Being Real

First of all, I think everyone should have a budget to know what their spending habits are, to be able to better save where and when necessary. A budget is a positive thing: it pulls us in in certain areas of our life where there is needless spending, and in areas where we could spend more - we are able to move those dollars over. We should all know what it takes to run our homes and  car and care for ourselves. No matter what job or how high or how low the income, we must know what goes out.
Being hit with a low income job or unemployment after years of living a certain way with a regular salary, it's emotionally disheartening and incredibly stressful, there is no doubt in my mind.
To have to reassess what you spend and how you do things, is a life changing event. Social activities become next to nothing. It is a major life event, a change that either makes you sink or swim.

Over the last several months, there have been people taking this food stamp challenge, to see what its like to eat on $30 a week or the bare minimum allotted for one person in their state. It is always some sort of negative outcome. Someone feels starved sitting at lunch with friends; someone sees a person eating a candy bar in the street and feels deprived; someone else misses their daily coffee habit. Poor babies, I feel sorry for you all. Because, instead of coming back and reporting a positive experience of self-reliance and resilience - they're all coming back saying how bad it feels and how awful it was and how they feel sorry for people that have to have SNAP benefits.

And what I have to say to all of this crap and superficial experience, it was a highly unrealistic approach. Reality t.v. at its worst.

Why? Because it is not approached from a realistic place. They are just taking the $30 a week and using only that amount, they do not touch what they already have in their cupboards. How is this being real?
If something happens to me and I am immediately cautious of where my money is being spent, I use what I have first. Does that ring a bell? I spend only the absolute minimum necessary. Just like turning down the heat and putting on another sweater.

Let me show you how it is to be a strong, resilient and self-reliant human being. Let me show you how it can work. And let me not ever feel sorry for myself or have a pity party over what I cannot afford at that time.