We’re the Box Car Kids. Remember them? Four spunky, resourceful orphaned kids and their dog living in an abandoned train boxcar in the woods? The first book was published in 1924. Fast forward nearly 100 years and that’s us. Only we don’t live in an abandoned train car; we live in a 38-foot (recently moved up after nearly 2 years in a 26-foot) travel trailer- Mom, 4 kids (all adopted from China), 2 dogs and a cat and a kitten. We’re part of history – just another family touched (if you call being drop-kicked into an abyss being touched) by the Great Recession of the 21st Century. We lost our 5-bedroom home when we were unable to sell it and our renter wouldn’t pay rent. I’m unemployed (twice now)- laid off in the summer of 2009 as part of an ‘overhead reduction’ and again at the end of September 2011 after a brief stint at a temporary job. Some people (the school system for instance) consider us homeless. I prefer ‘alternatively housed.’ Homeless was the 2 months in the summer of 2009 that we spent living in a tent in various parks and campgrounds. This is our story.
Published posts may be revised from time to time.
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If I need to buy something from Amazon, I’d like you to get the affiliate credit, but I’m not sure which of the links to click on (there’s the wishlist, the toy list, and the countdown link). Which one can I use for more general shopping?
Thanks!
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Not the wishlist but the other two – they take you to Amazon and you can shop as usual. Thanks!
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It looks like it wasn’t received…. I just said I was so sad you were still struggling and asked if you were interested in moving to Texas.
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Thanks Nanetta – I don’t have reliable internet and am not always on the computer to approve comments when they come in.
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I just subscribed! lol Why do people think we’re homeless? I have a home, it’s just on wheels – personally I think they’re just jealous! ;D Can’t wait to read more!
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I think I found your posting originally on Salon.com. I wonder if you have gone back posting other things on that site or other sites?
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I haven’t – but after my interaction with the magazine editor am considering looking for other places to contribute.
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My boyfriend and I are unemployed and live in our 40 ft school bus with 1 dog. We’ve converted the bus into an RV, and founded a non-profit to feed homeless kids. We generally travel nonstop, never staying in a town for more than a week.
Our money situation is a combination of food stamps and “flying a sign.” That means we stand on the street corner with a cardboard sign asking for help. Contrary to popular belief, we don’t use the money to purchase alcohol or drugs. We gas up the bus and make other improvements, like a propane tank for cooking.
I understand this fundraising option carries a hefty stigma. But I’m not forcing anyone to donate to our cause. And I’ve never met so many generous people. Also, it gives me more control over our situation–I know that with a little foresight, we can dependably raise the funds we need to get by. I’m not at the mercy of a government benefits program, and I’m not forced into dead-end jobs that stifle my humanity.
I’m free.
In case you’re wondering, I know a single mother with several kids of her own who is also “home-free” and does exactly what I do. The generosity of strangers is an amazing thing.
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Oh, there is one more thing I wanted to ask or rather suggest. My husband is half Japanese and we eat alot of Japanese food. One of the recipes (it’s not really a recipe as you will see) we eat frequently is ramen. Here’s the thing though, you put other ingredients with it and don’t use the entire seasoning packet (it’s very high in sodium). When you are boiling the noodles, put an egg in and some soy sauce or hot pepper sauce, and only about half or less than half of the seasoning packet. Sometimes we get noodles at the Asian grocery store but not always as the ramen from the regular store works fine and there many things you can add to it in addition to egg. Carrots, scallions, squash..etc. are great with ramen. Basically, if you have leftover meat, vegges and salad fixins, you can add those too. Just cut up the greens into small strips. It’s very economical and tastes great. My kids like to pick the ingredients for theirs and crack the eggs. Thanks again for your blog – it’s great!
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I just started reading your blog yesterday – wow. You are a very good writer and an amazing Mom. I was raised in a poor (very dysfunctional) family. I was able to move away, go to college and
graduate school and marry an amazing man. We have 2 boys (ages 11 and 14) and are very happy. I was laid off from my job in May and can relate to alot of your postings regarding the isolation of unemployment, especially if you are a “people person”… which I am. So this has been hard but I try to be positive, especially with the kids. We are still in our home and are current on our mortgage and bills as we have our own business which my husband manages and this does ok most of the time. One of the things I have noticed about your postings is that despite your situation, you seem to have a very happy family -you are a very good Mom. KUDOS to you! It takes alot of courage and resourcefulness to do what you do. I can say that I understand what you are going through but … not really. Maybe insofar as I was laid off but that’s it. Growing up, we were never homeless – we had a roof over our heads. It was a terrible life but not really because of the lack of money. I think your blog is really important for people to see – you are not out there complaining – you are doing something about your situation. As for the comments by your previous co-workers… let them try to be in your sitation for 1 day… they wouldn’t make it. You are not a complainer – you are simply speaking the truth about your situation. If it makes them “uncomfortable”… then maybe they shouldn’t take the time and effort it takes to punch your blog address into their computer and tire their eyes reading. They can watch tv and eat bon bons. That’s probably easier for them anyway. Keep up the good work… and I am going to read your blog daily. -
I can’t subscribe to the new blog in my google reader. When I click on your ‘subscribe to feed’ button, Firefox crashes. When I use my subscribe button, it says there’s no feed. I’m still subscribed to your old blog…
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Hmm. Has anyone been successful in subscribing? If so what browser do you use?
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I have been thinking about you this past year, especially every time I read the site kidsoutandabout.com. It’s written by a stay home/homeschooling mom, and she is paid to do it by the sponsor. You can write circles around her, and you are at least as resourceful in a) finding out what is going on in your community, and b) just making life work out no matter what the situation.
Check it out. This could be a way you could be there when the kids get off the bus. Please let me know what you think.
Best wishes,
Maddie-
Thanks Maddie. There’s something similar here – although I haven’t found it entirely useful as a parent because it doesn’t get updated and the links don’t always work.
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I am very impressed by your writing talents. You should look into short story or feature writing submissions for magazines. (I know that’s a hard thing to think about when you’re just trying to make it day to day). You have a real talent. Send some editors a link to your blog. Continuing to pray for you…
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Stumbled on your blog from Grace and I think this blog is very good! I like your writing style and the content is riveting.Easy for me to say comfortably situated, VERY employed with multiple jobs.What I absolutely loved in the about you portion was (besides the sarcasm/humor) the living in the travel trailer-Kudos!!! you do what you have to since you chose to have 4 children and are responsible for them and animals.Choices we make….we are not entitled to anything
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Congrats on the new blog…look forward to continued reading of your posts.
Some of your links are broken e.g. Subscribe and About. As far as I can see this is because the word wordpress slipped out of your hyperlinks.
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Thanks – I’m fumbling my way through setting it all up again (one click wasn’t as easy as described!). The first time it only imported half my blog, and of course all the things like themes, links, settings were gone. Having a slow and intermittent internet connection is frustrating! Hopefully we’ll be back on track soon. I’m still trying to figure out how to get links to my old blog to point here.
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You are an amazingly talented writer. Your sense of humor, faith, and good character shine though your eloquently written blog.
Thank you for showing me that I need to be thankful, very thankful, for all of my many blessings. Your blessing may actually be the best of all, learning that God’s faithfulness is something you cannot lose despite how tough things appear.
I’ll pray for your continued strength and a quick end to your “temporary situation”.
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