You know, every now and then, when someone needs help and just doesn’t know what to do, they can do one of two things: they can give up and lose faith and forget that there are good people in the world who understand and who do care … or they can swallow their pride and ask for help, and hope–hope–that they’ll find at least emotional support, even if things don’t work out the way that they hoped.

Thanks to the generosity of people I’ve never met and probably never will (though in all honesty, I really wish I could or would), our house is saved. I cannot even begin to explain just how thankful I am for everyone—not just those who donated to help us, but to those who said a prayer for us, and for those who took a moment to drop me a PM to tell me that they were hoping along with me. I don’t know if you’ll ever, ever know just how deeply you’ve touched my heart and humbled my pride in a very good way, and I also hope that I can find ways to give back to all of you, too, in some way or another.

I just wanted to say a HUGE “Thank You!” to EVERYONE because you all deserve it. My boys, Eric, and I appreciate what you’ve all done for us, far more than you’ll ever know.

May God bless and keep you all, and please know, if there’s ever a time that any of you needs anything at all, please don’t hesitate to ask. As demoralizing as it can be, the alternative to swallowing your pride can always be worse.

All my love,
Sue

PS: LadyDragonTamer: I’ll add that fanart to the site … as soon as I figure out what disc I saved the site templates on so I can reinstall them! It’s great, and I’ll comment on it on DA as soon as I can!!

PS: figgerditz: Just so you know, your comment alone was enough to make me cry, and your donation made me sob (in a good way!) For that, I wanted to tell you “thanks”. 🙂 And I’ll get right to work on P9 as soon as I finish Mel’s birthday mega-oneshot … look for that no later than Sept. 12th!

As many of you know, Eric was laid off for a week this last week, which means he won’t get paid for it. We thought he could get unemployment for the week, but they’ve denied him because he isn’t ‘unemployed’, which means, he doesn’t get that this week, either. Because of that, we have no money for anything–groceries, bills, nothing, and I have to ask if you guys can help us out again. I really hate to, but I don’t really have a choice, either. We don’t have the money to feed ourselves, not even a little bit, and we’re desperate. Please, if you can, we would truly appreciate it.

Hi, guys … Just wanted to thank you all for your support and kindness. Thanks to you all, we were able to replace the water heater, which was a huge relief to me. You guys are the best, and even just the moral support has been hugely helpful in getting to the point where I can write a little every day. That means a lot to me–more than anyone probably knows.

We could still use whatever help anyone can offer, though. Eric’s hours haven’t picked up any, and he’s due for another week off in just about two weeks, and while he will get unemployment that week, his job will slam him the first check he gets afterward (we just found that out the last time they did a shut-down) and they’ll double his deductions for insurances and all that crap, which’ll shorten his check about a hundred bucks, and that’s after the paycut that is unemployment for the week prior, too. Thinking about money makes me feel like just whacking my head against a wall, but the love and support that you guys have showed me has helped so much, and I wanted to let you all know how very much I appreciate you as well as the ‘get away’ that the forums provide me.

Thank you, everyone, whether you’ve just said a prayer for us, emailed us encouragement, or helped out financially. God bless you all!

With all our love, of course!!

Blazing - Olivia Zelig by LadyDragonTamer

Waiting on a Woman by sozoteki

I just need to vent, I think. I know that I’ve told some of you parts of this, but it just seems like I can’t get a break here. My husband’s work just announced that they’re going to have a two week shutdown without pay starting next week, and I’m so stressed out right now that I can’t see straight at all. I mean, we were already barely making it, and now this? Then his boss tells him that they should all go out and go on a real vacation, as though anyone has the money! I feel so bad right now, and I just don’t know what to do. Internet bill aside, we don’t even have the money (nor will we this month) to pay the electric bill, and if we don’t pay that by the 24th, we’ll have no electricity. Eric’s checked with unemployment and he doesn’t qualify for only a two week downtime when the factory refuses to call it a “lay off”, so we’re totally screwed. I just … I know that we’ll figure something out, but honestly. I’d ask someone if I could borrow money, but no one around here has it. I’ve tried to find work (any kind of work) but no one, not even fast food, is hiring. It frustrates me to no end when we’ve never actually lived above our means, but it’s a little messed up with one thinks that something like CAR insurance is a LUXURY that we can’t really afford. We’ve spent the last two weeks eating nothing but peanut butter and ramen. I swallowed my pride and went to the local food pantry, only to be told that they’ve got nothing. It’s like adding insult to injury, but I just don’t know how much more I can take.

We bought our oldest a ten dollar game at Walmart for his birthday; it was all we had, and that came out of our 75 dollar a week grocery money, and I just feel awful, having to tell our kids that we can’t even afford to take them to Burger King or anything like that. It’s completely demoralizing to me, especially when I think about how many people in this area are already on welfare because there just aren’t that many good jobs around here, to start with. Four out of six factories in the area have already shut down completely, and I know damn well we’re not the only ones in this kind of a problem, but heck. What kills me is that Eric and I are proud of the fact that we’ve not needed any kind of financial help, and it is such a blow to the ego to admit that we can’t do it, but I suppose that’s nothing in comparison to the overwhelming need to do something as basic as pay an electric bill or to buy groceries. Too bad we make about four bucks a week to qualify for public assistance, as well …

So I’m pretty sure that I will end up being offline indefinitely after the factory’s two week shutdown. I just really have no idea what to do otherwise. My deepest apologies for leaving people in the lurch; that was never my intent. Sorry for the rant, but thank you for listening.

As I’ve said, I’m in danger of losing our internet connection because there just isn’t any money to pay for it. Both my husband and I have looked for more work; there isn’t any. No one’s hiring around this area. A lot of the factories have already shut down, too. We’re hanging on by a thread here, and internet access, unfortunately, is a ‘luxury’. I’m setting up a donation button if anyone wishes to help us out. If I can pay the internet bill every month, it’d be great! If you can and wish to help out, that’d be fantastic. If you can’t, then God bless you, anyway.

BAH HUMBUG!!

Okay, that’s not exactly what I think, but … But it’s difficult not to. The whole recession thing has been hitting us hard around here, and as cheerful as I try to be, it just makes everything feel wrong. Add that to the rest of everything else that’s happened this year, and, well, I’m pretty glad that 2008 is almost at an end.

I remember about this time last year, sitting down and talking to my husband about life and about how fortunate we were. Neither of us had really lost anyone that close to us; we had our health and our boys were thriving. I think about that sort of thing now, and it makes me want to cry. It’s ironic, how fast things can change, isn’t it?

I mean, we knew that my husband’s mom wasn’t well. The poor woman had suffered with COPD for years. We just didn’t expect her health to take that sudden of a turn last summer, and we lost her the day after my husband’s 33rd birthday. He’d gotten to travel to Tennessee to see her; he’d spent a few days with her when she’d seemed to be doing better. He got to talk to her, to laugh with her, and to tell her that he loved her, and while he wasn’t there at the end a couple days later, he is able to retain some really beautiful memories.

We lost a couple dogs this year, too: dogs that were a part of my family, whom I loved dearly. I feel as though bits and pieces of me have been falling away, and I wonder just how much more I have, right?

And maybe it’s just this time of year that tends to make me feel this way, though it’s harder to combat now than normal. Nothing brings home the hardships that are facing people more than watching as their co-workers are handed pink slips, which happened a couple weeks ago. Pay cuts and the like have been rampant where my husband works, and the idea of actually going out and looking for work? Sure … too bad no one’s hiring, right?

Which makes Christmas a hard season, not just for us but for so many families around the USA, if not the world. I commiserate with those who are having trouble just making ends meet, who hear their children, oblivious to this state, rambling off the laundry list of toys they want from Santa this year. I know the frustration and even guilt that you cannot buy them everything they’re asking for. Heck, I know the frustration and guilt that you cannot buy even one of those things for them. Thank God for guardian angels, right? I have one. I can only pray that everyone else does, too.

I tell myself that the most important thing is to hold those you love close to you; that that, of course, is the most important thing at this time of year. It’s so easy to get lost beneath the commerciality that has become synonymous with Christmas. Too bad that it’s very little compensation to me.

So I ask you all, whoever reads this, to take a moment to consider those things that are important to you; to thank God or whatever entity you might believe in for the things you have. Take a moment to smile at someone who looks like they need it because you have no idea just how much something like that might mean. If you do these things, you’ll help me more than you know. You’ll help for me to renew my own flagging belief in the good of men, and that, I think, is the greatest gift of all.

{originally posted on DA …}