Redditor w3stward wanted to hear about the ways we've all stretched a few dollars, so they asked:
"What’s the brokest thing you’ve ever done?"
Payday
I Cant Hard Times GIF by La Guarimba Film FestivalGiphy"Called in sick on Wednesday because I didn't have enough gas money to drive to work but one more time, which I waited until Thursday to do, because that was payday."
TrailerParkPrepper
Pennies
"I was subletting a place and needed bus fare to get to work that day, so I searched every couch cushion and coat pocket in the hopes that I could find enough to get there. I ended up finding a ton of pennies, so I paid the bus fare in pennies. I was 30 cents short but the bus driver just gave me a transfer and waved me in. The first customer of the day tipped me like $5 on their coffee and I've never been so happy in my life."
GeoGirl07
Mitzvah Tanks
"In the early 2000s, the garment district in Manhattan had 'Mitzvah Tanks.' It was basically a mobile synagogue for the devout to come to handle religious observation during the workday with a Rabbi. Turns out they had bagels in there. I was just starting out my career (I was 21 or so) and money was tight. I would go in 3x a week and get bagels."
"If no one was looking I would stuff an extra into my suit pocket. I don’t at all look Jewish and almost no one from my part of the world is Jewish. The Rabbi approached me after a month and I told him 'I saw free food in a house of God and just figured since I am not a bad guy, God wouldn’t be too mad.'"
"Rabbi laughed and said something like 'From now on say hello. You don’t have to act like a thief trying not to get caught.' In a few months when money was less tight, I would stop by at lunch and chat with the Rabbi. It was a simpler time."
Itchy-Picture-4282
Scratch Away
"Brokest and stupidest thing I did. I bought scratch tickets in hopes to win money to buy Christmas presents when I was 18. I didn’t want anyone to think I had money problems at the time so I spent $10 on a scratcher and won $500. I don’t know how but it was enough for car insurance and presents."
FalseWeeknd
Yummies
Costco GIF by hero0fwarGiphy"Walked into a Costco with an expired membership card and had samples for dinner. I made the rounds a few times."
TheTyGoss
I do love a good, free trip around Costco.
Who doesn't love a good free sample buffet?
Eat Up
ramen noodles GIFGiphy"Bought a case of ramen noodles at the self-checkout at Walmart with 4 different debit cards that each had less than a dollar on them. You can make partial payments at Walmart self-checkout and nobody has to know how broke you are. Me and my 3 kids ate for the next 2 days."
-JunkyardDog
Grapefruit Pepper Chicken
"I had a small boneless, skinless chicken breast and a shriveled grapefruit in the fridge and only ground pepper in the pepper shaker, I had even run out of salt. That was all the food I had in the apartment. The grapefruit pepper chicken I made for dinner was disgusting but I ate half and saved half for dinner the next night."
"Driving home from work the next night I got 2 flats in my car tires and had to abandon my car on the side of the road. I had to leave it there until the weekend, I was lucky not to get towed or ticketed. I walked the two miles home, and then walked to and from work the rest of the week so embarrassed and afraid some coworker would see me coming or going without a car."
"I was able to borrow some money and added it to my paycheck to get my tires repaired. That was the poorest I have ever been in my life. I moved back in with my parents the next month."
DadsRGR8
Side of the Road
"Refused transport to the hospital, or any medical care at all, after I was hit by a car. I had been riding my bike home from work and going to the hospital would have meant leaving my only transportation on the side of the road. I didn’t carry a lock because I only rode my bike to work and had secure indoor storage for it at home and work."
Imaginary_Train_8056
Clean It Out
"I had $10 for food for 2 weeks so I got things to make a large pot of veggie soup (lentils, broth, canned veggies) and a large tub of plain oatmeal and ate vegan (not on purpose) for three weeks till it was gone. I've been told that rich people call this a 'cleanse' diet now."
Cantankerous_Won
See the Light
On My Way Goodbye GIF by Bubble PunkGiphy"My motorcycle headlight broke, so I started riding around with a flashlight in my mouth. True story. I was young and very, very dumb."
TedW
Anything for Food
"Sold my plasma for grocery money."
skidmarkzzz
"Ok, but that plasma kept my mom alive long enough to know she was going to have a granddaughter before she died from blood cancer. I’ll always be thankful for plasma givers ❤️."
bernelux
The things we have to do when our pockets are empty.
Do you have any similar experiences? Let us know in the comments below.
Reddit user "TheDeathSummoner" asked:
"What would you like to buy for yourself, but can't afford it?"
So I'm just gonna go ahead and kick this thing off by acknowledging the dystopian hellscape we live in and say healthcare. My answer is healthcare.
I can't afford insurance. I can't afford to go to a doctor. Would love to - but it would cost me my rent per month just to HAVE insurance, which would mean I could never afford the copays to USE the insurance and that other bills would go unpaid.
It's so expensive to have and so much more expensive to use that it would be literally throwing away what little money we have. So let's see what fun stuff Reddit came up with!
Dental Work
Dentist GIFGiphy"New teeth."
"It's like....thousands and thousands of dollars to get dental implants. Or anything not dentures. It sucks."
"My teeth hurt, man. It's not how they look. It's that I'm losing them."
"And dentures scare the f*ck out of me. I'm 31. It makes me feel horrible." - Juicebox-shakur
"Paid $1800 to get my 4 wisdom teeth extracted. Then paid $2500 for a root canal and a cap for the tooth next to one of the extracted ones. Then paid $1000 for a filling."
"I have friends in the South who solve every tooth problem by just getting it pulled. Sh*ts too expensive." - massiveboner911
Somewhere To Live
xyngular reviews first home GIF by XyngularGiphy"Looking on zillow and seeing housing that's considered safe, clean, and in a good area starts at 500k and that's just depressing." - maraca101
"In my town, houses used to start at 35k back in like 2016 when I got mine. Working class people who could save up a down payment could buy houses with yards in reasonably safe places."
"But now out-of-state companies are buying them up in droves, outbidding regular people, to make them sh*tty, unmaintained rentals."
"They rent them to people who could have had a $300/mo mortgage on the same property for $700/mo rent."
"No one but me seems to think this is f*cked up at all."
"Do they know what's happening? They have to. It's like they're trying to bring back some kind of serfdom with no choice except all the workers have to rent from the rich."
"I get calls and texts all the time from telemarketers, not trying to sell me anything, but trying to talk me into selling my house to their company. Just no." - heynatastic
"I'm 50, Gen X. I feel like we were the last generation to be able to get a good job that could pay for a nice house. I bought my house when I was in my 20s for $155,000. Zillow lists it at $540,000 (it's paid off)" - ohphilly
The Basics
Election 2020 Reaction GIF by Joe BidenGiphy"A future where I can live comfortably. Not rich. Just not having to choose between paying all of rent and electricity or food." - Ninjabonez86
"This - the damn basics that EVERYONE should be able to afford and not have to go to bed at night tossing and turning and wondering what bill you can and cannot pay tomorrow. This is my dream as well." - saywhat1206
Until...
cottage GIFGiphy"A mountain cottage deep in the wilderness. With endless views, forests on its doorstep and a stream nearby. No neighbours for miles, plenty of wildlife and a massive fireplace that is on permanently when the snows arrive." - GandalfTheGrumpy
"Until you have a bad accident or get very ill. I live in Alaska and few people actually live like this because it's too dangerous. I'm not saying it isn't or can't be done. But when it's 200 miles to Costco or the dentist and the snow is six feet deep..." - CanisMaximus
"I second this."
"Don't get me wrong, living in a remote, natural area is wonderful most of the time. Some things become known headaches, such as communications and energy needs, but those are nothing in exchange for the solitude, etc."
"But one burst appendix or very bad infection when you're snowed or flooded in and it could be a long, miserable death from something that could've otherwise been easily treated." - genericasallfck
People Explain Which Conspiracy Theories They Believe Are 100% True | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
This Is America
Independence Day Summer GIFGiphy"An apartment. Furniture. New shoes - mine have holes or don't fit properly."
"HEALTH INSURANCE BECAUSE AMERICA."
"I'm angry, can you tell?" - f1r3k33p3r
"A college degree in the United States. Still paying back student loans from 1996." - SunnyKarma
Oh. The Irony.
Parks And Recreation Thumbs Up GIFGiphy"Therapy." - Twix925
"Same. Ironically I work for a community mental health center but my insurance doesn't cover it." - rahrah89
"If you live in a town with a university, you might be able to find students on internship/needing clinical hours for very cheap." - emilylouise221
My Babies
baby documentary GIF by SundanceNOW DocClubGiphy"My babies."
"Chemo made me infertile at 34 before I had the chance to have a baby."
"I have 12 embryos in a testube. Can't afford to use them." - TNBCisabtch
To Leave
Sad The End GIF by HollyoaksGiphy"A Divorce." - squashybunz456
"I could not possibly hear you any clearer. I am trapped and every day another piece of me dies." - marilynsgrrrll
"My way out of this marriage." - sarahchuxx
Too Much
Stressed Season 3 GIF by Parks and RecreationGiphy"I'd love to go back to school, but being able to afford tuition on top of rent, bills, and living expenses just feels impossible."
"Working while in school is just begging for me to get burned out and depressed." - mmm-pistol-whip
Nan
clicking youtube GIF by Great Big StoryGiphy"Always wanted to buy my nans house and my house and make them into 1 (we live next door) but if i won the lottery id buy the street" - Shtkid-doosh
Eyesight
Glasses Seinfeld GIFGiphy"Operation for my eyes…"
"I can't drive and I'm 28…, no one knows but I hate it so much…"
"The hardest part is to look for a job if you have really bad eyes…"
"And glasses don't work well."
"I have 60% with my glasses"
"Life sucks sometimes but we have people that have bigger problems so…" - DoeS-Okarian
Hey Look, It's This Again!
happy silent film GIF by Charlie ChaplinGiphy"A home in my state."
"I've lived in the PNW for my entire life, and in the last few years I've realized that I will never be able to afford to own my own home here."
"Even condos go for $400,000 with $500/mo minimum HOA fees. An actual home is just completely out of reach, even though I make close to the top rate in my career. It's beyond depressing."
"I'd love to be able to have a little garden and to plant some flowers and paint my bedroom whatever color I want, but all I can afford is a 500sqf apartment that's entirely beige. I can't even hang the decor I like." - katieoffloatsmoke
"Living"
Dean Winchester Facepalm GIFGiphy"A place to live. A vehicle. Real privacy. The capacity to make enough money to take a week off ever. Insurance."
"I know it seems like I am young based off the lack of things. I live on my own, and have for a number of years. I will be married soon. Trying to make a living wage is very difficult." - Omen224
Shelter
"I'm homeless and have been living in a shuttle bus for a year so my perspective might be not be as exciting as others."
"I'd like to buy shelter. A home or a condo would be great but even an acre of land where I could build a small home. Just some place to call home." - kimk333
Sooooooo sorry if you thought this was gonna be all sports cars, exotic trips, and cool tech. Sure there were a few answers like that, but far and away the top response was just a home.
Somewhere to live.
Not even a fancy one, just a home.