127 replies to this topic

[King Biscuit]

You sure aren't kidding when you say it's expensive to be poor.

I know that one oh so well.

 

It won't end well to be sure, but as a heads up... it will have to end.

You might wanna start thinking about an exit strategy.

[Chancellor Gunn]

Yeah whathat King Biscuit said. Especially if she keeps changing jobs like that....

[Redezra]

You need out Jorost. Neo-liberal 21st century economies do not allow for anyone to be saved. Sad as it may be, you cannot be responsible for them, and disturbing as it is, you need to think of yourself first.

[King Biscuit]

Finally figured where I've heard the OP before:

 

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

Finally figured where I've heard the OP before:

 

 

Ha!  I figured that was a gimme, at least among the music-savvy.

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

Well, there is an update, of sorts, for anyone following this little white trash melodrama playing out in my tiny corner of the world:

 

Mark, now jobless, apparently spent the day in some sort of petty squabble with Kaitlin's mother and grandmother, in whose custody DCF has placed the children.  In short: her family loathes him.  They view him has human scum, practically spit on him when they speak to him.  I have seen it.  In the case of the grandmother, it is quite ugly.  Of particular contention to this prim churchgoing lady (the cunty type, not the sweet type) is the "Satan's Angel" tattoo Mark (unfortunately) chose to put on his neck.  And so it goes.

 

At any rate, I snapped.  I told him he was not helping his case, he was hurting it, and that he was acting like a high schooler.  They needed to get their priorities straight, I told them, like getting full time jobs, getting a place to live, and getting the hell out of here.  He did not take that well, played the "I can't believe the one person I thought I could count on..." card, and stormed off.  I sent him a long text telling him like it is, that I am not going to throw him out, nor would I do so, but that he needs to start acting like a grownup and get his priorities straight.  No response so far.

 

Godammit this is why I like LIVING ALONE.

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

Oh yeah and she's still out in the other room.  I haven't been out there since.  Now that the moment has passed it feels kind of awkward.  Also I feel like I have the upper hand right now.  Going out there would be like yielding ground, somehow.  Which will suck when my drink runs out.

[Haflinger]

Ah, if only House was real. Then you could just tell him to peddle Vicodin to this doctor you know named Gregory who's rich and have him solve the guy's money problems.

 

But I digress. Roofing is not a good long-term occupation unless you're really fit. Roofers, like most people who work in construction, are independent contractors - all of them - and they do get paid very well while they're at work but they have to take care of everything.

 

Hmm, this guy's a dealer you say? Is he good at selling stuff? A lot of dealers can learn to sell legal things like cars and such.

 

That's my favourite Lennon song, so I naturally recognized it right away.

Edited by Haflinger, 23 May 2014 - 10:49 PM.

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

He'd probably be good at selling stuff.  He's a good BS artist.  He worked in a cigar shop for a long time and reportedly increased their sales.  It's all a matter of finding a place that will give him a chance.  It's hard enough to find a job with a record, and the large gap in employment history doesn't help.  Meh.  It's all so ugly.

 

THIS IS WHY I LIKE LIVING ALONE.

[Haflinger]

Seriously, try car dealers. They all work on commission. Find a place that does 100% commission and they'll probably take him.

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

Worth a try.

[Redezra]

Eject! Eject! Eject!

 

You totally need out Jorost. Screw empathy, you don't want to be sucked into the black hole this guy's forming around himself.

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

I cannot eject them, because I am not exaggerating when I say that they have nowhere to go.  I won't send them to sleep in their car in some parking lot somewhere.  But I did have a good talk with Mark, and made it clear that he needs to get his priorities in order.  If getting his children back is really his priority, the best thing he can do is stabilize his living situation.  He has spoken with DCF, and wants his daughter removed from Kaitlin's family's care and placed in regular foster care.  He feels this will remove the bone of contention between them, and he will have no further reason to deal with the relatives (the little boy, although he calls Mark "Daddy" and has been with him for years, is not Mark's biological son and he has no legal rights regarding him).  Kaitlin, understandably, is upset about this, but that's between them.  Frankly if she left him it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

 

Bottom line, I told him in no uncertain terms that no matter where the kids are, he will NEVER get them back as long as he is sleeping in my living room.  His first priority is getting a place to live.  If that means they both have to take the shittiest full-time jobs they can find, that's what it means.  Hell, even at minimum wage if they can both work 40 hours a week they will bring in $2,500 in a month; that's enough to get an apartment.  If they can find $10 an hour jobs it would be over $3,000.  If that means taking more than one job, since most of those type jobs are part-time to avoid paying out benefits, then that's what it means.  If it means being the night clerk at a convenience store, then that's what it means.  And if it means only driving to Lowell to see the kids once a week, then that's what it means, too.  One of their problems is that they have been driving back and forth 3-4 times a week, burning gas and money unnecessarily.  Whenever the grandmother is out, Kaitlin's mother lets them come visit the kids if they bring diapers, formula, etc.  So yet another expense they can't afford.  But they do it because they want to see their kids.  That needs to stop.  It sucks, but they're going to have to go through a shitty 4-6 weeks, suck it up, and get it done.  And she (Kaitlin) needs to be working full time.

I laid this all out and he took it well.  She's been pissed, but I could care less.

[Redezra]

Every time I hear how low the minimum wage is over there, it scares me.

[Imperator]

Part of me thinks that Kaitlin and her family are half the problem here.

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

Her family is certainly a big part of the problem, but he also needs to put that kind of thing aside for now, suck it up, and deal with it until they can get a place.

[Phate]

Every time I hear how low the minimum wage is over there, it scares me.

Having had an Australian visit for 3 weeks recently, things are also a lot cheaper here in general. Not necessarily equivalently so, but the cost of living is lower, and so the minimum wage is also lower. Additionally, I get the impression that with lower population, there's more demand for labor in Australia, and correspondingly the workers are better off. That's complete conjecture with no research though.

[Redezra]

I am not qualified enough to answer that question~

[Imperator]

I am not qualified enough to answer that question~

I can't either, sorry.

[ᗅᗺᗷᗅ]

Having had an Australian visit for 3 weeks recently, things are also a lot cheaper here in general. Not necessarily equivalently so, but the cost of living is lower, and so the minimum wage is also lower. Additionally, I get the impression that with lower population, there's more demand for labor in Australia, and correspondingly the workers are better off. That's complete conjecture with no research though.

 

It depends on where in the US you live.  We've had Australians visit us in New England and comment on how expensive things were.