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Independent and OMG I Have No Money!

An-DAn-D EnthusiastAshevilleRegistered User regular
edited July 2009 in Help / Advice Forum
So, because of this whole crappy economy and whatnot, I lost a ton of money and now I'm finding myself incredibly poor and having absolutely no luck getting a job anywhere near me (Cullowhee, NC...sorta near Asheville).

I am behind on my car insurance payments. Tuition is coming up soon (my last semester) and at the end of July, my lease will be up and I will be out of a place to live. My goal was to find a lease to take in the beginning of the summer, but it kind of fell through when the person I was going in with suddenly needed to back out.

I've cut back on pretty much all my expenses (I've been eating PB&J for weeks now), but things always start piling up (brakes on car need to be replaced, car needs inspection, car needs 2009 registration etc). I have done all my car stuff in the summer so I don't have to worry about it during the year...but now its piled up in my mailbox and I'm just left with a D:.

Money and job are needed. My parents aren't doing so hot either, and they don't want to co-sign any loans with me. My credit union seems willing to give me a loan, but I need to have an income first. My only real income right now is $60/week I get from donating plasma. Is it legal to sell kidneys and other spare organs? (really only half joking)

The real world sucks, guys. Any advice would be great. The stress is really getting to me.

*edit* My roommate is a good guy and convinced his management that two people he works with are trash employees and pretty much got them fired. I'm at the top of the 'call for job' list at Ryan's now. They said they would "call in a few days." I think that's 7.50/hr. I wish they would call sooner.

**edit** I very recently started putting the better photographs I've take up on sites to microstock them. IE: Companies buy them for stuff, and I get the money. Sure, its selling out, but I need to eat.

An-D on

Posts

  • dispatch.odispatch.o Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    How did you lose a ton of money?

    dispatch.o on
  • An-DAn-D Enthusiast AshevilleRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Trust Fund. When the stock market decided it wanted to die, than so did most of my trust fund. It pretty much left me with the ability to pay for the last spring semester....and nothing else.

    An-D on
  • TopweaselTopweasel Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    An-D wrote: »
    Trust Fund. When the stock market decided it wanted to die, than so did most of my trust fund. It pretty much left me with the ability to pay for the last spring semester....and nothing else.

    You mean it didn't leave you set for life and able to by all the latest Ferrari's? Damn the movies are always lying to me.

    As for your original questions. You need a job and you need one bad. Its the only real source of income you can trust. Though if you are donating blood for money. You might want to check to see if you can donate another bodily fluid at another "bank".

    Topweasel on
  • Richard_DastardlyRichard_Dastardly Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    You should be able to find a job earning more than $7.50/hr, even if that means not going to school full time in order to survive.

    Also, have you considered taking classes somewhere closer to home and living with your parents?

    Richard_Dastardly on
  • EncEnc A Fool with Compassion Pronouns: He, Him, HisRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Jobs, preferably several.

    Get two/three/four part time jobs with balancing schedules and earn some cash to build up on. Cut back on fun, food, and personal expenses to a minimum, work like crazy, study like crazy, and get through the semester. It can be done with minimum insanity. I'm proof.

    hehehehehHAHAHAHAhohohoh!
    /cough
    Ahem. Well, yes. Good luck.

    Enc on
  • FiggyFiggy Fighter of the night man Champion of the sunRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Four part time jobs with balanced schedules?

    "Yes, I'd like to apply for a job here.. and here is my schedule that you will be working around."

    OP: 7.50/hr and you're hoping they call? What does mcdonald's pay where you live? If you need a job desperately, go for something like that for now.

    Figgy on
    XBL : Figment3 · SteamID : Figment
  • EncEnc A Fool with Compassion Pronouns: He, Him, HisRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Figgy wrote: »
    Four part time jobs with balanced schedules?

    "Yes, I'd like to apply for a job here.. and here is my schedule that you will be working around."

    OP: 7.50/hr and you're hoping they call? What does mcdonald's pay where you live? If you need a job desperately, go for something like that for now.

    Yep. Minimum wage jobs require you to show up and talk to the manager. Just turning in an application won't get you anywhere.

    As for the four jobs thing:
    1) I worked 8 hours a week (all day Saturday) at a flooring warehouse
    2) Variable shift at Panera, Sundays only. (Usually 6 hours)
    3) On-call tech support/coordination job with my cell phone. No set hours, roughly $200 a week.
    4) 20-30 hours a week in the afternoons at a furniture store.

    Took my classes in the weekday morning before 3:00. It was a horribad last year, but I was able to pay for everything, get my work done, and only developed a few multiple personalities by the end. Of course, as soon as I graduated I dropped all but the Furniture gig.

    Enc on
  • DeebaserDeebaser on my way to work in a suit and a tie Ahhhh...come on fucking guyRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    If your college has a hospital, they are usually looking for test subjects. I remember seeing a flyer for colonoscopy tests that were paying $300 for two anal intrusions.

    Deebaser on
  • FiggyFiggy Fighter of the night man Champion of the sunRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Deebaser wrote: »
    If your college has a hospital, they are usually looking for test subjects. I remember seeing a flyer for colonoscopy tests that were paying $300 for two anal intrusions.

    I want $300 now just for having the read the words anal intrusions.

    Figgy on
    XBL : Figment3 · SteamID : Figment
  • An-DAn-D Enthusiast AshevilleRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    I've applied at several fast food places, and talked to the manager, but the problem is that I live in a small town that pretty much only exists when the college is up and running at full-force. I've gotten a lot of "We'll hire you when the semester starts, but right now, I'm letting people go because we're doing nothing most of the day."

    I've had tons of luck in Asheville finding places that seems super-interested in me. I apply, talk, get interview, call back, they say something along the lines of 'We haven't made a decision yet, yadda yadda yadda' and I wait, call back and it seems like they start to ignore me. Or if I do manage to talk to them, I feel like they make up excuses for why they haven't called back (IE: Best Buy said they hadn't called back because they got a random shipment of something and it caused them to be super busy...but they'd call me back "As soon as possible." I don't get a call. I go in or call them back and get a 'The manager is busy' speal. End up feeling rejected. People don't want to actually verbally reject anyone in this area. They all try to be so damn polite.

    My parents recently moved to a tiny town in the middle-of-nowhere Virginia. There is no college near them (and if there was, I think I would be paying out-of-state tuition because they haven't lived there for six months yet) and if I move in with them, I'm sure I'll be stuck in a situation where I won't be able to leave for a long time.

    I live off-campus right now, so my plan is to get a job, than as soon as I can, move back into the dorm (as much as it'll kill me. I hated WCU dorm-life). Tuition for Western is only $5.5k or something like that (with a meal plan and living on campus).

    An-D on
  • wmelonwmelon Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    As much as I Loathe to suggest it, there's a walmart in Sylvia just a few miles from you in Cullowhee. They tend to be always hiring as they don't really treat their employees all that well. But they do start out above minimum wage.

    wmelon on
  • An-DAn-D Enthusiast AshevilleRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Oh, I've tried that Wal-Mart. I get a 'Oh, I don't know if we're hiring. Go apply at the computer there' and I do, but I don't know if anything is open so I play a kind of 40-50 minute application roulette and hope to god they need someone stocking the shelves at 3am in the morning.

    Because I'm so game for that. Sleep is for the weak.

    An-D on
  • mullymully Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    I'd like to point out that McDonalds, while it is a staple in the "get a job! just go to ________" blank, doesn't always hire.

    I am proof of that. They sent me a rejection letter. They told me that they had no jobs fitting my skills/qualifications, at that time.

    Just keep going, apply everywhere and anywhere, tailor your resume/cover letter every time. Your full time job is now applying to jobs, and you should treat it as such.

    mully on
  • JebusUDJebusUD Adventure! Candy IslandRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Go apply at restaurants. they always have massive turnover, so they likely have a position doing something. If you can get a tipped position you can make good money.

    JebusUD on
    and I wonder about my neighbors even though I don't have them
    but they're listening to every word I say
  • ReitenReiten Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    JebusUD wrote: »
    Go apply at restaurants. they always have massive turnover, so they likely have a position doing something. If you can get a tipped position you can make good money.

    This is very true. The lack of benefits sucks, but waitering can provide pretty good money.

    Reiten on
  • EncEnc A Fool with Compassion Pronouns: He, Him, HisRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    I don't know how feasible it is, but if you are looking in Ashville, have you looked into the seasonal touristy bits in Maggie Valley and the various other tourist trap areas? Hotels also have a high turn around rate for everything from linens and custodial to teller staff, and they should be hugely thriving with the summer and will continue to be until the last of the leaves fall (and then check out the ski resorts).

    Enc on
  • ImprovoloneImprovolone Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    For low-level jobs such as McDonalds, consider having a really shitty resume. Someone over-qualified will likely leave the first chance they get. No one likes that.

    Improvolone on
    Voice actor for hire. My time is free if your project is!
  • KidDynamiteKidDynamite Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Reiten wrote: »
    JebusUD wrote: »
    Go apply at restaurants. they always have massive turnover, so they likely have a position doing something. If you can get a tipped position you can make good money.

    This is very true. The lack of benefits sucks, but waitering can provide pretty good, pretty instant money.

    Bold'd

    KidDynamite on
  • An-DAn-D Enthusiast AshevilleRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    I've applied at a lot of places in Waynesville (between Cullowhee and Asheville) but never ventured far into the Maggie Valley area. That's a good idea. Cherokee too.

    And some people seem unsure if I could live on 7.50/hour and since the cost of living out here is so low, its pretty possible (in theory, anyway). I could probably do it on minimum wage if I was working full time. I pay 220/month for a fairly larged-sized two bedroom apartment (my half the rent anyway). Its considerably cheaper than other locations I have found.

    An-D on
  • DemerdarDemerdar Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    You should have no problems living on 7.50 an hour.

    Demerdar on
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  • VisionOfClarityVisionOfClarity Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Just a warning, work out some arrangements on your insurance. Car insurance companies have no problem putting people into collections and if it goes that far you've fucked your credit good given that you have no real income and want a loan.

    VisionOfClarity on
  • Psychotic OnePsychotic One The Lord of No Pants Parts UnknownRegistered User regular
    edited July 2009
    If you become desperate for income you can do some medical testing as well. You say you donate plasma so its just a step up from that. You can make some pretty quick cash with some studies for just your time on the weekend.

    Psychotic One on
  • kaliyamakaliyama Left to find less-moderated fora Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Wait. Did you empty out your trust corpus already, or are you just not getting payments for now? because if you gave some left and it's based in stock, you may consider getting out loans now and leaving what's left of your trust, because your stocks will likely recover in the next 3-5 years.

    kaliyama on
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  • DasUberEdwardDasUberEdward Registered User regular
    edited July 2009
    Hey if it makes you feel any better i'm in exactly the same situation. Just keep looking. Every day. Wake up. Get out there and apply until something happens. It hurts but it's much better than the alternative.

    DasUberEdward on
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