Just want to crawl up into a ball.

[Barbara!]

When would he pick me up? /:

And I'll see how far I get with that.

[Taqroy]

Originally Posted by yoko

Honestly it doesn't sound like you want to do anything.

These are THINGS. You can buy them again. You need to keep fr getting in a hole because its a whole lot harder to get out of one once you are there.

What? She can't sell the ipad, she can't sell the camera, and she's trying to sell other stuff.

Some families NEED two cars. Matt and I have overlapping schedules and work on opposite ends of town. It would be insanely inconvenient and a huge waste of time and money for us to have one car. What's up with the hate in this thread?

[kady05]

I don't get why he won't let you sell your camera and lenses. That right there would pay for at least the rent (you said it was $500, right?). Sure the bill for it per month might not be that much, but you could easily sell it + the lenses for at least $500 (I don't know which lenses you have, could be more).

Does he have some magic plan that's going to *poof* give you the $1000+ you need.. I'm basing that on you saying you needed $500 by Saturday (for rent I assume), owed $400 for internet (which btw, WTF did you do to spend that much on internet?! We pay $130/month and that includes our internet and our TV through Verizon), plus the other bills.

I guess if you can't sell the stuff that is valuable, you may have to consider making some hard decisions in regards to your dogs. 4 dogs, 3 being decently large dogs (aka they eat more) is a lot to pay for, especially with you being pregnant. Sure you can try to liquidate stuff now to get over the hump with bills, but what about next month? Then what? I'm not trying to be mean, just realistic.

[milos_mommy]

Originally Posted by kady05

I don't get why he won't let you sell your camera and lenses.

She just said that they're not hers, they're her boyfriend's, and he's unwilling to sell them.

[Saeleofu]

Originally Posted by Izzy's Valkyrie

This was exactly my first thought. Complaining about not having money then saying that you're posting from an iPad is a little ridiculous. When you come on hard times, do your best to find a way through them, not complain about them from an expensive toy.

I'm not saying the situation doesn't suck but I grew up in a family where if money was tight we went without and we sold what we could to stay afloat. My mom always comments on how she doesn't understand people who sit around and complain about not having money. There are always jobs that are hiring, they may not be fun or pleasant jobs that you want to make a career of but they will pay and keep you in a home and fed.

Aren't you also pregnant? You should be doing all you can to save for the future right now as well as keeping yourself safe and healthy.

ALL THIS! I've never had my own internet, always relied on hotspots and nice neighbors that left their wireless unlocked (or even gave me the password). Haven't had cable in years, and last time I had it I didn't choose to have it, it was just there. I do have a laptop, but it's a $300 laptop that I really only need for school. If it weren't for needing to take it to classes I'd have stuck with my old laptop that now makes a perfectly good desktop. There have been times - most of my childhood, actually - where we didn't have couches or beds or any furniture to speak of, except a dining room table and chairs that was many years old (and incredibly well made...it's still in the basement, just needs refinishing). My phone in virtually free (even though it is a smartphone), I just need to put $20 on it every 3 months to keep it active - I get free minutes from shopping for groceries and gas and medications. I got my for a couple months with NO car at all, and when I was a kid we got by with NO car even though my dad had a full time job and three kids had to get to school. Surely you can get by with one car for two people somehow. Our city has a very shitty bus system, but it's still a bus system.

I donated plasma for months and months in order to pay for Logan. I have been close to going back. It's not awful...I actually really enjoyed having the 2 hours twice a week to relax and read, and you're helping people out. I got paid about $50-$60 a week for it. You might not be able to because you're pregnant, but what about your SD?

I also worked odd jobs for my neighbor, everything from vacuuming to faux finishing. Ask around. Dogsit. Walk dogs. Bathe dogs. Whatever someone will give you $10 to do.

I'll be the first to admit it's HARD to get out of the cycles of broke-ness, and I'm still not out of it. But there are things you can do to make ends meet until something comes along.

[JessLough]

Originally Posted by kady05

Does he have some magic plan that's going to *poof* give you the $1000+ you need.. I'm basing that on you saying you needed $500 by Saturday (for rent I assume), owed $400 for internet (which btw, WTF did you do to spend that much on internet?! We pay $130/month and that includes our internet and our TV through Verizon), plus the other bills.

This. Ok so... you get an advance on his pay. So that will pay off the rent. Then what? Apparently previously you have been having issues with paying the bills, or else you wouldn't owe the internet company $400? (Or, at least, I'm hoping that's it and that you're not paying $400 a month for internet). So essentially, sure, you'll get rent paid, but then you still have to pay internet off... pay for food, (assumingly) pay for doctor's appointments, pay for the camera payment (couldn't you just have gotten a cheaper camera, and not had to pay as much in total?) pay for this, that and the other.

[JessLough]

Originally Posted by milos_mommy

She just said that they're not hers, they're her boyfriend's, and he's unwilling to sell them.

No she didn't...?

Josh won't let me sell the camera. It's really one of the very few valuable things I own

[Jules]

Can you move back home?

Talk to the people you owe money to and see that you can pay them off little by little. Find a job, any job, and save your money.

[jenv101]

Originally Posted by Barbara!

Selling a car is also out of the question. He uses his truck for work. Like, he pulls trailers with it because he is a mover. He has it from 6 in the morning to usually 11 at night or later. We can't carpool because if we sell his truck and keep my car, he won't be able to work and if we sell my car and keep his truck, neither will I.

Public transit? Most cities have pretty good bus systems that can get you to work if your job is within the city. I took the bus for years - it's not glamorous and not always convenient, but it works.

[~Jessie~]

Originally Posted by JessLough

This. Ok so... you get an advance on his pay. So that will pay off the rent. Then what? Apparently previously you have been having issues with paying the bills, or else you wouldn't owe the internet company $400? (Or, at least, I'm hoping that's it and that you're not paying $400 a month for internet). So essentially, sure, you'll get rent paid, but then you still have to pay internet off... pay for food, (assumingly) pay for doctor's appointments, pay for the camera payment (couldn't you just have gotten a cheaper camera, and not had to pay as much in total?) pay for this, that and the other.

This.

Barbara, it sounds like you're stuck in a cycle and this isn't just a "one month" thing.

We spend about $50 a month on internet... when we had cable, it was $120 total. If you owe $400 on the internet, it sounds like the bill hasn't been paid in at least 3 months.

Although you said your boyfriend is getting an advance of pay from his boss, this is exactly how people get stuck constantly in the negatives each month. You'll borrow money from next paycheck, but how will you have enough extra for the next set of bills?

If you own the camera, I strongly recommend selling it along with both the lenses. You owe money on the camera, and paying off the loan will free up that money each month. If you really need a camera, B&H and Adorama have awesome deals on used bodies/lenses- you can get a Nikon D50 for under $100 the last time I checked.

You have 7 months until you're essentially going to be FORCED into being on one income for at least 6 weeks (maternity leave). Sell the camera, lenses, and the iPad, and get yourselves caught up. Try to build a cushion rather than go into the negatives each month.