Help Me Get Outta Here

I moved into this apartment out of necessity - and now I need to leave out of desperation.

Even The Housing Department has deemed this place unsafe, but I don't have the savings to move. That is why I am asking for help now, and how I intend to use that support.

This apartment was never perfect, but things came to a head when September brought (at least) three nests of wasps that had infested the walls, and over 400 of said wasps came flooding into my apartment in under than a month.

I begged the landlord to take care of her property, but she decided it would be cheaper for her to get rid of me than get rid of the wasps.

She told me I could move in with my boyfriend if I didn't want to live here; none of which was a solution, as don't have a boyfriend, plus I didn't want to leave my home.

Now I'm paralyzed with fear.

Each of those 400 wasps could have sent me to the ER with their stings, flaring my already tumultuous chronic illnesses, and thus I have lived in a constant state of crisis.

It's hindered my job search, which ironically would have helped me get out of this mess. It's affected my mental and physical health - I have had to keep on my AC, even through fall and winter, so that the wasps will hopefully find my apartment too cold for them...but this led quickly to bronchitis. And furthermore, I have had to spend whatever money I had squirreled away on materials to kill the wasps, replace the items that were damaged by spraying the wasps, and to purchase traps, long sleeves, and every other thinkable measure to prevent them from stinging me.

It has been hell. I understand now why one of the plagues was swarms of flying bugs.

In any case, now I'm stuck. And I have tried really hard not to be:

I have applied for almost as many jobs as I have killed wasps, but company budgets are closing down for the year, and most roles won't open again until January or February of 2025, if there are openings at all. In the wake of pandemic-layoffs and downsizing, it's been a battle to get back to where I was; a battle I fear will have to wait until after I find a safe place to live. Somehow.

And that's why I am asking for help.

It's already tough being immunocompromised with half a dozen diagnoses in a world built by able-bodied individuals. I didn't need wasps, too... And I didn't want to leave my home, but now... I just want to be somewhere that feels safe, stable, and secure.

And any support will help me get there.

Thank you even just for reading this, and please share this if you feel so inclined. I'll continue to share updates here, and write more on my blog about the chaos that always finds me, and the triumphs I hope are to come.

All my love,

H