Poverty Challenge, Day Three

For those of you participating in the Poverty Challenge, you may have had a rough Day Two with the start of the poverty budget. And Day One probably feels like a million years ago.

I know, for me, that’s how it feels. I am the AmeriCorps staff for the Homeless Alliance. For those who are not as familiar with the AmeriCorps program, it is a great way for folks to get a lot of experience in non-profit, service-related fields. The catch is that your income is a living stipend that is set at the federal poverty guideline.

I’ve had to become a bit savvy about my budget since becoming an AmeriCorps volunteer. The first thing that had to go was TV. I haven’t owned a TV in almost 2 years, and haven’t watched much TV aside from what I can sometimes find for free on the internet. A priority for me has been an apartment that is close to work - I’m about 3 1/2 miles from work now. I don’t go out for a drink more than 3-4 times a year. When I feel really indulgent I will go to the “cheapy theater” in Cheektowaga and see movies 2 months after they hit theaters to be sure I’m getting the cheapest price. I considered myself pretty assimilated into a poverty budget.

Until today.

I am going through the budget once again. The weather is nice, so, fortunately, I can ride my bike. Thank God it isn’t December or January - riding my bike would not be an option. Also, if I weren’t young and healthy, riding my bike wouldn’t be an option.

I don’t have a TV, so that’s easy. Cell phone - I can’t go without my cell phone. That was my first thought. What would I do? My parents couldn’t call me (they would worry about their youngest son in the big city of Buffalo), I couldn’t get in touch with my girlfriend, my friends, my brother in the Hudson Valley. Then medical insurance - need that - $1.60 out of the window. This leaves me with $5.99 for my meals today. Technically, this also counts for my personal care needs - and the shaving razors I bought the other day that cost me $25(highway robbery!) and cut into my food budget for the month.

$5.99. That’s a sub at Jim’s Steakout. That’s falafel at Amy’s Place. Not enough for wings at Anchor Bar. That’s 3 slices of pizza at La Nova. Thankfully I don’t have a family to feed, just myself.

I started out the morning with some rye bread, cheese, and coffee for breakfast. I’m estimating the cost of this being about $2. For lunch, I plan to lean on the hospitality of the cafeteria at the building where I work for a meal. This will leave me with four dollars. But I promised a friend I would have coffee with her. That means $2 off right there. This leaves me with $2 for dinner.

There is a store in my neighborhood that gets day-old bread every Tuesday from a local bakery. They leave the bread right in front of the register which is next to the entrance. Good thing, too - that way, folks don’t have to feel the shame of walking around the store with a loaf of bread, they can grab it on the way out with their bags and no one will know the difference. I will probably get a loaf of bread and eat it with some tomato sauce. This will keep me within my budget.

And sure, I stayed within the budget, but what kind of quality of life is this? Bread and coffee meals?

Some folks have remarked that the Poverty Challenge has helped them realize what it is that they truly need and what are luxuries. I think the Poverty Challenge is showing me the privileges that I have. I have the privilege of very very cheap rent from a great landlord that you simply don’t find in the Buffalo News apartment listings, but instead through connections. I have the privilege of free internet at home; my upstairs neighbor lets me use their wireless internet at no cost. I have the privilege of a free lunch everyday. I have the privilege of being young, healthy, with no kids. Some folks don’t have those privileges.

Sometimes there are folks who say that they were in poverty while they were in college and first starting to work but they got themselves out of it and are now successful, so everyone else can do it. I wonder if they had some of those same privileges as me.

- Devan DeCicco, Education Coordinator for the Homeless Alliance of WNY