15 Hours

I retired from years of working in 2010. I thought this is the last time I will have to sign in to a job forever. It has been almost 10 years of struggling on Social Security. After years of having rent, food, prescriptions and so many of the other necessary things increase in price while Social Security has made minor increases in in what is received every year.

My wife and I do not live a life where we are spendthrifts by any means. However, it got to the point where we were struggling to pay the bills and had nothing left over to go out to eat once in a while. Our biggest burden has been the cost of medical insurance. When people get old and go on Medicare they have to realize it is not free from then on. A large Medicare premium is taken out of Social Security each month. Then Medicare only pays about 80%. So who gets the burden of the other 20%. Yes, it was up to us to get supplemental insurance to cover that extra 20% of medical coverage. Between the Medicare premium that is taken out of our Social Security and the supplemental every month we are paying about $660 per month just for medical insurance. The golden years are not that golden.

The apartment complex where we live had the janitor leave a couple of months ago. They had a policy here that if you lived here you couldn't work here. However, I inquired about the part time job. They wanted someone for 20 hours per week. I am 71 years old and I told them I would only work 15 hours per week. I got the job, thinking I would never have to go back to work. It is easy work I will admit. It does give us the few extra dollars that makes life easier. I only walk a short distance from my apartment to the office to sign in. Still at 71, I never thought I would have to work again. I see so many older people in the same position as me.

Isn't it a shame that so many billionaires and multi-millionaires live the super wealthy life while senior citizens need to choose between food or prescription drugs. America used to be the greatest country in the world. I love my country, but I am afraid the super rich have destroyed the middle class and are taking from the poor to enrich themselves. It makes me sad, I will vote for whoever has a vision to restore this country to its basic values.