Gator Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 copying this from a journal i posted on fa because i'm too lazy to think of a way to reword everything tbh i will try to keep this as brief as possible. -i NEED a driver's license, liability insurance, and a car. *insurance is required to get a license *can't get a damn insurance quote for shit, especially since i don't own a car *have no idea how to go about buying a car without having insurance or a license first -i NEED to move to another town, preferably by or before next year, so that i can start school. *can't move without having a job lined up, but can't really expect to get hired there while i'm living over an hour away, and good luck finding the time to drive to interviews while working my current job lol *could possibly transfer with my current job, but would have to wait at least six months and pray the other location had an opening for me *maybe just live in car for a while after i get one idk, won't be a very big car though -i NEED to see a doctor about some other issues and see about getting a prescription, but with all the other things i need to do and changes that need to be made, i don't see any way of doing that any time soon, so i guess it'll have to wait until i've got all this sorted out and have my own health insurance or something. -i WANT to move out of my grandma's house and into an apartment nearby in the meantime, because an adult should have some damn independence ffs. *apartment here within walking distance of my job is dangerous and in danger of being shut down *need to get car stuff figured out first so i could drive to work and shit -i WANT to get my license as soon as possible, but i have not been allowed to practice driving despite having a permit for several years... so -i MIGHT need to also buy driving lessons, which would take not just a big chunk of my almost nonexistent money, but also my almost nonexistent time. -i HAVE been on the road once or twice, and around a parking lot or three, but aside from the driver's ed i took in high school a thousand years ago, i have had very little driving experience and pretty much none that is very recent... so i have no idea how i'd fare on the driving test. -i HAVE a job at long last, but it's only part time and i'm making around a thousand bucks a month at most. dividing that between groceries, car insurance, rent, utilities, gas money, medications, and anything else that might come up will not be easy... but i think it's doable. *what is not doable is all that plus health insurance, which i will also need at some point. *i don't think i can get any kind of assistance (except income-based rent) while i'm married, despite living separately and having separate finances. the only thing my spouse and i share is the health insurance, which i will need to replace as soon as i'm able so that we can finally get divorced. *but part-timers don't get health benefits, at least not at this job, and i'll probably have to hold onto this job for a long time just to be able to do anything else that i need. i really wanted to stay where i was at and save more money so i could get out of town sooner, but i just don't think living with family is going to work out for me much longer. i'm trying my damnedest, but i've been here much too long as it is, and in all honesty i don't think my mental health can take the same beating for much longer. so the point is, i have a LOT of things i need to do and figure out, but i'm getting overwhelmed because i don't really know where to start or how to go about a lot of these things. if anyone has any suggestions or advice, i'm all ears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#00Buck Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 How old are you? You have an odd combination of issues combined with needing a divorce. Most people learn to drive at age 16. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Endless/Nameless Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 Just do your best to relax and clear your mind. These things have a way of working out. Take it one day at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terminal7 Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 Well, I'm in no position to give advice but a bit over an hour is not as bad as... lets say 5 in public transportation. Then again... How far are you talking about? 2 - 3 hours? More? Do you have access to public transportation? Could temporarily solve your car problem until you're in a position to get one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted May 10, 2016 Author Share Posted May 10, 2016 4 hours ago, #00Buck said: How old are you? You have an odd combination of issues combined with needing a divorce. Most people learn to drive at age 16. not sure it's relevant, but 27. i learned to drive in high school, but have not had the opportunity to move beyond a learners permit (lots of shit has happened between then and now--including getting married) 3 hours ago, Endless/Nameless said: Just do your best to relax and clear your mind. These things have a way of working out. Take it one day at a time. i'm tryin'... 2 hours ago, Terminal7 said: Well, I'm in no position to give advice but a bit over an hour is not as bad as... lets say 5 in public transportation. Then again... How far are you talking about? 2 - 3 hours? More? Do you have access to public transportation? Could temporarily solve your car problem until you're in a position to get one. the school is somewhere between an hour and hour and a half's drive away. there is no public transportation in that area (which is why i'd have no choice but to live there before starting school). there is public transportation where i currently live, so getting to/from work isn't as much of an issue as long as i don't leave town, but it would still be much easier on me to have a car or to live within walking distance of my workplace, since the bus turns a 20 minute drive into an hour-long journey... but either way, i'll definitely be needing a car before i move out of town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fantasma Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 I have been thinking about motorbikes, maybe you could get one of them. It would cut the time down greatly, probably doesn't need insurance, and is alot less expensive. The only thing I would worry about is having it stolen or riding through a dangerous area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toshabi Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 You call an insurance company and say "Hey I'm looking into buying/leasing blah blah blah model car." Insurance company gives you quote. Nothing hard about that at all, but uh, 27.... huh? You need some planning and some legit research before you escape the grandma's boy environment. I don't care if you think JP is that big of an ass hat or if your grandma keeps drinking all your pot. Do the maths first before making the jump instead of rushing into this all due to some emotional spurge. Technically rent can't be that expensive if you live anywhere other than California for the most part. And you can afford to take a break from school for a semester for this. Trust me, there's nothing wrong with doing that. In order for anyone to give you legit advice, we need to know your monthly income, otherwise imma just say have 4 paychecks worth of savings, enough for deposit and an air-tight budget for at least 300~500/mo wiggle room for unforeseeable costs/expenditures. But what the hell do I know? I'm just a croc. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#00Buck Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 Your situation is too complicated. Pick the easiest problem to solve and do that first. Then move on to the next one. If you move to a city that has public transportation you don't need a car. Makes your situation way easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted May 11, 2016 Author Share Posted May 11, 2016 On 5/10/2016 at 8:52 AM, Johanna Waya said: I have been thinking about motorbikes, maybe you could get one of them. It would cut the time down greatly, probably doesn't need insurance, and is alot less expensive. The only thing I would worry about is having it stolen or riding through a dangerous area. i was originally going to get a moped because they don't require insurance (though they do now; it's just still cheaper and easier to get than auto insurance and they don't require a driver's license on top of it), but for where i plan on living when i'm ready to go to school, i won't be able to get by with one of those since i'd have to go along the highway. a car would also be better for the actual moving process and whatnot, and more useful in the long run, so i gave up on the moped thing. On 5/10/2016 at 10:53 AM, Toshabi said: You call an insurance company and say "Hey I'm looking into buying/leasing blah blah blah model car." Insurance company gives you quote. Nothing hard about that at all, but uh, 27.... huh? You need some planning and some legit research before you escape the grandma's boy environment. I don't care if you think JP is that big of an ass hat or if your grandma keeps drinking all your pot. Do the maths first before making the jump instead of rushing into this all due to some emotional spurge. Technically rent can't be that expensive if you live anywhere other than California for the most part. And you can afford to take a break from school for a semester for this. Trust me, there's nothing wrong with doing that. In order for anyone to give you legit advice, we need to know your monthly income, otherwise imma just say have 4 paychecks worth of savings, enough for deposit and an air-tight budget for at least 300~500/mo wiggle room for unforeseeable costs/expenditures. But what the hell do I know? I'm just a croc. i just wasn't sure which to do first: get the car, or get the insurance. but yeah, i'm gonna have to just pick a few and start calling. i guess i should contact the seller of the car beforehand, regardless. it's not so much hard as i keep getting conflicting answers on what needs to come first or what's the best way to go about this and that. i also haven't been sure whether it would be worth it to buy (and take the time for) driving lessons since i haven't been on the road in so long, but i think at this point i should just take my chances with the drivers license test and worst case, take it again later should i fail. i've been trying to plan things out for quite some time. spent almost a year dealing with financial aid back-and-forth, researching housing and transportation options, costs, jobs, etc in the meantime. since then, i've been continuing to look into things and try to get started/save money; the dream of going back to school is on indefinite hold until i get there. it's taken me a year to get hired since getting laid off from my previous job, but i finally have that covered (have been working for a little over a month). the last few steps are getting a car/license, getting a new job that's near the school, and finding a place to move there. i did end up adding an extra step: moving into an apartment near my current job, for my own peace of mind. it will not make things easier initially, but if it were impossible to afford, i wouldn't bother considering it. i've been living here for about 3 years. during that time, i have been either working or looking for work, planning for school, and more or less trying to figure out where i'm going and how to get there. i haven't had much help from anyone. i will not deny that i tried harder some months than others; depression has gotten the better of me more than once. my family, despite giving me a place to live, has been toxic to my mental well being for most of my life. i don't feel like this is the time or place to air out that whole story, but there are what i feel are legitimate reasons for my decision to add that extra step and move out sooner rather than later, even if the place i'm moving to is not the place i need to end up at in order to reach my goal of getting back into school. i will have to move again, but i think it will be easier for me to get all of that sorted out if i'm at least living on my own in the meantime. however, if it somehow works out that i am able to get another job near the school sooner than expected, i'll gladly do that instead. as for costs, i think i stated somewhere in the OP i gross around a thousand dollars a month, give or take depending on how many hours i get. i could afford an income-based rent, though with the addition of utilities, insurance, transportation, groceries, medication, and any other expenses, anything other than a low-income apartment situation would not be worth it. i'm still debating on whether even the low-income apartment is worth it. i do think it would be easier for me to get everything sorted out without my family in the way, but if i need to save money, it might be better to just wait after all. at this point, it depends on how easily i can find another job (which is not easily at all at the moment) and whether or not my SO intends to come and stay with me. excuse the long response, but i appreciate your croc time nonetheless. i'm running out of time and patience for sure, but my brain is scrambled eggs these days, so just talking it out helps me get a better handle on where i'm at and where i'm going. 22 hours ago, #00Buck said: Your situation is too complicated. Pick the easiest problem to solve and do that first. Then move on to the next one. If you move to a city that has public transportation you don't need a car. Makes your situation way easier. aye, but there won't be public transportation where i'm going, so i'll be needing a car for sure. i'm prioritizing my steps at this point, though, since most of these things are interdependent. most important/thing that other steps can't be completed without goes first, and in that case, it's the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#00Buck Posted May 12, 2016 Share Posted May 12, 2016 2 hours ago, Gator said: aye, but there won't be public transportation where i'm going, so i'll be needing a car for sure. i'm prioritizing my steps at this point, though, since most of these things are interdependent. most important/thing that other steps can't be completed without goes first, and in that case, it's the car. Why are you going to a place with no public transportation? What is so special about that place that you can't find somewhere else? Surely you can do what you want to do in a different city that has more of the conveniences you are looking for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted May 12, 2016 Author Share Posted May 12, 2016 3 minutes ago, #00Buck said: Why are you going to a place with no public transportation? What is so special about that place that you can't find somewhere else? Surely you can do what you want to do in a different city that has more of the conveniences you are looking for. i'm going to school for taxidermy and gunsmithing, and this school is the closest (and supposedly one of the better ones) that has those courses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#00Buck Posted May 12, 2016 Share Posted May 12, 2016 3 minutes ago, Gator said: i'm going to school for taxidermy and gunsmithing, and this school is the closest (and supposedly one of the better ones) that has those courses. Why would you study both? Both are full time jobs and require dedication and specific tools and workshops that are not interchangeable. I'd pick one or the other. You can do well with taxidermy if you are very good at it but few are. Hunting is dropping in popularity especially trophy hunting. Working on guns is a more reliable income but it does not pay as well. Most gun work is pretty simple and therefore not well paid. Large institutions will have an in house person who does all the work. Both will require a large amount of money spent on specialized tools. There may be other skills you can learn that are higher paying and will let you do guns and taxidermy in your spare time for fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted May 14, 2016 Author Share Posted May 14, 2016 On 5/12/2016 at 9:39 PM, #00Buck said: Why would you study both? Both are full time jobs and require dedication and specific tools and workshops that are not interchangeable. I'd pick one or the other. You can do well with taxidermy if you are very good at it but few are. Hunting is dropping in popularity especially trophy hunting. Working on guns is a more reliable income but it does not pay as well. Most gun work is pretty simple and therefore not well paid. Large institutions will have an in house person who does all the work. Both will require a large amount of money spent on specialized tools. There may be other skills you can learn that are higher paying and will let you do guns and taxidermy in your spare time for fun. the idea was more or less to learn both, and whichever ended up being a career would depend on what kind of opportunities i found during and after school--but ideally, to seek regular employment with one and do the other a little more sparingly. taxidermy is difficult to sustain as a career on its own, but has a lot of potential uses. gunsmithing could also be good as an "on the side" thing if i found something else more suitable as an actual career, and would just be useful to know in general. there's a bit of wait-and-see involved, but as long as i'm able to get the education, i see no harm in doing so when i have the opportunity. there are multiple directions either or both of those trades could take me in terms of job potential. if i end up feeling like even a combination of the two can't sustain me in any reliable way, i'm not opposed to pursuing something else, but i've waited a long time to learn these things and am going to at least give it a shot. i don't think it should be too hard to stay afloat in the meantime, whether i pursue something else as a career or not, with a combination of those trades. there is bound to be something out there that i can do, and if there's not, worst case i continue with "normal jobs" like retail or whatever until i'm properly qualified. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#00Buck Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 Well good luck. I hope you do well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted May 14, 2016 Author Share Posted May 14, 2016 thank ya, so do i ;v; Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toshabi Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 1k a month is kinda small for making on your own imho. Granted, I suppose rent can be somewhat cheap for the right studio/1 br apartment in your area. Just make sure to factor in the cost of insurance into the list, especially if you don't have benefits from the job that will cover your healthcare costs. At least in my income bracket, getting shitty insurance that does nothing is like $75 a mo/ due to the "game changing" obama care. I dunno, if you want my opinion, you should start with a better paying job. Who knows though, it all depends on work experience now, considering how lolschool is these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted May 18, 2016 Author Share Posted May 18, 2016 my work experience is next to none, so i take what i can get. this is the best paying job i've had so far tbh. i'm fortunate enough to have health insurance through my spouse for now, though as soon as i do get a better paying job, i'll have to look into buying my own. either that, or a job that has health benefits. i think i'm giving up on the apartment thing until i'm ready to move and start school. i've been looking around for better jobs, but i can manage with this one if i don't have too many other expenses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Posted May 18, 2016 Share Posted May 18, 2016 On 5/10/2016 at 7:53 AM, Toshabi said: Technically rent can't be that expensive if you live anywhere other than California for the most part. Seattle is up there with it, and getting more and more expensive as we speak. That said, there are programs where you can rent a place here for 1/3 of your income if you make under a certain amount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toshabi Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 24 minutes ago, Ricky said: Seattle is up there with it, and getting more and more expensive as we speak. That said, there are programs where you can rent a place here for 1/3 of your income if you make under a certain amount. This is why I've been aiming to move out of here and into someplace cozier. Like Not-California Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 Just now, Toshabi said: This is why I've been aiming to move out of here and into someplace cozier. Like Not-California You're in Seattle? Really? x3 We should meetup sometime, probably after I get my shit together, but either way works *shrugs* I'm in the Tent City on the King County Administration Building, so I'm generally around Pioneer Square. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toshabi Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 Noooo Toshabi is in San Diego! My other furrrriends are in seattle though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricky Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 14 minutes ago, Toshabi said: Noooo Toshabi is in San Diego! My other furrrriends are in seattle though. I see now. I read that before as leave Seattle for anywhere but Cali, which makes perfect sense, too, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toshabi Posted May 19, 2016 Share Posted May 19, 2016 Its looking a lot like Reno though. My Fiance LOOOVES Reno after he spent 2-3 years there. Not to mention the houses are pretty cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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