Freaking out about the possibility of Section 8

November 27, 2015

Life has never been easy or predictable. At one point I thought it was, but back then I assumed I’d have my PhD, be married and have kids by the time I was 30. Now I’m well past 30, I haven’t spoke to that guy in 13 years, there are no kids, and I never did finish the PhD. I have no regrets. I’m just saying, life is unpredictable.

And in case I dared to forget it, the last few hours have reminded me all too clearly.

Life has been less certain than ever since I left my job 4 years ago. I can’t believe it’s been that long. Still, after a ton of work and effort, research, new doctors, new treatments, and fighting with insurance companies, I finally reached a point where I felt I might be able to do a little part time work. I was nervous, but also hopeful. It would be so nice not to have to worry about being on benefits that didn’t cover all the bills.

Today I did some work on that new business. I was feeling really excited about it! At 4pm I was jazzed, telling my mother all about my new plans and progress, outlining some next steps for myself, and imagining the possibility that this might actually work! At 5:30 I decided to check the mail. At 5:35, everything changed.

I had an unexpected letter.

I’m near the top of the waiting list for Section 8, so they want to start getting my paperwork ready and have an interview with me. Holy fuck! What just happened???

For those who don’t know, Section 8 is a housing voucher program. If you earn less than a certain amount, you’re eligible. Typically, you then pay 30% of your rent and the government pays the rest. There aren’t a lot of vouchers and the waiting list is long. When I signed up, I was told the wait was 3-4 years, so I put it out of my head. Whenever it popped back in, I reminded myself that I had a long wait and shouldn’t plan for it. And now, a year and a half later, it seems like it could soon be a reality. Sounds good, right?

Of course, like with anything, there are a few catches. For one thing, if you start earning more, then you lose the Section 8, and I don’t know what happens then. Would I have to move? And to use it in the first place I might have to move, and my choices would be very limited. Not all landlords accept Section 8 vouchers and I don’t know if mine does. Many don’t. Then there’s the problem that there are rental limits, and they’re pretty low for this area, so that makes it significantly harder to find a place.

Of course, this is just what I’ve heard and read. The truth is, I don’t know a lot. I have so many questions, but I got the letter at 5:30pm on a Friday, of course, so I need to wait all weekend before I can call and ask any of them.

So now I’m wondering, is this a good thing? It seems like it should be a good thing. If I’m doing the math right, this would mean I could almost cover all of my bills every month! There would be a small gap, maybe $50-$100 per month, but I could handle that. I get paid for small jobs here and there, and I get birthday and Chanukah checks, so I’m sure that wouldn’t be a problem. And would it be amazing to not have to worry about money?!? Ok, sure, I still wouldn’t have anything extra. It’s not like I could suddenly start eating out more, buying more clothes, or traveling. But it’s not like I really have to do any of those things anyway. So…. maybe this is good?

I’m nervous. I’m so used to things going wrong that it feels like there must be a big catch here that I’m not seeing yet. But then, what if there isn’t….?

If you’re on Section 8, what has your experience been like? What questions should I be asking? What should I know?

 

3 Comments | Expectations, Politics, Rants, Raves, Unpredictable | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

How many medical appointments have you had this year?

November 6, 2015

Every now and then I’ll talk to a friend who mentions a medical appointment like it’s an unusual thing. They’re going for their yearly checkup or they only go when they have a problem, which is rare. It’s hard for me to imagine that life. I try to remember back to a time when I only went to the doctor occasionally, but I think I was 10 at the time. And it made me wonder, just how many appointments do I have each year?

I had no desire to go through my calendar and count them all, so this is a bit rough. I did a search for “Dr.” in my google 11-6-2015 11-42-40 AMcalendar and for “PT” because that’s how I enter my physical therapy appointments. I searched my brain for any other entries that might have been entered differently (there are at least a few). I left out non-appointments, like stopping by a lab to get blood work done. Searching only in 2015, I came up with 42 appointments. 42!!!

If you have weekly appointments, this probably doesn’t sound like much. But if you see a doctor only once a year to refill your birth control prescription, this probably sounds like a huge number. And it is.

42 appointments is a lot. That’s 42 days I couldn’t schedule anything else. 42 times I had to plan my day around a medical appointment. 42 times I had to schlep down to an office, sit in a waiting room, talk to someone about my personal medical health. How many minutes, hours, days have been spent traveling to and from appointments, sitting in waiting rooms, waiting in offices, talking to people who may or may not be able to help me?

How much more time that isn’t included here was spent making appointments, rescheduling appointments, calling doctors, emailing doctors? How much time was spent tracking down medical records, taking notes, organizing notes, filling out release forms, sending records to other doctors?

How much time was spent thinking and worrying about these appointments?

The numbers are huge and discouraging. But I’m doing what I have to do to ensure the best health possible for myself.

What about you? How many appointments have you had this year? Take a guess, and put it in the comments. After all, there’s comfort in community.

17 Comments | Frustration, Healthcare, Rants | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

So much for October

November 2, 2015

October is my favorite month of the year. It’s not hard to see why. For one thing, heat and humidity make me feel like shit. They exacerbate my symptoms and I pay the price all summer long. October is the first month that I feel decent. There’s 2015-11-01 14.07.39no snow or ice to deal with yet. And I get to enjoy the gorgeous fall foliage here in New England.

Except for this year.

In September I had a bit of an accident with a knife, and I haven’t been able to walk around much since then. I’ve been enjoying the cooler temperatures and lack of humidity, but there’s just no way I can walk around in the woods right now. Still, as I look at my post-surgery foot, or rather, the bandage around my post-surgery foot, I’m trying very hard not to feel too bad about missing out on my favorite month of the year.

There will be another October. There will be many more Octobers. And I expect to enjoy quite a few of them. I can still see some of the pretty colors from the passenger seat of a car. Ok, it’s not the same, but that’s ok. It has to be ok. Because I can’t keep feeling sorry for myself.

There are a lot of things I can’t do anymore, and that’s I’ll never do again. I will never jog again. I will probably never ride a bicycle again. I will never backpack around Europe again. I might never work in an office again. But there are still a lot of things I CAN do. So as I see the calendar yelling at me that November is here, I’m trying not to feel too bad about missing out on October this year. There will be another one.

2 Comments | Decisions, Expectations, Frustration, Isolation, Limitations, Rants | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

You can choose to say no, but I can’t choose to say yes

October 22, 2015

“I have to do this and this and this and this and then there’s that trip tomorrow…. I mean, it’s fun, but it’s still a lot, you know?”

All I could do was nod my head. What could I say? I remember what it was like to be so busy and feel like I couldn’t keep up, but my friend was talking about how he was so busy, that tomorrow’s day trip would be overwhelming. The day trip that he and other friends of ours take every year. The day trip that I want to go on every year. The day trip that I miss every year because of my health problems. The day trip that he could say no to, but chose not to.

That was the hard part for me. I just kept thinking, “You could always say no.” I remember being in that place, and feeling like I couldn’t say no to things. Now I see what a luxury it is to have the choice! Because even when it’s something you really want to do, you can always say no. But you can’t always say yes. At least, I can’t always say yes.

There’s a certain perspective you gain when your body is constantly stopping you from doing things you want to do, things that your peers can do effortlessly. I wish I could explain it to my friends. I see things so differently now. It’s not necessarily better, and the cause for it totally sucks, but it’s different.

It’s easy to say what I would do in the same situation, but the truth is, there’s no way to know. Maybe it’s be just as over-committed as everyone else seems to be. All I know is that right now, I sure wish I had the luxury of choosing to say yes to invitations. I just hope everyone else remembers they have the option of saying no.

2 Comments | Decisions, Expectations, Fatigue, Frustration, Insensitive, Isolation, Limitations, Pain, Rants, Relationships: Family & Friends & Dating & Sex, Symptoms | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »