Recently the Deseret News ran an article describing our poverty project. In response to this article, many people posted comments online that perpetuated the misconception that because poverty in America isn’t as extreme as poverty in developing counties, it isn’t a real or serious issue. Here are a few of the comments:

“Only in America can people pretend to be poor for a little while. Go to Africa, Indochina, Central America. Experimentation is a real EYE opener.”

“The american people don't know what poor and even being in poverty is. Our version of poor is condisered wealthy in a real poverty stricken country. The american people will always have this poor class in its society and its always been looked down upon as a choice these people make.”

“I agree that Americans (most Americans) truly don't get it--about being poor. I've been to a third world country--and have seen what real poverty is.”


It upsets me that people make light of poverty in America because it isn’t as bad as other regions of the world. No, we don’t have large populations of people who lack access to clean water, sanitation or basic education…but poverty is not a competition. Unlike countries such as India, Kenya and Bangladesh, we have the financial means to end chronic poverty. The resources exist in the United States to ensure a minimum standard of living for all of its citizens. No child in America should wonder where there his/her next meal is going to come from, or where he/she is going to sleep each night. All full-time workers should earn a liveable wage. Healthcare should not be a luxury for those fortunate enough to have it provided through their employer.

I don’t think either Shawn or I are unaware of the extreme hardships faced by people living in developing countries. Having spent significant amounts of time working with NGOs in Thailand, Kenya and India, I don’t think I have yet to experience the “real eye opener” that is suggested above. I choose to focus on ending chronic poverty in America because it is something that is achievable with enough social and political will.

Just as the dynamics of poverty differ between the developed and developing world, so do the solutions. Unlike other countries, progress in America is not mired in rampant political corruption, lack of infrastructure, overpopulation or widespread disease. Change in the United States and in Utah is stymied by lack of awareness and by widely held misconceptions about poverty.

Running errands can be difficult without a car. I finally broke down and "borrowed" the Beast back from my parents. I had parked it at their house for the remainder of the poverty project but realized last night that without a car I would not be able to take care of some very urgent errands. For the sake of the poverty experiment I am going to say that I had to borrow a car from either my parents or one of my friends because my car is not working (in reality, it is working because AAA came out and fixed it so I could move it). Although there was a little gas in the tank, I think that any extra gas I have to buy will push my food budget to under $2.00 a day.

One of the errands that I have to run is to go to the University of Utah to argue that I am a resident of Utah, have been for most of life and therefore should not be charged out-of-state tuition for the graduate program that I am starting this summer. I feel that this errand is worthy of borrowing a car because without an adjustment to my tuition, I will not have enough money to start school this summer. If I did not have the option of borrowing a car, I'm not sure how I would be able to afford to get to the University because riding the bus would cost me at least $1.60 each way. Additionally, riding the bus would be very time-consuming and I don't have enough time during my lunch break to catch the bus up to the university, talk to the appropriate people and then catch it back. I think it would be very difficult to try to go to a doctor's appointment, an interview for a better paying job, the DMV or any other place that is only open from 9-5 pm if I did not have a car and only had half an hour or an hour for lunch.

Prior to leaving to Arizona for my sister’s wedding, I planned and packed what I would eat on the trip there. While my family ate their value meals and Subway sandwiches, I ate my PB&J on white wonder bread. I have never wanted McDonalds more in my life. Although my family offered to pay for my food, I am trying to do my best to make it solely on my budget. I was relieved to finally eat as much food as I wanted at the wedding dinner and the barbeque the next day. Hot dogs and hamburgers and wedding cake never tasted so good.

Although I have done my best to eat off only my budget for most of my meals (the wedding meals not included) I don’t know how I would have been able to afford my hotel room in Phoenix, my gas, a present or even something to wear to the wedding without the help of my parents.

White heels, TP and Weddings

Lesson Five: Life in poverty has forced me to be resourceful.

Instead of just going to the store and buying the items that I need, I now have become resourceful and have found new ways to get items for free or at a discount. Instead of buying new shoes for my sister's wedding (which is this weekend) I was able to borrow some from a friend. I know that this seems like an obvious and easy option but it did take quite a bit of time to find a friend with the same size foot and the right color/type shoe. Likewise, I was able to find the makeup I needed and a memory card for my camera for the wedding by looking through a box of my roommates' unwanted items. I know that using another person's makeup and personal hygiene items isn't ideal but desperation has made be become resourceful and do things that i wouldn't otherwise do.

Speaking of things that I don't otherwise do, in my desperation, I did what I swore I absolutely would not do: I stole toilet paper from my roommate. Faced with using newspaper, I grabbed a roll out my roommate's closet and hid it in the bathroom. It was bad enough that I stole the roll but I also hoarded it in my bathroom drawer where no one else could use it. This may seem like a silly example but I when it came down to choosing between have an extra $2.00 for food or buying toilet paper, I chose the food.

Now that I am running a deficit in my budget (I blew a lot of my money on gas in the first week), I have to be careful how I spend the approximately four dollars a day I have left on all food, personal items and unexpected expenses. I don't like having people buy my meals for me or having them feel like they should share the food that they brought for their own lunch or dinner with me. Now, it's one thing to have your date buy your dinner but it's another thing when it is your boss, coworker, friend or roommate. I am doing my best to buy what I can and to swallow my pride and let people pay for me on occasion.

Tomorrow I am headed down to Arizona to my sister's wedding. Fortunately, my parents are going to drive me down and are not going to ask me to help pay for gas. In anticipation of both the wedding and this experience, I purchased most of everything I need for the wedding. I don't know how I could have afforded to purchase my new dress and gift for my sister or have paid to travel to the wedding if I really was living in poverty.

Poverty Lesson Three: If it's not edible, I don't want to think about it

My life now seems to revolve around food. When I am not eating, I think about when I can eat, what I can afford when I do get to eat and how I am going to get to the store so that I can purchase the food to eat. I am trying not to spend all of my $6.72 a day on food, so it is getting increasingly more difficult to purchase enough food that is somewhat healthy and filling.

Poverty Lesson Four: The quality of food that I am able to purchase has decreased.

Prior to starting my poverty experience, the Grocery Guru (as seen in the ad section of the Salt Lake Tribune and the Deseret News and on Channel Two News) offered to give me some tips on how to buy more with less money. His tips included looking for sales on food and using coupons. I was impressed that we were able to purchase approximately $110 worth of food for only $30. However, I was not impressed with the selection or quality of the food we purchased. The food that the Grocery Guru selected for me included cereal, popcorn and cough drops. While those are good snacks, they do not constitute a balanced meal. I have noticed that the least expensive food is often the most unhealthy. I can no longer afford most produce, dairy or meat products. When I first started the experiment, I had enough money left over to buy whatever apples, carrots or bananas were on sale. Now that I am forced to spend only about $4 a day on food, I no longer have that luxury.

The Beast- RIP

So, it happened…the thing that I have been dreading came true. The Beast died. Yep, my ’94 Ford Explorer that leaks about a quart of transmission fluid every week, that guzzles gas and almost lost its bumper in a accident two months ago (not my fault), stopped running. I can’t say that it was unexpected, but it couldn’t have come at a worse time.

As I left the office earlier tonight, I had big plans for my evening. I was going to go home and eat a big bowl of cereal sans milk and reward myself for sticking to my budget by watching a movie on my laptop ( I no longer have cable or a TV). However, when I tried turning the key in my ignition, the Beast made a screeching noise and then refused to start. I’m no mechanic but I could tell that my battery was dead. Now I know this might be a slight violation the rules, but after looking for a jump for about forty-five minutes I called AAA. Unfortunately, the Beast needed more than just a jump, the entire battery had to be replaced.

Someone in poverty probably would not be able to afford my $50 per year AAA membership. It is also unlikely that they would be able to pay to replace the battery in their car without having emergency savings to cover the cost. Because my poverty budget does not include any additional emergency cash beyond my $6.72 daily allowance, I will no longer be driving the Beast. I drove the Beast home (I couldn’t leave him stranded on 5th West) and there he will stay until the remainder of my time in poverty is over ☹

Lentils, Ramen and Chickpea Patties

Poverty continues...

No, I haven't starved or even resorted to eating only Ramen...yet. My diet primarily consists of cereal, bread, canned soup and Ramen. Unlike Shawn, I don't really cook. I have been amazed by the creative meals that he has been able to whip together so far. On Monday, he came to work with some sort of lentil soup and chickpea patty. Today, he was talking about how to bake bread with only minimal amounts of yeast. I think his preparation has paid off- I have to admit that my food selection is a little bland in comparison.

Saturday night was my friend's graduation party. Unfortunately, he decided not to have the party at his house with a nice spread of freshly prepared, non-Ramen, FREE appetizers. Rather, he decided to go out dancing followed by a late-night dinner at Village Inn. Luckily, I didn't have to pay to go dancing but I sat at dinner drinking my $1.50 hot chocolate (which nearly blew my budget), while my friends enjoyed platefuls of warm, syrupy pancakes and freshly prepared omelets with sausage and bacon. I have to admit I have a new found appreciation for Village Inn and the large selection of food it has to offer (even if it isn't affordable to people in poverty).

I have started counting down the days until I can enjoy such luxuries as milk with my cereal, fresh fruit, chocolate and eating out with my friends.

Surprise, you're in poverty!

I have to admit I really didn't give a lot of thought to how I was going to eat on less than six dollars a day until I woke up this morning. Nor did I give a lot of thought to how I was going to buy gas, transmission fluid for my car (it leaks about a quart every two weeks), toothpaste, or shoes for my sister's upcoming wedding. Despite weeks of discussions, planning and press attention, I haven’t really prepared for my three weeks in poverty.

Lesson One: You can't wing living in poverty.

On a typical morning, I wake up, stumble to my kitchen and eat my usual yogurt, cereal and juice breakfast. Or, alternatively, if I haven't had the chance to go shopping, I will pick something up at the local bakery as I drive to work. As I reached in the fridge to grab my yogurt and juice this morning, I realized that the cost of my regular breakfast would probably be at least half of my daily allowance. I couldn't afford to eat what I had already purchased and I definitely couldn’t go to the bakery either.

As I jumped into my gas-guzzling, '94 Ford Explorer (aka "the Beast"), I realized that the gas gauge showed that the Beast was almost empty. So, I drove over to the gas station and exceeded my $6.42 daily allowance by pumping $10.00 worth of gas. At 15 miles to the gallon, I don’t think I will be able to afford to drive for very long.

Now that I have finally arrived at work, without breakfast and well-over my daily allowance, I think I will put some thought into what I will eat for the next three weeks and how I will get around.

Lesson Two: Living in poverty is very time-consuming.

The second thing that I have learned from these few hours in poverty is that everyday activities take a lot more time than before. For instance, to save money, I have decided to walk to the grocery store after work. The store is approximately two miles from my house…I figure it will take me at least 40 minutes to walk there. Hmm…I guess I shouldn’t make any plans for tonight. Also, I better start cooking meals because eating out or buying prepared foods is too expensive. By the end of the three weeks, I will probably have to start taking public transportation to work. Prior to starting this experiment, I hadn’t really thought about how living in poverty could require so much planning or be so time-consuming.

Living in Poverty?

It has been about three weeks since I was first approached to participate in this poverty experiment. Before I start blogging about my experience, I will clarify what this experiment is all about and try to answer several of the questions that I have already been asked.

What are you doing exactly?

For three weeks, I will be living at 100% of the federal poverty level. I am doing this as part of National Community Action Month (May) to raise awareness about the prevalence of poverty in Utah. Many Utahns don't realize that a significant portion of the state's population lives in substandard conditions and faces serious financial hardships. Approximately, 254,385 people in Utah lived at or below the federal poverty level in early 2008. That translates to roughly 9.8% of Utah's population and 11.3% of Utah's children. With growing unemployment and a deepening recession, poverty is becoming a reality for more and more Utahns.

What is poverty?

Like I said, I will be living at 100% of the federal poverty level for three weeks. For a family of one (yep, that's me) to be considered to be in poverty by the federal government you must have a net income equal to or less than $10,830 per year. That equates to $902.50 a month or $624.81 for three weeks. The average hourly wage for a person living at 100% of the poverty level is $5.21 an hour which is well below Utah's current minimum wage of $6.55.

After accounting for all of my fixed expenses (see the budget calculator on my main page), I will have $6.72 a day to pay for my food, personal items, gas and unexpected expenses. Surprisingly, I am not eligible for food stamps.

But you aren't really in poverty.

I realize that I am not actually living in poverty. Unlike many people who do live in poverty, this situation is not permanent for me. I have a good job (although I can't access the money, I am still geting paid for these three weeks), health insurance, support from my friends and family and an education. If I get sick or in an accident in the next three weeks, I will still be able to go to the hospital or to see my doctor. Or when my car breaks down (which I can guarantee that it will) I know that I just have to wait out the remainder of my time and then I can afford to go to the mechanic. If for whatever reason I can't make it on $6.72 a day, I am not going to starve, face eviction or be forced to default on my student loans.

I don't want people to think that after these three weeks I will know what it is like to live with the insecurity, emotional stress and financial instability that is associated with life in poverty. My hope is to better understand the reality faced by so many Utahns and to bring awareness to this very important and serious issue.