Urban survival tips for when the financial sh*t hits the fan: gas, shelter, food, wifi & more
- Shayna Marie
- Jul 24, 2020
- 11 min read
Updated: Jul 3
Experiencing what feel like dire straights, and need advice NOW? I've compiled a list of my scrappiest emergency-level tips (from first-hand life experience) to help get you through.
I acquired these tips over several years within the context of being a solo traveler with baseline access to a car and smartphone. They're gritty, but have successfully gotten me through rough patches when necessary.
Given the unprecedented time we're experiencing globally with a pandemic actively affecting lives and livelihoods, I feel even more compelled to list them all in one easily accessible place. That said, these tips aren't suitable for everyone and not everyone will need them. I'm also writing this as an American currently living in Los Angeles. Some tips might not be accurate internationally (when I mention specific stores, stations, or apps) or won't be as relevant in more rural areas.
#1: If your car is running on fumes & you have no money to refill the tank
Force the pump to run your debit card as a credit card at certain gas stations
Many gas stations have pre-authorization minimums for your debit card if you try to swipe it at the pump to get a full tank of gas without pre-paying. This amount often hovers around $20. If you don't have the minimum funds available in your debit account, the pump will tell you to go pre-pay inside at the register. What do you do if you only have $5 or a few cents available on your card?
When the pump asks you, "is this a debit card?"...you need to fib. It's as simple as that. Tell the pump it's a credit card and force your debit card to overdraft. This is not something I suggest trying to do inside the station, or involving the cashier with in any way at the risk of them telling you "that's not allowed." If you've pulled into a station with barely enough gas to leave before your car shuts off, you've got to handle this on your own at the pump. And make sure you fill up your entire tank in one go, because this only works if you aren't over-drafted already.
NOT ALL GAS STATIONS HAVE THIS LOOPHOLE.
As of right now in Los Angeles you can still do this at Mobil stations.
You CANNOT do this at Shell.
I feel I should also say, I only suggest this tactic be used in an emergency. For many people a tank of gas is the difference between being able to go to a job interview or not, or to pick up a gig. Secondly, you do ultimately have to pay back your bank and get your account in the green again soon or you can suffer bank fees. Most banks, if you don't have a prior habit of overdrawing, will remove an overdraft fee though if you just call and ask nicely.
Prep Tip: Test this at all your local gas stations in advance, when you do have funds available, and write down the stations where it works in a notepad you keep in your glove compartment or console for future reference.
#2: If you're in between shelter, or LOST, & need immediate wifi to regroup
Park in a 24-hour McDonald's parking lot for the strongest free wifi access at any hour
When I had a couchsurfing host bail on me last minute, I found myself without a place to stay in the middle of the night in the middle of Los Angeles. I didn't have enough money for a hotel, couldn't complete a proper search for other accommodations from my phone, and needed access to wifi that I could connect my computer to.
The problem was, it was nearly midnight. No public libraries were open, and I couldn't go to a Starbucks to use their wifi.
Then it hit me—McDonald's!
And sure enough, when I found a 24-hour McDonald's, I parked in a far space in the lot and was able to connect my computer to their free guest wifi. It worked like a charm.
I've had to utilize this more than once and can attest that McDonald's wifi tends to blanket the entire parking lot. And with a McDonald's pretty much everywhere the chances of you finding one when everything else is closed are pretty high. Prep Tip: At the time, I had a vehicle that included a 12v outlet that allowed me to charge my computer if I left the car on. This, plus the strong wifi, is a winning combo. If you don't have a built-in outlet I suggest investing in an adapter that fits your charger.
#3: If you're about to lose shelter, Make a couchsurfing profile ASAP
It's not how the website is typically used but it can work if you're strategic
If you're unfamiliar with the couchsurfing community, it's centered around the backpacking/traveler ethos. It's a network of hosts and travelers all around the world that celebrate travel and community. When a traveler is interested in visiting a certain city or country, they will seek out hosts with similar interests to stay with during their trip. It's review based. Travelers check reviews of hosts to make sure it's a safe situation, and hosts do the same. "Couchsurfing" is mostly a catchy moniker. Sometimes the host has a couch, sometimes there's a whole private spare room, it just varies by listing. There is no money involved. Couchsurfing with a host is free.
However—and this is a huge caveat—the community at large, and especially the hosts, do not take kindly to being treated like free AirBNBs. And a typical stay is only a few days. It is much easier to create a profile on couchsurfing and enter into the community with a true traveler's spirit. And earlier rather than later, because it can take time for hosts to trust you as a new member. All of that said, I was able to return to couchsurfing not as a traveler most recently, but as someone trying to get my footing in LA. I was very open with my circumstances and reached out to local hosts asking if they'd be agreeable to a longer surf. The community was warm to me and I had a series of hosts, back-to-back, with stays ranging from a few days to a week or so. This kept myself (and my pet) safe and housed while looking for more work. I eventually met a host who became a close friend, who offered to let me stay for a few months. In that timeframe I landed my first big gig in the city and was able to secure permanent housing.
Note: given the variances of coronavirus cases and situations around the world as of the time of publishing this article, I cannot speak to how active or inactive the couchsurfing community is in any particular locale. Prep Tip: Make a profile on www.couchsurfing.org as soon as you can. If you don't need it now, go ahead and just try to do a short stay or two around where you live to build up some reviews. If you don't have any reviews but need an immediate place to crash temporarily, create your profile and just be honest when you reach out to hosts.
#4: If you need longer-term temporary housing, & meals covered, for free
Consider local WWOOFing contracts, or nanny homestays that cover room and board
This is an option I have not personally used, but I have researched in the past. WWOOFing stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. Volunteers provide free labor on a farm, but their room and board is provided. A lot of people use this as a way to say, travel to Hawaii for a few months, for free.
As is the case with couchsurfing though, it can also be a resource locally in an emergency situation and doesn't have to be as labor-intensive as typical farming tasks. Some people are seeking a live-in nanny to help with the kids, or a housekeeper. Sometimes the agreed upon working hours are only part-time, even with room and board completely covered during off hours as well. Listings aren't always even on farms. If you have the flexibility to travel within a reasonable radius of your hometown (depending on where you live to begin with) this can be an amazing way to stay fed and housed while sorting out your next steps. And, you're helping someone else. When I was reaching out to hosts on these platforms several responded to me the same day. These networks aren't as conducive to emergency requests but I believe it's possible, and would say if you're in need give it a shot. These are three big websites to get started with:
Prep Tip: If you have time, dust off your resume, or create a new one listing all your homestay marketable skills. These can include cooking, cleaning, marketing services; be creative! It's always best to have things ready to go so that if you find yourself in a true emergency you don't have to scramble to collect the needed information.
#5: If You've tried to find emergency shelter but will have to sleep in your car
Call around to local churches and ask if you can park overnight; some have fenced lots
Trust me, I understand—if you're facing the reality of having to sleep in your car for the first time I know it can seem very scary. Take a deep breath, and remind yourself that the situation is temporary. Safety is the most important thing, with parking location being the most pressing matter to sort out. If you're experiencing this in a rural area it's probably easier to find a safely hidden spot, so this tip is mainly for city-dwellers. If it's still daytime the first thing I suggest you do is look up if your locality has any official safe parking programs enacted for this very purpose. In areas where these programs are active, businesses and churches provide as safe an environment as possible for overnight car sleeping. You may need to call and speak to someone during normal business hours to secure a space. If your municipality or area does not have any official programs, I implore you to still try to call local churches to inquire about safe overnight parking. It does not matter your denomination or if you're even religious, churches by their very nature are institutions meant to help. You may even end up speaking to someone who would offer you to park in their personal driveway, or offer a room for the night.
There is always hope. You're not a failure. Ask for help. If it's too late to reach anyone or there aren't any programs or churches around, I DO NOT suggest going to a rest stop. Too many people see rest stops as opportunities to prey on tired travelers. You can, however, in most of the country, park overnight in a Walmart parking lot (seriously!).
#6: If You are running out of money, need to eat, & can't get to a food bank
Download every local fast food app you can find to access new user deals
Fast food isn't necessarily the best, but it's cheap. It can even be argued that a McDonald's McDouble is one of the most nutritionally whole meals you can buy for a dollar or two.
If a dollar or two is all you have, you need to take advantage of how badly fast food places want customers on their apps. This is also true for other establishments beyond fast food. For example, Susie Cakes bakery (which is in Los Angeles but in other states too) had an app download promo of getting two free cupcakes with no purchase necessary. All you had to do was show the code from the app in the store. That's it! So go on a downloading spree of every fast food app you can find, and sign up with a new email. If you already have some of the apps, delete them from your phone or create a brand new account with them. If you don't have a second email you can make a new gmail account in less than 5 minutes. Between all of the apps, chances are very high that if you don't find an outright free deal, you'll land one or two BOGO deals that are reserved just for new app users.
#7: If You NEED TO FEED YOURSELF OUT OF YOUR CAR LONGER-TERM
Use 7/11's hot water from their coffee machines to cook freeze dried food in your car
Technically you can do this at any gas station, but I chose 7/11 because they're generally laid out in the same way, with the coffee machines not immediately next to the cash register or in plain sight.
Even though it's just water from a free-flowing spout, again, be discreet because it's very possible the attendants will be annoyed with you. This is a two-part tip. I'm a firm advocate of keeping some form of sustenance in your vehicle at ALL times. But it has to be something that won't take up too much room, isn't too expensive, and won't spoil. Enter: freeze-dried camping food.
You can buy freeze-dried meals in pouches on Amazon or in person at places like Dick's Sporting Goods. Mountain House is a great, affordable brand averaging $6 to $8 per pouch with each pouch containing multiple servings. 3-5 bags are enough servings to nearly last a full week, and all you need to add is boiling hot water. They do require being purchased in advance because they're not as easy to find on the fly. But they're worth it. If you live in a state that has allowed EBT cardholders to make purchases through Amazon, such as California, these meals ARE eligible.
Sneak a pouch into 7/11, fill it to the line with hot water from the coffee machine, and bounce. In and out. I cannot tell you how many times I've relied on this! Prep Tip: You can also get a cheap little army-style pocket stove (they literally fit in a shirt pocket) that runs on tiny solid fuel bricks. Keep the stove and some fuel bricks in your center console or glove compartment. If you end up having to sleep in your car for any reason you'll be able to heat up a can of soup or boil water for drinking if you don't have access to a fresh water source.
#8 bonus tip: download the spotangels app to find FREE parking anywhere
This isn't sponsored, I just love this app. You'll thank me later!
Oh, SpotAngels, what would I do without you? SpotAngels pools crowd-sourced parking information from its users, including street cleaning, signage updates, meter hours, and more, to provide highly accurate parking maps. I'm talking about being able to find the one unmetered/free street parking space in any city it's available in, wherever you need to go, at any time of day or night.
The app also makes it super easy to navigate to your desired parking location by allowing you to set your intended location and open it automatically in Waze or Google Maps. It also will automatically remember where you parked.
I haven't paid for street parking once since I downloaded this app, it's THAT good.
#9 bonus tip: Make an emergency essentials kit to keep in your vehicle
This is perhaps my simplest but most consistently useful tip on the list
The below might look like a lot, but the majority of items are available at dollar or discount stores. I created the following kit to have on hand in preparation for a cross-country move from DC to LA, but I found it to be so useful that I still keep it and replenish items as necessary. Everything fits compactly in a small plastic container.
Everyone's situation is different. Please, remember compassion.
Ultimately, nobody can define your struggles or presume to know the severity of your financial need unless you, yourself, share those details. For anyone reading this who is struggling, know that you are not alone. There is no shame in asking for help and doing what you need to do to eat and get by, as long as nobody is hurt in the process. If you are feeling defeated or scared, please, don't stop pushing through.
You will THRIVE again.