I still live with both of my parents as a "Parasite Single" & a "Struggling" Hikikomori. My dad is a retired civil servant (who used to work for the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs) & now he has his own "Mom & Pop Store" Family Business. Which ironically is ran & managed by my mom, my dad on the other hand only occasionally "supervise" it since he most of the time stay at home like me while my mom works really hard to make some profit from this Small Family Business. Sometimes they ask me to help out a bit but they won't pay me since I'm not an employee just a voluntary helping hand. And they won't give me any allowance either since I don't go to college anymore, they say that they'll give me money + allowances only if I go to back to college. Which of course is almost impossible since I've vowed to study by myself at home as an Autodidact. Though I'm thinking of going back to college if I can only find a college with a major that I can excel in.

So yeah, I'm currently penniless, without a future & without a hope. All that I get from my parents is Free Lodging & Free Meal & that's it. Despite having nothing I'm still struggling to become a Mangaka (Manga Artist). I don't have any drawing talents to begin with but I'm currently learning to draw from Self-Taught Guidebooks I've bought in the past. I've already made an excellent story that only needs to be drawn Manga Style to make it complete. But lately I've gotten lazy & I'm worried if my project will only fail horribly.

But I still haven't given up yet. I know for sure that it's my "Calling" to become a Mangaka despite not having any talents to begin with. All that I can do now is to keep learning & keep improving until it's done. Oh yeah, I have also set my ambition even further. My dream is to become a Successful Mangaka in Japan!

Yeah, I know that's an Impossibly Big Dreams that I doubt will ever succeed, but it's still worth of achieving I think. So my Struggle still continues...

Thanks to my parents and the French "welfare state". But it won't last forever since I leave school and have no job.

incapacity benefit and dla (i cant see me ever working again)

.......i work under the table......no clues no answers

I have a job, but my boss and I are always in a war over me calling in sick. She gives me no hours and tries to fire me, I threaten to sue and provide disability documentation, she goes to legal and gets reminded she can't fire me because of the ADA, I get some hours, call in sick when I can't get out of bed, and the cycle starts again. Thank god for the litigiousness of the American legal system. And thank god I am technically still enrolled in law school so my threats have more weight, . I think I might hang in there till I qualify for unemployment, then let myself get fired finally and collect on up. Or if I'm feeling really spiteful I'll hang on till October, take three months of FMLA, renew my FMLA next January, and then come back and get fired. So she gets six months of being understaffed because she has to hold my position open! And if she really pisses me off I'll file an EEOC suit even if she doesn't fire me because the other documented disabled employees at my store don't have to deal with this bullshit, she just screws me over because depression and anxiety aren't "real" disabilities. Mmm, then I'll get a good year of lost wages, that'll be enough to live on for a while.

, this is what happens when you hire an over-educated and underemployed political science and law major.

Anyway, since I don't work most of the time, I'll share my plans/tips for living without a standard job.

1 // Exploit rich and lazy relatives/acquaintances. Most people will pay you absurd amounts of money to do things they are just too lazy to figure out how to do themselves, or even things they do know how to do but don't feel like doing. Home repairs and cleaning make me about as much as a minimum wage job while eating up so much less time than one. Also, no boss/coworkers.

2 // Grow your own food. I guess this is hard to do if you live in the city, but since I live in the middle of nowhere, I've been practicing my growing/preserving for years now in preparation for moving out. A little bit goes a long way if you're just feeding one and can wean yourself off a lot of processed shit. My processed vices are pretty much down to coffee and cigarettes now. Coffee's not that expensive, the cigs are bad but that's just because I'm lazy and comfortable at the moment living at home and haven't bothered to teach myself to roll my own. I foresee that happening real soon.

3 // If you have room for plant growing, you have room for hens. A dozen or so don't cost much to keep (especially if you know a lot of farmers and can trade animal care while they're on vacation for feed...) and drop a shitton of eggs once they've matured to laying age. Eat what you can, sell the rest. If you live somewhere where there are a lot of rich organic nuts this can actually be kind of profitable. (Also, if you have room for hens, consider a dairy cow. Raw milk won't kill you (unless you're real unlucky), and though the initial cost is sort of high, it pays you back fast considering how much fucking milk costs, goddamn it. Again, it helps to be chummy with farmers...)

4 // Make your own clothes and linens. Sewing and knitting isn't hard to teach yourself, and you don't have get all your fabric at craft stores for exorbitant prices. Jumble sales are good for yarn and fabric/bulk clothes you can rip apart for materials. Also a little sewing knowledge can make your current clothes last for fucking ever. If you don't mind looking a little run down, you can pretty much wear the same clothes for a decade.

5 // Know your government agencies and don't be ashamed to hit them up for money. The State exists to serve you, after all. It helps if you understand legalese or have some legal training/experience with state governments and how they work.

6 // Save on utilities. Don't turn on the heat till your pipes are about to freeze, don't turn on the air until you start to get sick from the heat. Don't turn on lights unless you really need them, use candles instead. If you live in the country, you've probably got a well/septic system, which takes out another bill right there. Wash clothes/do water-intensive tasks during off-peak electrical hours to save money. Who needs a home phone? Or a cell phone, if you have internet? Or cable TV, if you have internet? Shop around for internet, don't hesitate to jump from company to company to exploit sales.

Pretty much, be a cheap bastard, do a lot of things yourself, and use your jobless free-time to your advantage and you'll be surprised by how much money you can save for fun things/basic living.

Of course, most of this assumes you don't rent...or do a lot of driving...if you're stuck in either of those situations, I can't help you much, since I've never been there. But hopefully some of this helps. Kinda. I guess if any hikis have questions on how to do shit yourself, I'm the person to ask.

mementomori - What you just said makes you sound like the epitome of what Rush Limbaugh would hate
Even though depression is clearly a real disability, I have to say, I sorta sympathize with your boss. (Oh god, I'm turning into my dad)

(I really value self-sufficiency and DIY ethics though. Growing own food, living within realistic means, etc)

I'm young enough to not have a job... for now. When I get older and my writing can't save me then...

It's cool. Haters gonna hate, but when the man tries to fuck with the proles, I'm trollin' till they hang me for treason.

People like my boss think they can fuck with kids and depressives and other struggling people just because they have some shitty badge and 50 cent raise that makes them managers instead of crew members. If I make fucking with us hell instead of an easy power trip, maybe she'll think twice. Or try to bring the hammer down harder, but unfortunately for her, I'll always be lurking in the shadows, offering legal advice and other handy tips to those she tries to mess up.

BTW thought I'd clear up that I in no way support Rush . I can't stand the guy. Or any of those types of people. But, with all due respect, I'd still probably fire you regardless of the law if I was your manager. IMO if people are struggling so that it impairs their ability to work, they shouldn't be working. At least, not in a place where productivity, efficiency, and profit are the main focus. That's business, after all.

So then, what, they should just not work ever and end up on the streets? If we had a more secure State safety net, I'd agree, but since we don't the crippled pretty much have to try to work no matter how hard it is for them and no matter how much it slows the line. That's why we end up with laws like the ADA in America--so that people who are having extreme problems can't get fired just because it doesn't follow the business's bottom line. They have to keep getting paid by a corporation because the State refuses to pick up the slack.

I basically meant that people should try as best they can to work in a position that is more suitable to their personality/needs. I hate people so continuing to work customer service would have made me pull my hair out or worse. So, I quit and found a more suitable job unloading material off of semis and processing stuff on a computer in a warehouse. It keeps me busy, feeling productive, and out of the public eye. And it's kinda fun. I worked at Subway many years ago for like a year and a half, and it was pure hell basically because of the people I had to deal with everyday. I don't know how I lasted that long without shooting someone. But even when I felt like total ass, I still went in. I know it's impossible for me to see inside other people's heads, but I've always adopted a suck-it-up attitude about life. I never make excuses for myself nor do I look to others outside of those I am close to for help. I don't expect or want the government to be my savior. I don't expect life to be nice or fair and just face the storm as best I can. I don't empathize well nor do I believe in all types of equality. I basically accept the philosophy that shit is going to suck, so all I can do is keep on moving. I probably come off as cold to some, but it works for me. (Or inconsistent )

When I look at a job, it is just a modern form of survival. I feel lucky if I manage to get one and hold onto it. If I screw up and get fired, so be it, I'll try to find another. (And be really angry while doing so ) I understand that everyone needs to take some time off every now and again to recharge and whatnot, but it just feels like taking advantage of the legal system if I did it too often because I knew that an organization would put my employer's balls in a vice if they tried to fire me and get someone else who was able to work more.

To sum up my sporadic stream of consciousness, from what I've read, it seems selfish to me.

Pretty much just living with parents. Which is great because they live away from the population in a really rural area.

mementomori, you're a badass motherfucka I appreciate the DIY tips you've provided. I'd love to start gardening and own my own hen one day. Urban farming is actually gaining speed in Vancouver. People are into square-meter gardens at shit now. It's also legal to own your own hen and goat here now (for domestic purposes. It was banned due to sanitary regulations). Goats are also a lot easier to maintain than cows if you don't live in the middle of nowhere.

Anyways, that's just future me talking. My mother is quite strict about making a "mess" of the house. It's why I don't bother cooking anymore. Disorganization gives her headaches.

I'm currently living at home. I'm starting to buy my own food now so that I don't need to continuously ask my mom to get it for me. I'm the only one eating it anyways.

I have two part-time jobs since I"m not in school atm. I'm going back in July, so I'm not sure what my working situation will be then. For now, since I have nothing better to do, I work.

I used to rot at home, but I'm not reclusive by nature, so it really wasn't healthy for me and made me more depressed. Working gives me a reason to go out, which is beneficial to me financially and mentally.

Depression is really debilitating, but I find it easier to cope when I am busy with something; especially if it's something that progresses me in some way.

So basically, my mom takes are of my accommodation, some food and whatever else I can mooch off of her. I pay for my own leisurely spending and whatever food she doesn't get.

In my defense, I am obligated to take care of her when she retires. It's an Asian thing.

Hah, I'm not badass as much as I'm genetically obliged to be a cheap-ass pollack. It can't be stopped. I've tried. XD

My parents have both their retirements so solidly set-up and regimented that they'd still probably be able to pay for me full-time on top of paying for themselves when they're retired. That and I can't see either of them actually stopping work until they're physically thrown out of the building...they wouldn't know what to do with themselves if they didn't work.

What do your parents do? O_o (if you don't mind me asking). Seems like you almost have the life when it comes to mooching off parents

My father is the head of sales at an engineering/manufacturing corporation, and my mother works at a blood bank hunting down tainted units of blood and calling people up and telling them they have horrible diseases. She also makes a lot of money on the side selling off antiques and shit.

The rents have hella bank (and the grandparents + rich uncles who have no other heirs have about triple the bank), but I don't really get to see much of it. I pay for my own clothes and books and such. I mean, I do get free room and board though, so I guess that's a lot. But they'd never loan me any money if I needed any of it. That and I don't forever want to have to be biting my tongue and pretending to be someone I'm not in order to keep my mother from flying off the handle at me.