Posted on 05/20/2008 7:43:18 AM PDT by Moose4
SANTA BARBARA, California (CNN) -- Barbara Harvey climbs into the back of her small Honda sport utility vehicle and snuggles with her two golden retrievers, her head nestled on a pillow propped against the driver's seat.
A former loan processor, the 67-year-old mother of three grown children said she never thought she'd spend her golden years sleeping in her car in a parking lot.
"This is my bed, my dogs," she said. "This is my life in this car right now."
Harvey was forced into homelessness earlier this year after being laid off. She said that three-quarters of her income went to paying rent in Santa Barbara, where the median house in the scenic, oceanfront city costs more than $1 million. She lost her condo two months ago and had little savings as backup.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Maybe she can't. Maybe her bank account is empty now, and she can't buy the gasoline.
There are plenty of places in this country where she can find work and only pay 25-40% of her income towards rent.
That solution works for most cases, but sometimes you have folks who stay in the high cost of living area because that's where their skills are in demand. And, in all honesty, sometimes folks are out on their luck.
That said, Ms. Harvey has three grown children. Why are they not helping her?
Look on the bright side - It’s California, so before long, he’ll be able to marry the dogs and become a family.
Did she try to get into Senior Housing? Or doesn’t she want to give up her dogs? What happened to Social Security? She’s 67.
Who on Earth forced her to live in Santa Barbara? There isn’t any cheaper rent on the face of the Earth?
Yes you are correct. Thank you. Both were round fellows that yelled a lot. I remember Bobcat portrayed more of a Forest Gump type characterization and Kinison wore a beret sometimes.
I just read the article. Her 19 year old daughter “moved in with friends to avoid being homeless”. and “cries when she calls on the phone”.
So she’s got everything. She has a young daughter who cares about her, her dogs, her car. The ones who are really in trouble are the ones without family.
Another poster said she may “need to live where her skills are in demand”. But she is working $8 hour part time. More likely she simply doesn’t want to leave a familiar area where she has built up contacts. i understand that.
But she and her daughter could move, get a cheaper apartment someplace else and share the expenses, and be ok. That’s what people have always done. I know someone here in FL living on $600 a month.
She doesn’t live like Rockefeller, but she’s clean, fed, happy, has a cat and a roof over her head at night in a nice place.
Lastly, I leave with words of wisdom from Ben Stein.
“Put everything you can towards retirement, sacrifice pleasures today for that account. Believe me, you don’t want to be old, sick and poor.”
My mother became homeless a little more than three years ago when her brother threw her out of his home (after stealing money from her and their mother for years). She moved in with one of my sister’s sons and his family and they took advantage of her money for a couple more years (they didn’t make enough to be able to afford the home they moved to after taking my mother in). Now she’s living with my wife and I and is being well taken care of. She is allowed to spend her money as she chooses (we don’t need anything from her) and we make sure that she gets to her doctors appointments (she has multiple medical issues and is physically disabled). I don’t understand people who don’t adequately take care of their family members.
I bet she buys dog food and other non-essentials as amazingly most do who are down on their luck. Gee look at me I cannot afford rent or gas but I have cigarettes, beer, a cell phone, and feed my 5 pets. I see it every day.
It seemed to me that when President Bush, Sr. was in office, there was a steady drumbeat of this sort of “homelessness” reporting - but, then suddenly, the SECOND William Jefferson Clinton was elected and the Democrats were in power - suddenly, miraculously, the “homelessness problem” was just - GONE, POOF! Now that we have a Republican President (for a little while at least), the media push to elect a Democrat has again “revealed” a terrible homelessness problem. . and, of course, it’s all BUSH’S FAULT).
I can think of many better things to do with my income than to spend three-quarters of it on rent.
This sounds like a stunt. Either that or she made such enemies of her three children that they don't want to give her a place to stay or help her out.
I bet home and condo owners there pay a hefty amount of property taxes as well not helping their cause. Maybe obtaining a small affordable mobile home in another location is an option to consider.
Indeed this is one of the funniest bits I have ever seen a comedian perform!
"Hey, we been driving out here every day with your food, for, like, the last thirty or forty years, and we were driving out here today across the desert, and it occurred to us that there wouldn't BE world hunger, if you people would LIVE WHERE THE FOOD IS! YOU LIVE IN A DESERT! YOU LIVE IN A ******* DESERT! NOTHING GROWS OUT HERE! NOTHING'S GONNA GROW OUT HERE! YOU SEE THIS? HUH? THIS IS SAND. KNOW WHAT IT'S GONNA BE A HUNDRED YEARS FROM NOW? IT'S GONNA BE SAND! YOU LIVE IN A ******* DESERT! GET YOUR STUFF, GET YOUR S**T, WE'LL MAKE ONE TRIP, WE'LL TAKE YOU TO WHERE THE FOOD IS! WE HAVE DESERTS IN AMERICA -- WE JUST DON'T LIVE IN THEM, A-HOLES!"
Ditto that. Sam's stuff is definitely X-rated, but he was one funny man!
Well, I have nothing more to add to your list.
Well, I have nothing more to add to your list.
Just like those who obtained sub-prime mortgages. Financial ignorance is costly.
There have been people “living” in their cars since there were cars. The media finds them ONLY when they want the current president defeated.
Yeah, after I posted that link I thought better of it and self-abused my post. Oh ... wait ... darn it, I’ve gone and done it again. :) Mad Dawgg posted the cleaned up part for us. Thanks!
This is the reality of the day and it will grow to unimaginable numbers as older people make choices between medication and condos. One major bump in their life and they can’t live the way they used to because they tried to keep up with the Joneses instead of saving for tomorrow. The idea of giving up their pets is too painful for them to even seriously consider.
DO I feel sorry for them sure but at the same time I feel it’s a situation they brought onto themselves. However our politicians will expect you and me to feed, clothe and house these fools.
Perhaps Bakersfield is more appropriate
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.