Archived "The Struggle"

[JuicedSoftball1]

For all of you who struggle with all of your bills that come on here to complain about the low wages and how the can not afford to buy any clothes or food I have one question for you. How and why are you paying for internet access if the bills are that bad? When my girlfriend and I got our place we debated if we were going to get cable or not and just get internet and watch Netflix. We looked into pricing of just internet and it was barely cheaper than getting a combo of internet and cable so we got the cable. If we just wanted internet it was going to be like $80. So my question to those who claim that at months end they are in the red with bills after their take home what are you doing about internet? I feel like your life priorities are messed up if you cant afford a new shirt but can afford internet.

 

[Bosch]

Trolling much?

 

[commiecorvus]

Dial up is only $20 a month in some areas.
Some people have kids and if they are going to school anymore you pretty much have to have internet.
We live in a time when the not having the net puts you at a disadvantage.
Many people use it exclusively for their news, entertainment (who needs TV when you can stream all your shows) and connection with friends and family around the world.


I was lucky, my wife was a teacher and in a union so we didn't have to make choices like that.
Most of the really poor families whose kids she taught couldn't afford the net and their kids suffered for it.

 

[redeye58]

We have the cheapie dial-up for $9.99/mo thru our phone company.
Before that, we went to the library every couple days.

 

[JuicedSoftball1]

Urban dictionary:
Trolling: Being a prick on the internet because you can. Typically unleashing one or more cynical or sarcastic remarks on an innocent by-stander, because it's the internet and, hey, you can.

Struggle to see the trolling on my part. I could make the case that by asking me if I am "trolling much" you are in fact trolling yourself =)

But no I am not trying to be a prick it is an honest question. Or maybe a possible wake up call? I work a fulltime job (that pays around what an ETL starting out makes) and work a day or two at Target as well to be able to afford my cable and internet. I just know that if I was in a situation where I couldn't afford a new shirt that cost $9 or 10 bucks from Walmart which some on here claim that I would not be paying for internet. That is why I asked what people are doing for internet. It's a great and awesome thing this here internet but you surely do not need it to survive especially if you can not afford basis necessities of life.

 

[redeye58]

More & more businesses tell you to 'visit our website at....'
Many schools, jobs, etc ask for an email addy.
It's getting harder to do without it.

 

[commiecorvus]

Urban dictionary:
Trolling: Being a prick on the internet because you can. Typically unleashing one or more cynical or sarcastic remarks on an innocent by-stander, because it's the internet and, hey, you can.

Struggle to see the trolling on my part. I could make the case that by asking me if I am "trolling much" you are in fact trolling yourself =)

But no I am not trying to be a prick it is an honest question. Or maybe a possible wake up call? I work a fulltime job (that pays around what an ETL starting out makes) and work a day or two at Target as well to be able to afford my cable and internet. I just know that if I was in a situation where I couldn't afford a new shirt that cost $9 or 10 bucks from Walmart which some on here claim that I would not be paying for internet. That is why I asked what people are doing for internet. It's a great and awesome thing this here internet but you surely do not need it to survive especially if you can not afford basis necessities of life.

The point is you're asking a question that's accusatory.
It may not meet the classic definition of trolling but it's what my old man used to call a shit stirring question.
Sure it might be meant in good faith but it sure doesn't feel that way to the people you're asking.

Anytime someone wants to tell me they are trying to raise my awareness about the bad choices I'm making, I find myself clenching my butt cheeks because I'm pretty sure something is going to be rammed between them.
The net isn't some like booze or a fancy car, it has become something that many countries consider a basic need.

 

[neversaynever]

I have a great package from comcast, $39/mo and it includes tv.

I have kids here doing virtual school, no internet is not an option. I'm also not as strapped for cash as some - my housing situation is the reason for that. But I live on a tight budget most of the time, and a new wardrobe is not always feasible (like a year ago when I started... My ex was paying partial child support and no alimony, budget was screwed hence getting a job).

Ironically I think most of my work clothes came from WM, I can't buy pants at spot at all.

 

[neversaynever]

Oh and we can flip it around.

Seriously, you make $50k a year and have to work at spot 1-2 days a week to afford your internet??? I'm not think us budget conscience folks are the ones with the problem....

Isn't so nice huh?

 

[MissionStarlight]

Even if you don't negotiate a cheaper cost and you do pay $80/month for internet...if you factor in networking opportunities, money-making opportunities*, stress-relief, it definitely replaces tv, etc, etc, etc....it's worth the cost. It's far more efficient to cut money elsewhere (like shopping online for cheap or clearance items) then to cut out internet. Yeah, if things got that tight we'd cut it and use the library or our cellphones but we're pretty ok with money and have been lucky to always bounce back from any down periods so far. But job hunting without an internet connection is hard. Many stores are now refusing to even offer paper applications and the smaller stores don't have kiosks to fill out apps at which means you have to get yourself to public computers somehow which really limits what you can do.

*Between my husband and myself--his last job was online-only. I do commissions and am in the processing of getting stock together to open an online store of my own. We both do surveys and get things like free shit in the mail and decent pocket change. I also do deal-hunting online and the amount of money we save is awesome. Well worth even $80/month. Even if it's just used for fun--worth it.

 

[Signkitty]

Its 2014 the internet is no longer an expensive luxury.

Oh and if the "new shirt" is for work then it seems wrong that I have to incur the expense for something spot wants me to have.

Oh and your wake up call? No one needs a wake up call, there are not as many good paying jobs out there like there used to be. Stop judging people, and yes you are because you think just because someone is poor they make poor choices.

BEING POOR IS NOT A LACK OF MORALS OR JUDGEMENT.

Its lack of money.

 

[JuicedSoftball1]

Oh and we can flip it around.

Seriously, you make $50k a year and have to work at spot 1-2 days a week to afford your internet??? I'm not think us budget conscience folks are the ones with the problem....

Isn't so nice huh?

I could quit Target tomorrow and I would be ok. I have put myself in the situation I am in and I am perfectly ok with it. It strives to keep me on my toes and as my VP calls me "a hustler" I get stuff done. What keeps me going? Not wanting to see what happened to a lot of older works who got laid off happen to me. I also pay for the roof over my girlfriends head and most of our food. She has student loans and I told her I do not want any money for housing I want it all to go towards student loans. That is a choice I made and I made it for us. I also keep working at Target because I work in an industry that if they change 1 or 2 laws the need for my company goes away. I put in over 10 years and counting at Target have held many positions and know if I got laid off tomorrow at least I have something to fall back on. I honestly think its a smart decision on my part to have this as a 2nd job as we have all seen the work force isn't what it used to be.


And before anyone thinks I am bragging or anything along those lines like I said I put in over 10 years at Target and was never able to make it to the ETL level. I used what Spot did offer and became a TL and got them to pay for a good chunk of my college education. It also took me 3 years after graduating and 1000000000000000 of applications to find something else.

 

[JuicedSoftball1]

Its 2014 the internet is no longer an expensive luxury.

Oh and if the "new shirt" is for work then it seems wrong that I have to incur the expense for something spot wants me to have.

Oh and your wake up call? No one needs a wake up call, there are not as many good paying jobs out there like there used to be. Stop judging people, and yes you are because you think just because someone is poor they make poor choices.

BEING POOR IS NOT A LACK OF MORALS OR JUDGEMENT.

Its lack of money.

I can't show up to work naked at either of my jobs. I didn't have any business clothes when I got my new job and I had to go out and buy them all.


It's honestly just a question. Some people have answered. They are not the ones who are struggling as bad as you it sounds though. I don't personally know you I don't know your situation. If you say you are doing everything to make your situation better than all I can do is take your word for it. I spent many years overnight though and I had many team members all say the same things about their struggles they don't get paid enough they cant afford a new shirt. Yet who were the ones out front smoking every morning when the alarm came down? They were. Pretty expensive habit! Who were the ones with the newest iphones? They were.

I worked with another girl who it sounds like situation was a lot like yours though. She did in my opinion everything right. She became cross trained in so many areas. She went overnight to get the shift diff pay. She lived in a townhouse with 3 other girls to make her rent as low as possible. She drove a Honda civic that had 300,000 miles on it. She had a cell phone that I think Zack Morris used in Saved by the Bell. She became the queen of taking advantage of all the free activities she could in the area. State parks, monuments, etc. I had the most respect for her out of anyone I ever worked with. She finally landed a job outside of spot and is doing really well for herself.

 

[commiecorvus]

Its 2014 the internet is no longer an expensive luxury.

Oh and if the "new shirt" is for work then it seems wrong that I have to incur the expense for something spot wants me to have.

Oh and your wake up call? No one needs a wake up call, there are not as many good paying jobs out there like there used to be. Stop judging people, and yes you are because you think just because someone is poor they make poor choices.

BEING POOR IS NOT A LACK OF MORALS OR JUDGEMENT.

Its lack of money.

I can't show up to work naked at either of my jobs. I didn't have any business clothes when I got my new job and I had to go out and buy them all.


It's honestly just a question. Some people have answered. They are not the ones who are struggling as bad as you it sounds though. I don't personally know you I don't know your situation. If you say you are doing everything to make your situation better than all I can do is take your word for it. I spent many years overnight though and I had many team members all say the same things about their struggles they don't get paid enough they cant afford a new shirt. Yet who were the ones out front smoking every morning when the alarm came down? They were. Pretty expensive habit! Who were the ones with the newest iphones? They were.

I worked with another girl who it sounds like situation was a lot like yours though. She did in my opinion everything right. She became cross trained in so many areas. She went overnight to get the shift diff pay. She lived in a townhouse with 3 other girls to make her rent as low as possible. She drove a Honda civic that had 300,000 miles on it. She had a cell phone that I think Zack Morris used in Saved by the Bell. She became the queen of taking advantage of all the free activities she could in the area. State parks, monuments, etc. I had the most respect for her out of anyone I ever worked with. She finally landed a job outside of spot and is doing really well for herself.

She could have worked four jobs and done even better.
Oh yea, that doesn't end so well.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/28/maria-fernandes_n_5732230.html

 

[Signkitty]

I am no longer struggling like I used to. However in my heart I will always be poor so I am very frugal.

The shirt thing is about the idea that my job can tell me how to spend my money. Which seems unfair since I can't tell them how to spend theirs, unless its a sign if you want to be picky. This added to lack of a living wage being paid to 10 million americans just makes me sick, if you mix in the income inequality that is killing this country I just want to scream.

But the worst are people like you, people who judge those that make so little and work so hard. Smoking is an addiction once you start, maybe they had a good job when they started, you can't stop easily. Now please tell me how you know they had the newest iphone? Did you ask them? Most iPhones look the same now and you can get them for pretty much free. But hey easier to judge someone with no information right?

Is it so hard to believe that a good person who did nothing wrong ended up in a bad situation? Because this is becoming the norm in this country people who work full time yet can not survive.

 

[tgtguy]

I try not to judge other people and their situations . You never know what someone is going through or has already been through . I dont pay their bills and they dont have mine..so when it comes to how people spend their money...I try to stay out of it .

 

[JuicedSoftball1]

This has got way off where I wanted this to go but commie said it best. I guess I asked a question that would stir up some shit.

Also I am no where near where I expected to be in my career at this point in my life. I have myself to blame for that. Some people have it easier than others but ultimately where you end up in life plays a large part in how you decide to live your life.

I was lazy in high school. I didn't take it seriously. I always got A's and B's but I hardly learned anything. I didn't take the harder math or science classes like my friends did. My SATs were average, I didn't get into any of the colleges I wanted to. The first one I went to kicked my ass because I was not ready for it because I did not prepare myself for it by challenging myself in high school.

I wanted to do computer science. I couldn't handle more than intro classes as I couldn't get past the math requirements and I was for far behind because of my bad choices in high school. WAKE UP CALL for me.

I left that college because I was now lost with life goals. I went back fulltime to what I knew, Target. Went to community college for general studies. Eventually became a team lead. Went back to a 4 year college to now study business as I thought I had it all figured out I was going to become an ETL and be an STL before 30. Wrong. I made bad choices. I had no problem telling people above me they were wrong in less than brand ways. I also got mixed up in a Target love affair. Graduated college, couldn't figure out why I wasn't getting promoted. Finally one of my mentors pulled me into the office and told me. I was one of the hardest working people they ever met but those couple screw ups basically ended my dreams of being an ETL or STL. WAKE UP CALL again.

I again had to refocus my life. I ffeel like I am on the right path now.


So its not so much about judging people its about asking them the tough questions . What can you do differently rather than make excuses.

 

[Dr Laytex]

I see the internet as a utility. I could probably get by without it, but then I would have to pay for my music, books, movies, tv shows, comic books and naked pictures of starlets.

 

[Unintended BM]

I don't think this is trolling. I think it's naivety. Just because life worked out for you doesn't mean others don't work just as hard at it. Like others said, the internet isn't a luxury anymore. You have no idea what could cause financial troubles for anyone, and we all have different, not right or wrong, priorities.

I'm also a musician. I could quit my job tomorrow and work full time at trying to make money doing that. Chances are, it'd go nowhere, but I could write a song and make millions. But that's luck. I could luck into a job I really love tomorrow, or just a job where I could pay my bills and have some money left over, even a little bit. That'd be amazing, but it's unlikely.

We're all trying and no one likes to be told how to live their lives. You asked a question, but it was a question that strongly implied that people are doing things wrong with their lives.

 

[Guest]

I make due. I wear the same stinky massively stained red shirt to work everyday. If I gave a shite, I would have more than one red shirt. Until an ETL or TL says something, I ain't changing shite.

 

[canibedreamin]

The internet is definitely a luxury. Needs fall under 3 categories: food/water, shelter, clothing. How far down the list of importance internet sits is different for each individual/family.

To the OP: I do agree you were trying to start shit. I just don't care.

 

[Guest]

Well you can always use free WiFi in public places like coffee shops and libraries. If you're addicted to online porn, you might have to make a sacrifice and maybe just buy some porno mags. Pretty sure, libraries don't want you looking at dat stuff on dare WiFi network.

 

[Unintended BM]

Yeah, I used the wrong word. I was using it more in the sense that having internet isn't like eating steak and lobster everyday. It's a common thing that helps you a lot. We live in a country where it's hard to get by without the internet. If you want to ever work outside of Target in a different field, it's almost necessary. You can use public internet or get really cheap dial up like some people said. That wasn't really the main point of my post anyways.

 

[BigEyedPhish]

Internet is way cheaper, when you consider how OVERPRICED the T-Shirts that give virtual handjob's are these days..

Especially when you can't find one in your own personal size.

 

[Guest]

I definitely try but struggle to be frugal. I will say I'm pretty good when it comes to my cell phone. I use to have a ridiculously priced bill from evil Sprint for a crappy smartphone that was a piece of shit but I divorced Sprint and hooked up with prepaid AT&T. My phone was 20 dollars and it's mine forever, forever young, I want to be forever young. And the plan is a whopping 35 dollars a month and I get 500 talk minutes, unlimited text messages, and unlimited super duper text based internet on the phone per month.

Smart phones are just not worth it in my opinion especially if every penny is important to you when it comes to money. I do miss google maps though because when I'm driving without google maps or any type of maps app, I feel blind and lost. I have to memorize directions and maps in my head before I head out which sucks. It also sucks when you want to go to a movie but have no idea when your movie is showing.

When it comes to food, I do have a bad habit of fast food. If I do buy things from the grocery store, I try to buy generic and off brands. If I'm buying trash bags, I don't care what brand it is as long as it is cheap. I'm also like that when it comes to milk. I will gladly buy ghetto grocery store brand milk for way cheaper prices. WinCo has some of the cheapest milk in my opinion.