"OK, that was a nice break, but back to the story",

when things really start to fall apart all around you, people start to change. and not in a "good way".
I, had been "bleeding money" by this point, for over a year and a half, I had essentially destroyed my credit by "robbing Peter to pay Paul". and in truth? I had not become a "fun" person to be around. ( to be objective here however, would YOU be a barrel of laughs under these conditions?). people I at one point spoke to daily, suddenly never took my calls..never,people who owed me money? well one party who shall remain nameless, began to take on an arrogant air that basically said "How DARE you ASK for this money, I am broke". EXCUSE ME,  this person has and always has and probably always WILL live far above his means, however, that is a lifestyle choice. this person has been solidly employed for 15 plus years,(and lives in a 2 bedroom apartment ALONE) would tell you, "I paid over half of what you leant me back" and  thinks this is admirable and enough. oh, and on one occasion after my relentless begging wore him down for 100.00 of the 900 he owed at that point? (over 1.5 years later FYI, he STILL owes me 750.00),  when I asked if he could make it 125.00 rather than 100.00 as I needed extra cat food? he broke out laughing and told me I had just helped him win a 10.00 bet he had made that I " would not be satisfied" . yeah. I could say more here, but I do not think I have to. I think that says it all.
At this stage of the story, I was getting under 1200.00 a month from unemployment. my rent was 960.00
and getting anything at all paid was  becoming next to impossible.
I made the next choice, I stopped paying rent. and decided, I HAD to get out of that apartment, but I had no place to go. I went to New York Social Services. a place I would not wish on anyone. the 1st thing I was told was that since I was not at that second being evicted, they would not be able to help me.return when you are. the next? was that it would not matter if I was, as I was ineligible for any assistance regardless, as I was getting unemployment.when I asked about a "one shot" for my rent, I was told "no" as I did not have enough income to prove I would be able to pay it in the future, if they paid it once.
HELLO, I was getting under 300.00 a week!
the next thing I asked about was "housing" and Sec 8. I was told, "you can apply, but as a single person, it can take about 5 years at minimum".
someone reading this at this point would probably ask the logical question "how about your family"?
How about them, I am an only child, My Beautiful Mother was a Saint, she was too good for her own good, in many ways when I watch All in the Family reruns these days as I often do I see much of her in Edith Bunker, a beautiful soul, who was the defintion of "long suffereing". she passed away in 2002.
I lost my father very young, they divorced when I was 10 or so, and He passed away not long after.
I don't have many memories of him.
Mom, took up with a violent, nasty, abusive alcoholic scumbag not long after and never let go,
he died long before she did,.but way too late to "fix" a lot of the damage he inflicted in her life.
the only one left was my uncle. and He is the next installment of this blog.