Our savings had a $200 balance yesterday, but it and our bank account are $0 today. Because of being behind on rent, the surprise magazine debt, and paying back the bank debt, we have $35 to live on this week. Gasoline, groceries, milk, diapers. I just don't even know how we are going to do this. I *think* we have enough food, even if we have to eat nothing but home made bread sticks. It's really how we are going to balance the rest.
$7 diapers (cheapest possible)
$6.50 2 half gallons of soy milk
That leaves $21.50 for gasoline and no other groceries. We have just over half a tank right now, but my husband has an hour commute each way, so I really hope that is enough. That also means there is no money for laundry this week ($3 a load and my daughter is out of clean socks....). I'm going to have to experiment with doing laundry in the tub this week. Even if I can't get them clean, at least maybe they won't smell bad.
Sighhhhh. Back to square one.
Friday, January 31, 2014
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Our past is haunting us!
Up and down, up and down, good gravy, being broke is such a roller coaster. I was actually feeling pretty positive about things, but life always has a surprise wrench for you doesn't it??
I guess a few years before me and my husband met, he ordered a magazine subscription, one of those where you get a free trial and have to cancel or they charge you monthly. He got 2 months worth of magazines, paid 2 months worth of bills, and then I guess moved and didn't realize the subscriptions wouldn't follow him with the change of address, but then neither did the bills, which doesn't make sense. According to this company, they kept sending the magazines and he now owes for 2 years of subscriptions, and they are taking him to court for THEFT! Whaaaa??
They called his work yesterday and demanded $4500 and told him they wanted to see him in court somewhere in Georgia or Florida or something, and the only was to stop it was to pay the full amount owed of the original bill, which was about $380. We had exactly $100 left in the bank for rent, so obviously we didn't have it, but they demanded he make a payment of some kind and set up a draft for the rest. So he did. Ugh. Now we will be behind on rent, and in 3 weeks, two hundred and some odd dollars will be withdrawn from our account. Where this money is going to come from, I just don't know, because now our savings has to go to paying rent.
Who knows what might haunt us from MY past, I cannot seem to even get my credit report for some reason, and that scares me. Between a divorce, an identity stealing ex, bazillions in medical bills, delinquent student loans, and who knows what else, I'm terribly worried what that might mean. What if I can't fix it??
And to top it all off, my can opener broke, and I have been having to pry cans open all week to cook. My hands hurt, and I have cuts all over them, and I can't even go to the store to buy a new one! I just want to scream in frustration!
See, a lot of people on't understand that it just takes *forever* to dig yourself out of debt and poverty. Even after your circumstances start improving, all those bills you couldn't pay start rearing their ugly heads. I know for certain we've got my school loans like I said, a few delinquent utility bills, probably a few hundred thousand in medical bills, aaaaand that's all I know for sure. I'm so very worried what else might come along to set us back.
/Huge sigh.
I guess a few years before me and my husband met, he ordered a magazine subscription, one of those where you get a free trial and have to cancel or they charge you monthly. He got 2 months worth of magazines, paid 2 months worth of bills, and then I guess moved and didn't realize the subscriptions wouldn't follow him with the change of address, but then neither did the bills, which doesn't make sense. According to this company, they kept sending the magazines and he now owes for 2 years of subscriptions, and they are taking him to court for THEFT! Whaaaa??
They called his work yesterday and demanded $4500 and told him they wanted to see him in court somewhere in Georgia or Florida or something, and the only was to stop it was to pay the full amount owed of the original bill, which was about $380. We had exactly $100 left in the bank for rent, so obviously we didn't have it, but they demanded he make a payment of some kind and set up a draft for the rest. So he did. Ugh. Now we will be behind on rent, and in 3 weeks, two hundred and some odd dollars will be withdrawn from our account. Where this money is going to come from, I just don't know, because now our savings has to go to paying rent.
Who knows what might haunt us from MY past, I cannot seem to even get my credit report for some reason, and that scares me. Between a divorce, an identity stealing ex, bazillions in medical bills, delinquent student loans, and who knows what else, I'm terribly worried what that might mean. What if I can't fix it??
And to top it all off, my can opener broke, and I have been having to pry cans open all week to cook. My hands hurt, and I have cuts all over them, and I can't even go to the store to buy a new one! I just want to scream in frustration!
See, a lot of people on't understand that it just takes *forever* to dig yourself out of debt and poverty. Even after your circumstances start improving, all those bills you couldn't pay start rearing their ugly heads. I know for certain we've got my school loans like I said, a few delinquent utility bills, probably a few hundred thousand in medical bills, aaaaand that's all I know for sure. I'm so very worried what else might come along to set us back.
/Huge sigh.
Sunday, January 26, 2014
Poverty Climb: Weekly Progress #5
Ok, well, for once not everything is dreadful! That alone is progress!
*We did our taxes. We can't file them yet (until the 31st) but when it comes in, it is going to hopefully allow us to do 3 major things to improve our situation:
1) Buy a second vehicle. This will allow me to hopefully be a wage earner as well. If nothing else, it will allow me to get laundry/grocery shopping done and expand our horizons a little bit by going to the library/state park/church. We have been hermits, seriously. The hard part will be convincing my husband to buy what *I* think we should buy vs. what he thinks we should buy. I'm not sure who's right, I just want the money to go as far as possible.
2) Pay off debts. This includes the recent bank debt we acquired, an older bank debt, and some collections on our credit. These all however total about $1800, so it being a lower priority than a second vehicle, they may not all be able to be taken care of.
3) Increase our savings /Catch up on bills. It's not likely that we will have enough left over to do both these things, however my GOAL is to double our savings (whatever they are at the time it comes in) and then use the rest to catch up on bills. Some of our bills are still running 1 month behind. If we can catch up on those, I've given my husband permission to get cable for hockey playoff season. as long as w can keep up on the bill. Heh.
*We added another $50 to savings this week. Seriously, 2 bank accounts, where a portion goes into savings automatically, is the way to go. Handling/seeing that money in any fashion almost guarantees it will be spent. Not seeing it at all, makes us forget about it, and either suffer without necessities (within reason) or say no to splurges we would normally make.
*We paid another $25 off on our bank debt. It really makes so little progress as to be almost insignificant, but we will have to pay less out of our tax return if we keep trying.
*I tried to get my credit report/score but was unsuccessful, so I'm not sure this counts as progress. Pre-progress maybe, as I'm trying to figure out what the problem is. they cannot seem to verify my identity online, and want me to mail them a bunch of verification paperwork, but I don't have a copier or printer, so that's an issue. Pushing the stroller through 4+ inches of permanent snow with high temperatures that haven't even hit 20 yet for 2 weeks takes the library completely out of the equation. So that's on a burner for now. not necessarily the back burner, just a burner, as I try to figure out what I can do.
*Went to the food pantry again this week. It's been over a month, but I wanted to save it for when we really needed it. We don't need it this week really, but we will certainly need it next week. Rent is going to drain our entire check. I'm not sure we will be able to buy any groceries at all. We'll see.
So, hey! Some progress! Still tiny steps, but getting a second car will be huge. Paying off debts will be huge too actually. I just hope we can make it without digging our hole deeper until then. That's always the challenge right? Keeping equilibrium until the Hail Mary money comes.
*We did our taxes. We can't file them yet (until the 31st) but when it comes in, it is going to hopefully allow us to do 3 major things to improve our situation:
1) Buy a second vehicle. This will allow me to hopefully be a wage earner as well. If nothing else, it will allow me to get laundry/grocery shopping done and expand our horizons a little bit by going to the library/state park/church. We have been hermits, seriously. The hard part will be convincing my husband to buy what *I* think we should buy vs. what he thinks we should buy. I'm not sure who's right, I just want the money to go as far as possible.
2) Pay off debts. This includes the recent bank debt we acquired, an older bank debt, and some collections on our credit. These all however total about $1800, so it being a lower priority than a second vehicle, they may not all be able to be taken care of.
3) Increase our savings /Catch up on bills. It's not likely that we will have enough left over to do both these things, however my GOAL is to double our savings (whatever they are at the time it comes in) and then use the rest to catch up on bills. Some of our bills are still running 1 month behind. If we can catch up on those, I've given my husband permission to get cable for hockey playoff season. as long as w can keep up on the bill. Heh.
*We added another $50 to savings this week. Seriously, 2 bank accounts, where a portion goes into savings automatically, is the way to go. Handling/seeing that money in any fashion almost guarantees it will be spent. Not seeing it at all, makes us forget about it, and either suffer without necessities (within reason) or say no to splurges we would normally make.
*We paid another $25 off on our bank debt. It really makes so little progress as to be almost insignificant, but we will have to pay less out of our tax return if we keep trying.
*I tried to get my credit report/score but was unsuccessful, so I'm not sure this counts as progress. Pre-progress maybe, as I'm trying to figure out what the problem is. they cannot seem to verify my identity online, and want me to mail them a bunch of verification paperwork, but I don't have a copier or printer, so that's an issue. Pushing the stroller through 4+ inches of permanent snow with high temperatures that haven't even hit 20 yet for 2 weeks takes the library completely out of the equation. So that's on a burner for now. not necessarily the back burner, just a burner, as I try to figure out what I can do.
*Went to the food pantry again this week. It's been over a month, but I wanted to save it for when we really needed it. We don't need it this week really, but we will certainly need it next week. Rent is going to drain our entire check. I'm not sure we will be able to buy any groceries at all. We'll see.
So, hey! Some progress! Still tiny steps, but getting a second car will be huge. Paying off debts will be huge too actually. I just hope we can make it without digging our hole deeper until then. That's always the challenge right? Keeping equilibrium until the Hail Mary money comes.
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
1000 views!
I know it's really not that much, but it is a mile stone! Everything in my life revolves around baby steps right now, so you're darn right I'm going to celebrate every little one!
Thank you guys for reading, and for commenting, and for caring! If you have any suggestions for topics or content, please let me know.
Pretend the asterisks are fireworks. You'll have to pretend pretty hard.
You're not pretending hard enough....
Thank you guys for reading, and for commenting, and for caring! If you have any suggestions for topics or content, please let me know.
Pretend the asterisks are fireworks. You'll have to pretend pretty hard.
***
*1000 views*
***
Monday, January 20, 2014
Netflix Judging
There's a strange trend I'm noticing as I read other people's blogs, forum threads, and article comments on issues of poverty: Netflix judging.
We all know the general consensus among those who are not in poverty is that if those who are were willing to work harder and sacrifice more, we wouldn't be in that condition. I guess by sacrifice more, they mean every single little thing that costs money, that doesn't go towards basic necessities. Really, people explain their situation, with many circumstances stacked against them, but as soon as they mention they have Netflix (or internet, or cable), everyone seems to lose all logical thought and blame that person's situation on their frivolity of daring to spend money on entertainment. Isn't that a little ridiculous?? I know you as a logical person are thinking. no way, but I've seen it/ read it at least 5 times now. Recently related again by Sam.
Yes we have Netflix. Whether it is that, or Hulu, or basic cable T.V., these are some of the advantages it provides:
Entertains children / keeps them busy so Mom can clean and cook.
Educates children with pre-school and grade school educational programming.
Helps younger children learn to talk.
Allows us to bond as a family on movie night.
Entertains Mom & Dad after children have gone to bed.
Keeps depression (from being poor!) at bay.
Netflix costs $8/month.
Logically, what is an extra $8 per month going to do for someone in poverty? A few extra vegetables, a small toiletry item? Sure, they could put it in savings for a year, but with the disaster cycle many are stuck in, that money would be used up long before it got to the full amount, sucked up by everyday life. And yet, for $8 /month Netflix can provide all those benefits I listed above. That is worth $8 to me. Absolutely. Even so, that doesn't make it a priority to me, and those months we can't afford it, we cancel the auto debit.
Maybe these people take this as evidence that people who complain of poverty are using their money on additional frivolous items, and the cumulative money would be substantial enough to make a measurable difference in their lives. I cannot speak for everyone of course, but generally, we're just like you. We look at our budget, note which "frivolous" items we would like to have, and weigh the benefits against the costs. One expense not deemed "necessary" does not mean we are so irresponsible with the rest of our money that it keeps us in poverty. Yes, low income individuals do develop money habits different from those who are not, and those habits can contribute to the poverty cycle; however being cautious with what we do have and weighing the benefits against the costs is something financially successful people do every day. We just have a lot less.
Maybe these people think that by having any enjoyment in our lives at all, that we are making our situation more desirable, and therefore have less drive to make any change. I don't know about you, but an occasional frivolous expense does NOT make my situation more desirable, only more tolerable. Tolerable, in that I don't have to hear my oldest cry about why we never get to do anything fun, we never have the money etc. Tolerable, in that we get to escape for 80-90 minutes from this persistent drudgery and think about something else for a change. Tolerable, in that no, we can't ever go to the theater, but with some cheap popcorn, some blankets and pillows, and a movie on the screen, I can give my family a positive experience when those are so lacking these days.
I apologize if this has seemed like just another rant on our situation, I suppose it is a tiny bit. It always hurts to be judged and misunderstood. This is really a plea to those of you out there, that automatically jump to conclusions when you see a person begging for help and advice and you immediately jump all over their one single luxury. How is that helpful? How is that supportive? We need help improving our circumstance, not making it worse by sucking every bit of joy out of it.
The next time you have that urge, try to help by focusing on the bigger picture, and not the minute details.
We all know the general consensus among those who are not in poverty is that if those who are were willing to work harder and sacrifice more, we wouldn't be in that condition. I guess by sacrifice more, they mean every single little thing that costs money, that doesn't go towards basic necessities. Really, people explain their situation, with many circumstances stacked against them, but as soon as they mention they have Netflix (or internet, or cable), everyone seems to lose all logical thought and blame that person's situation on their frivolity of daring to spend money on entertainment. Isn't that a little ridiculous?? I know you as a logical person are thinking. no way, but I've seen it/ read it at least 5 times now. Recently related again by Sam.
Yes we have Netflix. Whether it is that, or Hulu, or basic cable T.V., these are some of the advantages it provides:
Entertains children / keeps them busy so Mom can clean and cook.
Educates children with pre-school and grade school educational programming.
Helps younger children learn to talk.
Allows us to bond as a family on movie night.
Entertains Mom & Dad after children have gone to bed.
Keeps depression (from being poor!) at bay.
Netflix costs $8/month.
Logically, what is an extra $8 per month going to do for someone in poverty? A few extra vegetables, a small toiletry item? Sure, they could put it in savings for a year, but with the disaster cycle many are stuck in, that money would be used up long before it got to the full amount, sucked up by everyday life. And yet, for $8 /month Netflix can provide all those benefits I listed above. That is worth $8 to me. Absolutely. Even so, that doesn't make it a priority to me, and those months we can't afford it, we cancel the auto debit.
Maybe these people take this as evidence that people who complain of poverty are using their money on additional frivolous items, and the cumulative money would be substantial enough to make a measurable difference in their lives. I cannot speak for everyone of course, but generally, we're just like you. We look at our budget, note which "frivolous" items we would like to have, and weigh the benefits against the costs. One expense not deemed "necessary" does not mean we are so irresponsible with the rest of our money that it keeps us in poverty. Yes, low income individuals do develop money habits different from those who are not, and those habits can contribute to the poverty cycle; however being cautious with what we do have and weighing the benefits against the costs is something financially successful people do every day. We just have a lot less.
Maybe these people think that by having any enjoyment in our lives at all, that we are making our situation more desirable, and therefore have less drive to make any change. I don't know about you, but an occasional frivolous expense does NOT make my situation more desirable, only more tolerable. Tolerable, in that I don't have to hear my oldest cry about why we never get to do anything fun, we never have the money etc. Tolerable, in that we get to escape for 80-90 minutes from this persistent drudgery and think about something else for a change. Tolerable, in that no, we can't ever go to the theater, but with some cheap popcorn, some blankets and pillows, and a movie on the screen, I can give my family a positive experience when those are so lacking these days.
I apologize if this has seemed like just another rant on our situation, I suppose it is a tiny bit. It always hurts to be judged and misunderstood. This is really a plea to those of you out there, that automatically jump to conclusions when you see a person begging for help and advice and you immediately jump all over their one single luxury. How is that helpful? How is that supportive? We need help improving our circumstance, not making it worse by sucking every bit of joy out of it.
The next time you have that urge, try to help by focusing on the bigger picture, and not the minute details.
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Poverty Climb: Weekly Progress #4
Whew what a week. Somehow we made it and I am still here, nothing is shut off, and we have plenty of groceries.
I even have my $26 savings left. And it has another $50 on top of it!
So how exactly? I"m not really even sure. And as good as that sounds, I'm not sure whether to count this week's adventures as a step forward, or one back...
After we were -$150, I had 2 checks, totaling $139 from my mother to pay her gas bill with. I paid her gas bill, I just never cashed the checks. A family member of ours had also sent our oldest child a $30 check to buy herself a Christmas present.
I'm not sure we did the right thing for the long run, we could have paid our balance back to zero (and in hindsight probably should have anyways) but we needed gas money and a few groceries for the week. So we took the checks (forgive me child!) and opened a new account at a local bank. We put $50 immediately into savings, and the rest in checking. We only used about $20 before payday. Payday came, and my husband had a good chunk of overtime on there. Hallelujah. Bills were paid, groceries bought, and a new Equestria Girls toy for the oldest to make up for cashing her check.
However, in the meantime, several more auto pay crap things came through (they wouldn't let us turn it off!), so the bank paid our phone & internet bill, which is good, but we are now:
I even have my $26 savings left. And it has another $50 on top of it!
So how exactly? I"m not really even sure. And as good as that sounds, I'm not sure whether to count this week's adventures as a step forward, or one back...
After we were -$150, I had 2 checks, totaling $139 from my mother to pay her gas bill with. I paid her gas bill, I just never cashed the checks. A family member of ours had also sent our oldest child a $30 check to buy herself a Christmas present.
I'm not sure we did the right thing for the long run, we could have paid our balance back to zero (and in hindsight probably should have anyways) but we needed gas money and a few groceries for the week. So we took the checks (forgive me child!) and opened a new account at a local bank. We put $50 immediately into savings, and the rest in checking. We only used about $20 before payday. Payday came, and my husband had a good chunk of overtime on there. Hallelujah. Bills were paid, groceries bought, and a new Equestria Girls toy for the oldest to make up for cashing her check.
However, in the meantime, several more auto pay crap things came through (they wouldn't let us turn it off!), so the bank paid our phone & internet bill, which is good, but we are now:
$547 in the negative
Oh my goodness. Talking to the bank was absolutely an excercise in frustration and insanity. We paid them $50 up front, and said we would pay $25-$50 a week until it was paid off, and asked if they would reduce some of the fees so we could pay it down. They wouldn't turn off over-draft, they charged us 2 fees per charge, and also a daily negative balance fee. WTF! They wouldn't negotiate on any of the fees, wouldn't stop charging the daily negative balance fee, etc.
In 60 days, they will close out the account, turn it in to collections, and put it on our credit. So we are going to be paying all that money in for the same final result as if we had paid nothing towards it at all, the only difference being the amount owed. This bothers me, but if we don't pay it, it will probably end up towards $1000, and if we keep paying, it will end up closer or just below $500. I'm one of those unfortunate souls that doesn't really understand how all this credit crap works, so I have no idea if one is worse than the other, or they are both equally bad.
Either way, We JUST started trying to take care of our credit and get it good, and this happens. Our only hope to not have 7 years of bad credit luck, is to pay it off with our tax return. If it even comes in time. Of course we have a thousand other things we need to spend that on, so we will have to sacrifice something to pay the bank. I'm absolutely blessed to have that money to use, I just wish it wouldn't be all gone to debt before we even cash it. Bleh.
But, whatever, I'm going to try to focus on the good things now. So without further adieu, the few ways our situation has improved this week:
*We got another air mattress with money from my husband's over-time. This is awesome, because those horrible mattresses, we stacked on one another and gave to my daughter, and got to put the futon back in the living room to have something to sit on! They are much more comfortable stacked, and she is light, so she's happy. Our air mattress was $60, and is very thick, so we're happy. We have a couch again, so we're all happy.
*All our bills are paid, even if by the negative bank account.
*I didn't have to go to the food pantry yet this month. I lucked out when I went to the grocery store, and they were just marking all the manger's specials and short dated food. I got lots of fresh stuff (blueberries, green beans, carrots, mushrooms), some bread, and a big package of chicken thighs, all for half price. Yesssssssssssss! And it wasn't old enough for any of the quality to suffer.
*We have $76 in savings! Hooray!
*We bought hangers. This probably seems silly to you, but we have no dressers, and tiny closets. Because my husband works I hang his clothes so they aren't wrinkly, but we haven't had enough hangers for me to hang mine. I've been storing mine in baskets, boxes, in piles by the bed, in piles on the bed, etc. So I'm really, really glad to finally have hangers. The expense for 30 hangers just wasn't one we could afford until now.
*Baby got a new car seat. She outgrew her previous one about 7 lbs. and 2 inches ago. She was ecstatic to face forward. I am ecstatically confident in her safety.
These steps feel so tiny, really, I just hope there are bigger ones soon.
These steps feel so tiny, really, I just hope there are bigger ones soon.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Good Luck Getting Out Of Poverty!
Since I've started this blog, I've been doing a lot more reading, some might call it "research" (but I really haven't worked that hard at it), about the poor, and poverty, and income limits etc. Everywhere I go, it seems there a two camps in the matter:
The seem pretty equal in numbers, but that sad truth is that the second camp is so much more vocal than the first. And it even seems people switch camps. When they finally can be labeled "successful", they seem to forget their years in strife, all the pain and despair and hopelessness. They forget how hard it was in the midst of it, and how hard it truly was to rise above. They say, "Work hard like I did and you will make it". They seem to forget the things that finally helped them out, whether it be social programs, family aid, or promotions, or just plain luck.
And luck accounts for a lot.
"I was lucky enough to get a raise."
"I was lucky my parents let me live with them."
"I was lucky that someone finally gave me a chance."
"I was lucky I qualified for all the programs."
"I was lucky enough to have free babysitting."
"I was lucky that a head hunter finally saw my resume'."
"I was lucky that my advisor helped me get a job."
These are all literal examples I've seen people write about how they became "successful", no matter how far down they started. When you take away the luck factor, all you have left are people working hard for their chance. Some get it, some don't. You're advice to work harder is useless if any amount of "luck" helped you to succeed, and it does. When you say "work harder like me" you mean, "have more good luck like me."
For some reason people think low income families don't work hard. I have no idea why. If based on how hard we work alone, very, very few people in poverty would stay there.
The sad truth seems to be, that for so many low-income families, luck is a huge factor. Bad luck keeps you there, good luck helps you out.
Bad luck makes your car break down. Good luck keeps it running until you have the money to fix it. Bad luck makes your cold turn into pneumonia, resulting in doctor bills and missed work. Good luck means some cough syrup clears you right out. Bad luck makes your boss completely unaware of your value as an employee. Good luck opens his eyes and makes him want to help you advance. Bad luck makes it so that you have no friends or family to help you out with babysitting or a place to live. Good luck makes your family offer to let you move in or babysit your child while you work/go to school.
If you set 2 people on deserted islands, they're both going to work as hard as they can to survive.
Good luck makes it so a boat goes by and sees the first person's smoke signal and they're rescued.
Bad luck, well, that person dies on the island. He worked just as hard, but there was never any boat.
People, not everyone has the same opportunities. Not everyone has the same options. Not everyone has the same luck!! Can you not come from a place of understanding and empathy, and not look down your nose, and say, "if you just worked harder."?
SO what then does a poor person do? How can we have more "good" luck, and less bad? How can we make ourselves opportunities, and give ourselves more chances?
I figure if there was an answer to that, we'd all be doing it. But I'm researching it, I'll get back to you.
In the mean time, I wish you all GOOD luck.
"I've been there, I know how it is."
and
"I think I know, and you're doing something wrong."
And luck accounts for a lot.
"I was lucky enough to get a raise."
"I was lucky my parents let me live with them."
"I was lucky that someone finally gave me a chance."
"I was lucky I qualified for all the programs."
"I was lucky enough to have free babysitting."
"I was lucky that a head hunter finally saw my resume'."
"I was lucky that my advisor helped me get a job."
These are all literal examples I've seen people write about how they became "successful", no matter how far down they started. When you take away the luck factor, all you have left are people working hard for their chance. Some get it, some don't. You're advice to work harder is useless if any amount of "luck" helped you to succeed, and it does. When you say "work harder like me" you mean, "have more good luck like me."
For some reason people think low income families don't work hard. I have no idea why. If based on how hard we work alone, very, very few people in poverty would stay there.
The sad truth seems to be, that for so many low-income families, luck is a huge factor. Bad luck keeps you there, good luck helps you out.
Bad luck makes your car break down. Good luck keeps it running until you have the money to fix it. Bad luck makes your cold turn into pneumonia, resulting in doctor bills and missed work. Good luck means some cough syrup clears you right out. Bad luck makes your boss completely unaware of your value as an employee. Good luck opens his eyes and makes him want to help you advance. Bad luck makes it so that you have no friends or family to help you out with babysitting or a place to live. Good luck makes your family offer to let you move in or babysit your child while you work/go to school.
If you set 2 people on deserted islands, they're both going to work as hard as they can to survive.
Good luck makes it so a boat goes by and sees the first person's smoke signal and they're rescued.
Bad luck, well, that person dies on the island. He worked just as hard, but there was never any boat.
People, not everyone has the same opportunities. Not everyone has the same options. Not everyone has the same luck!! Can you not come from a place of understanding and empathy, and not look down your nose, and say, "if you just worked harder."?
SO what then does a poor person do? How can we have more "good" luck, and less bad? How can we make ourselves opportunities, and give ourselves more chances?
I figure if there was an answer to that, we'd all be doing it. But I'm researching it, I'll get back to you.
In the mean time, I wish you all GOOD luck.
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