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

Tygermoth

I read this thread at the end of last week and my OH commented that I seemed pensive over the weekend. I must admit that I had brushed some of that gnawing horrible feeling of just not having enough money to heat, feed or pay anything what so ever under the carpet. So I found myself dwelling on it again.

I too stole loo roll, asked for later shifts as the canteen was empty so I could take food from the bins. I would drink tea like it was going out of fashion on shifts because it would make me feel full, warm, and was free on tap. I would eat whole tins of communal biscuits for the same reason (luckily these were bought by the business not by staff and were replaced as soon as they ran out without and query or comment) had to get up at the crack of dawn so I could cycle for miles every day to work in the pouring rain or dead of winter because I could not afford a bus fare with no gloves or coat. I also ducked co-workers collections or put in pennies.

The washing was hand washed in the bath but luckily my uniform was supplied at the beginning of every shift laundered. I used my friends gym card to use the showers and lived in a local large caf!/bookshop which was warm and did 'endless hot chocolate' so I would skulk and wait until a table was vacated and would grab someone's empty cup move tables and could stay there all day reading books getting refills. ( I used to time with the shift changes

In my nasty flat we had no TV (not that the blinking licensing people would believe it!), no phone, no heating, no fridge, no carpets in the winter we legged it over the freezing tiles to the bathroom and back to the warm bed as fast as humanly possible.

The office had bread/toaster for the managers (bought by them) but I used to have two slices every morning with three cups of tea so I had food. I would literally cram it down my neck before someone came and caught me. The weekends were the worst because I didn’t have anything.

Shamefully I helped myself to confectionary or food gifts which were handed in as there always were a surplus so I hoped no one would notice.

I still cant spend money.. I am free and easy up to £20 beyond that I still get the shakes, a crushing feeling in my chest and I cant breathe. It doesn’t need to even be my money! My friend was buying a computer and handed over £900 and I had to leave the store because it just made me giddy. Asked if I was ok and I just laughed it off. Once we had to get something on HP for me as an emergency - my then very new OH had to buy as I couldn't get credit while the bloke was waiting for the bank to call back to say if they accepted the loan - I had to leave the shop because the crushing feeling overwhelmed me and was just crying so hard.

Luckily my OH now does the finances because money just stresses me beyond imagining. He shows me all the balances where the money goes, what bills have been paid and I have a card and I can go to the atm or store and can buy what I want… but I don’t. I still mentally justify every purchase for ages out of fear of going back to that place. I would not wish that horrible horrible place on my worst enemy.

Hoarder moi? oh yes, I second the fort of branstons beans. between them and the amount of loo roll we have I could build a bunker that could likely shield you from a bomb blast. Everything is used to its limits, recycled and reused rather than new. I now have a pantry which would put my grandmothers snow cupboard to shame (they lived in the middle of nowhere and used to get snowed in so she would 6 weeks of provisions aside)

Now I have good credit. live in a lovely house with heating. Have food on the table (its one thing me and the OH now refuse to scrimp on) and I am thankful…. every single day.

rdchick

I think people who have been in a lot of trouble financially or have literally not had any money to their names can be a little bit like anorexics, the thought of money is similar to the thought of food. Anyone else think like that? xxx

Tygermoth

rdchick wrote: »

I think people who have been in a lot of trouble financially or have literally not had any money to their names can be a little bit like anorexics, the thought of money is similar to the thought of food. Anyone else think like that? xxx

I can kind of see your point. The control aspect…

But I personaly say that’s a bit to simplistic.

rdchick

it's the fear too though I think. The fear of what money can do xxx

zaksmum73

I just tried reading this thread while on a conference call at work, I had to stop because 1) I obviously wasnting listening to the call 2) I was laughing out loud 3) my eyes were filling up. Some of the stories here are deeply, deeply moving and put some other money worries into perspective.

I have 2 stories - when a 'youth' having just passed my driving test I took 3 friends to sunderland in my battered old mini. We had a WILD weekend but they were all students and I was on a very low wage. They all came home with no money and I had my purse stolen - we had no funds whatsoever amongst us and my car guzzled oil. The oil light had been on for ages, I had to pull over. I did and parked in the services car park while my friend grabbed a tub of oil off the forecourt and ran off with it. I felt sick all the way home
When a newly abandoned single parent with a <1yr old and and £20k of debt from my ex, things were bad. I had no money for food shopping so had to revert to using my company credit card to buy food. But then i couldnt pay it back and the card flagged me to my boss - it was a disciplinary offence to use it for personal reasons. I had to fess up, but hadn't told anyone else about my home situation, so it was quite a relief to get it out in the open. My boss did not discipline me, but instead paid it off for me, allowing me to pay him back when I was able

Interestingly i have never borrowed loo roll, but the idea is now quite tempting!

Mallotum_X

Fortunately never been at rock bottom, but i do remember when starting out my parents would visit, and my dad would have to pop out to the shops - he would borrow my car to do it, fill it up with petrol and come back with a load of tins of things to keep me going.

It really did help a lot.

Triker

Funnily enough I went the other way, when I started to earn money I spent wildly but always on food....hoarded tons of stuff, would compulsively buy the reduced food in supermarkets. At one point I had a chest freezer, fridge freezer and boxes and bags of food stashed everywhere. It got really out of control at one point.
Thankfully I've sorted myself out and recently went through all my cupboards and gave my DD and her boyfriend over 20 carrier bags of 'stuff'...jars, tins, boxes of various food items. It was very liberating for me and they were really pleased with the goodies. The chest freezer has gone and I control myself re spending and food.

Stupid thing was most of it would go to waste as I couldn't keep track of what I had bought.

I still remember though the abject sadness that I couldn't afford to buy my little baby more than one yoghurt...it was a 'we live on toast' week but she had her food sorted...I just couldn't afford to buy her anymore than that and that always stayed with me.


So I'd say it was probably 25 to 30 years of poverty and the last 13 of hoarding like a mad woman...the last few months, trying to offload and declutter the piles of stuff.:D

Funny what influences you....

MrsB2100

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

I did not do this.

But I shared a flat with someone who, back in the days when 'whoopsies' were hand-written, acquired a roll of blank whoopsie stickers.

We ate quite well that summer.

This just reminded me of another thing that we (DH and I) did when we first moved in together ...

We had a friend who worked as a delivery boy at the local Pizza Hut, and at the time they had an offer on, for saving up tokens on takeaway boxes to get a free pizza. (This was back in the late 80's, early 90's)

We had absolutely no money at all at the time, just a couple of pensionable aged carrots in the fridge, and half a box of long life milk and no idea what to do. Well, our friend 'acquired' a stack of said boxes with with the tokens on, so for a couple of weeks, we'd ate free pizzas until payday! We were so thankful, but had to tour the area for different stores so we wouldnt arouse suspicion!

After 2 weeks though, that was it! I cant look at a pizza now ...

Thankfully, our friend wasnt rumbled ... but he didnt stay long after that!

princesst84

This thread is brilliant, i have laughed and cried throughout. I have never been so desparate for food, although im sure my mum has a few stories of her own bringing up 3 kids as a single parent and working. Reading through some of these has had me welling up just thinking how hard it must have been for my mum and how she sacrificed so much for us to have clothes/food.
When i was 16 and living on my own my friend used to work at a takeaway shop in town and had free run of the place really, my freezer was full of their chicken nuggets, frozen chips, deep fry apple pies and haagen daaz ice cream!! My whole diet consisted of what he brought me....if i ever bought food myself it was own brand bread, beans and beef paste for sandwhiches.

flyingguy

Great thread and I echo the many comments of how sad in modern times this can happen. I'm thankful for never having been in a desperate situation.

I wanted to mention though, my mother has always been incredibly sharp when it comes to food buying and use. She would spend hours in the supermarket working out the best deals. My mum would use everything, cut the mould off food, mix left overs together, everything! Not because she couldn't afford it, just something her mother instilled in her (war time generation perhaps?). Strangely, my dad had a much less comfortable upbringing, lived in the East End of London, 4 brothers in one room, parents in the other and was working in markets at 14, yet he is far less tight when it comes to shopping etc. Just think it's strange how things pan out.

One thing I will say though - this thread demonstrates that loo roll is a total rip off! :mad: