Midnight at The Oasis...

...HEAT ADVISORY NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT SATURDAY...

THE HEAT ADVISORY IS NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT SATURDAY.

ABNORMALLY HOT CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST THROUGH SATURDAY AS
AFTERNOON HEAT INDICES REACH 105 DEGREES...WITH NIGHTTIME LOWS
ONLY FALLING TO BETWEEN 75 AND 80 DEGREES. EXTENDED PERIODS OF
HEAT CAN RESULT IN HEAT RELATED STRESS. DRINK PLENTY OF
FLUIDS...STAY IN AN AIR- CONDITIONED ROOM...STAY OUT OF THE
SUN...AND CHECK UP ON RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS.

"Mother...is that YOU?"

• I overslept for my "Relocation Meeting" at the housing authority, because there's no airflow to my room, resulting in me tossing/turning/sweating all night long.
• The frustrated liberal arts major, stuck working for the Public Housing Authority, refused to honor AGAIN the 15th (or 74th) letter submitted by one of Al's Specialist's requesting additional space for his equipment, thus allowing me the financial relief needed to buy FOOD for my child.
  (we only qualify for a 2 bedroom voucher, and I've paid the difference out of pocket for this 3 bed, desperate for the space and having had repeated requests turned down, been willing to tolerate Slummy's slumminess)
• I now know every square inch of this town, and I was mistaken...there are 78 Pentecostal Churches...not 74.
• Every house I find that's livable and in a decent neighborhood, is consistently OVER the Public Housing Payment standards by $100.00...at least.
  
• Last, but the most dramatic...I've been doing this in the triple digit heat since noon.

The Federal Government decides the payment standards...how much house will $575.00 a month get a person? I will pay almost $200.00 of that 575...it's not free housing. They pay even less if you rent an apartment, duplex, or condo. It's 30% of your gross income. You see why people DON'T try and get off assistance? You get more if you don't try at all.

At the "Relocation" meeting, like I'm a refugee...I guess am, the mighty frustrated one is telling everyone to hurry up and get a place, because there are major cuts coming down the pike...as in, those just issued vouchers will be cut first.

I'm ready to load Mer-boy up in that stupid SUV... grab Satan the cat...Cooper The Hamster...and head to Key West, where Mer-boy can swim till he grows gills, I can write with Hemingway's Ghost, and Satan can chase Parrot fish into the sunset...