What's the naughtiest thing you've done at your most skint?

toothfairybuttkicker

Just read through this thread and its really jogged my memory.

I never realised how skint my folks were growing up. My mom had bad deppression and wasted money (still does) dad tried desperatly to keep it under control but often failed. She would get takeaway every night instead of cooking and would sit in her chair smoking and drinking cups of tea.

Its only now as an adult i get it. My dad used to bring home the huge toilet rolls from work once a week. When they still had a free canteen i would have his dinner for my tea.

InDeepDebt

We've had to borrow money off the kids to get us through the week until pay day - feel really bad asking a seven year old to borrow a tenner from their piggy bank. On the plus side, they are now getting better at putting their birthday/Christmas money into the bank so that we can't get our fingers on it!

I've had to pretend to put money into collections at work because I haven't had a single penny on me before.

I've also had to pretend that I'm working or on-call sometimes when friends have invited me out for a pint. Fortunately they don't go out very often but I hate spending money on beer when we're scrimping so much at home.

Jim

mummyplus3

When i've been really poor i've had to use the kids xmas and birthday money to get by however it meant she could eat and have clothes. I remember once things were so bad that I'd run out of nappies and I had to take my DD to the shops wrapped in a make-shift nappy from a tea towel, I managed to get my bank to let me go overdrawn to buy the nappies but it cost me £25 in charges!

Koicarp

When I was a kid in the early 70's families from the estate would line up along the local railway line with shovels. When the coal train stopped at the signals, dad chucked lads up onto the trucks and the lads shovelled coal off as quick as they could until the train started to move, then we'd all chuck the shovels back to dad and jump off. We'd also go the the local tip at the other side of the estate and chop stuff up for fire wood, though a mate of mine only got birthday presents from the tip for a couple of years.
As a skint student I used to go out with professional ladies twice my age, had a great time, and was rarely aloud to pay for anything.

ooglewoogle

Koicarp wrote: »

When I was a kid in the early 70's families from the estate would line up along the local railway line with shovels. When the coal train stopped at the signals, dad chucked lads up onto the trucks and the lads shovelled coal off as quick as they could until the train started to move, then we'd all chuck the shovels back to dad and jump off.

:rotfl:

This thread is both hilarious and very touching....but for comedy this tale is in the lead imo.:T

eco

We were kid in the 70's and poor, I still feel sorry for my mum she tried so hard to make ends meet, but my dad was an alcoholic. In some ways I'm grateful for those day's it makes me realise how easy it is to get in that situation and so hard to drag yourself out. I'm a food hoarder, and have money stashed for just incase.

But and I think this is my confession I used to live with my ex and I sorted the money out, I could probably have trusted him to do it right, but it's something I can't let go of, I don't like relying on others I have to do it myself.

Have enjoyed everyones confessions tho and made me realise I'm not badly off.

Miss_J

Back in the early 90's me and my hubby used to live in London. I worked in a hotel and wasn't very well paid and he worked in advertising on comission only basis. Once the comission dried up we struggled to pay the rent, buy food and pay travel costs getting from North London into the city centre for work. The only way we could do it towards the end of the month was to leave for work early and get on the tube without paying, then get off at a stop that didn't have any ticket barriers. We knew that early on in the morning there were no ticket inspectors. It meant we had to walk quite a distance to work and turn up early but at least we did get there to earn some money. A couple of times a month (when I still had travel money) I used to phone work and tell them there was delays on the train/underground and then wait to travel until after 9 when the price was cheaper.

Thankfully we saw sense in 1994 and moved back up North where we could actually afford a quality of life.

dizzydonkeys

When I was 16 I used to steal milk, eggs, chocolate milk and potatoes from doorsteps

Would only take if they had more then one bottle tho so never left them without, used to get up at 3am and practically follow the milk man round.

Also used to walk 18 miles to work and then the same back again on an evening and sometimes slept in the bus shelter so didn't have to walk quite so far. I only used to get £10 per week as a wage for doing 3 days a week due to it being a but like work experiance and officially still being at school, but due to bunking off all the time they sent my to the naughty kids school and the work thing was to encourage me to be productive.

The above scenario carried on for maybe 4 or 5 months whilst I did my GCSE's and sorted getting into college.

I only dared tell anyone how bad things were when I was told I couldn't have a live in place or a grant and had to explain my mum had died and I had no money and no one to look after me. I was embarressed that I couldn't actually look after myself and didn't want people pitying me or sending me into care:o

notatvstar

... erm. Hope no-one knows me.

worst thing... As an undergrad, I used to go through my mates bins looking for their doff ends (finished fags) and nick them for re-rolling into 'prison fags' later.

Naughtiest thing... I used to nick loo roll and milk from my dept when doing my PhD I was so skint. By then I could raid my flat mates bins for their doff ends.

I am posh now.

mwa

Another loo roll nicker here...

Probably the worst thing I can think of was having no food for my dog and having to mix the tiny amount of meat food she had left with boiled rice to tide her over for a day.. that was pretty shameful. Lots of avoiding of social things as no fuel to get there, let along for food/drinks etc. Having to scrape together 25quid for a night out for one of my best friends and having to pretend I'd eaten earlier and wasn't fussed on having the (cheapest) main whilst they all had starters and desserts, granted not exactly the breadline but still embarassing. Taking a cleaning job on my day off to give me some spends as all my money goes on bills and repayments. Only one of my friends knows as I am too embarassed to tell anyone else but it has thrown me a lifeline!