I am posting this not to mock someone, but because I think you can learn a lot from talking to people. Some good, some bad.
I was driving home from skiing and picked up a snowboarder who was hitching back to town. He was in his 20's, hoping to complete a program as a Physical Therapy Assistant as a very part-time student while working 20 hours per week at a movie theater.
I asked him how he covered the cost of boarding and supporting himself while working so little. I didn't grill him as much as it may sound. It was a 1 1/2 hour ride and he chatted pretty freely. Some of the things seem a bit unbelievable to me, but here is the gist:
Food: He said that since he is a student, he has to work 20 hours per week to qualify for food stamps. He was pretty annoyed about this requirement. He said that if he wasn't a student, he wouldn't have to work and he could still get his food stamps. Tonight he was going to cook rice, beans, and chicken. That was his "just paid rent" meal.
He spent ~$800 on his season lift ticket. He didn't have the money avaiable for the preseason discount, but eventually scraped it together.
Clothing: He says that Gore Tex (the material manufacturer not the clothing brands) offers a lifetime warranty on the waterproofing of ANY gore tex product. He says he buys used Gore Tex clothes that look worn out (but not torn) at thrift stores, then sends them back to Gore Tex to warranty them (they test the waterproofing first). For a few dollars, he got a brand new $600 retail Patagonia jacket this way, and some hiking boots worth several hundred dollars. He says all the ski/board bums know this "That's why you see unemployed boarders with the best gear on the mountain".
Boards: "Just hang around enough, and you find deals". "There was a photographer for GNU out here last week, and I bought his board off him for $100 when he left. I sold my old one and pocketed the difference. It's harder to get deals on bindings. That's why my buckles are duct-taped."
Health insurance: "I don't need it. I wear a helmet and know CPR. I'm mountain resuce certified, and white water rescue certified". I asked if his school provides health insurance since he's a student. He said "They don't give me anything". I asked him what good CPR will do if he breaks his neck or has appendicitis. He said he can't worry about that. One of my favorite qyotes: "I don't really get hurt bad because when I get too "aggro", I just smoke up. It keeps my turns calm and smooth.
Savings: None. "How can I save on 20 hours a week, and if I save too much I can't get my food stamps. The most I ever save is enough to pay for my season pass. Sometimes I work in Alaska in the summers. I get enough to pay first/last month rent, deposit, and my season pass. It doesnt' last."
Transportation: bus for now. He gave up his car (too many break downs), and moved to town so he can take the city bus to community college. To get to the mountain, he mostly hitches, or occasionally takes the $10 ski bus. He has a motorcycle but rarely rides becuase he doesn't want to pay gas and maintenance. He used to bike, but thinks drivers are too dangerous.
Why don't you work more hours? You could more than make up the difference for a few hundred in food stamps per month. "I'm a student".
But you skipped class today to go boarding 3 days in a row? "Just one class".
How much does a PTA get paid? "I don't know. More than I get paid now."
Entertainment: free movies at the theater where he works. Boarding. His friends share their pot with him, so he rarely needs to buy any himself. He got a 12 month pass to a small local gym for $120 on Black Friday (!!!)
Part of me envies his ability to just do what he wants and not worry too much since things will work themselves out, and part of me wants to facepunch him and tell him that he's living off of other's charity--food stamps, hitchhiking, smoking his friends' pot, scamming Gore Tex (in my mind) for free gear - when he actually has plenty of skills to earn better money while doing things he enjoys--white water kayak guide, snowboarding instructor, etc etc. Or just buckle down, finish his program by taking more classes, and then get his PTA job so he's not scraping by so narrowly.