The Beetle is Back

and it's adorable :)

Powered by vLane.com See more | Create your own!

Living in a Car

Watching all the news about the collapse of so many investment banks, I wonder how the middle-class and the barely surviving are coping with the sudden loss of their jobs and probably also their homes. With the mortgage due, rising debt, a depressed job market and no more paychecks to look forward to, how do they cope? Do they all pack up their belongings and live in their cars like this woman did? Her Wanderingscribe blog is a powerful introspective work about how she survived being homeless, jobless and living in her car.

Seems simple: get a job so that I can save enough to rent somewhere to live. Completely stupid that I can't do that. Would be hard to hold down a job when you haven't got an address, but not impossible. Because I could carry on living in car, parking in hospital carpark in mornings and using the showers there to get washed and changed in, until I can save enough to get place of my own. But because haven't worked for almost two years now, no-one will give me a job. Not even the type of job you don't need qualifications for. Suppose there must be too many people wanting those. Have been signed up to three email job search sites since September. Everything from vacancies for basic filing and reception work, to retail, to qualified solicitor comes through my inbox everyday. Fire CV off for all the ones I might have reasonable chance at these days. Try to be focussed and realistic, but always end up sending lots off. Some days feel like I could do anything, other days need to run back and hide in my car - days when I'm totally lost without the comfort of trees. Apply for mostly receptionist or call centre jobs, which would be perfect while I adjust back into things and try to get back on my feet. Have never even got to the interview stage yet though, not with a single one.

Can't go to job centre etc. because they don't know that I am homeless. The same with the Housing Advice people. They won't even switch on their computers or talk to me until I tell them my address. But I obviously can't do that, because they can't know that I don't have one. If they find out, I risk loosing my money, and then it's all over. Because to get benefit money in the first place I am using my old address. I know that is wrong, but if they knew I was living nowhere they would stop it. Immediately. Then I would be left to the wolves — or have to go in and register as 'of no fixed abode' and go queue up with all the other homeless people every week, or get nothing — which, at the moment, feels about the same thing to me. I just can't bring myself to do it. Whenever I think that I might have to, that I've got to the stage where I can't do it on my own anymore and can't put off getting help, and will have to swallow the rest of my pride and go and register as of 'no fixed abode' I just panic. Feels like one trauma too many.

Wandering Scribe
Peanut Butter and Photographs
16 February 2006

Wes Grueninger over at Motive Magazine has an excellent 12-point tip for living in one's car. And Romana S, in Australia, seems to have taken to living in her car as a choice. Over at her blog, she gives valuable tips for people who want to, or have to, live in their cars. I agree with her about the impracticability of maintaining a gym membership to have access to showers and toilets. Gym membership is money that is better spent towards food and gas. However, a lot of the blogs and forum posts made by car dwellers in America make this point. I suppose that's their former life talking, when they still had access to gyms and Starbucks and wall sockets to charge their mobiles and laptops with.

Color Me Pink

Since starting at my new office, my inner girly girl has been awakened. I didn't use to dress up, and I was always in a pants suit because it was the easiest thing to put together in the morning. Besides, if I wore a skirt to my former office, I would have stood out among all those suits. I was starting to send out Hilary Clinton vibes when the person I really wanted to be was Tina Fey. My new officemates were more girly than I was, and by association, I began to feel more comfortable dressing up. One day, I took the plunge and bought three dresses from Greenhills. P650 each! Previously, I would have deferred wearing them until I had a party or a dinner to go to but I started wearing them to the office paired with a tailored jacket and it was fine. Now, on to the next level, which is makeup.

I would love to win these A Design designer brushes being offered by The Little Window Shoppe for my starter set.

Things to Do, Part 1

Two weeks to go before I leave and I still have to do the following:

1. Go to the dentist
2. Go to doctor
3. Buy pearls from Quiapo
4. Have photographs developed for A as souvenir
5. Ask when checks will be processed
6. Buy dollars
   
7. Buy an Asus EEEpc
8. Buy rubber shoes
9. Buy sandals or walking shoes
10. Buy underwear (I never leave on a long trip without new underwear)
11. Meet up with C and M for their gifts for A
12. Submit my pending assignments
    

A Long Wait for Furniture

Our Home finally sent assemblers to put together the wardrobe I bought from their furniture sale at SM Megamall last week. While the pieces were delivered promptly the next day, it actually took them a whole week to get back at us even though they promised me that the assemblers would come one day after delivery. If I hadn't called up last Friday, I doubt if we would have heard anything from them. So for a whole week, we had two boxes cluttering up the room, and laundry not put away properly. And no word of explanation for the extremely long delay. Sucks. I doubt if I'm going to go to Our Home for our future furniture needs. I mean, what if I had bought a bed? We would still be sleeping on the floor.

I hope Casamia Furniture Center President Philip Yao hears about this.

Building Up My Travel Fund with BPI Direct Save-up

BPI is offering a new product called BPI Direct Save Up, an automatic savings account that you can program to deduct a certain amount from your main account once a week, every other week, once a month or twice a month.

I first became interested in this product because it provides group insurance coverage. I wanted to get one for the parents but they only cover up to age 60. I get coverage, I guess, but I already have a fully-paid up life insurance policy. What I really want is for BPI to offer group health coverage instead. *sends a message out to the universe*

I programmed mine to automatically save P500 a month. I didn't think it was a lot at first but actually, it comes up to P6,000 after 12 months. If they had offered this earlier in the year, I would have money for Christmas presents by now. As it is, I'll have money for my next travel.

Right now, I don't have any consumerist goals other than paying for my next plane tickets. I had been thinking of buying an Asus EEEpc to make it easier for me to go to meetings and stuff, but I've already set aside money for that.

If I didn't have any travel plans, I think I will save up to make a down payment on an apartment which I can then rent out. Or I could use that P6,000 and invest it in stocks. Hmmm. For a long time, my goal was just to get a higher salary and be liquid, but maybe it's time to trade up. A lot of people dream about being entrepreneurs or retiring at a certain age and living on passive income. I think I will put that on my list.

Poll