It's true... I was made for you

Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six

Because I had already been to so many schools in my illustrious academic career, and because the school districts were starting to lump grade 7 students into the high schools, Mom wanted to try to find a house that would allow me to complete my grade 7 year in an elementary school (half the town had instituted the change, while the other half of the town was waiting another year) - being the new kid is bad enough, but starting out in a high school?  Talk about scary culture shock!

Grandmonster had scouted around before we came down and found a house that was one street away from the high school, not far from the elementary school, and two blocks away from their house.  The rent was higher than Mom was comfortable with, but Dad assured her he would help her out under the table (because she was going to be on welfare, anything more than $100 would end up deducted from her cheque: he told her he'd help out with groceries).  As well, Grandmonster painted pretty pictures of weekly dinners to help lighten the load.  Plus, with them being so close, it would be like having built-in help!

Riiiiight.

Mom quickly had to take the insurance off her car because she couldn't afford it.  Even though they were "right around the corner!" and Grandmonster didn't work, there were mornings that Nick and I would walk to school in the pouring rain - walking past Grandmonster's house - to arrive at school soaked to the bone.  (I'll never forget one morning where it was MONSOONING: we were waiting to see if it would let up, but it didn't, so we ended up leaving late and having to ride our bikes to make up the lost time.  We were half way to school, six-year old Nick sobbing his little heart out the whole way, before we turned around so I could take him home.  I carried on to school after that, arriving late and soaked.)  To add insult to injury, they'd loan the car to Donna all the time; however, when they went on holidays - and obviously weren't going to need the car - they LOCKED it in the garage so Mom wouldn't be able to use it (not that she would have without permission anyhow).  Just one more in a long, long list of inequalities and blatant slaps in the face between their two children.

We "shopped" at the flea market (clothes were new, but obvious knock-offs).  We I "borrowed" groceries from Dad's when he never made good on his promise to cover groceries.  Those weekly dinners?  Never materialized.  Mom subsisted on black coffee and cigarettes so us kids would have enough food to eat.  There was no cable.  There was no car.  There was nothing above and beyond the barest necessities.  

When we went to Dad's every other weekend, it was like a trip to Disneyland!  McDonald's!  Movies!  New toys!  New clothes!  A Nintendo a month before Christmas!  (All of which he demanded remain at his house, of course.)  He didn't lift a finger to help Mom.  She had to take him to court to get him to pay child support.  (At the same time, a government agency decided to go after The Donor for 13 years of back child support.  When it was awarded to Mom, she told the judge that she could most certainly use it, but she wanted to put it into a trust account for me to use for school, because when the time came for me to go to college, she likely wouldn't be able to help me out.  I owe my entire post secondary education (and second vehicle, but that's another story) to my mom.)

It got to the point where Mom just could not make ends meet anymore: it became a choice between paying the rent OR paying the electric bill OR putting food on the table.  She made an extremely difficult decision and asked Dad to move into the house with us kids, this way ensuring that Nick and I wouldn't have to change schools.  It broke her heart to try to explain to three-year old Taylor why Mommy was putting her clothes in boxes.  She moved out and Dad moved in during the summer between grades 7 and 8 (I think - it's been so long, I'm not entirely sure anymore).  She moved in with a friend and started working nights at a gas station.  We didn't see her often because where she was living wasn't really set up for overnight visits with three children.  

Life as we knew it turned upside down once again.