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Home My WebLink AboutThe Wingham Advance Times, 1995-12-06, Page 7WEIlN P, DECEMBER 6,1995 O Surviving on welfare: t can be accomplished The following first appeared as part of a series on Welfare Survival in the Exter Times -Advocate. By BRENDA BURKE Special to the Advance -Times It can be done. According to Bruce Shaw, Bob Bart and Donna Pridham, living on a $23.25 diet week, which works out to $3.32 per day, is possible. These figures are based on a re- cent Toronto Star article describing how the Food Bank convinced 11 single Metro residents to live on a welfare -.grocery budget for one week. After deducting $325 for shelter allowance, the average single per- son living on social assistance is left with a living allowance of $195 a month to cover food, clothing, tel- ephone, cable TV, transportation and personal care. After deducting $4.75 for basic telephone service, $3.50 for basic cable service, $1.75 per laundry load, $5 for personal hygiene items, $3 for clothing and $2.50 for household items, that leaves exactly $23.25 a week for food. And that's very close to what Bart, Shaw and Pridham spent on groceries for a week in November while on the experimental diet. Bart spent $23.76, Shaw's grocery bill came to $24.55 between two separ- ate trips to the grocery store and Pridham forked over a total of $22.76. But living within Social Services Minister David Tsubouchi's new welfare requirements was accom- plished without crisis by the three Exeter , participants who admitted they had their doubts when first • asked to take part in the test. By their diet's end, however, all seemed content and a little sur- prised at their success. And, every- one had lost a pound or two. Shaw, admitting he'd often spend more than $23 on one meal, said the diet altered his lifestyle for the week. "Probably for the first time in my working life," he said, "I'm eating three meals a day." Normally he would skip breakfast and lunch and compensate with a hefty supper at night. "I've had to cook meals for my- self and l like it," said the 53 -year- old high school principal who ad- mits instead of cooking meals for himself, he usually eats in restau- rants or at friends' homes: Now that the diet is over and he's lost four pounds, Shaw may try having breakfast and lunch on a regular basis. Although he admitted he was more concerned about surviving than nutrition while on the diet, if he had to do it all again, he'd make some changes. "One thing I'm learning about is fat," he said. You can flavor food without fat...If I were doing this again I would put emphasis on sal- ads." "If I were on this long term," he added, "I'd he buying lots of poul- try." Despite the fact Shaw favors snacks and desserts, he said he didn't have cravings throughout the week. Although the diet taught him about nutrition, price -comparing, creative cooking and self-discipline, he attributed some of his success to the fact he is " a sensible shopper," who's "capable of cooking." Also, he's had a few years of experience working in a grocery store. Shaw made large amounts of meals he loved such as spaghetti, chili and wieners and beans. "I haven't had (wieners and beans) since 1 was a kid," he said. "1 love it." Breakfasts consisted of orange juice and Shreddies with bananas and for lunch he had apples with carrot sticks nearly every day. Snacks and alcohol were virtually eliminated from his diet. He later admitted buying 99 cent wieners was "an impulse thing." He only felt hungry on the first day of the diet. And when people offered him food, such as hot choc- olate, donuts and entire meals, he had to turn them down. Luckily, his regular poker night. which is normally a time for him to enjoy snack foods. was postponed during the week of the diet. Shaw engaged in a one -day eating binge when his diet was over and was disappointed with the resulting uncomfortable feeling compared with feeling "better than normal" while on the diet. "I hope there's some long-term changes to make to my eating hal, its," he said. In contrast to the Toronto diet Donna- Pridham...living on $3.32 per day. participants, who felt depressed and lethargic while on the diet, Shaw felt great. "I've proven it to myself," he said, adding the Toronto people were either "predisposed to this being a negative experience or else they made some had food choices." As a related experiment of his own just before trying the experi- ment, Shaw made three calls to people he knew and pretended to ask for odd jobs. When 15 minutes had passed, in theory he'd come up with an extra $60 he could have added to his grocery budget. As with Shaw, the strict food budget also brought Bart. to eating regular meals. He alternated be- tween eggs, oranges and french toast for breakfasts and included one morning staple that wasn't part of his grocery budget - coffee. He wanted to buy coffee at the be- ginning of the week but after 45 minutes of planning . out his week's menu and shopping for his choices, • Bart found he had no money left. "If I had to buy coffee," he said, "I don't think I could've done (the diet.)" Instead he bought a variety of foods to last him through lunches and suppers including favorite items such as french fries and macaroni and cheese. He also pur- chased a whole chicken, which provided him with five meals in- cluding homemade soup. "I just bought stuff I knew I needed for the week," he said. Some of his food choices were based strictly on price. For exam- ple, he purchased french fries at 79 cents a hag instead of a bag of potatoes at 51.29. Not only did he save money for other items, he didn't end of buying something he would not use and later throw out. And, like with many of his .food choices. Bart opted for the cheaper version of wieners instead of the more expensive brand he normally buys. "If 1 was on welfare, 1 could do this," he said the day he purchased his groceries. "Whether I can do it or not personally, I don't know." The 44 -year-old meat manager attributes much of his diet success to the fact he's had 25 years of grocery store experience. Not eve- ryone thinks of going to the hutch- er, he said, to get meat cut up in cost-saving ways. Shedding about three pounds and having only five oranges left by his diet's end, Bart felt he did well with the four hags of grocer- ies he started out with. Physically he felt the same as he did before going on the diet and admitted, although he wasn't hun- gry all week long. he did miss his nighttime snacks of chips or "a couple of chocolate bars." Instead. he chose to eat oranges and wait it through. Although he made it through the diet, Bart admitted he wouldn't want to carry on the practice for more than a week. I wouldn't want to he on wel- fare," he said. "1 wouldn't want to do it every week. I don't think I could because I'm used to having better quality food." At the diet's beginning, he said, "I had that negative attitude," hut tried it "to see if it could be done." Before he purchased the grocer- ies, friends and co-workers also thought the diet wasn't possible but once they saw the articles he bought after careful planning, many, as well as Bart himself, changed their minds. Reflecting on the diet later, Bart said he felt there are lots of simple ways for welfare recipients to cut back expenses and added learning how to plan meals helps. He did mention, however, that even if he hadn't planned out his meals, he would have been success- ful with the diet.. He also feels a general change in attitudes towards social assistance will help; he gets frustrated when people say they can't afford cable, yet they buy cof- fee. Coffee is one of the things Donna Pridham did without when' she agreed to go on .the social assis- tance budget diet. She also avoided using extra spices to flavor her food. • "The only thing I wanted to do was go down to the (restaurant) and have coffee but I didn't," she said, admitting she turned down a few other offers to go out for supper.. Remembering hard times during the post Depression Days, Pridham, at 61, attributes her diet success to the fact she makes a habit of plan- ning and preparing meals, shopping economically, freezing food, mak- ing homemade soup and preserva- tives and saving beat[ juice for stew to make it last for days. "What's the point of buying a can of beef soup. You're paying more," she said. "I think the secret is to sit down and plan your meals...Smart shopping and coupons is the right answer," she said, adding it was challenging to make meals near the end of the week when she was run- ning out of items. With bologna, apples, crackers, eggs and a few vegetables left, Pridham said she purchased a few things she had no use for. "Why did I buy milk when 1 don't like milk? Why did I buy soda biscuits when I didn't make soup.?" she said, adding, "I still pretty well bought the stuff 1 liked." Without planning. she admitted. she never would've been able to succeed with the diet. When asked if the experience had taught her anything, Pridham said shook her head. "I'd been down that road when 1 was a kid," she said. Although she said she "felt al- right" while on the diet, she lost about two pounds and complained of headaches, yet wasn't sure whether or not a cold was causing them. "I didn't think I could do it," she said. recalling paying $35 a week on groceries for herself and her husband 40 years ago. "If you don't have it, you don't spend it," she said, adding, "I fig- ure if people want those luxuries they're not going to sit on welfare." "I'm not saying you should cut out everything," she continued. "We're all human beings and 1 think we all want to do little' things...If it can he worked out in your budget, then go for it." d. THE IYINCMMINV4NCETIME$ Mens Week Save December 3 t® Deeemtser 9 Storewide rR71rT7701----- e Room ®® -1 I Wish List: 1 I ► I ish List: 1. 12. 1 1 1. 1 1 2. 13. 1 13. 1 Size: 1 I Size: L L Rosalind's Fashion Ave & The Male Room Mens & Ladies Clothing 206 Josephine Street, Wingham 357-3886 WINGHAM Thank You ForAskiflg! Thank you for asking! Compared to oil, electricity or propane, natural gas is an efficient and economical fuel choice for home heating. 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