Trip Money

Here I am relaxing in a fine pub with a good friend and a celebrity squirrel.

Hi. I'll try to make this short and sweet.

I've got various medical and mental foo that puts me under a huge amount of stress. I'm not talking about being frazzled. I mean it is literally crippling me. So far, this year alone, stress has been responsible for:

* Weakening my immune system (it took me three weeks to get over a cold my husband was over in three days).

* Debilitating migraines (after the cold, I had another month of unwanted downtime fighting daily migraines and the tension headaches they triggered).

* Pain and immobility (It once got so bad I lost most of the range of motion in my arms; the tightness of my muscles literally inflamed my nerves).

My doctor has told me I have to get rid of stress for the sake of my health. I agree with her. Meditation and relaxation exercises help a little. The single thing that relxes me the most, though, is travel.

We had a money crisis recently, but we've got the scary stuff covered now. We won't starve, we won't lose our cats or our housing. Things have stabilized, but there's no money left for going places.

I have Hozier tickets for a show in Iowa on my birthday, and I want to take my niece. I also want to see my sister and brother as well as extended family I haven't seen since I was six. I need a plane ticket if I want to get there.

I want to go to a musical festival in Seattle in September. Visiting my Seattle friends is one of the most relaxing things ever. However, I need ticket money, both for the show and transport.

In November, my husband and I attend a game con outside of Portland. We've been going since it first started and haven't missed one yet. We have dear friends who attend, and we only see them once a year, so this trip means a lot to both of us. It's expensive, though, and the money crisis ate our savings.

So that's what you'd be funding. While it is, arguably, a medical and quaity of life issue, I don't want to pretend this is life or death. We have food, we've got a roof over our heads. I just want to stop hurting so much, and Hozier shows and good friends in neat places are better for me than narcotics.