Low Income - Tumblr Posts

Houseist; houseism

•Prejudice, stereotyping, antagonism or discrimination against unhoused/homeless people.

•The material or idealogical discrimination against unhoused/homeless people.

• I coined this term to describe my lived experiences of being discriminated as a homeless/unhoused person.

• Just as saneism is a subset of ableism, houseism is a subset of classism.

• Homeism/homeist was created by a PhD researcher— not by our community.

• I’ve spoken with many other unhoused/homeless/houseless people who said this term was helpful to them

Reminder for disabled and sick folks, or anyone with a disabled or sick or elderly person in your home, as seasons change whether it's getting hotter or colder for you:

If your power grid is being overtaxed by too many people in your community using their air conditioners or heat, and your leaders tell you something like it's "your civic duty" to lower your AC to an unbearable and dangerous level for you (or to reduce your heat use to unbearable and dangerous levels for you), ignore them.

That's right, I said ignore your civic duty. Let the ableds who can tolerate too hot or too cold with just mild discomfort take on the burden of society for once. You may feel guilt, but you're not saving the world by courting heat stroke or freezing to death because you're more vulnerable to either.

Eco fash and eugenecists will be blocked on sight

Ways I save money:

I have lived low income for a very long time and this is how I save money. Personal care: I leave my hair long and put it up if I want it out of the way, only cutting the ends maybe once a year or less. No dye, no "styles", no lotions/potions, no hot appliances. Simple and healthy. I never do mani/pedi unless I do it myself, but no polishes. I only use a one skin moisturizer. Also no make-up. I am 60 and people can't believe how young I look. Shoot if I look that young, why gob it up with expensive bottles and tubes of stuff nobody needs putting MY money into some company's pocket. I need my money. They don't.

Clothing: I only buy what I need and sometimes it is used or given to me as a gift. I wear it until it falls apart. I don't have many clothes. How many shirts can you wear at once? One, right? So how many clothes do you really need. I would say I maybe spend $100-200/yr on clothes, probably most socks and underwear. I have a coat I've been wearing for 40 years. Still looks great because it was a good coat. Laundry is only done when it is dirty. I did buy a small portable washer because the laundromat is a killer. This cost $350 and saves me $900/yr. I dry everything outside on a drying rack or inside on the same rack in the winter. My clothes don't wear out as quickly.

Housing: We rent and we rent less than maybe what we want and then make do. If they approve a mortgage for 200,000, buy a house for 150,000. If you can afford 1000 for rent, only spend 750. You get my drift. Always live under what you can afford because all the maintenance, insurance, taxes, and upkeep will also be less. This way you can save. I seriously have very few cleaning products. A bit of all purpose cleaner (I honestly just dilute ammonia with water) goes a long way. Nobody needs all the potions people create. I have simply used hot water on the floors. How sterile does a floor have to be? You're going to walk on it immediately and it will be dirty again, so really, who cares. I have the same old furniture I have had for years. Decent quality, well taken care of, and its lasted decades. Some of it was my grandmother's or mother's. It still works.

Food: LEARN TO COOK FROM SCRATCH. EAT LESS (I can guarantee most people eat way too much of all the wrong things). FINISH IT ALL AND USE THE LEFTOVERS. I buy stuff on clearance, even fruits and veg and quickly process them, stew them, blanch and freeze them, or whatever is appropriate. I have gotten a whole box of fruit and veg for $5 and not one bit of it is wasted in this way. Beans and pulses are good protein. Learn to cook them. Never buy processed, pre-cooked, out of the box foods. You are paying for someone else to do the work. Make a big batch of something and eat it all week, or freeze the remainder and make something different mid-week. LEARN TO COOK. LEARN TO COOK. LEARN TO COOK. Shop the sales at one store only. What's on sale/clearance is what I am eating this week, but this only applies to fruit/veg, meat/dairy, and simple foods. Junk food on sale still isn't food. If you have to make all your own cakes and cookies, you'll eat less, because you can't be bothered. Don't buy ready made.

Transportation: Buy used, no-fun, and buy cash if you can. Keep it until it literally gives up the ghost. Keep it maintained. If you can't afford to do this, you can't afford a car SO GET RID OF IT. Any place that is within a 30 minute walk, WALK, don't waste the gas. You DO need the exercise. Combine errands or do errands to or from work so you aren't making extra trips. Obey traffic rules at all times, it keeps your insurance low. I have a 2012 Civic and pay under $70/month.

Time: STOP WASTING IT. Take all social media off your phone. Take all shopping apps off your phone. Throw away all advertising that comes into the house immediately. Get ad-blockers so you're not tempted to bloody shop. Your money belongs in your pocket, not theirs. No matter what they tell you, they're not doing you favours. If you aren't in front of a screen, you can cook, do laundry, clean your home, mend, iron, and take care of what is yours so it last longer. GET OFF SOCIAL MEDIA THAT WASTES YOUR TIME. The only thing I have is Tumblr and I am on it maybe a half hour every couple of days.

Entertainment: Use the library. Everything in it is free: movies, books, audiobooks, games, stuff, TV shows, printing costs only a few cents and saves you on stupid dried out ink for your printer you rarely use. Play board games or video games. I can rent both at the library. Visit your local pool, park, join a community sports team, take a hike, go to the beach. If it costs a lot, somebody is benefiting more than you. Change your way of thinking. Instead of thinking "a nice dinner out with a few drinks and a show $$$", think instead of going for a walk with a friend/family and maybe grabbing an ice-cream and a coffee at McDonalds or somewhere cheap. You'll have just as great of a conversation and your bank account won't look like a yawning empty cavern.

I guarantee you that I am just as happy as you, and probably, because I have no debt at all, I might even be more happy than you. Think about it.