Okay, here’s my situation:
I have roughly $100 in my bank account (It would be more, but the bank saw fit to screw me out of the rest of it. Yes, I’m changing banks, and no, I can’t get the money back, I’ve tried.) and I got word today that it’s going to cost well over $500 to get my 1984 Honda Accord running (this repair bill does not include fixing the transmission which is going out). The car is obviously not worth shelling out that kind of money to repair (in addition to the transmission going out, the car has no heat, and the electrical system is slowly dying).
My income only slightly exceeds my expenditures (I’m working two jobs and going to school part time and am averaging 4 to 6 hours of sleep a day if I’m lucky, so picking up more hours at one of my jobs is a no go.) and there is NO public transportation that I can utilize to get around. Nor can I cut expenses (I’m not going to find rent that’s any cheaper than what I’m paying now, I’ve no home phone [I’ve got a prepaid cellphone, and the price of cable, plus a cable modem is cheaper than phone service and a decent ISP in this area]).
I have to have a car to get to school and I don’t have the money to pay for one. (If I drop out of school, I have to start paying back my student loans [which, if I could afford to pay, I could afford to get a car]). I can’t bum rides to school since my work schedule at my primary job is variable and I have no idea when I’ll be leaving. Nor can I ask for a raise since I’m topped out.
As for changing my primary job, that’s out too. You see, it’s related to what I’m going to school for, and it’s well nigh impossible to get a job in the field without experience, so I can’t quit it and hope to get a better paying one in the field any time soon. Pawning my meager possessions isn’t really an option, either as I sold most of everything when I was unemployed a year ago. What I do have left, I could sell, but I’ve no idea when I could replace it.
I need a car, and have no idea of how to get one on my income. I’m asking around at work, to see if anyone knows where I can pick up one fairly cheap, but so far I’ve had no luck.