I'm a single mother living from paycheck to paycheck trying to find another job partime because i work a full time job already. I need help to pay my bills and to pay my rent for the month I'm behind on bills and really need to catch up and become current. I don't want to become homeless that happened before and it was the worse thing that could happen. I don't like asking for help because I know that it's people in worse shape then  I am but i really need help at this time. I feel like I have dug myself in a big hole and cannot find the way out.   

Why did I jump in when I know I can’t swim?

It’s 3 am and I’m about to lose everything . . .

My car . . . the place I stay . . . I only have enough food for two days.

Thank God Ramen Noodles are only 15 cents and a box of crackers $1.50 . . .

I reach out my hand for help only to see an ocean of people reaching out like me.

I scream; “Help me!  I can’t swim!  Please save me!”

Then I look over and see the single mother pregnant with another crying for help . . .

The family who moved into their dream home and are now losing it crying for help . . .

The father of three who spent all his money on hospital bills for the one that’s very ill crying for help . . .

The disabled woman who can’t afford to live off her small disability check anymore crying for help . . .

The college student who can’t pay their tuition, but has the desire to learn crying for help . . .

The former business executive that just lost his job and can’t find another crying for help . . .

The talented youth who moved to a big city on a dream, but now can’t afford a bus ticket home crying for help . . .

The retired teacher who spent years in service, but now can’t pay their gas bill crying for help . . .

And so on . . . and so on . . . and so on . . .

I put my hand down, Maybe I should just drown because after all I’m just one woman who jumped in knowing I couldn’t swim . . .

My story is simple . . . let’s call me Jane . . .

See Jane dream . . .

Jane runs after her dream . . .

Jane meets Sam who dreams big too . . .

Sam says, “let’s cross the ocean to the land where dreams grow wings . . .”

Jane responds, “but I can’t swim?”

Sam says, “don’t worry.  Someone will bring us a boat.  Trust me.”

Jane says, “I’ll always be stuck on the land of no opportunity if I don’t try.”

Jane jumps in the water.

Four months later Sam’s boat hasn’t come and you can only tread water for so long . . .

She sees Sam doing his best to hold on too and he tries to encourage Jane. . .

Jane is now facing reality . . .

“Sam is a big dreamer like me . . . with no boat . . . just the promise of one . . .”

Jane begins to drown.

Jane asks for help on the internet.

A man responds to her internet cry for help and Jane feels hopeful;

Until he says, “Just give me all your information, including your bank account . . .Then I will send you two boats . . . . All you have to do is put both boats in your name and send me one back . . .Then you can keep the other boat for free!”

See Jane get very annoyed.

She sees the holes in his boat and wonders why he would scam a woman already drowning.

See Jane realize life is hard while she starts to tread water again, hoping only in her God . . .

There are people out there who can help . . . but how do they pick from so many drowning people?

Anyway, who can say that once we are rescued . . .  we won’t jump in again? 

I’m posting this with the reality that Superman/woman is not out there waiting to rescue me from the bad situation I put myself in; but at least I can ask.  Here’s what happened.  I left my job in September to work for a man with a small entertainment business.  We had been working on music project together (which is still in process) and I was impressed with his talent. 

He was robbed the first week I started and the thief took his recording equipment worth thousands of dollars.   I decided to stay working for him, because he is brilliant when it comes to production and I believe in him.  I received one check in October (that’s when I paid Septembers rent) and haven’t been paid since . . . we are both struggling. 

He keeps telling me money is coming, but so far . . . well it hasn’t.   I haven’t paid my rent since October ($2,000 past due including this month), car bill ($1,800 past due), car insurance, credit cards, cell phone (it’s been cut off now for weeks), etc.  My credit went from okay to very bad.  My bank account is overdrawn (from my car company trying to withdraw funds that were not there . . . $30 x2) and I have $4 to my name.   

This is a shot in the dark because I know America is struggling right now and like I said . . . many have there hands out asking for help right now.  I can prove everything I’m telling you and would appreciate it if you can offer me assistance.  I only have until the end of this month before I am evicted and sooner than that I’ll be without transportation. 

Thanks for reading this.

My Person has 10 of us - cats that is.  She rescued all of us and a few found her too.  She also rescued a dog from a kill shelter about a year ago and got a parakeet dumped on her to top it all off!  My Person has a job and works hard but she got involved with a bad man and he ran her credit card debt up to $50,000!  She had to refinance our house - almost lost it - and now it's really hard to pay the mortgage and take care of all us so that's why I'm asking you for a helping hand.

Thank you -- from The Cat

I am 56 years old and sole caretaker of my 80 year old quadripalegic mom who has suffered multiple strokes. I cannot afoford to support us. I work as a school aid and attend school to try to get a degree to better our lives. We are drowning in debt. I have to drop out of school because I cannot afford to continue. I already receive a government grant and loan for school. But it isn't enough. I can't obtain a loan due to bad credit from my ex-husband. No one is willing to take a chance on an honest, hard working person.  I need $20,000. Someone please help me, I am desperate and have nowhere to turn.

I found this webpage by surfing - looking for government grants or loans that I don't have to pay back but they all want money first to continue - if I had money I wouldnt be looking on these sites, right. The first thing I saw was a lot more people in my position - how dreadful for us all.  I am 58 years old and waiting to start yet another job - well I guess I should be grateful that I can still work - but what is the point of working when you can't seem to get above water to breathe once in awhile. Last year I had to have surgery and was diagnosed with ovarian cancer - I truly believe my surgeon removed everything and that the cancer is no more but under all this stress again I know it will come back.. I declined chemo therapy because I couldn't afford not to work and being in the healthcare field I couldn't work around sick people on chemo.  I had to use my few days of vacation, personal days to get me by while recoperating for 5 weeks. My companies short term disability only gave me $600.00 a month -not even enough to pay the rent.  I am still trying to get back up to speed but because I am so far behind I just keep sliding down.  I am very very tired and sometimes think if I rob a bank or something they will put me in prison and I won't have to worry about any of this stuff.  I have worked my entire life and here I sit, at 58 years old, unable to pay my rent, receiving shutoff notices from my electric company and I am being sued by AT&T for an old cell phone bill of $800.00.   I do have a plan C that would just erase all these problems but I am afraid so far because it would cause grief and unknown problems for some others.  I don't want to do that.  These are my problems afterall - maybe I am just crazy afterall.  All this money they say people are giving away - where is it?  Why are we all here anyway? Is there no answer at all? So I keep asking, why is this happening???? I don't necessarily want to die but I refuse to live under a bridge and eat out of others garbage..I cannot believe at this time of my life I have found myself in this position...hey, only in America, right?

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