Personal post

I don’t do personal posts much, but a recent series of events kinda highlights something. I have an old friend from back home who I used to work with.

She was facing difficult personal circumstances in that her former partner having knocked her up, became repeatedly violent. So she left and was living in crappy state funded accommodation. She didn’t have a job and was living on state benefits.

Anyway, periodically I would get a text about her being broke and the gas is cut off or not having any food etc and could I help her out. So I agreed (because you can’t really say “No, the six year old should go hungry or freeze or not have a school uniform) and over the year I gave her a pretty decent sum of money.

Anyway, my friend has an events company and they want to run a charity casino (not for real money, but tokens where you win a prize) and he asked me if I could train the roulette dealers. Now I can’t as BlackJack and dice were my games, but Dawn was a roulette dealer, so she could do this. So I offered her the work, to be done at her convenience, and she declined. “Reading is too far” (about 90 miles) “I can’t get there” (yes you can, the train) “it’s too awkward with my son” (get someone to look after him) and a series of other excuses.

I don’t know why she’s like this, and I don’t mind helping people in temporary trouble, but when you show them a way out and they don’t take it, it’s very, very frustating.

Consequently, I’ve changed my cellphone and blocked her e-mail, because I couldn’t not help if she again told me her son was freezing (because I’m just stupid like that), but I’ve fixed it so she can no longer contact me. I think this is what happens when people get used to receiving state benefits, they just can’t or won’t help themselves anymore.