Disability

  After consulting with USC Supportive Housing, it was decided that I should apply for Social Security Disability.  One reason was that I would have more money than I had.  I was getting $90/month in a Belk pension.  HUD would take a portion of that for my rent, which came out to $17/month.  If I got disability, I would have to pay more in rent, but I would also have more money for other things.  I also got Food Stamps.

 Due to my lack of stamina from the pneumonia and the health issues from sleeping on concrete, they thought I would be a good candidate for it.  The catch was to find a lawyer that would take my case.  I made an appointment to see a lawyer on Taylor Street.  She had looked at my claim and declared that I didn't have a case.  I wasn't disabled enough.  I went back to the USC office and told them.  It was a setback, but they told me about another lawyer who might do better.

 Her office was on Bull Street.  They took cases for free.  I had my medical records with me, and she told me that I had a case.  I am guessing the first lawyer just didn't want to be bothered with a pro bono case.  So, my new lawyer scheduled me to be evaluated by a doctor.  His office was on Devine Street.  His examination was a little strange.  I laid down on a table, and he asked me to raise my legs as high as I could.  I got about six inches off of the table.  He then took my legs and raised them further to almost a 90-degree angle.  In the process, he pulled my hamstring.  He then asked me to get up off of the table.  I got dizzy and almost fell down.  He wrote up his report and sent it to my lawyer.

 The next step was to get a stress test at the hospital.  I was given a sheet of instructions.  One of them said not to eat for 8 hours prior to the test.  My appointment was at 2pm, so I had no breakfast or lunch.  When I got to the hospital, I asked the front desk where the office was that I needed to go to.  They told me to follow the green line on the floor.  I did that and found myself in the parking lot.  Wrong way.  A nurse happened by, and I asked her where the office was.  She took me there.  It wasn't anywhere near the green line.  The examiners were nice.  After doing triage, they had me get on a treadmill and start walking.  A few minutes later, I was about to pass out.  They gave me some orange juice and cookies and asked why I was so dizzy.  I told them it was because the sheet said not to eat before coming.  They told me that was a mistake.  Mindreading is not one of my talents.  So, I left there and walked up to Burger King and chowed down.

 It came time for my hearing before a judge.  They told me that it was at the Strom Thurmond Building.  I went to the Federal Building but found that there was another building with the same name some six blocks away.  I got there in time for the hearing.  My lawyer told me that this judge was strict, but we had a good case.  We went into a small room.  There was enough space for the judge, a stenographer, two lawyers and me.  My lawyer told me to answer questions from the judge truthfully.  I did.  He asked me what kind of work did I do before becoming homeless.  I told him that I had done retail.  My lawyer said that I had lost stamina and could not do the work I had done in the past.  The judge then asked if I could sit on a stool behind a register, and I said yes, but that most stores were not set up that way.  He then suggested that I get a job at Walmart as a cashier sitting on a stool.  I told him that they didn't have those.  I guess he didn't like my attitude, because my claim was denied.  My lawyer apologized to me, and said there wasn't more she could do for me.  Case closed.

 So, I never got Social Security Disability.  Even though, I deserved to get it.  There was a guy I knew who got his on his first try, before going before a judge.  He went out and bought a moped.  It was stolen the next day.