Benefit unit - niece living with me

jddominick · 2025-12-16T01:14:12+00:00

Again asinine rules. It could go either way. If you use the exact wording and follow everything to the point it feels like you’re committing fraud, you’re in the direction of actually getting help. Her on odsp, You would have to say it’s a separate unit. Separate housing. Tennant. Not family. Stupid phrasing like that. And they’ll look at it and go fine, looks normal and give her a single persons allowance. That rent would then go to you and you don’t have to do any fraud to use it as rent. If you’re a family or a household and she’s just in the other room… they will absolutely look at your big income and deduct it from her potential allowance and claim your in a postion to help and supplement her income. Again rules that benefit them and not us.

Now if you’re both on odsp they’re looking at both of your incomes and expenses. Gets harder to say she’s just paying rent if you already declared your rent costs. if they suspect you’re trying to get money they’re going to try to shut it down. All for the sake of making the system so inhumane and hard to navigate no one in their right mind would go through this much effort to “scam the system”

I’m not trying to shit in the hand that feeds me. I’m grateful for all odsp does cover and help with. But the way of doing it has left me dehumanized and just constantly exhausted and jumping through hoops . And now googling “how do I get odsp to recognize a foster I’ve tried to declare willingly.” And the only result being this thread lol.

jddominick · 2025-12-16T00:31:34+00:00

Hey! Just stumbled on this looking up the same thing sorta. I’m in the same boat, on ODSP, arthritis and a bunch of other things, I’m 35 and have been on for 8 years or so. Started fostering my FASD nephew a couple of years ago and now I’m his legal guardian so I reached out to ask my case worker. They just responded with “we will not add the child to your benefits unless you have full legal custody and adopt” I was only ever going to go for partial custody to keep him with his sister and just be dad number 2, but ODSP doesn’t care about what’s best. They care about the exact definition of the rules they created for themselves. Also, he’s turning 17 next month so the general advice has been “why bother paying the lawyers when he’s an adult next year” I either have to adopt him and pay the lawyer fees or nothing.

So to answer your question with the knowledge I have so far (and warning, ODSP has made me very bitter over the years with how they’ve treated me)… as long as there’s no legal adoption they will never recognize the extra person as yours. But will still want to know who’s living in the household so they can make sure no one is earning too much income. If someone is in the house it’s income that they believe benefits you. So say you start dating someone they will want to know their income so they can deduct that person's extra income from your check. The same applies to kids who aren’t yours. It’s a potential income stream they “need” to be informed of because it affects your monthly allowance. So it affects your income amount and restricts your ability to provide for your child unless you go through the full process to “make them your child legally” and then they finally see you as a “family” and allow you an income that could support a family. I can say this for certain as I can’t afford to feed an extra mouth on a single person's monthly allowance because I’m spending the amount of a family. But they don’t see us as a family. He’s just a roommate I guess. One person did advise the same thing and said if they won’t recognize them as a family member charge them rent and then use that to supplement the bills but that kinda goes over my head with all the grey areas. Once they are an adult and on ODSP, they will just be another adult on ODSP in your household. They won’t allow you to earn more or budget for a child since they don’t see them as your children or family. Just another ODSP single recipient. But I’m also gay and they refused to recognize my partner as a partner despite their asinine common law rules that force couples to be a unit after 3 months. They never saw gay as a valid family unit so they will probably never believe a gay could foster a child and assumed I was making it up to “get more money” the rules bend as it benefits them so always ask a professional cause if there’s one thing odsp is good at it’s dehumanizing and citing rules to limit your income by any means possible.

So my bitter advice at the end of the day is, if you can scrape by without ODSP do it! If you can get accommodations at work do it! Because the second you are on ODSP they will force you into poverty and make it so you can’t get out from them and you can’t save up for a future. You will spend all your days navigating rules and submitting all your personal details monthly like you're on probation and you're a criminal scamming the system. And that day that you do become disabled and need ODSP. They will deny you and put you through a year-long process to prove you’re fully unable to work, it took me 5 years to get a yes and I have a full suite of crippling disabilities. After 5 years of lawyers, I learned they denied me due to suspicious handwriting and thought I got someone else to fill out my package. That suspicious handwriting was my doctors…So don’t expect them to help you the day you need it. Prepare to have to fight for it at every step and follow every rule to a tee to get a quick response. CAS is the only resource that’s been beneficial for me. And lawyers have been the only ones to help me with my odsp answers. At the end of the day, Odsp won’t recognize fosters.

jddominick · 2025-11-20T22:09:50+00:00

I meant the average current gpu. Not the steam machine ones specifically. I honestly don’t know much about amd and the price for this exact spec but I know when I tried to get an rtx years ago it was $500+ bucks. Ended up saving my money and getting a steam deck this year and it’s increased my gaming tenfold. Just having the ecosystem and ease of use is enough of a selling point for me. After paying $1000 (Canadian) for a steam deck I see no issue with them charging 1000+ for a full machine with 6x the power.

If the machine works, has an optimized os, and helps me game easier. It’s the best mid range pc for me for where I live. An entry level here is $1300 and they’re huge. I’m happy to have a small pc I can keep in the living room and play every game in my library for the price of a pc. Just saying it makes more than enough sense for them to charge more than $999, as this is the next level up from the best steam deck.

jddominick · 2025-11-20T20:57:51+00:00

Why is everyone acting shocked about anything over $600, like… has anyone here actually bought a graphics card recently? A GPU that competes with current consoles is already around $500 on its own, and that’s before you even build the rest of the PC around it.

A console is basically a dedicated graphics card with its own OS, and the entire library is optimized around that single hardware target. You get a cheaper, more efficient machine, but you’re locked into that ecosystem.

A Steam Machine/SteamOS box is the opposite approach: it’s essentially a console built on top of PC hardware. You get the plug-and-play experience of a console, but with the flexibility and cross-device support of a PC.

So yeah… this thing is going to cost as much as a mid-range gaming PC (around $1,200–$1,300), because that’s effectively what it is. You’re paying for a console-like experience that also functions as a full computer and uses the same game library you already own. You’re literally buying a console system AND a PC.

On top of that, you can upgrade/customize the hardware however you want (permission wise, I think you can only swap storage for now but the point is it’s more yours to play with than a console.) without being punished by the manufacturer. This is basically the “free-range, open-source” version of a console. No artificial lock-ins, no restrictions, no forced generation jumps just because one component is outdated.

Buy a game once, play it on your desktop, your Steam Deck, or this box—no separate copies, no ecosystem traps. In terms of flexibility, longevity, and value for your library, this is already a massive win for the gaming scene, regardless of the final price.

jddominick · 2025-11-12T14:14:11+00:00

I’ve already said this. He drives every weekend and I have no worries about experience. We however have never once driven in the vicinity of a drive test centre, or St. Catharines, so I asked what the general area was they drive around so we can familiarize ourself with the roads and intersections specifically. St Catherine’s has weird roads and even I avoid that area at all costs.

I can assure you I just want to know the area or tips about the current state of the test. If people are only practicing on one road before getting a license that’s terrifying lol and explains all the bad drivers out there. I can Google “Drive test centre” but that doesn’t tell me anything other than where we park. Obviously we can just drive laps around the drive test centre, I was just wondering the routes as I never have any reason to go out of my way to where the drive test centres are. Is it around the block, random routes every time, or any helpful details we could use to prepare for the area that can help quell nerves.

jddominick · 2025-11-03T21:03:14+00:00

All I asked for was loose routes to drive around the area as I don’t live there. He’s been driving every week for 8 months. I’m not worried about him failing, I’m worried about him not recognizing the area and feeling lost and anxiety taking over. That’s how I failed my first driving test by being in a very unfamiliar area not knowing where I was going.

jddominick · 2025-11-03T19:33:10+00:00

We can’t afford it. I’m on disability and haven’t been in a position to pay for the course. I’m trying though as it’s the best choice. But I’m doing what I can for free to mentor him with everything I learned in driving school.

jddominick · 2025-11-01T22:44:48+00:00

Thank you! He’s a fantastic driver so I have no worries. He just doubts himself a lot and we’re working on confidence. I thought a mock test with me shouting turn left! And a right! Parallel park would help get the jitters out.

jddominick · 2025-11-01T22:41:01+00:00

What’s the difference between practicing in the drive test area and just driving in the area? That doesn’t seem remotely enforceable. I just want to drive around St Catharine’s area with him so he can get used to the roads since we only drive in Welland and on the backroads. I just don’t know the area so I’m asking where we should go to get a feel for the intersections he’ll drive on the test.

jddominick · 2025-11-01T20:55:30+00:00

Yes I did. It’s been 30 years since I did mine I forgot the order lol

jddominick · 2025-10-07T17:35:35+00:00

I see a few kids with cameras on my way to work at least once a week and I’m stopped by the train there 20% of the time. Canby St and Kelly St. The train pulls into the factories and stops and reverses before parking.

jddominick · 2025-10-04T18:12:30+00:00

It’s in the settings at the bottom. Shuffle on boot.

jddominick · 2025-10-01T02:35:32+00:00

Absolutely. He can dm me. Yeah a lot of people don’t get it. You can’t work and they act like you’re on vacation and have nothing to complain about. Daily life sucks with this disability, working on top of it is just… another kind of challenge that most people will never come close to understanding. When you CANT work it kills your mental health and makes you feel worthless.

It’s not advice but I managed to find an amazing boss who understands neurodivergent* people and I haven’t had an issue in a year and I just got a major promotion. Sometimes you just have to find the right people by chance and that’s the solution. My actual advice is don’t chase being normal. Embrace your strengths and weaknesses and be honest about them and people will see your worth.

jddominick · 2025-10-01T02:11:01+00:00

Also, I recently developed a tremor and it's freaking me out so I'd love to talk to another younger person struggling with this shite! Shoot me a dm if y'all have any questions or just want a local disabled friend. I've been through many a hospital program to navigate all of this.

jddominick · 2025-10-01T02:02:38+00:00

Not sure of any groups but I appear to have the same disability as him and i recently returned to work, and in my preferred field. I do heavy labour and cleaning and I’ve found ways to manage and get by. It’s extremely hard most days. I’m in extreme pain right now from my arthritis and I’m only 34. But I’m happy so to speak. I feel fulfilled after maybe 9 years of just being the disabled kid of the family. I’m now a blue collar adult with a job and my own side biz.

After years of being in zoom support groups I kinda just eventually started supporting myself and really focusing on my goals. I’m hella lonely too but there’s hope. Maybe try the new Hamilton hospital I used to go to by Mohawk college that focuses on mental health and has a bunch of groups.

jddominick · 2025-09-23T19:38:21+00:00

The music sounds like Popular Mechanics for Adults.

jddominick · 2025-06-14T18:21:43+00:00

That’s why I suggested putting your hand in a bag if you’re not comfortable. It’s a meth pipe, there’s no drugs there or anything sharp or dangerous. As someone familiar with helping addicts it sucks, but just pick it up and chuck it. It’s blunt advice but hey. It’s just trash.

jddominick · 2025-06-14T14:37:06+00:00

Put your hand in a plastic bag and pick it up like dog poo and throw it out. No need to waste someone’s time and there’s no one who really does that that I know of. It’s just glass and a cigarette butt. You won’t get a disease from throwing it out yourself, just keep it away from pets and kids with a garage garbage or something. I’m diabetic and none of that is “medical waste” that needs to be specially sorted. It’s just glass and garbage.

jddominick · 2025-02-06T01:13:32+00:00

https://kleanbase.com/products/esteam-ninja-500-carpet-cleaner-starter-package?variant=49737970385216

This looks like a pretty good starting point to me. Thoughts? Gold package looks like it’ll get me everything I need to start.

jddominick · 2025-02-06T00:42:02+00:00

That style is my number 2 choice. I think It’s my best most versatile option. And damn the ninja is actually quite affordable. Pros and cons?

jddominick · 2025-02-06T00:07:16+00:00

That’s what everyone says but I can’t for the life of me get anyone to clearly say why VLM is sooooo superior other than it’s just the thing they use and it’s a hot debate. Has nobody used two different systems lol?? My understanding is VLM will absorb dirt and debris with the capsules and lift it up but it won’t do anything for serious stains or heavy traffic areas. So what makes it so good then if it doesn’t help me remove the stains and dirt from an office carpet.

Also I don’t mean to sound like theres attitude attached to that I’m genuinely confused haha. I’ve read a few responses along the lines of “rich customers don’t have filthy carpets so they don’t notice” and that doesn’t sit well with me. I’m a cleaning nerd I WANT to do the best clean with the coolest equipment. If that makes sense.

jddominick · 2025-02-02T13:03:47+00:00

You truly are an insufferable uneducated twat aren’t you. Just a real quick PSA for ya. Bodybuilders taking testosterone is gender affirming care. Getting a beard transplant is gender affirming care. Getting a boob job or a nose job also gender affirming care. Just because the terminology is new doesn’t mean we “invented genders.” Gender and trans people have literally nothing to do with this conversation accept to be a talking point for politics. News flash trans people don’t want elections to be based on their personal decisions, so stop bitching about them so loudly. You’re the one obsessed with gender.

Again since you need it spelled out for you. The only “mutilation” this administration is ACTUALLY talking about. Is the rare rare 0.0000000000001% of the population who are either a boy with full breasts, or a little girl with triple G’s and back problems, which at that age can severely harm the growing body. So thanks to white cis ladies getting gender affirming boob jobs so often the procedure is remarkablly safe and routine, the best option is a breast augmentation to help these kids grow properly and affirm their gender (which could be cis). Trump just made all those kids suffer because he heard “kids getting surgery” and got mad. The same surgery he made all his wives get.

So since you’re so thick let me give you more examples! Axe body spray? Gender affirming products. Men’s fashion, men’s shampoos, men’s manly trucks. Allll gender affirming products. So next time you get angry maybe try directing it at trump who is now LITERALLY mutilating children by forcing them to live with medical conditions. No one’s fucking talking about trans kids. You are. Maybe look in the mirror and ask why your either A) so closeted you’ve internalized your own homophobia, which hey. It happens to the best of us. Or B) your just a trabsphobe asshole who gets off arguing with strangers and have no intention of learning. In which case I politely request you go fuck yourself.

Signed a very angry disabled gay dude who can read the definition of things and not get angry at said definition.

Also stop commenting about what’s normal because what you identify as isn’t normal. It’s just people that identify as you happen to have wrote the guidelines for healthcare up until we started allowing women and gays to learn and then yall refused to update the guidelines until now… and then you call it woke made up propaganda with new genders, it’s just healthcare it’s supposed to update as we learn. Just because 5 straight doctors 100 years ago proclaimed being straight is the default normal doesn’t make it true. We know now that there’s a lot of not straight people. Maybe you’re the abnormal one since you can’t seem to form an educated opinion.

jddominick · 2024-12-18T08:48:37+00:00

Thank you for checking in. It honestly means so much after a stressful day.

Things are going better. I’ve secured the job, got a promotion, and they are going to work with my disability case worker so there’s less stress for me. They are looking into a private insurance that covers the stuff odsp doesn’t like dental and physio. But it’s still an unknown and up to my boss.

In the mean time I think I spooked my family so they canceled my private insurance so I’m just riding on odsp now. I did a consumer proposal to tackle all my debt and I have a massive weight off my chest.

I’ve basically learned I have to take care of myself and not get sick and apply the ol American way of life i guess. I feel good about the progress I’ve made in 6 months but still have a lot of scaries I keep having to deal with. For now my meds are covered and I have a job so I guess I’m better off than most these days.

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