by Jeanette R. Harrison, MPH
What's on my mind this morning as I drink my coffee? I received the infamous three-day notice on my door last week. In Idaho, apartment managers and landlords can place a three-day notice on your door if you do not pay the rent the day it is due. Of course, it is at their discretion because over half of our legislators in Idaho are landlords. Needless to say, tenants have very few rights. If you have been reading my posts, you know that I lost my day job because I contracted pneumonia. I wasn't able to work that job or work on my business. Because I'm a temporary worker, I don't have things like short-term disability or anything even as luxurious as health insurance. Staffing agencies do offer health insurance, but you lose your insurance as soon as you leave the job. I know someone out there reading this is thinking, "Why didn't you just go on Medicaid?" As a single woman in Idaho, to qualify for Medicaid, my monthly income would have to be less than $1,800 per month. Medicaid is determined by monthly income or annual income, and I wouldn't be eligible either way.
I have to admit, I saw the three-day notice coming because I had been sick and couldn't pay my rent. I was lying in bed for three weeks, wondering why I had to endure another illness by myself. No, no one checked on me to see if I was okay. It was just me using the skills I gained through my years of experience in healthcare, and my little dog taking care of me. That's it.
 |
When I had pneumonia, my dog was the one watching over me. |
For someone like me, not having income for a month is devastating. (While I'm on this subject, I want to say no, I didn't "blow through my savings" when I moved to Idaho. $2400 is not a lot of money to begin with, much less to start your life over with. Hopefully, I will be going back to work this week. But, remember, I have no savings and no safety net. This week, I am concerned about my electricity being disconnected because I made my payment late on my payment arrangement. Even if you make the payment, if it's late, the payment arrangement is broken. I have meetings and interviews I have set up this week that I have to get to. And, I have to figure out how I am going to pay for that. Everything in my life costs me money. If I need someone to do something for me or I need something, I have to pay for it. I had to go stand in line at the food pantry, so I could have food. As an aside, I have no idea how families live off that amount of money. Even people in supposedly "affluent" communities struggle and experience food insecurity.
I had a woman refer me recently to an organization that teaches Life Skills. She has a misconception that I am struggling because I don't have life skills. I was beyond offended. It takes more life skills than the average person has to live my life. Can you imagine lying in bed sick for three weeks, and no one checking on you or doing anything for you? I had to use a lot of skills that I obtained from years of healthcare training, education, and experience just to keep myself alive. I'm struggling just to survive every day, while simultaneously trying to propel myself forward. This same person, when I told her I was looking for a job, told me to apply at a local call center... even though she knew I had an advanced degree and years of work experience. How is that being helpful? When you are in survival mode, those kinds of suggestions just keep you there.
This year, more than most years, I have had people doing at least a few things for me. Some women in my community invited me over for dinner a few times. One woman took me for dinner at a fast-casual restaurant, and another paid for my drinks when she invited me to hang out with her. Friends helped me when I started my GoFundMe. But, on a day-to-day basis, no one is here. I clean my house, I bring myself coffee, I walk my dog, I walk myself. I cook every meal for myself, unless I decide to go buy myself a meal. Some mornings, I will walk to McDonald's because I can get an iced coffee for $1. I sit there and drink my coffee and eat a biscuit, so I don't have to eat a meal by myself. I can go months at a time without having anyone to eat a meal with.
To recap, I've had a very stressful year. I faced eviction in January, and I was looking for a job. In February, I had to go to court and defend myself in mediation, started a new job, and had to give nearly every dime I earned to my apartment complex to keep a place to live and have stability in my life. During that time, I created a GoFundMe to ask people to support me so I could provide the basics for myself, like rideshares, public transportation, and food. Meanwhile, I was working at an accounting firm during tax season. Then, I contracted pneumonia, lost all of my income, and experienced a major health issue. Now, here I am having to look for a day job again, and back to square one.
So, what's my plan? My plan as of today is to try to find a way to pay my electric bill and to get to my interviews this week. That's the top of my mind. I'm also trying to find ways to grow my business so I can continue making real impact with what I do. I've learned in life that it's important to believe in myself even when no one else does.
I'm hoping to grow my business by going to markets, expos, and fairs. To get in front of people so they can actually see who I am and what I'm about. Again, that takes financial resources I don't have. Some of the things I need to get going are a table for a display booth, a canopy, weights for the canopy, money to buy author copies of my books, a cart to haul my books in, and the basics to make sure I can keep going and hopefully get past survival mode.
If you would like to help with my GoFundMe, I have provided the link below. I would be happy to provide cost breakdowns to anyone who requests it.
Thank you so much for listening.
Comments
Post a Comment