OK, I'm already blocked on Marketforce.

I managed to schedule 7 shops for this month utilizing the "make an offer" feature.

On the way to do 2 of the shops yesterday (200 miles from my home), my car broke down.

The tow was $145 (for 16 miles!!! OMG!!!) -- which took all the cash for the shops, and to pay for my phone service for another month, and to pay my electric bill. To add insult to injury, I had just filled the tank, too, so that's $30 totally wasted.

I was 100 miles from home, so a friend came to pick me up. I gave her all the rest of my money to put gas in her car for coming to pick me up

The garage said the timing belt "went", took out the valves, engine shot, repairs $4,000.

I signed the car over to them; it'll go to the salvage yard.

I cancelled my other shops with other MSCs, all the schedulers were wonderful (even though it put them in a bad spot).

I rescheduled the Marketforce shops.

Realistically, the chances of me getting another car are zip, zero, nada, never happen.

I fear if I cancel these 7 shops, I will be permanently deactivated. And while it's true I cannot shop without a car, if I somehow manage to eventually get a car, I would really like to shop for MF, and if I'm deactivated, that's permanent.

I was warned back in July to NOT cancel any more shops, or I would be deactivated.
Even though the person who called me to warn me, when she checked the details of the supposed "cancellations" on my record admitted that yes, I had completed and reported every single one of the shops that were listed as cancellations!!!!

I am old, I am disabled 100%, I have no real marketable skills (tech passed me by, LOL!), and I really REALLY really do NOT want to be deactivated.

Input, thoughts, advice (just please don't say "get a car" -- I don't have the resources, and I don't know anybody who just gives cars away), musings, anything will be considered.

Thank you.

I would almost always say reschedule instead of cancel, but seeing as though you don't have a time frame when you might be able to do it, I'd say cancel. Maybe you can call or email the helpdesk and explain your situation.
I realize you are in a more middle of nowhere area than I am, but I shop without a car. I take NJTransit everywhere. We also have a fare free transportation through the county that will normally pick you up and drop you off for appointments, etc. I've seen the same people go to an outreach center next to my part time job 6 days a week. Perhaps there is something like that in your area. Maybe you can contact your local social services and see if they can help you out at all, with either transportation or getting you through this temporarily.
I'm sorry that you're going through this, that kind of setback would be beyond annoying to anyone. <3

Sorry for this..I say you have no choice but to cancel with a sincere apology and no car, no work. Maybe they will understand your situation, life happens and good luck.

We do have bus service; it's $16 round trip to the nearest town. The shop available there pays $23. Other than that, we have no car rentals, no public transport, no trains.

Thank you.

Cancel the shops if you know you can't do them. I would do it over the phone with someone at MF so that in the future there is a chance you will be able to shop for them (if you are ever able to get transportation). Ceasesmith, I know you like it where you live, but it might be time to move if you can do that. Without the extra income, how can you afford to live where you are any longer? Can you go live with your daughter?

I can no longer talk on the phone with anyone at MF. But that's a really good suggestion.

Daughter already said no.

She sent me a list of homeless shelters.

How far away are the 7 shops? Would it be possible that someone could drive you so you could fulfill your commitment and then not schedule any more shops with MF until the future date when you might have a car again?

I don't know the dynamic between you and your daughter and what kind of water is flowing under that bridge, but it surely stinks.

Could you work at a local store? Could you complete phone shops from home?

The shops are in Kansas, a 14 hour round trip.

I tried the phone shops last month. I was an absolute total failure at it, but I did try! I think I completed 8 out of 30 something shops that were assigned to me. Of course, now, without a car, so I don't have the distractions of scheduling routes and completing them, maybe I COULD try again -- but I probably burned that bridge, as I ended up canceling a slew of them. And I mean a slew, a whole big bunch of 'em. If I was assigned between 38 and 45, and completed MAYBE 8, and cancelled all the rest.

Some of them required screenshots, and I didn't master screen shots until 3 weeks after I had cancelled the shops! But on the shops, I talk too much; I'm too friendly; I lead the conversation....these are my basic personality traits; really hard to rein in.

But maybe they'll give me a second chance....like I said, I don't have to work 40 or more hours a week scheduling, completing, and reporting shops....so maybe it would work.

Thank you for the thoughtful replies.

Email a scheduler and ask. And if you are talking about Shopper's View, talk to Christine, you know she is super helpful and compassionate.

Cease, I'm not trying to get all up in your business, so please don't be offended. I know you say you are 100% disabled, but not sure if you're collecting disability/social security. Have you applied for social services or can you? Even calling a local service organization or church group might help. We have an outreach center ran by the same church that owns the thrift shop where I work that helps the homeless and disadvantaged and they often help them find accommodations, get jobs such as piece work for those that aren't very ambulatory, etc.

I hate to see anyone in this situation and when you don't have the support of family, it's even harder.

As a side note, I saw a few $10 phone shops (most I've seen for phone shops) this morning. I don't know if you're already doing phone shops, but usually they're super easy, just not super paying.

LOL, I am BLOCKED from all schedulers. They will not answer the phone when I call, they will not respond to texts; they are not allowed to schedule or reschedule shops for me. (This is just MF.)

I don't think I've ever done a shop for Shopper's View.

I'll look into what they have, thanks!

@JASFLALMT wrote:

Email a scheduler and ask. And if you are talking about Shopper's View, talk to Christine, you know she is super helpful and compassionate.

I was not talking about Marketforce. I already knew that. I didn't even know they had phone shops.

My reply about talking to a scheduler was right after this post where you were talking about canceling phone shops and "maybe they'll give me a second chance". So the phone shops were with Marketforce? I assumed it was another MSC because I didn't know MF had phone shops.

@ceasesmith wrote:

I tried the phone shops last month. I was an absolute total failure at it, but I did try! I think I completed 8 out of 30 something shops that were assigned to me. Of course, now, without a car, so I don't have the distractions of scheduling routes and completing them, maybe I COULD try again -- but I probably burned that bridge, as I ended up canceling a slew of them. And I mean a slew, a whole big bunch of 'em. If I was assigned between 38 and 45, and completed MAYBE 8, and cancelled all the rest.

Some of them required screenshots, and I didn't master screen shots until 3 weeks after I had cancelled the shops! But on the shops, I talk too much; I'm too friendly; I lead the conversation....these are my basic personality traits; really hard to rein in.

But maybe they'll give me a second chance....like I said, I don't have to work 40 or more hours a week scheduling, completing, and reporting shops....so maybe it would work.

Thank you for the thoughtful replies.

Ah, no. MF does have phone shops, but I've never tried them. Totally different MSC, and not Shopper's View.

The phone shops were an agonizing ordeal for me. And I stank at it.

I understand that you don't like phone shops, you have said so many times, but unfortunate circumstances force us to adapt. You have few options, so you better set your mind to succeed at them and get started.

I suck at science and the idea of dissecting cadavers was abhorrent to me, but I managed to get through anatomy, physiology, and other science courses with a 4.0 GPA. I thought I was going to faint when we did lab with cadavers in anatomy and it was an agonizing ordeal for me as well. I hated it but I did it and got through it.

@ceasesmith wrote:

I can no longer talk on the phone with anyone at MF. But that's a really good suggestion.

Daughter already said no.

She sent me a list of homeless shelters.

[/quote
]I am so sorry, how cold, but you probably wouldn't be happy there.....renting a room closer to jobs may be an option. Becoming a scheduler and work from home, another option.....I feel for you, keep your chin up.

Live consciously....

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/15/2019 05:40PM by Irene_L.A..

Without a car, there's no chance you will be able to perform shops that are a 14 hour round trip away. Even the best friend in the world would not want to drive you 14 hours, so that is out. It sounds as though cancelling is best only option. Do you foresee getting another car? If so, it makes sense to try to salvage the relationship with MF. IF not, maybe it doesn't. The shops they have all require you to drive a long way, and, without a car, that won't be possible. I'm sorry. I know I sound negative, I'm just to clarify the situation in my mind to look for options.

Your daughter says you cannot move in. Might you stay with her briefly, for a couple of weeks or a month while relocating closer to where she lives? Don't you have 4 children? Or am I not remembering correctly? Maybe they can pass the hat and contribute? Do you have any other family members? I don't know how much furniture, etc., you own that you would want to take, so I don't know how hard or expensive moving might be. Is there a possibility of putting some things in storage while you make a "long visit" to another place to see if there are more opportunities for you?

Relocation might be an option as a long term improvement. The small town you live in has few opportunities to make money. It's far from everything, and, without a car, mystery shopping will yield very little. There are no social service programs there to aid you. There's no public transportation. Do you have a friend in a larger city, someone you could stay with briefly while you move? A larger city would offer you public transportation and possibly subsidized housing.

I am a minimalist; everything I own that I wish to keep would fit in my car. Except for tax records, which I tend to be anal about. I own no furniture worth keeping. LOL, I paid $50 for it, used, 20 years ago, and have used it every single day since.



I "started over" at 35. I "started over" again at 50. At 73, I don't feel like I have any "starting overs" left. I am physically incapable of living like I did at 18, walking to work every day, then walking 2 miles to night school after work. I would take the bus home, because classes let out after dark. Back then, fare was a nickel, and yes, I walked two miles to save a nickel. Ah, but a nickel was real money back then -- each college course cost $35. And I was working a 46 hour work week for $11.46 a week. Saving those nickels meant next semester I could take another course!

The exact same college course would now cost over $4,000.

So moving wouldn't cost much.

Dang cease, I am so sorry!

Perhaps going on welfare now, getting food stamps and all that entails will help. Having no furniture is a plus as you move and renting a furnished room is doable. I rented my extra room/bath to a friend of a friend who was going through a divorce and wanted to be near his kids until deciding where to go. He ended up staying a year and 3 months, it worked out great, he recently bought his own home and thanked me for giving him a safe place while going through a difficult time. There is a trend today, so being in or near a college town offers folks looking for rooms and students renting, and I'm sure in your part of the world those rooms are going for not a lot.
I would definitely sign up for welfare/aid or go to your Clergyman, they do help and have resources.

My nearest clergyman (a rabbi) is in Denver.

Good idea, though.

I'm so sorry to hear of your problems. Didn't you just spend thousands to repair your car not too long ago? With the amount of driving you were doing, I suppose a breakdown was bound to happen sooner or later with an older vehicle. Are there any car rentals in the town where the bus goes? Could you afford to rent a car until you can get a new one? Do you have enough funds to eat properly and for monthly expenses? Are there any other relatives you can move in with, at least until you get back on your feet?

Sending you hugs and wishing you the best. Is it time for some care packages?

I say reschedule if possible..if you cant do that cancel them unless the friend that picked you up wouldnt mind you borrowing their car to complete these.

If Im remembering correctly. For MF when you reschedule or cancel there is a box that pops up to explain why

Just wanted to add..I also dont know the dynamics with your daughter..that is just cold blooded..I hope you two can patch up that relationship eventually. I lost my mom suddenly last year and really regret some of my actions towards her the last couple of years of her life. I really hope your daughter comes to her senses.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/15/2019 09:00PM by dawnhu.

Do you have negative cash flow monthly? You said once that your monthly check from the government was just slightly too much to be eligible for a second type of assistance. (I don't recall, food benefits maybe?)

I never understood how shopping was cash flow positive for you in your situation in your location. Working from home seems to be the only option unless you move somewhere with a higher population and good public transportation.

You said that you used to be a power seller on eBay. Why did you stop that? I still sell on eBay. It's more passive than active. My mom died in 2003, and I still have odds and ends of her things listed all the time. The last couple of years, I made around $300 a month in gross sales and spent very little time doing it. Perhaps if you have nothing to sell and no yard sales, flea markets, thrift stores to scour, you could help some of your elderly neighbors sell off their treasures and split the sales?

So, I thought of you the other day. I was looking for a missing votive holder the other day at a charity thrift shop and found a Villeroy & Boch platter marked 75% off. I paid $8 for it. I plan on listing it for $40 and having my shipping MSC pay the shipping.

May I send you a care package? If yes, please pm me.

ROFL, actually my friend came over this afternoon to plan what we can do.

She DID offer to drive me the 14 hours; I'm so glad I did not cancel the shops. She OFFERED: I did not ask. It's hard to ask for help of that scope!

She is a shopper, who I mentored and taught. As far as she's concerned, she "could never to enough to repay me", LOL.

And I have lived from California to North Carolina....and out here in the country, friendship is a lot deeper than "how are you today", "Fine, and you?".

And, as she said, "I know you would do the same thing for me, if the shoe was on the other foot".

As, indeed, I would.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/16/2019 02:04AM by ceasesmith.

I wondered about renting a car for one day. Even if you only broke even, meaning the cost of the rental would equal the shop fees, would it keep the relationship alive with the MSCs? If there aren't any rental car offices near you, could the friend drive you to the nearest one so she isn't captive for 14 hours? I could be out of line but just trying to help.

Iced, you're not out of line. I appreciate the thoughts. Yes, I think it's important to keep the relationships with the various MSCs alive. The nearest rental office is 100 miles away. And they want cash and/or credit cards. I have neither, at this point. The tow took all but $16 of my cash. I don't have credit cards, and rental cars demand credit cards.

We found some shops for my friend; she'll make money, too. Not a great deal, but something, anyway.

It sucks being old, broke, and without resources.

All you yunguns, listen to me: put money in your 40l(k), IRAs, etc. Do NOT end up old and broke!!!

Why aren't you on Soc. Sec.?