Thanks very much guys. Spent last night here and got woken up by Mum going "I'm going out. I've left the paper out on the table with all the share house listings, you should probably get up now" so I still think she's pretty serious about it all.

Thanks SO much to everyone so far with the advice. I had no idea what to do in this situation but no at least I have some sort of guidance. God, the amount of emotions running through my head right now are phenominal!

AC -x0x-

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quote:

Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN oh please. youve made more fag calls than alex c

Image created by Narcism! - Thanks

^^ yeah, i totally understand dude. one of the worst things ever is to have living arrangement hassles. just put some time n effort in and you should be fine. may the force be with you!

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quote:

Originally posted by alex_cooke I'm studying at Uni at the moment, but not employed. I'm 19 but dont know how to prove my independance. My Dad says I can crash with him over the weekend, but no more than that (He's a complete cvnt - wont let me live with him) and I could maybe go down and live with my grandparents for a bit, but they wouldn't be able to support me for long... AC -x0x-

Centrelink will give you the details but as far as I remember to be eligible for Youth Allowance you need to either:
1) be living with your parents and have earned over a certain amount over a year. Or
2) (and this probably applies in your case) be in a situation where it is impossible for you to live with your parents.

You will want to prove number 2. This is easy. Just go to centrelink and get all the forms and information for Youth Allownance then make an apointment at the uni counselling service (most unis offer a free one) and tell the counsellor your story and get him/her to write you something saying that you can't live with your parents and why. This will be enough fot centrelink to start paying you youth allowance. here is also an option to add rent assistance to the amount they pay you, which is quite easy to get.

In terms of accomodation, once you know how much you're getting paid by the government, figure out a weekly budget (how much you spen on food, how much you can afford to pay in rent etc) and go out looking for a sharehouse that meets your budget requirements. There will be notices posted all over uni noticeboards everywhere and on the window outside Readings on Lygon street in Carlton. Find a student sharehouse and you'll be fine.

After you sort out government assistance and accomodation you NEED to find a part time job somewhere. Get a Jobseekers network card (or whatever it's called) from centrelink. That will allow you to apply for more jobs. search the internet for jobs, look for signs in windows of cafes and restaurants. There will be a service at your uni that deals with student employment etc... go down there or find their website and look around. If you really need to you can find a job quite quickly... and heck if you don't like what you find early on you can always just work there and keep looking for a better job in the meantime.

Good Luck mate, remember you are not the only one. This is such a common story, lot's of people go through it. Though it's stressfull and scary now you'll come out the other end of this experience more confident, independant and strong. Just stay strong and don't give up!

___________________
"my son will be a gienues(sp?)" - Originally posted by Googooly
"many species of bear give blowjobs." - Originally posted by Sunsnail.. NOW CONFIRMED BY PHOTO EVIDENCE!
"astroboy is brave and gentle and wise." - Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN
"ew! i wouldn't go anywhere near a homeless dudes butthole... not even if i was sodomizing him with a poison ivy cactus dildo" - Originally posted by lücid
"also can someone post the link to my mom's forum, thank you!" - Originally posted by miamitrance04
"dude man its not me its what the world does to me. Trust me I'm a normal person people just constantly fuck with me." Originally posted by ********
"I can see Lira getting a hard-on already. And believe me, Brazilian ass rape is the worst." - Originally posted by Meat187

Thanks Astroboy. That is EXACTLY what i need to know right now! Packing at the moment which is making me quite sad, but also a bit excited/scared/nervous as to not knowing whats ahead for me. I'll make sure I do a quick post before I leave, and keep you all up 2 speed. Thanks,

AC -x0x-

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quote:

Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN oh please. youve made more fag calls than alex c

Image created by Narcism! - Thanks

I just read pkc's post. A stat dec from one or both of your parents is also way to show centrelink that you can't live with your parents. If your parents won't sign a stat dec then something from the counsellor should work fine. The best way to avoid any problems is to get both. Centrelink may try to call your parents house to make sure you're not living there and scamming the system.

Just remember it's important to always be on top of things until you get accomodation and money sorted. Write down all the things you need to do, places you need to go, paperwork you need to fill out and hand in etc on a piece of paper and plan out what day you're going to do what. Cross the tasks off as you accomplish them. Time is of the essence and you can't afford to fuck around much until you find a place to live and settle in, and sort out where you're going to get money. Once you get that done you're laughing.

___________________
"my son will be a gienues(sp?)" - Originally posted by Googooly
"many species of bear give blowjobs." - Originally posted by Sunsnail.. NOW CONFIRMED BY PHOTO EVIDENCE!
"astroboy is brave and gentle and wise." - Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN
"ew! i wouldn't go anywhere near a homeless dudes butthole... not even if i was sodomizing him with a poison ivy cactus dildo" - Originally posted by lücid
"also can someone post the link to my mom's forum, thank you!" - Originally posted by miamitrance04
"dude man its not me its what the world does to me. Trust me I'm a normal person people just constantly fuck with me." Originally posted by ********
"I can see Lira getting a hard-on already. And believe me, Brazilian ass rape is the worst." - Originally posted by Meat187

"hi2u centerlinkz my mahhh is a wh0rebagz and she chromes. Dont raugh out roud, its terriblez. She has silver imprints on her face"

That always w0rkz mangz :c


Good luck with it

Hope it all works out well for you AC!

But yeh like everyone said-make sure you go to Centrelink & find out some info about shared housing in your area or like Pkc said check your uni info board for any shared accomodation, etc.

Ok, well this looks like this is gonna be my last post from home. I'll have my laptop with me so hopefully I'll be able to check TA every so often and keep you all update with how things are going. I'll also be posting on my LiveJournal, so if people want to keep track of how I am, i'll also be posting there. The address is http://alexcooke.livejournal.com
My mates picking me up in about 10 mins, to take me to Dad's so i gotta pack up my laptop. Thanks SO much to everyone for the advice, as well as the people that have PM'd me! It really means a hell of alot to me at the moment.

Over and Out from Narre Warren North,

AC -x0x-

"...Man can learn nothing except by going from the known to the unknown..."
- Claude Bernard

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quote:

Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN oh please. youve made more fag calls than alex c

Image created by Narcism! - Thanks

good luck with everthing alex, from memory you can get just under $300 a fortnight plus rent assistance if you are studying full time and living away from home and then you can earn another $100 a week before it impacts on your payments, so if you can manage to find a job for just one day a week it would really help you. it is not like having a full time job but you can survive on it. hope everything works out for you dude.

___________________
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn't it true that when a person dies in his sleep,
he doesn't know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?

Good luck with it all Alex, you'll be just fine cos you seem a really great person. There'll always be people willing to help you out if you need!

Mothers can be so very irrational, lurching from one extreme to the next, especially if there's no husband around to keep their womanly psycho-ness in check . If you want to return home, fingers crossed she's just having an OTT mother 'moment' and has you back when her sanity returns.

quote:

I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference

...Robert Frost

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This is trance...
Jose Amnesia - The Eternal (Pulser Remix) / Chicane - Saltwater / Photon Project - Illumination / Gouryella - Tenshi / Altitude - Altitude (SHOKK Remix) / Rank 1 - Airwave / The Thrillseekers - Synaesthesia (En Motion Mix)

quote:

Originally posted by eRRaTiK ...Robert Frost

i did that poem in year 12 HSC.. lolz .. can't believe i would actually see it again .. and of all the places .. here!

anywayz i hope everygoes well for u alex.