by Laurie Childree

Created on: June 14, 2010

I married young in an effort to get out of my parent's house. That year was rather rough since I was financially cut off for most of it. Once I got divorced I was allowed back in as the spoiled daughter that always got her way. The time when I would get all that I wanted was short lived because I made another mistake. It was time to do things on my own. At least I thought so, others had other ideas.

Well, almost time to do things on my own. I moved out of state with my new found love and left behind the not so new trailer my family had bought me to live in. We rented a small two bed room house for around $150 a month. It's been so long ago I'm not entirely sure now. I just knew that I didn't have to work for us to get by. I went to work because I wanted to; the house was rather isolated from the rest of the world. Perhaps the fact that I loved the isolation so much is why I stayed out there for so long without even a phone to contact those I had left behind. 

A few months went by and my darling lost his job. It took him all of a day to find a new job that came with a house. The house was three bedrooms, one bath with the kitchen and dining area separated by a bar. It was beautiful from the outside. Inside was another story but we got it cleaned up. We were OK for a while, all the bills came out of his check so I actually had no idea what they were. I only knew what he gave me to buy things for the house with. I got a whole $30 to buy food and whatever else we needed. 

I got rather good at doing without during this time. I got better at it when he had to get a loan from his boss to pay off a debt and $30 was all there was. I went back to work. I managed $120 a week waiting tables three nights a week for four hours at a time. Not bad for twelve hours of work, bad for living off of. $480 a month to live off of but the bills were paid. I learned how to live without. 

Just as I was adjusting to living on less he sent my packing like a child being sent off to school when they've embarrassed the family. I went home to my family because by now they'd sold the trailer without warning. I found a job and spent most of the next year with my parents. Not a fun time for me but I had no choice. 

I moved in with yet another love and we managed to pay $235 a month for a two bedroom house with no air conditioning. We got two window units with a little help, a phone and a television that used an antenna. That was it. Well, we moved into a three bedroom, two bath

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