You know, things have really sucked for me the last three months. I’ve spent most of that time living in my car with one or two dogs. My car, by the way, is a 1999 VW Beetle, NOT meant to be slept in, let alone lived in. There is NO room to stretch out, and when you add a Jack Russell and a Chihuahua, there is even less room, then add all the stuff you need to survive, clothes, deodorant, dog food, dog blankets, flea dope, dog toys, pillow and blanket for yourself…..there is NO ROOM at all.
But we’ve made do with what we have, and I’m thankful we have that. The weather here has resembled Southeast Asia for the last two months, rain, rain and more rain, with periods of steam, fog and unbearable humidity and heat. Yup, it’s been great, and the Bug has been a Godsend for keeping us dry, well mostly. I’ve gone to sleep a few times and forgotten to roll up the windows only to be awakened by cold rain and unhappy pups!
Anyway, that is NOT what this blog is about, well, not directly anyway.
You see, I’ve noticed something very strange these last couple of months. The ONLY people that desire to assist a person in my situation is the ones that CANNOT AFFORD TO!! Yup, the people that do what they can to help anyone in a worse situation are ALWAYS the one that don’t have much themselves. It’s strange, but true. I have done it myself, given half of my food to someone who didn’t have any. I’m not telling you that to make you think better of me, not at all, I am telling you that because I want you to realize HOW I was raised.
We were taught that a person helps ANYONE in need in whatever way they can. We would feed people, we would give them clothes or food, we would “carry” them to town (for those of you that don’t understand that it means drive someone to town) and sometimes even charge food/gasoline/kerosene for them on our account. We didn’t have much, we worked hard, but we loved life and all of those around us, even when they did us a bad turn.
Now a days, NO ONE much cares if their neighbor has enough to eat, they are more interested in what the latest clothing trend is or in playing with their newest mid life crisis toy to bother with “that” type of person. Around here, in this “lovely” little county that Dante obviously wrote about in his classic Inferno, there are many that have need. There are few, very, very few that have no where to live. BUT, there are MANY, MANY, MANY that would rather run their mouths about people, ruin people’s lives, screw people over and flaunt what they have to those that have nothing.
People, and I use that term loosely, like that are the same ones that have the empty houses sitting around, falling down now from non use, that they pay taxes on each and every year and they would RATHER THE DAMN THING FALL DOWN THAN FOR SOMEONE TO LIVE THERE!! WTF?? And trying to buy something on land contract??? WHAT A JOKE!! I have been told I have to have anywhere between $3,000 and $8,000 for a down payment BEFORE they will talk to me about an owner finance.
PEOPLE, I AM LIVING IN MY CAR!! If I had $3,000 I would be living in a rental at the least!! WTF is wrong with some folks??
The bank, actually a person working there, even said, “The way things are we can only lend to people who don’t need the money, if people need the money we can’t afford to lend to them.”
Personally I make $23 too much to get assistance of ANY type other than a whopping $11 in food stamps, which would buy a gallon of milk and two loaves of bread (Don’t have a place to keep the milk, don’t have a need for the bread). When I tell them that I am homeless, they say “Go to the homeless shelter” (which is about 60 miles away), when I say my car won’t make it, which it won’t, they say (with a straight face and malice in their eyes) “Walk”. When I say that I have my pets, they say “Take them to the pound, or we can take care of it for you.” Fuck the system!! It only works for those that know how to work it!
I sit back and I watch these freaks that make the meth and sell it, or sell pills, or heroin, or rape/beat/molest children or each other, the ones that always seem to have a car and gas to run up and down the roads a million times. You know who I’m speaking of, the ones who has their names in the paper every other week for one thing or another and never, ever, ever seem to spend more than a few hours in jail. Those are the ones the system will help, not someone like me.
I don’t mean to sound like I’m tooting my own horn, I’m really not, I’m just stating the facts. My daughter and I started a Christmas Card Project when we were down and out. This year will be the fifteenth year! We sent a few cards and small dollar store items to people who had less than we did (and believe me, we didn’t have much). That first year I believe there were a total of seven cards and two packages that we managed to scrape up the money to send. She and I both did without Christmas to do this, simply because we knew what it was like to have nothing and for it to seem like no one cared.
Since that first year the Project has grown by leaps and bounds! Last year we, myself and many, many other people I managed to get involved, sent out over 700 cards and packages to people who truly needed it! One young man hadn’t come out of his room for two months, he had what is referred to as the Suicide Disease (It’s a nerve disorder that causes extreme pain, most people suffering from it kill themselves in the first two years), when the first card come he really didn’t care, then the second and the third, etc., he started coming out of his room and actually going to the mailbox to see if there was yet another one for him. His mother said that he was so touched that he actually cried, the touch of the tears on his face caused extreme pain and he said it was worth it to simply know that someone cared if he were dead or alive. THAT IS WHAT HUMANS ARE SUPPOSE TO DO, CARE ABOUT ONE ANOTHER!!
The Mayor of Parkersburg, WV has put up signs where the “vagrants” used to stand and panhandle. The sign says not to “assist them in their use of alcohol and drugs”, basically saying that anyone that is desperate enough to beg is obviously a drug addict or a drunk. Hopefully he will never have to experience the pain and humiliation of living in a car or under a bridge, I would hate for the world to see him as a drug addict or a drunk, it would ruin him, wouldn’t it?
We, this country, are suppose to be PC about everything. Don’t us certain words, they might offend, don’t display certain flags, they might offend, don’t refuse to serve someone because you don’t believe they are living the way they should, you might offend, don’t own a gun, you might kill someone, don’t own certain dogs, they might kill someone, don’t do this, don’t do that. What’s next?
Oh, I know! Don’t be HOMELESS, YOU MIGHT OFFEND!! Oh wait, that’s already the way it is in Parkersburg and a dozen other places, like Florida where it is against the law to feed the hungry (they are only one of 71 places that have either passed this law or attempted to pass it!!). It’s offensive to be poor, down on your luck or living in a car or under a bridge, that’s why the homeless shelters are over run with people needing them, that’s why they go by first come, first serve, ALL OF THEM!!
There are SO many corporations and businesses that do all types of things to get tax credits, Clayton Homes is a fine example. They manufacture homes and donate to many, many worth causes. How about they donate a HOME to someone that doesn’t have one? There are a lot of us out here, and believe me, we would LOVE to have a place to live.
So, you’re wondering how I got on the internet to write this and post it if I’m homeless, correct? Like I said, I am living in my car, and I am lucky enough to have a friend that allows me to park in her drive, that allows me to use her shower, that washes my dirty clothes when she does laundry and allows me to use her internet. She doesn’t have room for me to stay here, but I can park here and have a few luxuries!! Yay for friends!! (Although I have some “friends” that are and have been more concerned with my pets and what was going on with them, to the point of making me feel so bad I wanted to drive off a cliff, so I guess it should be Yay for GOOD friends!!) Also, BIG YAY for those of you that helped Russell help me! We wouldn't be eating today if it weren't for that!!
I realize I have it better than a lot of other people. I am thankful for that!! I am thankful I am out of the continual rain, I am thankful I can get food and even coffee (The world should be thankful for that!!) every day!
I just wish I had a home, I wish I could sleep in a bed, make my own coffee and shower in my own shower! I don’t want to move in with someone on the pretext of this or that, only to find out that it is all a lie, have my dogs lives threatened and be told that if I were to “warm his bed” I could stay. NOPE, NOT going to happen. Is less likely to happen than Clayton homes giving away a house!! NOPE!! NO ONE WILL BE MEAN TO MY PETS and I WILL NOT FUCK ANYONE FOR A PLACE TO SLEEP!! Did that offend you? Well, tough titties, it offended me as well!!
I am done ranting now. I’m going to take my pups and go to the park, they love to run out there and it makes them tired so they are more likely to rest while being in the car than being restless and unhappy. We’ll get something to eat, at least they will today is not one of my lucky days in that department, and run and play and potty and then we (they) will sleep, happy to be with the one that loves them and would pretty much give her life for them.
You all have a good day. Please be thankful for what you have, it can be taken from you in a split second.
