Welfare used to be nicknamed — the dole. The idea was that if you could get on the welfare doles, you could get away without working a day in your life.

The reality was that being on welfare wasn't any fun at all. You filled out mounds of paperwork; got a small weekly or monthly check; were able to just barely make ends meet by using food stamps, government housing, and Medicaid; and never even thought of saving for emergencies, buying a house, or retiring with anything other than a small Social Security check. But you were able to meet the needs of your family in a very basic way.

Welfare has changed quite a bit in the last decade, which means that few resources are available to anyone but the most needy. Welfare, which is administered by the states, is now called Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), with the emphasis on “temporary.”

Even if you do qualify, chances are your benefits will last only a short period of time. TANF replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and Job opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) — the two programs that were known together as welfare.

Applying for TANF is free, so if your income and resources are sufficiently low and you need temporary assistance (both with your finances and job training) to get you back on your feet, call your local TANF office for information (it may also be listed in the phone book under AFDC, welfare, or jobs).