Not just any message board, there, chief. 
I just re-read your original post and noticed that you said your local food bank rejected you because you’re not on welfare. That’s not the way it usually works in the U.S. I still suggest calling some of the other food banks.
Also, try your local Salvation Army. They have a long history of serving meals to people who need them, although you might have to listen to a talk before dinner.
Also, and I’m not saying this as a joke, could you get a part-time job as a waitress or a fast-food counter clerk? I wouldn’t suggest going to the manager and telling him you’re starving, but just that you’re looking for a way to supplement your income (which is probably true). Nobody goes hungry in a restaurant.
Also, do you have anything portable you could pawn? Camera, jewelry, etc.? You borrow against it (unfortunately at an exorbitant interest rate), and claim it in a couple weeks when you get paid.
Also, in the U.S. there are “payday advance” check-cashing places where you can write a check with a date after your next paycheck. Do they have those in Canada? They hold the check until you get paid but you get the cash now, minus another exorbitant fee. It’s not a good way to run your life, but if you can do it just once it beats going hungry.
Also, people here have offered you help, no strings attached. Take it, and when you get on your feet you can help somebody else down the road.
Unless you live in a really small town there’s got to be a soup kitchen. In this burg of 25,000 people it’s listed in the white pages as simply “Soup Kitchen”. It’s surprisingly good- I’ve eaten there twice. Donated quite a lot to it later on, btw.
I won’t press, because I’ve got enough pride myself to sustain several adult lions, but… uh. What they said. You ain’t taking advantage of anyone, especially if you pay it forward.
Oh, you know what else? When I used to work fast food, we had to throw out everything at night that hadn’t been sold. Swing by McD’s right, **right ** before closing and you could probably snag some cheeseburgers. We used to give them away late at night all the time, sometimes 10 to a bag if we had a bunch on the warmer.
One more obvious thought. You’ve got a job and a bank account. Can you take out a personal loan at your bank? Even if the loan minimum is more than you need, you put the excess aside and use it to make your payment every month. (Very important not to spend more than you have to–a loan is not like getting a windfall.) It would solve your problem now and help you build a good credit record over time.
I’ll fourth (or fifth?) the offer to Paypa you a few bucks. My email is in my profile. There’s no harm in accepting help when it’s freely offered. Everyone is down on their luck at some point.
I’ll 5th or 6th the paypal offer.
But if you’re really uncomfortable with that, there’s always the plasma donation centers if you qualify.
HHM, you’ve gotten a lot of good advice.
First of all, don’t be too stinkin’ proud to accept help when it’s offered, hon. :smack: None of those that have offered are doing it to make you feel bad; they’re offering you a chance to let them feel good. Trust me; I know. Back when I was able, I got a good feeling from helping people. I still do when someone needs help of a kind I’m able to offer, even if it’s only a listening ear or a shoulder to cry on.
Somebody else quoted Heinlein; I’ll quote Bujold: You can’t pay back; you have to pay forward (not an exact quote). Somebody helps you, and later you help somebody else. You’ll be amazed at how good it makes you feel.
Now to add a bit of advice that nobody else made explicit. You don’t want this to happen again, especially since you’ve got a job. Use some of that overtime money to restock your kitchen cupboards. What you want to do is not to worry so much about a balanced diet, but to have a stock of food that will give you lots of calories for a very little bit of money. The ramen noodles and cheap mac’n cheese mixes certainly will do that.
OTOH, if you’re willing to cook them, buying bags of rice and dried beans will give you a much healthier alternative. The beans and rice, cooked together (but you start the beans cooking first; read the bags to see how long each one has to cook. Probably you’ll want to cook the beans for at least a half hour, but most varieties will require closer to an hour before you dump in the rice.), will provide you with both protein and carbs. And then when you get low on money, if you eat meat and want more flavor in the rice & beans, you can buy the cheapest cut(s) of meat you can find. Tossing even a bit of meat in with the beans (when you put them on) & rice will give it lots more flavor, as well as adding needed calories. Oh, yes. Dried beans and rice will keep FOREVER in the cupboard. I have been teased about how much food I keep in the cupboards and freezer. Part of it I learned as the child of parents who were young adults during the Great Depression (1929-1941, basically), but that period when I was trying to live (and keep my dogs alive, too) on student assistant wages was probably more traumatic than I realized at the time.
So, you should look on this as a learning experience. You’re learning that there are some good-hearted people in the world, and on this board. And once you’ve had a little time to internalize this experience, I’ll bet you’ll keep lotsa stuff in your freezer & cupboards, too.
Another thing that I did at one point when I was a “returning student”. I went to a nearby bakery “outlet”. That’s what they do with the breads & cakes that don’t sell by the “sell by” date. You can get a LOT of calories that way. Of course, if you do this, don’t forget you gotta use it up fast, so don’t get too much at a time!
One last bit of advice: Start a savings account. If your employer has a plan that permits it, set up a regular deposit amount. It doesn’t have to be very much. $5 per payday (yes, even though it’s $5CDN), 
will add up. But you need to make an inflexible rule that it’s money you will not EVER touch unless it’s a dire emergency (like this could have been).
Let us know how things are going in about a month, wilya?
One last thought, before I turn into a sleep monkey. If you email me tonight, rather than a check, I’ll send a $20 bill. Presumably you can spend $20 American in Canada.
Really, pal, you’ve hung in here quite a while. My response would be different if you had three posts. But that’s not the case.
So, email.
Count me in. Email the addy, and $20 Merkin hits the mails tomorrow morning. I got it, you need it, no problem. Pay it forward (shite movie, beautiful wisdom). 
We’re a little slow here tonight, so I thought I would sneak in here in between calls again…
I tried the bank loan idea, that was a no go, I don’t have the best credit unfortunately. And I am in a tiny little town (about 4000 people), so no shelter for now.
To everyone who is being so generous, let me tell you why I feel uncomfortable, I did something really stupid, that’s why I’m in this situation. I trusted my boy friend who basically scammed me out of money and disappeared. I thought I would be okay for this month, I was going to do the potatoe diet, but I would be okay. At the same time however I had forgotten that this was the last month of the oil payment term, so if they owed me money I would be paid it (which is what I was told would probably be happening, as the person I talked with thought I had been over paying). Well it turned out the 2 service calls that I had been told were included in my service were not, and I was charged a few hundred for each of them, and I have auto payments with the company so it came out automatically this month. After being in touch with the oil company there is no way to reverse the payment so it can be paid next month, as they say I was given notice (I cannot for the life of me find the bill, but there is much more to the above bf ordeal, and suffice it to say I suspect I know where my mail is).
My point to that rambling is that this is 100% my own fault, and there are so many people out there who are in similar situations not of their own doing. All that said I do very much appreciate it, and if anyone truely does want to lend me money after reading my tale of stupidity (I will pay you back, or if you prefer I will donate it to a local food bank when I can), I would very gratefully accept. I don’t know how to use pay-pal, although I do have an account I have never used, it can’t be too complicated?
I think it is picking up here again, I wanted to write more, so I will come back later, my email address is beepbeep979@yahoo.com before I forget.
I’m going back to the phone snuffling, you folks are so incredible I can’t believe it.
Gee, you think you’re the only person who ever trusted someone who didn’t deserve it? I’ll bet everybody knows what that feels like.
Check your email!
I don’t do this myself, but the Mormons have a great system of suggesting each household keep a years worth of food in the basement (in case of, you know, the second coming or something). I know you said you ate all your canned corn, but just in case this happens again in the future you might want to consider buying a lot more canned corn (and other non-perishables) the next time you do have a little money. IMO, canned corn is even better than money in the bank when it comes to survival
Check your email!
I just checked my email on break, silenus thank-you so much, you are amazing. I would hug you if you were a bit closer.
Do you have any friends or family?!
Sorry if it sounds blunt, but stupid acts or no, surely there are people in your life you can go to for a bite? If its a matter of food, it would certainly be less awkward than asking them for money. Me, I’m pretty much a loner, but just the same I still have a support network of friends and family that would be more than willing to help me if I was starving.
Oh, I can’t let another Ontarian go hungry, there’s so few of us around. Besides this is me paying it forward. My subscription here was paid for by another Doper, when I was a bit short on cash. Check your email, so tomorrow by noon I can have this in the mail.
Thanks, Reepicheep.
Check your mail, Monkey. You should have two e-mails from me – ignore the first and open the second. PayPal decided to be an ass and act wonky, so you probably have duplicates in your inbox. :rolleyes: If you have any trouble with it, just let me know!
HHM: * I did something really stupid, that’s why I’m in this situation. I trusted my boy friend who basically scammed me out of money and disappeared. […] My point to that rambling is that this is 100% my own fault*
I hate to contradict a hungry howler monkey, but count me in among the voters who think that this is AT LEAST 50% the fault of your scamming, thieving, no-good ex-boyfriend. Good on you for (1) courageously accepting responsibility and (2) gracefully accepting help, and good luck.