I’ve Got Worries, Worries On My Mind!

I’ve got worries, worries on my mind, Lord.
Ever since you left me, baby, I’ve got peace of mind.
Now she’s gone, Lord, I’ve got ramblin’ on my mind.

Marshall Tucker Band – “Ramblin”

In times like these, with so many of us struggling to make ends meet, those of us living on “fixed” incomes without the means to supplement it are particularly vulnerable. With all the budgetary “juggling” required to pay the bills (usually “past due” amounts only) and extremely judicious shopping to keep food in the house, all that additional stress only adds to the conditions that placed one in the “fixed income” in the first place. And, as the stress builds up, like some psychological “gas leak” in the head, you reach a point where all it takes is that one little thing, and then…

Via Camper x Gas x Spark = Explosion

Now I can live with forgoing little “fantasy” purchases like these…

Images via Infectious Disease Balls,
Tony Stark Light-Up LED Iron Man 3 Shirt,
The Final Frontier: Going where no cookie has gone before,
and Decorated Nerd T-Shirt

And I accepted, long ago, that “major geek” toys like this one are completely out of the question…

Via That’s not Fair: A Rock/Paper/Scissors Robot With a 100% Win Rate

But I’ve been dealing with a new situation for the past few months that’s now threatening to bring my entire shaky financial “house of cards” crashing down on my head. You see, my son – the “payee” for my disability checks – forgot to fill out a little form last year. This resulted in my December check being sent to the local Social Security office instead of being directly deposited into the debit account he set up for me. Since my rent is automatically deducted from that account each month (usually on the same day the money is deposited), that caused me to have to “eat” well over $100 in bounced check and late payment fees that month.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, my son assumed that the direct deposit would be restarted automatically once that little “paperwork issue” was settled. Well that didn’t happen, and, since he hasn’t been able to return to the Social Security office to make it happen, I’ve been left to “sweat bullets” at the end of each month since then for fear that he wouldn’t make the physical deposit in time to prevent another disaster.

Now as luck would have it, my last 3 checks actually came early – once due to a miraculous Social Security error, and twice due to fortuitous “payday” / calendar alignments. But barring another “miracle,” my luck will finally run out next week and the stuff will really hit the fan. Because, in addition to the bounced check and late payment fees for my rent, I also won’t be able to pay the “past due” amount on my cable, phone, and internet bill – which will leave me having to pay the total bill, once my money has been deposited, to restore those services.

And I need those services to pay my other bills… But paying to restore those services will, of course, make it all but impossible to pay those other bills… If I want to eat for the month as well.

Which, I suspect. is why I keep hearing this song repeating in my head…

I want ice water.

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