities to put myself on a stage or anything, but I do teach college classes once a year, attend meetings, classes (even answer questions or speak in front of the class), appointments, and every other day-to-day activity without fear or panic attacks. Hang in there.

This is interesting - I am hyper thyroid due to Graves {controlled with medication now} but get facial ticks and muscle spasms CONSTANTLY. Would this also work for someone who is hyper thyroid? I have to be very careful of what supplements I take - anything that boosts the immune system gets me an express hospital trip in thyroid storm. 

In other news - still broke. Haven't made it to the local place for aid with the water bill yet - it's been cold and I don't deal with cold well, and I've been busy with other things. It's looking like next month we just might be able to make it and pay everything, if I get aid with the electric bill from the city. *fingers crossed* We'll still be two months behind on the mortgage, but I can work away at catching that up with book sales and craigslist sales, plus a yard sale. I will try to see if I can maybe get some help with it too from somewhere - seems like there are lots of places that do rental assistance but the only places for mortgage assistance are for active duty military. 

Our dog has got to go, and I can't afford the fee of $75 with the animal shelter to have them take her. I can't afford her anymore and she's turning into a lot of trouble since we inherited her {she was my dads dog} and she just needs to go. I can't keep cleaning up after her in the house constantly {she isn't house trained, and refuses to go out} and it's not good for her to be shut in a room all the time either to keep her from tearing up things and getting out. Plus I really need that room of my house too for storage. So that's my next project to work on - finding a way to put her into a good home somewhere. My daughter will miss her terribly, but it's both in her best interest and our dogs that she go to a new home with someone with the time to care for her properly. Any ideas for getting her into a good home? I've already tried the rescue groups as she is a pure bred taco dog, but due to her age they won't take her {she is 10+ years old by my estimate}.

[Milk8shake]

It makes me so sad to read about people getting rid of their pets.

If the main reason is behavioural, then I would seriously think about giving it another shot.  Housebreaking is not terribly hard work, and if she is tearing things up, it's because she is bored.

Does she get enough exercise?  Long walks can be good for toilet training, and great for behavioural issues.  Even short walks are better than nothing.  Failing that, throwing a ball for her to fetch!

Does she have toys?  They don't have to be expensive.  My boy loves nothing more than playing with an empty milk carton.  I take the lid off and put a couple of bits of dry pasta in and it rattles.  He loves it, and it amuses him for hours. 

If the main reason is money, there are a couple of options here also.  You don't have to buy tinned pet food.  Dogs were around long before the pet food industry.  A quick google search will give you plenty of ideas about alternative options.  I realise vet care is expensive, and heartworm tablets and flea control add up and that is a factor.  Again, a google search showed that there are pet food banks in the states, and resources for people trying to keep their pets in tough financial times.  Save Our Pets  Pet Food Bank  Food bank list (I don't live in the US, and I don't know where you are based, these are just ideas)

I guess only you can make a decision about what you can afford.  If you really must get rid of your dog, then think long and hard about how you do it. 

You need to be aware that shelters are overrun, especially at this time of year, and most shelters would be forced to euthanise a dog of that age.

Worse case scenario, contact a no kill shelter or rescue group.  Most of them have facebook pages - could you put an ad there?  Even if they can't take her, (which they should, as many dogs live far longer than ten years) maybe they can help you with some contacts to find a family for her. 

Best case, try and find someone yourself.  Put ads up in the local shops.  Put an ad on craigslist to find a potential family - and be honest about any shortcomings your dog might have.  There is no point fobbing her off to another family who thinks she is an angel, and finds out that they can't handle her.  When advertising a dog somewhere like craigslist, it often helps to put an actual price instead of "free to good home".  Even if that price is only $50, it tends to encourage more actual pet lovers, than people likely to use the animal for less than ideal purposes. 

Best of luck for you and your doggy

[frugalmama]

Originally Posted by Milk8shake 

It makes me so sad to read about people getting rid of their pets.

If the main reason is behavioural, then I would seriously think about giving it another shot.  Housebreaking is not terribly hard work, and if she is tearing things up, it's because she is bored.

Does she get enough exercise?  Long walks can be good for toilet training, and great for behavioural issues.  Even short walks are better than nothing.  Failing that, throwing a ball for her to fetch!

Does she have toys?  They don't have to be expensive.  My boy loves nothing more than playing with an empty milk carton.  I take the lid off and put a couple of bits of dry pasta in and it rattles.  He loves it, and it amuses him for hours. 

If the main reason is money, there are a couple of options here also.  You don't have to buy tinned pet food.  Dogs were around long before the pet food industry.  A quick google search will give you plenty of ideas about alternative options.  I realise vet care is expensive, and heartworm tablets and flea control add up and that is a factor.  Again, a google search showed that there are pet food banks in the states, and resources for people trying to keep their pets in tough financial times.  Save Our Pets  Pet Food Bank  Food bank list (I don't live in the US, and I don't know where you are based, these are just ideas)

I guess only you can make a decision about what you can afford.  If you really must get rid of your dog, then think long and hard about how you do it. 

You need to be aware that shelters are overrun, especially at this time of year, and most shelters would be forced to euthanise a dog of that age.

Worse case scenario, contact a no kill shelter or rescue group.  Most of them have facebook pages - could you put an ad there?  Even if they can't take her, (which they should, as many dogs live far longer than ten years) maybe they can help you with some contacts to find a family for her. 

Best case, try and find someone yourself.  Put ads up in the local shops.  Put an ad on craigslist to find a potential family - and be honest about any shortcomings your dog might have.  There is no point fobbing her off to another family who thinks she is an angel, and finds out that they can't handle her.  When advertising a dog somewhere like craigslist, it often helps to put an actual price instead of "free to good home".  Even if that price is only $50, it tends to encourage more actual pet lovers, than people likely to use the animal for less than ideal purposes. 

Best of luck for you and your doggy

I have tried to house train this dog for over 6 years now - she even failed puppy house training at our local pet store {the first dog is 25 years to fail}. I've tried the long walks, tried toys, tried everything under the sun. We even consulted the Dog Whisperer about her - and he failed at training her. It all goes back to when she was a puppy - they let her get away with everything under the sun because it was "cute" including stealing food off the table {when she has food in her dish} and nipping people for the fun of it. This dog isn't the brightest in the bunch, and simply will not learn. It is fast becoming a health hazard for myself and my daughter - I have asthma and cleaning up after her turns into an asthma attack every time. She has nipped my daughter more times than I can count, to the point I won't allow my daughter around the dog anymore. She barks constantly at night {even after lots of exercise and food}, to the point that we cannot get a good nights sleep unless we use earplugs to block her out. If anyone comes to the door, it is a good 30 minutes of barking and if anyone comes in she barks constantly to the point you cannot have a conversation over her noise. 

We actually gave her away once - they brought her back after 6 months of trying to train her to be a decent dog. 

We've tried with her - I just don't have it in me to try any more. In the interest of my sanity, and my family's health and safety, this dog has got to go. 

[gabbyraja]

Originally Posted by frugalmama 

This is interesting - I am hyper thyroid due to Graves {controlled with medication now} but get facial ticks and muscle spasms CONSTANTLY. Would this also work for someone who is hyper thyroid? I have to be very careful of what supplements I take - anything that boosts the immune system gets me an express hospital trip in thyroid storm. 

I do think Mag would help you. However, I'd start really slowly. Your skin absorbs things as well as your gut, even better if your gut doesn't function optimally. You can buy or make magnesium oil, or simply add epsom salts to your bath. About 1/2 cup to your bath, hottest water you can stand for as long as you can stand it, is a good starter. Adding sea salt (NOT iodized, the REAL sea salt, pink or gray colored, usually called Himalayan or Celtic, from the HFS) will also give you wonderful trace minerals that are pretty much guaranteed to help your overall health. Do it one day, not the next, yes the next. See how that treats you. Any poor reaction, back off to 1/4 cup or stop altogether for a little while. Some things can cause what's called a "healing crisis" where whatever symptoms you are seeing get worse for a short while before they get better. Usually you are releasing some stored toxin that your body then has to flush through the kidneys and liver, and until those organs can handle it you feel worse. But, hospital trips are just too much, so go with what you are feeling is right. 

If you can't do a full bath, try just a foot soak. Or make magnesium oil with the epsom salts and rub on as much skin surface as possible. http://affordable-health-cures.com/formulas/magnesium-oil/ This site advocates mag chloride more than mag sulfate (what's in epsom salts), but from what I've read we're all so deficient in sulfur that it's another excellent thing to do for your body. You need sulphur to rid yourself of the toxins (particularly phenols) you take in in the average American diet, as well as those created by your own cellular processes.

Also, please feel free to consult with your doctor! If your endo taking care of your hyper thyroid thinks it would be a bad idea then by all means, do not do it! However, there's a wonderful book, The Magnesium Miracle, that cites thousands of studies that show that adequate levels of magnesium helps with literally everything. I got tired of reading it, because they literally could have just said "Magnesium helps EVERY THING, so just take it." It's like Vit D in that way. My Dr put me on 2000-5000 IUs per day (more in winter, less in summer). I switched us all from the synthetic Vit D to fermented cod liver oil. Much more expensive, but better in so many ways to get a whole food source of any nutrient.

HTH, and feel free to ask me anything else.