Poverty Is Not an Accident

Poverty Is Not an Accident
Nelson Mandela

Thursday, April 29, 2004

da grrlz on da 1st floor

You are reading http://livinginthehood.blogspot.com

Well, I checked my bank balance this morning; I was almost two dollars in the hole! How, I don't know. I called the bank; if I could deposit the $ today, they wouldn't slap on a thirty five dollar fine!

So, without a shower, I threw on some clothes and walked to KUNM, in the wind, with my hair turning to a mess.

I asked a few people if I could borrow some $, but payday is tomorrow, and everybody's tapped.

So, I wrote and recorded my commentary on the inaccessible hotel where the broadcasters' convention was held.

I went down stairs for one of my last, three cigarettes. I ran into the grrlz on the 1st floor.

I'm not sure what they do, but it has something to do with training teachers in elementary education.

We smoke together, out on the patio.

So, I told them about my improvized feminine hygeine (see the Viri Diana blog for details). I told them I hadn't eaten all day and was facing a long walk back. I told them I'm out of cigarettes. I told them my eighty dollar check will probably arrive today, after the bank closes.

Well, I ended up with seven dollars, several pantiliners, a couple of pads, granola bars, soy bean granola, protein bars and a few cigarettes! LOL

They ran all over their offices and kept tossing stuff into my tote bag!

I brought the rest of the food up to the news room. Leslie has an "emergency" food drawer, any of us can eat from. I fed her some, because she hadn't eaten all day, either. We showed the stash to Tom, who's diabetic and needs emergency sugar from time to time.

It occurs to me: we should keep that drawer better stashed. I've got some mixed nuts someone gave me. I've got that case of chicken soups, ready to eat, I could bring in. We get stuff at Food Not Bombs, too, from time to time: cookies, crackers, snacks, individual servings of weird stuff.

And I'm going to try to find the newsroom its own coffee pot, so we don't have to rely on the pot in the main room; everybody who passes it loads up and never refills it.

We need decent emergency food. There are several reporters who show up half starved, too.

So, I'll dig around and find some microwaveable crap.

I'm going to walk to the station every week next week, to work on 2 stories: homeless shelter & no child left behind. I can sell them to Free Speech Radio, too.

Should get me out of debt with that %$#@&!!! bank, so I can move my account to a RESPONSIBLE, not PREDATORY, financial institution. Evil trolls!

I'm TIRED of other people's incompetence putting me on the cusp of friggin' HOMELESSNESS!

I'm tired of freaking out and panicing over money, because my bank is out to get any money they CAN out of their most vulnerable customers!

I can't WAIT to close that account and tell them where to cram it!

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

so there!

I'm frying chicken legs now. I made alfredo noodles recently, and that'll be a great lunch, with th asperagus I bought recently.

I'm tired of being treated like a second class citizen, based on my income.

I can't do MUCH about my income...yet. But I can scrounge enough to give me a tiny bit of a buffer zone, to protect my safety.

I've seen another world, where people are respectful and considerate. This callous, hateful predation I've endured has got to STOP!

There's something I can do about it, and I'm going to do what I can.

And I'm going to work on my appearance, too.

I'm always going to be an ugly, old woman. But I know how to trim my own hair. I also have make up. And I'm even going to get me some outrageous color of hair dye! Just for fun. I never color my hair the same way twice; Sometimes, I'm blonde, sometimes red, sometimes brunette, etc. Cuz hair dye should be FUN! It's costume. There's no reason to pretend I'm not dying my damn hair! And the Dollar Store has some good brands, for less than five bucks a month.

I've already started cleaning tarnish off my silver jewelry. Some ear rings and necklaces are in order.

I can't do much about shoes. My feet hurt too much to get creative.

But, dammit, I like being colorful and twinkly. So, why not???

I will MAKE them treat me like a lady, if I have to bitch slap the whole BUNCH of them!

From now on, if it's windy out, I'm MOUSSING my damn HAIR!

I know, this is all middle class, superficial, consumer garbage.

But I have to live in the REAL world, where people are JUDGED by these ridiculous and insulting standards!

I'm an artist. If ANYBODY can do theater, it's me. SO I'm committing myself to friggin' CAMOFLAUGE, so I can get some damn RESPECT!

I can outfox these petty trolls, and I WILL!

And I can' WAIT 'til I've paid off my direct deposit advance to Wells Fargo so I can get the hell OUT of that reactionary money pit for good!

SO THERE!

...yeah, but tell us how you REALLY feel, Rogi! LOL

As soon as my food stamps come, I'm going to cook something FABULOUS for the grrlz on the 1st floor, and bring the leftovers up to the station for everybody else, too!

They saved my butt today!

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