Tiny House Landia

You've seen me on Facebook and I hide it and deal with it pretty well now, but.... Mental Illness can suck...I have PTSD and Generalized Anxiety Disorder and have suffered from Depression in the past. I have been living with it for over 10 years as a result of an accident, and the emotional, financial and physical stresses the accident and seemingly permanent inuries it created and my resulting limitations. 12 years ago on the fateful winter solstice I was working hard, struggling like any young dad, raising my two young daughters, putting finishing touches on our house, making my way as a sustainable builder and going though a tough transition emotionally and financially with my divorce. There was a bright spot that day though...I woke up to millions of huge Prozac pills falling from the sky in Crested Butte, Colorado culminating in the Mountain coated in another 6 inches of fresh light, powdery snowy bliss. This was on top snow of a few successive storms in the few days before. The kind of snow that every skier dreams about This type of event that enacts, what locals call the "Powder Rule." More than 6" of fresh snow requires almost all businesses, (sans ski shops) in town to shutter their doors until at least noon to go skiing, mostly because even most reliable employees would undoubtedly call in sick anyway. After all, it is why we lived there. Bar none... I then thought it was one of the best days of skiing I ever had. The mountain was enveloped in smiles. Rope drops everywhere. I skiied all of my usual favorite powder day lines. Even a trail called Rambo was open that day, which is kinda a rare occurrence, mostly because the run is so steep it doesn't take very long for all the snow to slide all the way from the top to the bottom. The stress from the divorce was gone. Life was good again. Lived there almost 15 years had plenty of accidents, but somehow I never managed to injure myself. Until "Sock it to Me." One of my favorite powder day lines...one I skied hundreds of times in my tenure in Crested Butte, well socked it to me. The tip of my ski clipped a unseen sapling under the fresh snow and I couldn't recover in time to make a mandatory turn. Instead of skiing though a gully I found myself tumbling off a cliff landing on some boulders about 40 ft down only to roll off of those and fall some more. Things get a little cloudy here, but somehow I skied down to the bottom of East River Chair, which was pretty fucking far. It must have been on one leg as I later learned the rock pushed my femur though my hip. Unbeknownst to me for a while after the accident, my spine also suffered a severe fracture during the fall resulting in spinal instability and progressive nerve damage. The spinal instability and resulting nerve damage made it very difficult to be mobile slowly degrading to the point that I could not walk, I could not sit. I lived for the better part of a year unable to walk or even sit upright. I could not work my current job as a Habitat for Humanity Construction Manager or any job for the matterI was in so much pain I lost my ability to track what I read. Eventually I lost my savings, I couldn't afford and I lost my heath Insurance. I couldn no longer pay my child support which kept accruing. Swallowing my pride, I applied for public assistance and disability benefits. I received a $17 dollar a month food card and $277 per month from the State of Washington. I have shopped at food banks. Until my federal disability took effect....2 years later! Resulting in a whopping $1030 per month after my child support and Medicare Health Insurance premiums are deducted. But luckily, I did have health insurance! I had my daughters and a supportive partner and friends. I eventually found great Doctors, counselors that helped bring me to where I am today. Remember earlier I told you my best day of skiing was the day of my accident. I Wasn't! Because my favorite day of skiing ever was putting on skis last winter, skiing crappy groomed runs, for the first time in over 10 years, with my Girlfriend and our daughters last winter! I can't even count the number of surgical procedures I've had. Rounds of physical therapy. They've all helped. I've had great Doctors that miraculously saved me from a life in a wheelchair. Great counselors who helped with the PTSD, Anxiety and Depression. I've had very supportive friends, who have lifted me up helped me do things I could no longer do myself. I've come a long way. I'm not going to lie, stress triggers my PTSD and it has been a struggle to live independently at least financially $1,030 per month in Social Security Disability (which I don't even wan to be on) gets the bills almost paid. These past three years I have been lucky enough to pay my space rent in my RV in exchange for my "expertise" in helping my friends develop their own properties. I have a great opportunity now. My latest "clients" have allowed me to use part of the property build my own "Eco Friendy Tiny Houses" that I could both live in or sell to others w/o might need a place to live and to support myself and my daughters. I have been on Craigslist free collecting materials for over 2 years in my free time. Lately a Doctor recommend I try Gentle Yoga and has helped me become "stronger." I still love working, building, have my tools and I am slowly getting more endurance this past year. Every once and a while, I can even find a job that I can physically do that will actually pay me money! I keep going....I'm hopeful. I've learned to ask for help when I need it. I"m sure you've seen my facebook posts. Still, I'm struggling to get enough money to be able to afford to hire the help or materials I need to "actually" stay focused and just work. So I have been relying on friends and neighbors helping when they can. Because it is sopradic. It isn't enough to keep me consistently working, (which I need to do to stay healthy) because I get stuck on things I can't physically do or I have to wait till the next month to buy the part I need to continue. If you'd like to help for even an hour or 2 please do. Or if you live far away, or don't have the time, please consider donating to this GoFundme site attached here. "Good Help" around here charges me about $25/hr even every $5 helps. I will guarantee repayment after I sell one.:) All of you going though struggles of your own I feel you. Please let me know if there is any way I can help.