I am a 42yrd man who has been HIV Positive since 1991 (that’s 18 years) and full blown AIDS since 1994 (that’s 15 years). It has been a major component in my life. I have also been on Social Security Disability since 1997 (that’s 12 years). I was force by my lover, family and friends to get on SSD but the just overwhelmed me and I did the foot work and got signed up. I didn’t stop doing things when I was healthy enough.

OH here is something you should know about me and that will give even more info on why I am using this site.
In 2000 I weighted 130lbd and I am 6’2” tall. You could see the bones in my hands very easily also the bones in me feet. They scary thought is I felt I was fat. I was also in a wheel chair, I needed to take a steroid that helped me with my nausea and a side effect was my appetite increased. It still took me 3 years to start to gain weigh and when I did I bloomed up to 250lbs. We I talked it over and she wants me at least 185 preferably 195. So that is where I am now.
My numbers are great right now my T-Cells are at 1947 and my Viral Load is undetectable. Back in 2000 I had 12 T-Cells and my viral load was so high that they could count it was just a solid black slide. For the next 5 years I was in and out of intensive care and regular wards in the hospital.

I had pneumonia 4 times, a broken should from falling down, anxiety attacks that were averaging of 10 to 15 a day, I only slept for 4 hrs a night, and many many other less serious things. I was just a damned mess.
Well in 2005 we finally found a cocktail that worked and with in a year and a half I was back up to normal with my counts.

In the first half of 2007 I started having more energy and started volunteering for a local non-profit Aids group. I found myself volunteering 25 to 30 hrs a week I felt since I could volunteer that much I could go back to work. So I wrote up a resume and started looking for work.

I applied at over 30 medical clinics. I was an office manager in medical clinics before I went on SSD. They all told me that my time in the service made points for me and they all felt I had good leadership qualities from the navy, and working for my self for 5yrs, and having 2 jobs where I was the office manager over 3 people in one and 7 in another. But they also said that since I had been on SSD for 10 yrs that these jobs have changed so much that I would have to go back to school and relearn the basics all over again.

So that’s what I have been doing since then is going to a local community college and striving to get me an Associates Degree in HSM (Health Services Management) centered around teaching all the in and outs of being an office manager. I have been on the honor roll 4 times and my GPA is 3.79. Not bad especially since I have been out of school for 21 years when I started.
At school they taught Medical Terminology (3semesters of it), Anatomy (2 semesters), Office Management (3 semesters), Writing (4 semesters), Math (3semesters).

And a lot of 1 semester classes like, Typing, Speech, , Human Resources Management, General Management, Accounting, Computer classes (these 3 classes are allowing me to get qualified for a system management certificate from Microsoft on the programs which means I could teach people them if I wanted to), Welding (My general studies credit and I have always wanted to learn) Professionalism, Medical jobs and their requirements and uses, Front Office procedure (@ different classes), Data Entry, Key Boarding, Medical coding (Icd9 and CPT), Driving License class

Now to why I am on this site, back in 2000 when I had a severe nervous breakdown that lasted for a month and a half (if it wasn’t for my brother and sister I probably wouldn’t have made it) after that is when I started to gain weight. But when I was working before going on SSD I had 6 suits, lots of dress shirts and tie plenty of shoes.

The thing is they fit me when I weight under 150lbs. I am not at 198. They don’t fit anymore. I have only 4 jeans, lots of t-shirts and tennis shoes. I have no office attires. I also live 2 hours away from the place I want to work at (I will be doing an internship there which means I have a very good chance on getting full time work there(it’s the Veterans Hospital in Portland Oregon. That’s were I get my health care at. I was in the Navy from’86-’90 with an honorable discharge). I am hoping to move to Portland once I get a job but for now I live in Salem and it’s a 2 hour drive one way.

So here the breakdown on what I need. I am guessing that I would need at least $750 for office attire, that would include shoes, and being 2 hours away I will need transportation, meaning $2500 for a used mini-van, insurance and general maintenance for the first couple of months, insurance and registration costs and a little bit more just incase I have to repair some things on the van..

It looks likes $750 cloths, $2500 Used Mini-Van, $700 Insurance, $158 Registration, and $400 Safety Cash for the car, $280 for gas during my 3 month internship and for the first month after I start work. So that’s a total of $4898.

That sounds like a lot but I am only asking for a used car and I will be shopping at second hand and consignment stores for my clothing.
Now I am not saying I will positively get hired on at the VA Hospital but I am going to do what ever it takes to get a job in Portland. I am not going to be too picky at first and it comes to taking a lower level position then I’ll probably take considering on what the promotion cycle is at the place. I also have contact information for about 15 retirement communities. So I am not sitting on my laurels and expecting some job will just drop out of the sky and there I will be with a 100 grand a year job.

But starting in April of next years I will be ¾ through my internship and should know if they are thinking of hiring me on. If I get a bad feeling about it or I don’t like working there then I will be sending out Introductions letter and Resumes to as many Geriatrics centered Centers or Hospitals in Portland and its surrounding suburbs.

So please help me get off of government support and give back to society what they have given me these past 18.
God Bless and thank you for your time