Yes after I had my eldest daughter...I was 15, my Mom kicked me out of the house...my daughter & I lived from house to house...there were times I had no milk for her let alone food for me. Finally I was able to get state aid (they didn't want to help me because I was 15) I told myself that we would NEVER deal with that again. It never did....

But I have lived from check to check, when my kids were younger they didn't have like what their friends had, but they had a roof over their head, food in their tummys and clothes on their back. I can honestly say we were very happy back then.

MoniGram said:

Yes after I had my eldest daughter...I was 15, my Mom kicked me out of the house...my daughter & I lived from house to house...there were times I had no milk for her let alone food for me. Finally I was able to get state aid (they didn't want to help me because I was 15) I told myself that we would NEVER deal with that again. It never did....

But I have lived from check to check, when my kids were younger they didn't have like what their friends had, but they had a roof over their head, food in their tummys and clothes on their back. I can honestly say we were very happy back then.

SCNDLS said:

DesireeNevermind said:

This sounds like my life except for the bouncin' check. I've done that twice in my life. Once by accident and once on purpose. The on purpose time was hilarious even though it was rather silly of me. I had some bummy relative naggin' me for money to hold and other family gettin' on my case about being selfish and what not (when ur a single female with no chirren you are often deemed selfish). So anyway...I wrote him a check then moved the money to another account that wasn't linked to my checking. I was mostly tryna humiliate his broke ass. WTF I care about a $30 overdraft fee.

his ass deposit that $500 check then his bank gonna take the money right back cuz the check didn't clear. Oooh wee I was on his shit list. Still am!

Chile you are too much comedy!

I know what you mean about family talking shit cuz you're single, child-free, and financially stable. I'm confused as to why ya'll muhhfuckas strugglin' with TWO incomes but mad at me.

For realz!!!!! And mofos wanna ask "what you do with all your money?"

Bitch don't aske me bout my cash worry bout yo own damn wallet....and while yer at it....comb that baby's hair!!!!

Bout make me mad as hell. I don't like anybody asking me how much I make, why I buy what I buy and damn sure don't go cryin' poverty with your hand all the way out. I appreciate struggle and am glad to help out now and then....JUST DON'T ASK ME!!!

I like to give without muhfuggas askin....can't explain it....i just rather give to somebody who wouldn't think to ask than to give to somebody always on the beggin' train.

.

[Edited 8/26/10 2:03am]

do any Westerners truly know poverty?

whistle said:

do any Westerners truly know poverty?

some do, but not many.

When I feel like I have no money, I still know I have more than most people in the world, and more opportunity as well

No, never poor but the family was always totally dependent on my dad's income and since he was running his own (small) business, our financial situation would go up and down depending on how business was going at the time. At its worst I remember helping mom find very cheap food out of absolute necessity, but there were good times too. I never felt like we wouldn't be able to eat at all.

whistle said:

do any Westerners truly know poverty?

sure they do. the only difference between westerners and those living in the third world perhaps is that in intervals....the westerners have access to government funded programs to help aleviate their poverty..again it's in intervals depending on the state of the economy. There is also the factor about discrimination as here in the U.S. a white poor person is not necessarily experiencing the same degree of poverty as a black poor person and it the variations are greater depending on what part of the country you live in...say mississippi versus new york.

if you lack food, clean water to drink, shelter, clothing, education, safety and a place to wash your ass....I don't care where you live...you are in poverty!

`

[Edited 3/18/11 11:04am]

DesireeNevermind said:

whistle said:

do any Westerners truly know poverty?

sure they do. the only difference between westerners and those living in the third world perhaps is that in intervals....the westerners have access to government funded programs to help aleviate their poverty..again it's in intervals depending on the state of the economy. There is also the factor about discrimination as here in the U.S. a white poor person is not necessarily experiencing the same degree of poverty as a black poor person and it the variations are greater depending on what part of the country you live in...say mississippi versus new york.

if you lack food, clean water to drink, shelter, clothing, education, safety and a place to wash your ass....I don't care where you live...you are in poverty!

i understand your point. i'm just saying that i've been to the third world and to the people there, we're all in 'Poor Camp'. they'd roll around on the floor laughing at the so-called hardships of our poor people.

whistle said:

DesireeNevermind said:

sure they do. the only difference between westerners and those living in the third world perhaps is that in intervals....the westerners have access to government funded programs to help aleviate their poverty..again it's in intervals depending on the state of the economy. There is also the factor about discrimination as here in the U.S. a white poor person is not necessarily experiencing the same degree of poverty as a black poor person and it the variations are greater depending on what part of the country you live in...say mississippi versus new york.

if you lack food, clean water to drink, shelter, clothing, education, safety and a place to wash your ass....I don't care where you live...you are in poverty!

i understand your point. i'm just saying that i've been to the third world and to the people there, we're all in 'Poor Camp'. they'd roll around on the floor laughing at the so-called hardships of our poor people.

Indeed.

However, I'm not sure why this has turned into an "I/they had/have it worse than you do/did, you don't know nothing!" thread. It was just asking about people's personal experiences.

JustErin said:

whistle said:

i understand your point. i'm just saying that i've been to the third world and to the people there, we're all in 'Poor Camp'. they'd roll around on the floor laughing at the so-called hardships of our poor people.

Indeed.

However, I'm not sure why this has turned into an "I/they had/have it worse than you do/did, you don't know nothing!" thread. It was just asking about people's personal experiences.

quiet! we're trying to establish street cred here!

MoniGram said:

Yes after I had my eldest daughter...I was 15, my Mom kicked me out of the house...my daughter & I lived from house to house...there were times I had no milk for her let alone food for me. Finally I was able to get state aid (they didn't want to help me because I was 15) I told myself that we would NEVER deal with that again. It never did....

But I have lived from check to check, when my kids were younger they didn't have like what their friends had, but they had a roof over their head, food in their tummys and clothes on their back. I can honestly say we were very happy back then.

You are an awesome mom!!

DesireeNevermind said:

SCNDLS said:

Chile you are too much comedy!

I know what you mean about family talking shit cuz you're single, child-free, and financially stable. I'm confused as to why ya'll muhhfuckas strugglin' with TWO incomes but mad at me.

For realz!!!!! And mofos wanna ask "what you do with all your money?"

Bitch don't aske me bout my cash worry bout yo own damn wallet....and while yer at it....comb that baby's hair!!!!

Bout make me mad as hell. I don't like anybody asking me how much I make, why I buy what I buy and damn sure don't go cryin' poverty with your hand all the way out. I appreciate struggle and am glad to help out now and then....JUST DON'T ASK ME!!!

I like to give without muhfuggas askin....can't explain it....i just rather give to somebody who wouldn't think to ask than to give to somebody always on the beggin' train.

Me too. If you ask I'll prolly say no on GP cuz I may be getting played.

whistle said:

DesireeNevermind said:

sure they do. the only difference between westerners and those living in the third world perhaps is that in intervals....the westerners have access to government funded programs to help aleviate their poverty..again it's in intervals depending on the state of the economy. There is also the factor about discrimination as here in the U.S. a white poor person is not necessarily experiencing the same degree of poverty as a black poor person and it the variations are greater depending on what part of the country you live in...say mississippi versus new york.

if you lack food, clean water to drink, shelter, clothing, education, safety and a place to wash your ass....I don't care where you live...you are in poverty!

i understand your point. i'm just saying that i've been to the third world and to the people there, we're all in 'Poor Camp'. they'd roll around on the floor laughing at the so-called hardships of our poor people.

You haven't visited the ghettoes of the United States.

There are areas of Los Angeles and Chicago, to name two, that resemble Third World countries more than the good ol' US of A.

PunkMistress said:

whistle said:

i understand your point. i'm just saying that i've been to the third world and to the people there, we're all in 'Poor Camp'. they'd roll around on the floor laughing at the so-called hardships of our poor people.

You haven't visited the ghettoes of the United States.

There are areas of Los Angeles and Chicago, to name two, that resemble Third World countries more than the good ol' US of A.

total bollocks, both in assuming where i have and haven't been and in comparing Watts or the south side of Chicago to Mumbai or a Brazilian favela.

JustErin said:

whistle said:

i understand your point. i'm just saying that i've been to the third world and to the people there, we're all in 'Poor Camp'. they'd roll around on the floor laughing at the so-called hardships of our poor people.

Indeed.

However, I'm not sure why this has turned into an "I/they had/have it worse than you do/did, you don't know nothing!" thread. It was just asking about people's personal experiences.

I didn't intend to steer the discussion in that direction. Whenever you ask people to self-identify as something as subjective as "poor," I guess it's inevitable. People's personal definitions vary wildly - and I didn't mean to minimize anyone's experiences.

I just feel strongly that there is a difference between someone who struggles but has life preservers, and those who are really struggling - without a safety net. Maybe I'm defensive about it because I'm aware of the effects it's had on me (insecurity, inadequacy, anxiety about having enough) and maybe I get bothered by the idea of "being poor" as some kind of vacation a person took due to their pride. In some cases, pride is a privilege.

That's just my view based on my experiences. Group hug!

PunkMistress said:

whistle said:

i understand your point. i'm just saying that i've been to the third world and to the people there, we're all in 'Poor Camp'. they'd roll around on the floor laughing at the so-called hardships of our poor people.

You haven't visited the ghettoes of the United States.

There are areas of Los Angeles and Chicago, to name two, that resemble Third World countries more than the good ol' US of A.

EVERY major US city has areas that look as if a bomb dropped on them and people living under those conditions. Or, you have the people living in the deep south who are STILL sharecroppers and picking cotton like it's 1850. But since these groups of people have little power the public at large don't hear about it.

whistle said:

PunkMistress said:

You haven't visited the ghettoes of the United States.

There are areas of Los Angeles and Chicago, to name two, that resemble Third World countries more than the good ol' US of A.

total bollocks, both in assuming where i have and haven't been and in comparing Watts or the south side of Chicago to Mumbai or a Brazilian favela.

All I know is, I've seen neighborhoods in the US where children are growing up dirty and starving, without electricity, amidst unchecked violence.

To me, that's close enough. It's certainly enough to qualify for a very broad definition of "poverty," don't you think?

Good Lord... where do I begin? I was raised by a single mom who collected welfare for a better part of my childhood. Dad just left us to whore himself around town. We went through all the typical tough times families living in "the hood" go through.

Then I got preggers at 19... did OK for myself considering (even helped my mom buy her home) until I fell in love with a moocher, had two of his kids and I lost everything because of his trifling non-bill paying ass. Even became homeless... this hurt me because I never relied on sec.8 as a teen mom and I was pretty proud of that. I am still broke and live in an income based unit now.

I am poor but...

I am not on welfare, or any government assistance other than the affordable housing... I live on the beach, I don't have to work ( I do part-time gigs designing gardens ) , and my kids don't want for a thing. We still live a "lean" lifestyle, but it has taught me what truly matters. I am the happiest I have ever been, I am able to stay with my kids at home for the most part and enjoy them daily. I live a completely stress free life. Wake up and get out when I want, and work when I want, and the kids come first.Even the 19 yr old son has a full scholarship to a really good college and making his childhood dream of being a marine biologist a reality.

I am the brokest of all of my friends, they all own several homes, travel plenty and buy their kids cool gadgets, but me... I have to plan for anything I want to buy for myself, but the kids eat like kings and its like we are on a constant vacation. Picnics, sun and fun, and I even have time to do all that community/parent stuff that makes it all worth while.

I don't feel poor at all, all my friends envy my lifestyle wierdly enough.

paintedlady said:

Good Lord... where do I begin? I was raised by a single mom who collected welfare for a better part of my childhood. Dad just left us to whore himself around town. We went through all the typical tough times families living in "the hood" go through.

Then I got preggers at 19... did OK for myself considering (even helped my mom buy her home) until I fell in love with a moocher, had two of his kids and I lost everything because of his trifling non-bill paying ass. Even became homeless... this hurt me because I never relied on sec.8 as a teen mom and I was pretty proud of that. I am still broke and live in an income based unit now.

I am poor but...

I am not on welfare, or any government assistance other than the affordable housing... I live on the beach, I don't have to work ( I do part-time gigs designing gardens ) , and my kids don't want for a thing. We still live a "lean" lifestyle, but it has taught me what truly matters. I am the happiest I have ever been, I am able to stay with my kids at home for the most part and enjoy them daily. I live a completely stress free life. Wake up and get out when I want, and work when I want, and the kids come first.Even the 19 yr old son has a full scholarship to a really good college and making his childhood dream of being a marine biologist a reality.

I am the brokest of all of my friends, they all own several homes, travel plenty and buy their kids cool gadgets, but me... I have to plan for anything I want to buy for myself, but the kids eat like kings and its like we are on a constant vacation. Picnics, sun and fun, and I even have time to do all that community/parent stuff that makes it all worth while.

I don't feel poor at all, all my friends envy my lifestyle wierdly enough.

Perfect example of how subjective the term is.

Your life with your kids sounds absolutely wonderful.

PunkMistress said:

paintedlady said:

Good Lord... where do I begin? I was raised by a single mom who collected welfare for a better part of my childhood. Dad just left us to whore himself around town. We went through all the typical tough times families living in "the hood" go through.

Then I got preggers at 19... did OK for myself considering (even helped my mom buy her home) until I fell in love with a moocher, had two of his kids and I lost everything because of his trifling non-bill paying ass. Even became homeless... this hurt me because I never relied on sec.8 as a teen mom and I was pretty proud of that. I am still broke and live in an income based unit now.

I am poor but...

I am not on welfare, or any government assistance other than the affordable housing... I live on the beach, I don't have to work ( I do part-time gigs designing gardens ) , and my kids don't want for a thing. We still live a "lean" lifestyle, but it has taught me what truly matters. I am the happiest I have ever been, I am able to stay with my kids at home for the most part and enjoy them daily. I live a completely stress free life. Wake up and get out when I want, and work when I want, and the kids come first.Even the 19 yr old son has a full scholarship to a really good college and making his childhood dream of being a marine biologist a reality.

I am the brokest of all of my friends, they all own several homes, travel plenty and buy their kids cool gadgets, but me... I have to plan for anything I want to buy for myself, but the kids eat like kings and its like we are on a constant vacation. Picnics, sun and fun, and I even have time to do all that community/parent stuff that makes it all worth while.

I don't feel poor at all, all my friends envy my lifestyle wierdly enough.

Perfect example of how subjective the term is.

Your life with your kids sounds absolutely wonderful.

TY I was depressed for a minute about it, then I took them damn lemons and made some fucking lemonaide with the help of the lovely Department Of Revenue - child support division.

PunkMistress said:

whistle said:

total bollocks, both in assuming where i have and haven't been and in comparing Watts or the south side of Chicago to Mumbai or a Brazilian favela.

All I know is, I've seen neighborhoods in the US where children are growing up dirty and starving, without electricity, amidst unchecked violence.

To me, that's close enough. It's certainly enough to qualify for a very broad definition of "poverty," don't you think?

It's the USA's dirty little secret. I have seen the same, in New Orleans. A friend of mine vounteered for Project Desire and I never knew such poverty existed in the US until I visited her and helped on a field trip for those children. People living in shacks with dirt floors, many of the children had BO, for lack of simple proper hygeine (I can only assume many didn't have running water in their homes, etc.).

DesireeNevermind said:

whistle said:

do any Westerners truly know poverty?

sure they do. the only difference between westerners and those living in the third world perhaps is that in intervals....the westerners have access to government funded programs to help aleviate their poverty..again it's in intervals depending on the state of the economy. There is also the factor about discrimination as here in the U.S. a white poor person is not necessarily experiencing the same degree of poverty as a black poor person and it the variations are greater depending on what part of the country you live in...say mississippi versus new york.

if you lack food, clean water to drink, shelter, clothing, education, safety and a place to wash your ass....I don't care where you live...you are in poverty!

You know, I used to think this too - until I moved to the South, close to a rural area. In the northeast, the face of poverty is black. But a larger percentage of the very poor in the US are rural whites. I've seen all-white trailer parks and "campgrounds" (these are what the trailer park people look down on) where the kids look in far worse shape than I've ever seen - barefoot, covered in sores...horrible stuff.

CarrieMpls said:

PunkMistress said:

All I know is, I've seen neighborhoods in the US where children are growing up dirty and starving, without electricity, amidst unchecked violence.

To me, that's close enough. It's certainly enough to qualify for a very broad definition of "poverty," don't you think?

It's the USA's dirty little secret. I have seen the same, in New Orleans. A friend of mine vounteered for Project Desire and I never knew such poverty existed in the US until I visited her and helped on a field trip for those children. People living in shacks with dirt floors, many of the children had BO, for lack of simple proper hygeine (I can only assume many didn't have running water in their homes, etc.).

It's definitely a dirty little secret.

I remember being absolutely shocked at some of the areas I've witnessed. WTF? Why is it just swept under the rug that US citizens are living in such horrible conditions, in forgotten areas that get no attention, funding or help?

My wife was left with two small children to raise by her scumbag ex (child support was 50.00 every two weeks......not each; total) She lived in a complex in sarasota that had constant violence. She scraped by with state aid. She found herself in a position to get a waitressing job and the state said she was working and cut the childrens health care (they exploded on her when she quit her job in order to get health care back)

After we married she lost all aid except for her housing voutcher. I ended up taking jobs that would allow her to go to scholl, and us not having to pay child care (that means low paying jobs). How well I remember the misery involved with just redoing paperwork for the housing each year, and even just filling out head start aplications. Paperwork got lost and needed to be redone all the time.

We also had a special needs child, which coupled with low income was a green light for schools to shit all over you. How different the attitude we received when we moved and were in a position to buy a house.

My husband has 2 aunties that have no addresses, because they don't live on real streets, their houses are made from bits of plywood and sheets of corrugated tin

PunkMistress said:

CarrieMpls said:

It's the USA's dirty little secret. I have seen the same, in New Orleans. A friend of mine vounteered for Project Desire and I never knew such poverty existed in the US until I visited her and helped on a field trip for those children. People living in shacks with dirt floors, many of the children had BO, for lack of simple proper hygeine (I can only assume many didn't have running water in their homes, etc.).

It's definitely a dirty little secret.

I remember being absolutely shocked at some of the areas I've witnessed. WTF? Why is it just swept under the rug that US citizens are living in such horrible conditions, in forgotten areas that get no attention, funding or help?

My wife had a geography teacher in college tell the class that trailer homes didn't exist in MA, that it was only in other parts of the U.S.

paintsprayer said:

My wife was left with two small children to raise by her scumbag ex (child support was 50.00 every two weeks......not each; total) She lived in a complex in sarasota that had constant violence. She scraped by with state aid. She found herself in a position to get a waitressing job and the state said she was working and cut the childrens health care (they exploded on her when she quit her job in order to get health care back)

After we married she lost all aid except for her housing voutcher. I ended up taking jobs that would allow her to go to scholl, and us not having to pay child care (that means low paying jobs). How well I remember the misery involved with just redoing paperwork for the housing each year, and even just filling out head start aplications. Paperwork got lost and needed to be redone all the time.

We also had a special needs child, which coupled with low income was a green light for schools to shit all over you. How different the attitude we received when we moved and were in a position to buy a house.

noonbluespraypaintedapples, you are a good, good man.

OMG, the paperwork misery is fucking EPIC. After writing til your hand falls off and collecting every scrap of documentation they require, you find out that they CONSTANTLY lose your paperwork, then tell you that you missed a deadline and are getting cut off. I'm convinced this is a tactic to reduce the amount of aid recipients.

paintsprayer said:

PunkMistress said:

It's definitely a dirty little secret.

I remember being absolutely shocked at some of the areas I've witnessed. WTF? Why is it just swept under the rug that US citizens are living in such horrible conditions, in forgotten areas that get no attention, funding or help?

My wife had a geography teacher in college tell the class that trailer homes didn't exist in MA, that it was only in other parts of the U.S.