[inafield]

Canadian here: Electrical bill of $60-80 every two months in a 600sqft condo on the third floor of a west by south west facing unit. It's also possible to rent a room or small basement suite for $600/mo and have all utilities included.

If you're on minimum wage, internet is easily accessible from a library, McDonalds, or Starbucks. Or find a landlord offering it bundled.

Cheap cell plans from $20 upwards do exist.

I'm not saying this is ideal, but then again, we're talking about minimum wage. I used to work at McDonalds in Canada and one of my co-workers worked her way up to manager and managed to go to college part time. Granted, she was also living at home with her parents and our post-secondary education is heavily subsidized up here.