Jim Henderson wrote:
> On Wed, 12 Dec 2007 21:07:55 -0500, Sabrina Kilian wrote:
> 
>>> Most of the people I know who have struggled (myself included) at some
>>> point in their lives have had a fridge.  Many live in apartments, and
>>> appliances tend to be included as part of the rent.
>>>
>>>
>> My fridge came with the apartment. The freezer part is just big enough
>> for a small roast and other frozen stuff like veggies and ice cream.
> 
> Should be enough room for a couple pounds of hamburger, though.

Barely. I think three small chickens might fit, there is one and some
other stuff there now. The problem might be me, I keep frozen veggies
and fruit for cooking with. Leave those out and there would be room for
a small cow (kidding). But that would result in other dietary issues.
> 
>>> For a really interesting look at this, check out Morgan Spurlock's "30
>>> Days" - in the first season, he and his wife lived on minimum wage for
>>> a month just to see how difficult it was.
>> I skipped that, wasn't it on Fox for a while? Living below minimum wage
>> myself, I know first hand what difference fast food makes on a budget. I
>> am not advocating fast food, just that I understand why some people
>> think it's a better option.
> 
> It was on FX on cable, as I recall.

That explains it. I didn't get FX till recently.

>  I also understand why some people 
> think it's a better option - 3 months of unemployment (= no income, not 
> even unemployment cheques) taught me I was wrong.
> 
>>> It was difficult, but not impossible - and as they looked at their
>>> budget, eating out even at McDonald's was too expensive.
>>>
>> Completely agree. But, they had the foresight to do that planning and
>> both the education and knowledge to look for all of that ahead of time.
>> Some others don't.
> 
> This is true.  But it's also why it's important that that type of 
> assistance be available to those on welfare (or in that type of 
> situation).
> 

Yup, I think we agree and are just coming from different angles. It can
be hard enough, here, even getting people who need welfare to apply for
it. Getting them to sign up for a class to do something like 'teach them
to shop and plan ahead' would be akin to pulling teeth.

>> CostCo or the like would be nice, but in this area there just isn't one.
>> There is a SamsClub an hour away, and a wallmart every couple of blocks
>> it seems.
> 
> Also a factor.  I've been trying to convince my mom that that would be a 
> good option for her after she moves, because she's on a very limited 
> budget (just moving is going to be a huge expense for her - but in the 
> long run better for her because she won't have to worry about maintenance 
> and stuff like that - at her age, cutting the grass or shoveling the snow 
> is a big deal).  I know she eats out far too much as well, so while we're 
> back to visit we're going to show her a few recipes that she can make 
> herself fairly quickly.  We've helped out with buying her some good 
> kitchen equipment as well, as the stuff she was working with wasn't 
> merely bad, but some of it was actually dangerous for her to continue 
> using.
> 

If I just had kids to help me fix up my kitchen. . . Wait, what am I saying!

>>> The cost "savings" received by eating the garbage at McDonald's (or any
>>> fast food resturaunt) is offset by much larger medical expenses down
>>> the road - sometimes sooner rather than later.
>>>
>>>
>> To those below the welfare limit, sometimes someone else takes care of
>> the health problems so that worry might not even be thought of.
> 
> I'm not just talking about the expense of going into the ER or to see a 
> doctor, but also lost wages due to being too ill to go to work.
> 
> In the 30 Days episode I referenced, Spurlock's wife came down with a 
> urinary tract infection.  They had to deal with it within the confines of 
> their budget, and the medications burned through a lot of the money.
> 

Here, SmallTown Virginia USA, families living below welfare line can
often get medical coverage for their kids and sometimes for the parents
as well. I've never met a small child that didn't have some sort of
chronic illness, ear infection or cough or sore throats, that they
couldn't get through a state medical assistance form.

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