I moved countries 9 months ago, I had only £600 in my pocket, nowhere to stay, no job and no real qualifications. When I moved, I couldn't afford an expensive flight so I had to cut down to 1 suitcase and 1 backpack and whatever else I could stuff in my pocket.
I was terrified, I had a very slim chance of actual survival (enough people die of being homeless, not being able to afford food, etc, to make it a real cause for concern, I've seen it myself) and I was young, I had only just turned 19.
My family lived in Spain and I had no choice but to move there when I was 16, but I had taught myself programming and I had a dream, one which I couldn't see being achieved in Spain, so I moved back to the UK.
When my plane touched ground, I bought a cheap SIM card and put it in to my Nokia 3310 (Retro chic, right?) and sent a text to my girlfriend to let her know I had landed and everything was okay, she lived in the UK (still with her parents) but I couldn't afford to send a text to my family, it would be weeks before my mum knew I was safe.
I took a train journey from Manchester airport to Blackburn, it was where I was born and where my girlfriend lived, it would be a good idea to start there. As I sat on the train I contemplated the finality of my decision to move - there was no going back, it was "make it" or perish.
I began searching for a place to stay for a few weeks, I compiled a list of old friends who had their own place and started ringing through, all but one of them said no, the other only said "Let me ask my girlfriend." She said no.
The first few days were some of the darkest of my life, I was sheltering myself underneath a large space heater for the town centre during the night, it provided enough warmth that I didn't get ill, but the concrete below me made it difficult to sleep, near impossible, there were times when my moods hit rock bottom and I contemplated suicide or theft, but i still didn't rent a hotel room or some other fantasy, I was saving my money, that had to go far.
3 days later, I got a call, it was my friend, letting me know he had convinced his girlfriend to let me stay for a month and a half, I would be lying now if I said that he saved my life by doing this.
I started to stay with him, there was no internet at first and the accommodation was as simple as you can imagine (I had one sofa bed and 2 plug sockets, the light bulb in the ceiling was broken, so I only had the light of my old laptop once it started to go dark.)
Sometimes, I see questions on HN, asking how someone could possibly survive with only $50,000 a year, I was surviving on about £0.25p per day, eating only tinned beans and packets of noodles, drinking water, my diet was and still is atrocious.
After a couple of months, I managed to find a job with a small web development company as an apprentice, the wages was poor but it was enough, around £300 per month, of which £68 was spent on transport (it was 15 miles from my home, some days, I couldn't afford the Bus and I would walk, i've actually become very accustomed to walking long distances, some days I can cover 1 or 1 + 1/2 marathons (23 / 35 miles) if I want to, and the pain in my feet only lasts a couple of days.)
I kept this job for 7 months, during which time I spent a further 2 weeks homeless, 2 months in a shelter, 2 months with family and 2 months again at the end with my friend, i loved the job and my boss, he was a lifeline of a sorts for me and taught me a lot.
Forward to November.
I was comfortable, in a way, I still ate cheap food and could barely afford travel, but I was able to give my friend money for the rent and to treat my girlfriend occasionally, but it has been an age since I've actually spent money on my self except for hair cuts (something I tend to wait a long period in between) and new shoes (lots of walking wears them out quickly, I average around 200 miles / pair though, so the cost comes to about £0.03 per mile.)
I was looking for a new job, I felt as though I needed more money, my new found "luxury" wasn't enough and I happened upon a company 30 miles away who wanted a junior developer, £15k per year!
I interviewed and got offered the job 30 minutes later over the phone, but it meant quitting my first job, I don't lie when I say it was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, emotionally, to tell him that his only employee was leaving, but it was a necessary decision, for my own future.
Christmas came fast, but between jobs (I wasn't being hired until January) I had no money, it was a budget, I only just managed to afford a present for my girlfriend (An antique cup and saucer to replace one she smashed accidentally when making a cup of Tea (her favourite drink)) and there wasn't always money for electricity or gas, so some nights I had to lie under my blanket from 6pm just to stay warm.
Now I have my own home, 2 months later, I couldn't afford the full deposit and had to explain that I "didn't have enough money" to my new landlord, something of a kick to my pride, but he let me have it for cheaper.
Currently I have £5.62 to my name, to last me until March, but I'm happier than I've ever been, I have everything I've ever wanted (No TV, home internet or phone, but a living girlfriend and a roof over my head) and from here, I can only go up.
Poverty is not a choice we make, not directly anyway, when I moved I knew it would be hard, but not this hard. I don't know how I will get to work when my bus pass runs out next Monday, I will probably walk.
I don't know why I told my story here (heavily shortened) but all I know is this: if there is anyone else out there in the positions I've been in this past year, take heart, you are going to survive.
