Recently I found out that one of my friends from the theater has quit his job and is now unemployed. It wasn't much of a job to begin with, I guess, and there was some BS going on at work. Well, hate to tell you this, but no matter where you go there is always going to be BS. Some places more than others. I am an alumni of one of the worst places on my side of the state to work, so you might say I could write a textbook on workplace BS. I don't know what kind of BS my friend found impossible to put up with as I haven't talked to him directly but compared to the kind of BS I experienced and witnessed at I find it very hard to believe that his experience at the dollar store could be worse.
It's a shame because everyone acknowledges that Kevin is a "nice guy." But being a "nice guy" isn't enough when it comes to the job market, and this is where Kevin is at a real disadvantage. Kevin is in his 30's and has little education, which is why he was working at the dollar store in the first place. He hasn't any transportation, so he is confined to the few low-skilled jobs available in the small town where he lives. True, there is a new Wal-Mart going up on the outskirts of town, but I can tell you that competition for those jobs is going to be something fierce. He could, I suppose, get work in the juice factory, because that pays pretty good and you don't need a lot of education to work there. But from what I've heard from people who work in the juice factory, it can be a pretty rough place and if he had trouble coping with the comparatively calm environment of the dollar store, the juice factory isn't going to be the place for him.
I asked my friend who told me this what Kevin plans to do now. Oh, she said, he's thinking of doing house-cleaning. He lives in a rent-subsidized apartment, so his rent will go down to almost nothing. I know about those rent-subsidized places. I lived in one once and never want to do it again. Never mind the kind of people those places attract, once you get in there, your money is no longer your business. My landlord doesn't care how much or how little I make as long as I pay the rent on time. Not in rent-subsidy. You get any kind of extra money they are right there with their hand right out to take what little you have. I got out of that racket as soon as I saw what that was all about.
Basically, my friend Kevin is caught in the poverty trap. At his age, the odds of him getting out of it are pretty slim. There is so much stacked against him. And time is running out for him to have any hopes of a better life. There are only so many jobs he can quit before no one will hire him at all.
The sad thing about it, is that Kevin's poverty also affects his ability to go out and have a social life. Not surprisingly, he isn't married and hasn't any girlfriend. Yes, he is a nice guy. But would I go out with him, other than theater events, where we are part of a crowd? No. And this is why.
I am not looking for a man to support me. I can support myself very well, thank you. But what I would like is someone who can participate in my life on an equal basis as well as I with them. Kevin, because of his poverty, can't do this. I feel for him. I really do.
The other night I went by myself (as usual) to the annual Beethoven Fest. Now, I don't know if Kevin likes Beethoven (probably not) but let's say he does. Admission to the Beethoven Fest is, by my standards, relatively cheap, only $20, compared to some of the other events around town. I can afford admission to the Beethoven Fest. Kevin, however, cannot. It might as well be $100 as far as he is concerned. The same for any other event that charges admission and most do. It's not that he isn't a nice guy, it's the income gap between us that makes it difficult to do things together.
Because in the end, poverty isolates. I once had a friend who moved to another state. For awhile we tried to keep our friendship going by writing letters but again, the income gap got in the way. For some reason (she wouldn't say why), she was unable to work, and lived on a pittance. I do mean a pittance. Every so often she would apologize for sending a postcard instead because she was unable to afford the five cents it took to mail a regular letter. I don't know what became of her, if she is still pinching pennies. It's pretty safe to say she never made the transition to e-mail. Staying connected to the outside world costs! I know what it is like when money is tight, but I have never ever been in a situation where a five-cent stamp was something that had to be carefully budgeted. As a matter of fact, I don't even know what a stamp costs these days. I go to the post office and buy a sheet and that's that. Eventually we stopped writing to each other. I felt bad about it, but I was beginning to resent hearing about how much of a financial burden a letter once or twice a month represented, especially as her situation did not look like it was ever going to improve.
This is why I feel money is important, not to make scads of it, but to make enough to have a quality life and stay connected with friends.
It's a shame because everyone acknowledges that Kevin is a "nice guy." But being a "nice guy" isn't enough when it comes to the job market, and this is where Kevin is at a real disadvantage. Kevin is in his 30's and has little education, which is why he was working at the dollar store in the first place. He hasn't any transportation, so he is confined to the few low-skilled jobs available in the small town where he lives. True, there is a new Wal-Mart going up on the outskirts of town, but I can tell you that competition for those jobs is going to be something fierce. He could, I suppose, get work in the juice factory, because that pays pretty good and you don't need a lot of education to work there. But from what I've heard from people who work in the juice factory, it can be a pretty rough place and if he had trouble coping with the comparatively calm environment of the dollar store, the juice factory isn't going to be the place for him.
I asked my friend who told me this what Kevin plans to do now. Oh, she said, he's thinking of doing house-cleaning. He lives in a rent-subsidized apartment, so his rent will go down to almost nothing. I know about those rent-subsidized places. I lived in one once and never want to do it again. Never mind the kind of people those places attract, once you get in there, your money is no longer your business. My landlord doesn't care how much or how little I make as long as I pay the rent on time. Not in rent-subsidy. You get any kind of extra money they are right there with their hand right out to take what little you have. I got out of that racket as soon as I saw what that was all about.
Basically, my friend Kevin is caught in the poverty trap. At his age, the odds of him getting out of it are pretty slim. There is so much stacked against him. And time is running out for him to have any hopes of a better life. There are only so many jobs he can quit before no one will hire him at all.
The sad thing about it, is that Kevin's poverty also affects his ability to go out and have a social life. Not surprisingly, he isn't married and hasn't any girlfriend. Yes, he is a nice guy. But would I go out with him, other than theater events, where we are part of a crowd? No. And this is why.
I am not looking for a man to support me. I can support myself very well, thank you. But what I would like is someone who can participate in my life on an equal basis as well as I with them. Kevin, because of his poverty, can't do this. I feel for him. I really do.
The other night I went by myself (as usual) to the annual Beethoven Fest. Now, I don't know if Kevin likes Beethoven (probably not) but let's say he does. Admission to the Beethoven Fest is, by my standards, relatively cheap, only $20, compared to some of the other events around town. I can afford admission to the Beethoven Fest. Kevin, however, cannot. It might as well be $100 as far as he is concerned. The same for any other event that charges admission and most do. It's not that he isn't a nice guy, it's the income gap between us that makes it difficult to do things together.
Because in the end, poverty isolates. I once had a friend who moved to another state. For awhile we tried to keep our friendship going by writing letters but again, the income gap got in the way. For some reason (she wouldn't say why), she was unable to work, and lived on a pittance. I do mean a pittance. Every so often she would apologize for sending a postcard instead because she was unable to afford the five cents it took to mail a regular letter. I don't know what became of her, if she is still pinching pennies. It's pretty safe to say she never made the transition to e-mail. Staying connected to the outside world costs! I know what it is like when money is tight, but I have never ever been in a situation where a five-cent stamp was something that had to be carefully budgeted. As a matter of fact, I don't even know what a stamp costs these days. I go to the post office and buy a sheet and that's that. Eventually we stopped writing to each other. I felt bad about it, but I was beginning to resent hearing about how much of a financial burden a letter once or twice a month represented, especially as her situation did not look like it was ever going to improve.
This is why I feel money is important, not to make scads of it, but to make enough to have a quality life and stay connected with friends.
