The 5 Stupidest Habits You Develop Growing Up Poor

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157. Help Of The Most Imperfect Kind

Many mean well. Many want those on food stamps to be able to eat well,eat nutritional foods and see the children well fed when they go to bed at night. But reality barges in and epic fail is everywhere. They start by giving them menus of what to cook, how to cook it, practical, common sense advice. However many who look at these hints and recipes do not have half the appliances they mention like blenders,toaster ovens,mixers etc. They do not have a wonderful grocery store if they live in or near a food desert. Most have poor transportation--bus if they are lucky,by foot if they aren't. They have to think cost as well as heft when they buy a bag of food. They don't have spices beyond salt or pepper for the most part. Unless you see their bare cupboards you have no idea what a bare cupboard really looks like!
They rarely are taught of how to manage any windfall of cash they might get. For one thing if you keep wishing for months for one item and finally see that green around the bend you,by nature, will get it, knowing that you will never get that chance again. Those with so much cash always can get whatever they want. They would never have a wish list--they don't need one. But if, say, are one of the working poor you see every day what others have and you would so much like to have things from a warmer winter coat to a special toy for your child. You want so much to share in this "American Dream" that they keep hearing about. Yet some think it's a crime if they "blow that windfall" by getting something new,pretty or even silly to the eyes of the well healed. No one thinks anything wrong with the mega rich having homes scattered all over the world knowing they can only live in one at a time but if a person is known to be on food stamps or aid of some sort it's almost a sin for them to buy something "beyond their means". That kind of thinking is really sad. Why should a person be punished in this way simply because they were not born into money,work at poverty wages or have a chronic illness that prevents them working at all. They do not want to live like millionaires. They just want to live a normal life,be able to pay their bills,feed their kids and live somewhere safe.