Introduction & Links:
WHAT DEPRESSION? ISN'T THIS A RECESSION? Don't know; I'm not an economist. A Recession is when there is no growth for three quarters in a row. A Depression is when real estate, on the average, goes down in value, or banks or major corporations go bankrupt or require a government bailout. In most countries, but not necessarily the USA, a Recession lasts one to three years. A Depression lasts 30+ years, or until there is another World War, whichever comes first. That's history.
EMPLOYMENT: If you are unemployed, be sure that you take advantage of being a low-income person. You get a discount on your gas and electric bills, so call your utility to sign up. sdge.com. Have a copy of your gas and electric bills. You also get telephone service for $5 a month, local unlimited, so read what I write below. There is also good advice on my web page, at right, called "Salesmen & Job Seekers". Read it. It can help. One source of job information is San Diego 211. You can visit them online at.211SanDiego.org. Or, you can just dial "211" from any phone, and free from any payphone. All County Libraries will help you type a resume, and give you 5 free copies of your final draft. See sdcl.org. More advice on how to write a resume, and more, at E Page, Employment, NZ9F.com/E.
FOOD: There are 2 pages dealing with food on web pages at right. The above "211" website and phone number also deals with food. Hot meals are at NZ9F.com/B and food pantries at NZ9F.com/F.
HEALTH CARE: The poor and unemployed in California can sign up for Medi-Cal, which is State Medicare. Check with County Social Services to see if you qualify. Visit medi-cal.ca.gov, or visit their local office. This insurance plan covers prescriptions, although it no longer covers eyeglasses, dentistry, and chiropractic. It did a few years ago, but Medi-Cal is expanding in costs rapidly as more and more people become poor. For other health care, visit Health Page at NZ9F.com/Health.
TRANSPORTATION: Your best bet in San Diego is to use public transportation whenever possible. If you're over age 60, or disabled, or poor enough to qualify for Medi-Cal (above) due to being unemployed, there is a gasoline tax that pays for most of your bus/trolley pass. Your share is $18 a month, for an SDM (Senior, Disabled, or Medi-Cal) monthly pass. This enables you to get to your doctor appointments, job interviews, and take advantage of the free meal and free grocery programs, listed on other pages of this website. Dial "511" from any phone (free from any payphone), or visit sd511.com .
Owning a car means car payments, interest on any loan, gasoline and oil, repairs, replacement of vandalized windows, maintenance such as new tires and batteries, parking, storage fees, towing, auto insurance, and DMV fees. If you want, you can rent a car for the day, occasionally, from a car rental company.
They go for $14 a day and up, and require a bank account (free checking) which gives you a free MasterCard or Visa debit card. The car rental company takes a security deposit of $200 to $400 (depending upon the rental company), plus the estimated amount of your car rental bill. Shop around. Think about renting a car one or two days a month, if you don't own one. You need to compare Budget, Enterprise, Hertz, Avis, Thrifty, and more. Some used car lots rent cars for $10 a day, too.
ELECTRONICS: Phones, cellular, TV, web. If you own a home computer, you need a telephone line to connect it to the web. Low-income people (the unemployed have basically no income) get telephone service for $5 a month, unlimited. Call your phone company (or AT&T) and ask for "Universal Lifeline" telephone service. Phone 1-800-288-2020. Web address att.com.
Specify the "Unlimited Calling" plan. You should also specify that you want NO long-distance provider, NO local-toll call provider, NO "900" service, and NO long-distance or local toll by outside carriers by dialing an access code. All of this is extremely important!
For long distance, local toll, etc., use the Penny Plan, from 99 Cents Only Stores, 99only.com. No monthly fee, no connect charges, no hidden charges, and both local toll and long distance for one cent per minute. Hopefully, your home phone has an automatic dialer feature, which can make this type of long distance service really easy.
You obtain a local phone number to call for all of your long-distance needs. Dial that number (automatically by dialer) anytime you want to place a long-disance or local toll call. Your caller-ID (all phones have it, free) will tell the computer who you are, and the computer will automatically enter your PIN number.Visit the Registration Menu, and you're good to go. It works just as fast as the old service where you dial the number "1" first.
For free connection of your home computer to the internet, visit sdfree.com. This is free dial-up service. If you don't own a home computer, visit any library for free internet computer usage. It requires a library card, but those are free, too. Visit sdcl.org for hours and days. There is also a list of City libraries in the right column of this page. Need to find a library the old way, using a phone book? Phone books can be had at any Ralph's supermarket. Find one at ralphs.com.
Regarding television and cable, consider Dish Network from AT&T Yahoo! at dishnetwork.com. For $40 a month, with no installation fee, you can get over a hundred channels. And for a limited time, they're offering 50% off, plus 16 premium channels free. (The offer keeps changing, so ask.) It's a way better deal than cable.
If you can't afford that, broadcast TV now has a wider choice of channels than ever. Each station can "split" into 3 different channels at the same time. So, now there's Channels 8A, 8B, 8C, 10A, 10B, 10C, 15A, 15B, 15C, and so on. Or, try renting movies (for free) at any library. (One dollar in Chula Vista.) This requires a free library card. Bring lots of identification.
If you read what I wrote about starting your own business, and you need a Domain Name(Web Address), consider Yahoo!, which will give you one for $10 a year the first year, including a one-page (home page only) starter web-page. And, you can get a whole website like this one for around $10 a month, with no setup fees! Details at smallbusiness.yahoo.com. Afraid of censorship? Well, read my web pages. Does that look like censorship to you? I also speak about starting your own business without any money at NZ9F.com/SmBiz.
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2019 = Public Domain, Except as Noted.