Nickel and Dimed Ch. 1

In Nickel and Dimed it tells of a woman Barbara Ehrenreich who is the author of how she would try to make it in life with a poverty level job making only about 6 to 7 dollars an hour. It begins with the experiment which is to survive on a poverty level job. But she had to set some limits with this experiment to fully be useful to her. She could not use any of her previous knowledge that she had acquired. But she would not go without a car, would not become homeless, and would not go without food. She would spend a month in a setting and try to find a job and attempt to earn the money to pay for that month’s rent. In this experiment she starts with advantages as she is of Caucasian descent and can speak English unlike most low-wage workers. Also she had no kids to care for which helps in expenses she had to pay and she also was in better health than all normal low-wage workers.
Her experiment began in Key West, Florida. In the book as she searches for a house she tells of how she was shocked that “trailer trash” has become something to aspire to. In this book it tells of the trouble it is in finding a job as many places of business leave wanted ads up to keep applicants so they might be able to replace any workers that drift away or are fired making it harder to obtain a job anywhere. Also it tells about some of the living conditions of the coworkers, Gail and Claude want to escape the confines of their homes like Gail’s roommate who hits on her but she cannot do anything because she cannot pay the rent alone. Claude lives with two others and his girlfriend and is attempting to leave but is struggling with money at the time so is forced to stay. What is shocking is what is considered the wealthiest of them only makes ten dollars an hour which shows how much a couple dollars can change a life in poverty.