TRY 1897

try 1897

Active Member
Local time
5:55 AM
Joined
Oct 9, 2006
Messages
262
Location
Crisfield Maryland
Hi I'm Tom in WV . Thats West Virginia. I'm not from WV I'm from Wash. D.C. and its suburbs Born in City raized in burbs. I'm 55years old this year .I grew up in the 60's and did the usual drug thing. I was and am a "Hippy" Just an old one now I guess.I raced motorcycles Drag race as a teen , Spent 3and 1/2 years in the federal reformatory (got out in 1974)stayed out of trouble since then. So far anyway. I've worked as an electrican ,automechanic, machineist mech, com/fisherman out of Rockland Me. Security guard at the racetrack (horseraces) and at the local SCCA car races. etc. etc. A couple of years ago I started puking up blood. I thought it was a bleeding ulcer. Went to the hosp. and it turned out to be a ruptured asophagus. The Dr. told me only one in ten survive it but somehow I pulled thru with the help of the golden hands of our local surgeon and Gods help to guide them.Then they told me I had Hepatitis -C and had to do 48 weeks of treatment that is like chemo and makes you very sick. But I did it and am virus free so far. Thru all that combined with several accidents along the way the gov. considers me dissabled and sends me a total of 630 dollars a month to live on. thats about 3,500 dollars a year below poverty level. But its too much to qualify me for food stamps so I don't get any.So I live in a trailer in a trailer park with a friend and share the expences and try to collect as many toys as I can. And have as much fun as I can and smile alot. Thats my life....Tom in WV
 
Wow. We sure do have some seasoned characters on this forum. Glad you shared that with us! I am happy to see that things have gotten better.
 
Glad you're still with us, Tom, and welcome to the forum. I'm a little older than you, but still playing with "toys". :D
 
welcome "back" bro :D

we're all thinkin' of ya, wishing you the best thru your trials 8)
 
wow man sounds like your doing a damn good job of rolling with the punches keep on keeping on :)

650 a month and they dont give you foodstamps... gotta love the use damn bastards pay thousands go to war on "terror" but cant help a good man out any more than 650 a month.. quite a shame but good job on making ends meet and staying happy i commend you on your perseverence.

Jake.
 
Thanks for sharing. I lead a subsistance lifestyle myself with yearly income well below the poverty level. I get by by knowing how to repair things. All my toys were discarded by someone, broken, assembled from junk, or made and/or modified by me. When people ask how I do it, I reply that " I live richly on the cast offs of others".
 
Psuggmog, Hi ..... When you discribed your toys it was as though you were talking about me. I'm tellin ya you hit the nail right square smack on the nose. All my toys were rebuilds and redoos and refit and made to give enjoyment once again. In that respect we are the same you and I.My bike was made of bits and pieces from the junk pile . I saved up for the kit and the rest is cast offs. Its a matter of being in the right place at the right time and you can get some amazing stuff from the " cast off pile" Last summer I got a gokart from a yard sale for 20 dollars .It needed bearings and tires that I saved up for and them I got a Techumseh 5 hp from a friends junk pile, bought a 5 dollar carb and the pull start cover for 4 bucks ,some paint and its lookin and runnin good . Saved as all of it was destined for the land fill. This computer came from the local high schools dumpster.I get alot of stuff from yard sales and the local pawn shops. Well take care and good hunting ..... Tom in WV
 
Hi Tom,
It seems there are a few of us out there that have similar stories.
Welcome to the group!
Rif
 
From trash to treasure, recycling as an art. I too have had similar experience. Recently a friend gave me a perfectly good mountain bike, the frame is too large for me so I don't ride it. I know if I took it apart and sold it piecemeal on E-Bay I could make some money, however I would be deconstructing a perfectly good bike, I can't bring myself to do that. I look for affordable basket cases that can be put back in service and the leftover usable parts, some of them collectible I will market. Overall the cost is generally higher than if I just went out and bought a new bike, for me it is like making payments and a lot more satisfying. Thanks for sharing your story Tom. Talk about an affinity group!

wheels
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Back
Top