I've been in Durham since September, but my husband's been here since May. He's in construction and him and his brothers had a contract to do the Raleigh/Durham Airport. One brother lives in Durham. So, he bidded on the job and they got the contract.

My husband was living with someone. And then I came and then my 15-year-old son came and we were all living with someone. We were paying them $200 a month for rent and helping on the utilities and we were buying our own groceries. And we came home one day and they had gotten evicted. They had not been paying rent, period. That was very much a surprise. All our stuff was outside. So I had to send my 15-year-old back home and we're still here. I'm letting my 24-year-old son keep him in Madison, Wisconsin, 'til I'm able to send for him again.

He cried. He didn't want to go. He said he didn't want to leave me alone. But I wasn't going to let him just be out here in the struggle with me. My 24-year-old is married. He works. He has two kids. I also have an 18-year-old daughter.

We can't live with my husband's brother because they do not get along too well. It's only a close relationship when they need something from each other. At first we had some money and were were staying at a motel. But then it was expensive, so when the money ran out, then we came here. So, we've been here ever since.

I've always worked since I've been here. In Chicago, I was in an X-ray technician program; I have one more year in school. Anytime you get in that radiology field, it's real easy to get a job. But I just recently got a second job at the nursing home, [this time] dietary. My husband's still doing the construction off and on. He worked all last week. This week he hasn't worked. He went to Labor World, but he's supposed to go see about another construction job tomorrow, so, with my fingers crossed, I hope we get it. 'Cause he's been a bricklayer for like 22 years.

Some man told him to go to the school [Duke University], and he talked to the man yesterday. Because Labor World took him to a job and it was close by the university and the man from the school told him to come there.