How I Survive Being Homeless

Dear readers today I'm going to go over some survival tips that I use in certain areas now that I've been homeless for a year.Maybe this will help you too or give you a good laugh, or perhaps you'll finally know what is on the other side so you never have to go through with this. Now disclaimer you don't actually have to do any of those things listed about this is just for fun if you have any takeaways I'm happy to offer the nearest resources or dial 211 or 911. 

1) Clothes

Only keep the bare necessities depending on the weather or what the weather will be like in your area or climate. Lots of underwear and socks and under shirts they have been Lifesavers when I sweat a lot. Dark colors are preferable but light colors are fine too it's a choice thing that you mind not being washed for up to 2 weeks at a time. The shelter I'm at has laundry times but people will sometimes apply without knowing if they need to do any laundry sometimes the washer dryers are empty but you can't use them unless you sign up and it fills up at 1am.

2) Hygiene

If you're going to take your nicest stuff keep it deep in the deep bag you're bringing, because just like you love your shampoo and conditioner no matter how expensive so does everyone else because resources without panhandling are limited. Try to find some old small containers and use those while shelter or street hopping. I will say someone helped themselves to my raw sugar conditioner and then it disappeared right after and it was under my bed in a container at the shelter I'm at. Perfume is fine but cheaper the better nice stuff is recognized and if you upset someone then it's bye bye some woman carry there hygiene all day just because of that. SHAVE people shave what you don't want accumulating anything I do a vanity trim like: eyebrows, armpits, and legs. It's not mandatory but you feel less self conscious when you find a cute tank top in donations and what to wear it.

3) Miscellaneous

I brought my paperwork, wallet, tablet, and phone these are things that I would bring and they have stayed so far, but i buried it underneath my tote box and locked it so i worry even less. I also had an extra phone but sold/traded it for $85 dollars I'll tell y'all about trading in another chapter that's where keeping random miscellaneous items can save you. Now I have a library book but when you're in a shelter reading help when there is nothing to do but sit on your bed and trust me you will be on your bed lot. Cheetah uses essential oils to help regulate her emotions and uses a suitcase to lug everything around, including her own hygiene and other parts of her life. Storage is a huge one we are occasionally given black totes and that's it nothing else for your food and hygiene, so any storage bins that can fit under a cot use them remember to get one that locks.

4) Communal Living 

 I have a family and nothing will prepare you for living in a shelter trust me especially for long term. First not all shelters are filled with kids giggling and people nicely walking about, most are woman with mental health issues looking for help or are stuck with limited funds to move forward and find a place. I have an illegal eviction and it's impossible for me to find a place without sublet housing or rooksharijg now till that's dealt with legally. But for now I have to share 12 bathrooms stalls and 6 showers and 8 sinks with 125+ women, it's not pretty and they only clean twice a day mind you and it's destroyed by morning or by dinner. By saying destroyed I mean someone was using a hot comb this morning and burnt the edges of the sink leaving brown spots. One woman cleans trash in the sinks and keeps it by her bedside I full on witnessed her rinsing a trash bag, and a yogurt cup before don't worry I told the staff they did nothing. Everyone hair is everywhere you can clean your area but don't touch other people things and don't accidentally let anything fall to one person side people are EXTREMELY touchy about there stuff trust me.

5)Food

 shelter food is...well it's a mixed bag tonight's dinner was lomein and veggies and rice which sounds good at first except no one liked it rice was dry and the lomein was a leftover from lunch including the veggies slathered in sauce next to it. Food stamps youre homeless so you can 100% sign up/registrar and grab some sides or some made dinner that don't need to be refrigerated. I bought prepackaged chicken and bought 1 minute rice and mixed that with a hard boiled egg from breakfast amdnhsd protein packed fried rice without the veggies it was delicious.

Nothing with cans unless it's soda anything glass for a drink is fine just not any perishable can't be cold. Assume that anything the keep on the shelves you can have besides canned food I have ramen and that dehydrated not meat from Walmart and me and the girls made burritos after dinner. 

6)Trading

Trading is fun you can trade anything for it's equal value I heard my cotside mate offer a handful of the jolly ranchers I gave her for 2 cigarettes it worked. I traded my phone for $85 and lotion because I needed lotion and I didn't have the money but she offered me that for free, I also bought more lotion and some snacks with that money. My friend here is trying to trade her Coke 0s for regular Coke sadly it's not working because no one wants Coke 0 maybe Diet Coke but not Coke 0.

Well that's the first half of what I do to survive being homeless I also have friends and family on speed dial. Be sure to use the mental health resources if you're ever feeling overwhelmed or mad, some shelters have the resources or mental health staff on board to be here when you need them. There is always the 211 number if you love I'm Colorado they have resources for you as well, don't let being homeless bring you down you will get back up again this is a bump in the road in the words of john you are not your circumstances we will rise above.