My finances are a wash. Or, they’re as fracked as Wash. Take your pick, they’re both true.

Remember in my last post, how I said we were good for this month, and then things would get dicey? Yeah. I remember thinking that was how it was. That’s a nice memory.

Here, though, is the reality: thanks to my infuriating combination of a flighty attention span and bad math skills, we’re out of money now. Like, completely. So completely that we were actually a couple hundred dollars in the hole, but my husband the ex-banker convinced the nice customer service rep to refund the overdraft fees, thank you Bank of America (suck it, IBC!). So we’re at nothing, with bills on the way.

Instead of crying about it–okay, after crying about it a lot–I went into action. I stocked and re-opened my Etsy shop, where shipping on all items is free on purchases made between now and next Saturday. I listed all of my Bloom County/Outland/Opus Christmas ornaments on eBay. I have an old Buick for sale. And I set up a new blog for posting my novella, This Old Haunt. And yes, there is a tip jar. Donations are completely optional, and I was careful to make that clear.

Before the critics descend to tell me I should get a job–that’s what I’ve been trying to do for the last six months. Broadening my field and lowering my standards haven’t helped. I can’t even find temp or part time work. Business is trickling in on the Virtual Assistant and freelance writing fronts, but paydays from that are small and slow in coming. If we can just make it through July and August, I think we’ll be okay for the rest of the year. But rest assured, I’m working my butt off, and I honestly don’t know what else to do that doesn’t involve illicit surgery and the black market.

I just don’t want to lose my house. I don’t know what we’ll do if it comes to that.

So anyway, if you, dear readers, could take a look at my offerings and see if there’s anything you like well enough to pay for, I will be eternally grateful. I’ll be equally grateful if you help spread the word about This Old Haunt, where the first episode will go live tomorrow.

Thank you. And if you ever need a helping hand, don’t ever hesitate to ask me.

[Originally posted at Daydream Believer.]