Last year I had a stroke. This year I'm dangerously broke.

Last August, on my birthday, I was sitting at my computer. I noticed that the mouse was not responding. No big deal, I thought, I'll just reboot. Then I noticed, to my horror, that I was not responding. I had suffered an ischemic stroke. A blood vessel in my brain had burst, briefly cutting off the flow of blood to the right side of my body.

The entire story is here

The good news is that there was no brain damage. It hasn't affected my ability to speak. I was also eligible for Medicaid, which in New Jersey is fairly generous. So I came away without significant medical debt. What's more, over the past year, I've made progress towards a full recovery. Most of my upper body strength is back. I've recovered the ability to walk. I should be able to struggle back to normal.

The bad news is that I'm broke. My checking account is almost down to nothing. I'm about $10,000 in credit card debt. Over the past year, I've had almost no source of income. My workplace provided me with three months of short-term disability before firing me. This Spring, I managed to make a few thousand dollars online grading AP history exams. Since then I haven't been able to find anything. Unless you're an established freelancer the world of "remote work" is so filled with scams and semi-scams it's almost impossible to navigate.

My back is up against the wall. I need money for public transportation. I need money to pay my rent, to keep my cell phone on, and to make the minimum payments on my credit cards. I need time to look for a real job. Even if I were to start work tomorrow, it wouldn't be enough time for me to pay my rent this month. Both of my credit cards are about to go into overdraft. I just paid my cell phone bill. Next month I won't be able to afford it. I'm staring down the barrel of a loaded gun and I need help. Please help me survive.