Letters to the Editor
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The real question, @handlebar...
"And now you are stuck freelancing...for Salon. "
The real question is what she'll do when Salon finally goes belly-up. I have no idea what's been keeping it around for the last several years (my personal theory is that the larger media conglomerates use Salon as a testing ground for new net-based media business models) but it's been running on fumes for so long that anyone actually depending on that "fat" Salon paycheck is far from secure.
I mean, Premium didn't work, so they're trying to get all their income from ads. More power to them if that's making a profit, but I'm doubtful.
So I'd rather have seen the story about the black pit of debt the author (or others) are facing when someone finally turns out the lights. Because that's going to be a lot more relevant to a lot more people as the economy slides into the Bush depression. Lots of people will be holding onto their mediocre jobs for dear life.
The frickin' lattes will be the least of anyone's problems.
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Watch out for recreational shopping
This has probably come up already. I am firmly convinced that part of the reason for overspending and having debt (other than medical expenses and layoffs) is the tendency to go to the mall for entertainment. For a lot of people I know, if they don't have plans they often go shopping. Hey, the mall is climate-controlled and usually safe and is convenient for meeting friends. I've tried and mostly succeeded at stopping recreational shopping.
Now if I could quit recreational e-Baying....
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the letter writers don't disappoint!
Salon's readers don't disappoint. Sarah, you were brave to publish your article, or at least you were brave if you care a fig for whatever anonymous people on the internet write about you.
Almost a decade ago, I had 60k in credit card debt. I earned (wait for it) 14k annually. Due to a variety of circumstances (mostly super-cheap rent and no other debts), I was able to keep up with my minimum payments and never had to default, but I understand the soul sucking pit of large debt, as well as its vicious cycle attributes. When you're feeding Visa hundreds of dollars monthly, you can't save, so any emergency expense has to --you guessed it -- be charged on Visa. Lather, rinse, repeat. I made a lot of bad choices back then (charging things like expensive new winter coats and plane tickets to visit family and friends). I made good choices, too (cheap rent, no car debt or student debt to add to the pile, throwing everything I could at the debt monster). But in the end it was a horrible, horrible situation, and I had to really hit the rock bottom of "my debt is controlling and ruining my life" before I could really make progress.
What did I do?
Well, for one, I got a better job, one that paid 47k annually instead of 14k. Getting a better job is easier said than done, certainly, but it's no crime to actively seek higher pay for your work. I knew a lot of people (especially creative people) at that time in my life who thought chasing the almighty buck was a sign of greed and moral failure. I don't agree. Bringing in a decent income is not a failure. For two, I joined Debtor's Anonymous. I come from a long line of alcoholics. I know the dance of addiction well, and have seen more people through rehab than I care to catalog, and have seen people I care about drink themselves to death. I thought, because I generally avoid alcohol and drugs, that I had dodged the "fuck-up-your-life-with-compulsion" bullet, but I hadn't. My disease manifested itself in money. I literally got the shakes contemplating life without credit cards (which DA requires). I'd get lightheaded walking past stores I liked. That's screwed up, yeah? But I white knuckled it to start and ended up going several years with no credit cards at all. Probably, this was bad for my credit score, but for my mental health it was truly necessary.
Sarah, I don't know if you're compulsive like me, but for people like me the people who tell you your problems will be over if you stop buying lattes were like people telling drunks that if they just switch to beer instead of straight whiskey, their alcohol problems will be solved. For a normal person, yes, this might work, but for screw-ups like me, not so much.
Spending is still something I work on. I have an excellent credit score. I pay all my bills on time. I have a cheap used car so I can afford to save money and also afford to pay a mortgage instead of rent. Yay, me, I guess. But unlike a drunk, I can't simply never spend money ever again, and so I battle it daily. After I paid off my 60k debt, I spent several years debt-free. Then I ran up another 5k on credit cards. I paid that off. Then I ran up 8k. I paid that off, and so far am holding the "no-unsecured debt" line (let's not contemplate my mortgage!), but it's a battle all the same.
You wrote a brave article, Sarah. Thank you for sharing. And for your sake, I hope you are not an addict like me. You won't spend your life wondering about every dollar that slips through your fingers, and wondering if it's healthily gone, or just feeding the compulsion.
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Debt Collection
I've not had a chance to read all of the responses on here, so i don't know if it has been mentioned.
Any consumer with any debt needs to read up on the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. They cannot call you day and night, they cannot tell you to get a job, they cannot insult you. There are clearly laid out rights and responsibilities.
Getting stressed and sick because every ring of the phone freaks you out is not going to help you out of this situation. It does not matter how much you owe or why you owe it, you cannot be abused. The debt collectors know this but they count on you not knowing it. Once the situation is engaged however, every infraction of the FDCPA can get you $1000.
So you screwed up, you went beyond your means, you charged too much or whatever. It doesn't matter. You have rights. After you deal with your debt with the FDCPA rules, check out the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The FCRA does not allow them to doublehump your credit scores either.