:frown: I've had quite a bit of a hard time lately and alot of it has to do with making ends meet on a Disability Income.....The week before last I was on my way to see my therapist which is a 50 minute drive from here....I was in the city of Lakewood and about 5 minutes away from my T's office when I noticed that there was a yellow light but being so close I thought that I had plenty of time to get through the intersection....as it turned out I caught the light turning red [top of my windshield viewed] I then got pulled over by a cop and given a ticket for running a red light then I was 10 min late to my appointment....So I was told by someone answering the phone at their city hall that I would have to come to traffic court.....which I did...I had found out then that I was to be charged $110!!! So I went to court last Tuesday and plead guilty and asked to be able to have a reduced fine and/or payments...Judge says he can't go lower than $30 for a fine plus costs...and to see the clerk about making payments...[in the meantime the judge has to lecture me about the danger of running a red light...ok...then he says I need to slow down.....I had already told him that I was going the speed limit of 35 and wearing my seatbelt:cussing: ] I went to the clerk's and she said that I owed $105!!! Plus she said that the judge said to keep my license till the entire amount was paid!!!! I WAS SOOOOO PISSED!!!!!! And then I had to sign a paper about needing to make payments....THEN I was told that if the entire amount was not payed by by Jan 30th [like where was I supposed to get that sort of $$s when I had no more money coming in!!!???!!!] or I would have to come back to court for the judge to decide if I was eligible to make the payment program....Now I'm really PISSED!!!! Especially as I will get paid on the 2nd of February which is a f***ing 3 days later!!! Since I am poor I got my license taken....when I saw a couple of people who had 2 tickets to pay for....kept their licenses!!!! as they didn't ask judge to make payments!!! :boxem: Then when I talked to my casemanager the next day I found out that my drug plan has me paying co-pays on my 14 meds!!! Sooo that means I all of a sudden have to come up with that [$50] too!!! That means I have to pick between food..gas..& meds with my last $25 ....H-m-m-m-m-m?????? Fortunately I just filled my tank....but that has to last for two weeks!! [so not going to happen!!] Now way the meds are going to come out on top in the competition!!! That means that my dr would have to have me in the hospital for 6 days to make sure I get all my meds!! There's something really screwy the way our government is handling healthcare....Instead of paying the $50 for the co-pays....it will pay at least $3,600 [estimate on the very low side] for me to get them in the hospital!!!! GO FIGURE!!!! and they wonder why the medical costs that we poor people need is costing so MUCH!!!!!! IDIOTS!!!!!!!!! Sooooo needless to say I have been very depressed and started sleeping most of my days....just couldn't handle the anxiety any other way and I couldn't get angry at the traffic court judge or god only knows what more $$s he would charge me!!! I did call a long distance friend that I had met in Sept. at my favorite hospital and in the course of that conversation it dawned on me that I could call my priest to see if the church could help....so I did last night and he said that was possible and so I will see him tomorrow morning....sooooo today I got groceries.....and have to hope that the gas lasts!!!! AGAIN I think....DAMN!!! If that perp. of a father hadn't abused me for all those years and all those ways I wouldn't have to live [if I can call it that] like this!!!! BASTARD!!!!! To have the prospect of having to be locked up in a hospital to get meds is a BITCH!!!! I would lose my FREEDOM for 6 days and I did nothing wrong!!! There have been two times already that I've had to do this :angry-fla Thanks everyone for letting me vent!!! Wildfirewildone ......CHASING THE PEACE

wow, sorry you're having such a hard time, wf. praying for some relief (financial and otherwise)
cathy

Ohhh yes WF, I agree. It's a dirty, backwards system. I hope it works out for you too. If you do get stuck with the hospital. just think of sticking it to them for that! Revenge! LOL. Only good thing I could think of with that.

bec

WF, I feel your pain with traffic court. I was ticketed for expired license plate sticker not long after I got back from Iraq... right in front of my house for the neighbors to see. I went to court and told the judge that it was the last thing on my mind since I'd been back from the war. The judge told me that my excuse disgusted him, and that I was disgusting for giving it- the fact that I forgot because I was in the war- disgusting. No military discount there i guess. Its true though... it truly (that sticker) was the last thing I would have ever thought about. Makes me wanna kick his disgusting mf'n @ss for putting me down like that!!! But I can't... thanks to the system and my ignorance, I'm just an impotent 'loser'.
And don't get me started with healthcare issues. How many hundreds of billions of $$$ has the US spent towards the Iraq War now?? To think the amount of health care coverage that could have been provided for the less fortunate people of this country!!!!:angry-fla
The rich will get richer, and the poor- poorer!
I wish I could help... I can't even afford to play the lottery, and keep internet connection.
Good luck!

Thanks mac, for the encouraging words!!! I am right with you on better uses for the billions we are spending on the war in Iraq!!!! We also STILL have a bad situation in the South that got hit with the two hurricanes!! I think also that it really sucked that the judge put you down!!! I guess that the judges we've encountered are real JERKS!!!! Wish it wasn't so!!! Even though I have always been against the war....I would never disrespect any one that had soldiered there!!!!!! GIVE PEACE A CHANCE