Advice on bills?

**Xadrian** · 08-21-2008, 03:38 AM

I was going to put in the title "Advice for saving money", but there isn't any money to save and just saying that is..ouch! I'll try to sum it up. We lived in the south and moved to CA 2 months ago for my husband's internship. The job my husband has been at for 5 years would not let him take a leave of absence for 2 months for this school internship. It was risky, but I want him to follow his dreams. So we packed our things in storage and came out here - we lost our insurance etc.

Internship pays $10 an hour -along the way our cheaper living arrangements went arye, the lady we were to room with stole from us and we ended up leaving with no place to go. We stayed in a motel room while trying to find a new place (places would not take us now that hubby's income was so low) burned through all our savings until a lady decided to rent to us. Rent is pretty much more than we can afford, nothing gets fixed and the place is gross. It really puts us in a downer mood along with being broke. I've been trying to find a job since 2 days after we moved here -so around June 16th and going back and forth with this hiring agency. Finally they tell me I have a job two weeks ago but they don't have a start time for me, and the lady may know something in september... other than that I've been putting in app's other places.

My hubbies internship has ended, but the company has a hiring freeze, but they have offered him another internship for only 20 hours a week..so $700 a month. Even when we had $1,400 a month we couldn't make ends meet. The last month we've been eating hotdogs in hotdog juice with a potato. The salt from that every day is making us feel terrible. Not really sure what to do at this point. If we don't get a job within the next week we'll be homeless by middle of next month.

Bills are:
Rent $1,300
Electricity $50 (much improvement from where we lived used to be like $150-200 -but we only turn on lights 3 hours a day and cook once a day)
Car insurance $70
Car payment $300
Gas per month $250 (that's to and from work only)
Past random bills from old town $60
Walmart card $400 ( our tires shredded on the highway-what fun and had to buy new ones)
Target $100
Laptop parts hubby bought $1,700 due in september
Carecredit card $5,900 - $2,000 due in september or $400 final interest added on. Rest due in Jan or $500 final interest tacked on.
$200 monthly for storage facility -we are trying to get money together for a plane ticket to go sell our stuff off because that monthly bill needs to go. ($360 plane ticket)
Hubby owes partial payment for classes (last 2 classes to graduate) $700 due in september

Any ideas? As far as we know we cannot sign up for any gov't aid/food stamps etc because of needing 1 year residency here. We've been spending $10 a week on groceries and didn't have the money to spend then..certainly not now. Hubby also has two infected teeth that need to be removed in the back-contacted low cost clinics in town -they are still too expensive.

I feel there has to be something else I can be doing or cutting back on. We eat once a day at around .30 a serving, use electricity sparingly, wash clothes in tub and hang them out to dry. I'd sell something but we have no furniture or bed

Kind of funny really. Oh..and this is embarrassing... my hubbies boss loaned him a blow up bed (which I know looks bad on him and was embarrassing for him) I blew it up, which took forever and it was leaking air somewhere -you can guess how much fun it is to borrow something and it's broken,because when you return it they might think you broke it! Well I left the bed to settle for a few hours to see if it would leak air anymore..I come back upstairs and the cat has chewed about 18 chew marks into it..so now it does leak! So we borrowed this bed that we never got to use, now we have to buy the boss a new one we can't afford and say how nice and comfy it is. Sigh..

**Russ** · 08-21-2008, 07:32 AM

Get your walking shoes on and go to every business within walking distance and ask if they need help. You need to make more money. Quite frankly you need to get out of California because there are much much much cheaper places to live. $1300 for rent is unbelieveable.

**FrugalMomof3** · 08-21-2008, 07:46 AM

I agree, you need to get out of CA and move some where cheaper, with all those bills you have there is NO WAY you can afford all that stuff with your DH making only $700 a month and you not working right now.

You need to find any and every business in the area and go there and ask them if they are hiring, you have got to take what you can get right now.

As for assistance, I thought residency had to be 60 days not a year but I am not sure about CA.

Any reason why CA? I would have NEVER went without the promise of a job after training, no way, no how.

also, sell that stuff in storage, that would save you $200 a month, remember if you dont pay they take your stuff and sell it to the public for storage fees.

**nessarowdy** · 08-21-2008, 10:56 AM

Wow, how frightening for you! First, hugs to you. NOW, time to move forward. Contact a food bank, you need more in your diets. Next, contact a different employment agency. They are obviously not working well for you. Go to work at McDonald's, if nothing else. They provide benefits that include health insurance. Is hubby looking for something a bit more lucrative out there? That pay sounds like slave wages, I don't care if it is an internship. Then maybe he needs to find a 2nd job to supplement. Good luck!

-Vanessa

**Samigirl** · 08-21-2008, 11:03 AM

Wow...that's unreal. I agree with the others...you've GOT to get out of California. I know you've been job hunting...are you looking at career-type jobs only? Now's the time to work fast food, do yard work, sell plasma, etc...anything you can to make a buck. Can you move back to the place where your things are being stored? I hate to see you waste plane tickets merely to sell your stuff....make that ticket work double duty by getting you out of CA. Can your husband get his old job back? This "internship" sounds like a scam to get cheap labor to me. You can make close to $10 an hour at In and Out Burger in CA for pete's sake! Look further into government agencies....I HAVE to believe there's some sort of help there for you. Sending out big hugs and prayers to you....

**nvmommyx6** · 08-21-2008, 11:05 AM

I agree on the get out of cali part! I live in Nevada and rent here for a 3bd 2 bath house on some land is only about $7-800 a month!

Cali is way to expensive to begin with and there are far more places that are cheaper to live and make more $...We pay around $900 a month for our home and on 5 acres at that, I make that kind of money in tips in a week here!!!

**hollyhill** · 08-21-2008, 11:21 AM

What kind of internship is it?

Is it for a specific company? And why do they charge you such high tuition? Are his courses transferable to something else?

Are there any student associations that can help you? Emergency student grants might be available or as a last resort a student loan.

We've been there, education is costly but there is help specially for students out there if you look.

**Ms. Clear** · 08-21-2008, 03:22 PM

Is there any possibility of a loan or gift from any family member?

I would really think about trying to get any job. Fast food whatever. Two if possible. Try to find a food bank too.

**hawkgirl** · 08-21-2008, 04:24 PM

What is your husband studying/training? What field of work?

**itsahumanzoo** · 08-21-2008, 05:54 PM

Okay, I was under the impression that rent in SD is cheaper than rent here in the OC. Apparently not...what part are you in?

My suggestion, apply to every business you can find. Go to the mall, apply for every store in the mall. Actually, I know the store manager of a Bath and Body works in that area, PM me and I could maybe help you out. Go on craigslist too, there are always postings for office type jobs that pay around $10-$12 hour. That would be a huge help for you. Just email email email your resume to every post you find appealing.

As for your food, this is not good for your health. Go to a food bank. Now. Here is a link for one in your area. Call them and see when they have pickup times. http://www.secondharvest.org/zip_cod...te=--+State+--

Post a wanted ad on Craigslist for people who have fruit trees to allow you to come pick their unwanted fruit. Or if they have extra veggies in their garden, whatever you can get. You'd be surprised how many people let their produce waste away in their yard. Get some fresh food into your body.

You can even check out local bakeries and ask what they do with their breads that are too old to sell. Bagel shops too, they throw away a lot of bagels. Go to the grocery store, talk directly to the produce manager. Ask what they do with their old produce. Maybe their legally not allowed to give it to you, but if the person is nice, maybe they'll "leave it outside" at a specific time for you to come get.

I am most concerned about your health, because without it, you are going to be completely useless at any job. PLEASE feel free to PM me, as a fellow South-to-Socal transplant, I hope I can help you out!

**Xadrian** · 08-21-2008, 06:11 PM

Hi, thanks for the replies! I will agree it is more expensive out here. (like rent is 1.3k, but our TN apt rent was $1.2k, so I guess about $100 difference -definitely a difference in quality place though) I think a few things hurt our budget -we had a room rented to us for $600 a month that went bad, we really had our budget set to that or up to $800 in rent. I guess the second is I love my cats and we had to naturally bring those along which of course are a hassle to find a place to rent plus $300 in pet deposits.

Right now I'm still in school as well, I feel bad but I signed up for online classes because I'm hoping that some student loan refund will help us out a bit on bills. If I tell them I'm out of state they will raise my 3 classes up by $1,000. School residency here takes a year and with hubby only having 2 classes (one is the internship -can you believe schools make you pay to get that as credit?) he needs to graduate this fall pretty much. If he switches over to the college here he'll need to take more than two classes and he has run out of loans the gov't will give him. (Back before we met he went to school but well..never did..would not attend class and made a mess of it and wasted money)

Someone asked if I am only looking for career jobs? I don't have a career yet -and really I'm not above doing any job. I've put app's in at fast food places, assembly factories, entertainer at kids parties etc. you name it.

Hubby is also looking for another job, but so far nothing. (he does computer programming) The wages for the internship is pretty low, (better for people who actually live out here, not from 2,000 miles away =p) but I guess it's better than nothing. I am hearing some internships are not paid, but "paid" in experience and putting the company name on a student's resume. He's doing what he loves and I can't really fault him for that, and really there are not many programming jobs for him in TN.

As far as loans from family, we both don't really talk to our family. I'm not even sure how to explain why he doesn't talk to his family it's really too horrific. Only person I talk to is my bro and sister, my sister has already offered to steal..I mean sell our things for us -but my sister is involved in so many scams and con jobs, and having her take our belongings and go through our paperwork with bank info etc is not going to work out..lol sigh. Both are families will rob you blind if you let them, so no real help there. My brother has his own set of worries, and I don't think they have the extra money to loan.

Some days I get down and feel helpless and not in control of my life, but I guess that will pass at some point -maybe not for a few months, but at least maybe next year. I know this sounds silly, but I feel really bad -bad about everything, but bad that every year I collect toys and hand sew barbie dresses/fix up old used dolls (they look almost new) to give to shelters and other organizations and this year I just don't see it happening. I know I have other greater worries, but I feel really bad about it.

Oh well it's 3pm and hubby is at another interview, so maybe we'll hear some good news soon. We went to a job thing at adecco this morning before work for assembly, but they will not give anyone without 2 years assembly experience within the last 5 years an application. I wonder sometimes.

Anyway, will look into selling plasma with the ARC and foodbanks. Also, we have CRV on cans here, so I've been collecting those as well. Thanks for the advice.

**hippytreehugger4ever** · 08-21-2008, 06:45 PM

I was just reading an artical where they interviewed the creators of Neopets last night. They started a new company and are actually hiring for that kind of stuff in southern California right now!

http://www.meteorgames.com/jobs.php

May not be the same thing as what he does, but couldn't hurt to check

**hippytreehugger4ever** · 08-21-2008, 06:51 PM

http://www.southerncalifornia.computerjobs.com/

Another web site that shows all the computer-related jobs in SC.

**missmanny** · 08-21-2008, 08:18 PM

Xadrian, your stress levels must be soo high at the moment, but it sounds as if this isn't a forever situation more like a right now situation.

Try not to stress to much, just take it every day at a time and I'm sure that eventually you will find some work that will give you some relief. Remember it is a numbers game... the more you put in the more likely some one will say yes - you only need one to say yes that then it will all have been worth it.

could you maybe look at another shore house? I know you've had a bad experience but it would be better then living on the streets?

Keep plodding along, you are doing all of the right things it will pay off eventually.

come back here anytime you need some support - even if it is just for a houlder to cry on.

**PurpleSnowflake** · 08-23-2008, 01:43 PM

I hope your hubby is REALLY grateful you would go through all this for him! HE BETTER BE!

You either need a real job in CA that pays much better or need to get out of CA somehow.

Is your hubby an entry level programmer?

Scour the SD CL ( http://sandiego.craigslist.org/ ) for a new place, new jobs, food, bed, etc...

Get hubbies resume up on Dice.com and Monster.com if they arent already.

If you are skirting homelessness and starvation... it might be time to be realistic and "rethink" hubbies dream.

I mean REALLY rethink it and then amke whatever you can and move... pay the other bills later.

No fun, but if you are on the street or starving you wont ever get to his dream!