Re: Just checking in...

Wow, Gem, I don't know what to say, except that I'm really praying
harder for you.

A few years ago, I was where you are now, and I learned a few things
while we've been getting back on our feet (and we're almost there,
too). It sounds like you're not in the US, but maybe they have some
of the same things where you live?

When there was no income coming in, and the bills piled up, we talked
with the companies, always get a supervisor to explain your situation
to, and there are programs they have where people give an extra dollar
on their water, electric, and the like, and the fund is used to help
people pay their bills who can't. You may want to call and ask if
they have those kinds of programs to see if you qualify. From what
I'm hearing, you probably do. They don't advertise these things, or
they'd get leeches who want service and want others to pay for it
though they can afford to pay themselves, but if you check your bill,
you may see a "share" program listed which you then ask about.

Other bills, we explained the situation to them, and they reduced our
payments considerably, you just need to show good faith by paying them
at least something every month until you get more income coming in and
show further good faith by increasing the amount you pay, like $10 a
month, then when you can give $15, etc., and you'll whittle away at
that until you get one paid off, then apply that $10-15 to other bills
to get them caught up, etc. It's TOUGH, but it can be done.

There are also a lot of food bank charities that will help with bills
without asking any questions that also have food donated to them that
you can go down and get food from. It's not brand name, and it may
not be what you're used to eating, but every little bit you can save
on groceries helps. They have canned, dried, and often fresh foods
you can take home. If the very worst happens, most cities have a soup
kitchen where you can go in and they'll feed you a meal with no
questions asked.

For gas for the van, if public transportation is available, your son
could look into that. Some PT has free riding passes for those who
can't afford to get it. Save you a bundle in gas costs if you ride
the bus, though it takes more time. Or your son could ask to car pool
at work if someone else there lives close by. He could volunteer a
dollar or two a week in added gas to pick him up, but most people at
work will understand and actually decline the money, which can save
you hundreds in a very short time.

Before the lights got turned off, we switched to all fluorescent
bulbs, as a 15 watt bulb takes up much less energy and puts out as
much light as a 50 watt regular bulb. They cost more than regular
bulbs, but they last many times longer and generate less heat in the
summer than the larger sized bulbs. Use that bulb in the light you
keep on the most, and make certain everyone turns off lights in other
rooms, and just unplug all unnecessary equipment that puts a "ghost
load" on your bill, as a VCR will cost you money just to run the
clock. Speaking of clocks, you can still buy wind up alarms and/or
use battery alarms with rechargeable batteries you can charge in an
inexpensive solar charger that will charge them back up with FREE
sunshine. As for the lights being turned off, we went to the discount
store and got candles and bought a cheap oil lamp and bottles of 100%
liquid paraffin to burn in it. We NEVER left either candles or lamp
burning unattended, and it provided enough light when things were at
their worst. For heat, we burned more wood in our stove, and bundled
up and shut off rooms we weren't using. Bought a cheap roll of
reflector insulation, like you see made up into car sun shields and
put it up over the windows in the winter, but you can tape or staple
an even cheaper layer of plastic to the outside of all your windows to
help insulate you. If you can't cut your own wood, there are people
who do it for you for the sake of charity, at least there are around
here. For water, make sure you don't have any leaking faucets driving
your costs up, and don't run the washer until there's a full load, and
dry your clothes outside in free sunshine as much as you can. You can
even cut down on your toilet water costs by building a sawdust
composting toilet for a few dollars and use that rather than flushing
away enormous amounts of water every time. You then compost your
waste outside, and then after a year, that compost can be taken out
and spread around public trees as fertilizer without risk to them or
any people as long as you've composted it properly. For any pets, if
you go to a pet food store and ask for broken bags at a discount or
for charity reasons, you save a lot and may even get some bags for
free.

HTH

Leah
.

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