Help Duckie and His Cats Through Tough Times

My name is John, though most of you know me as Duckie.

Earlier this year people like you helped me keep my apartment and get caught up on bills while I wait for a disability hearing. For that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Unfortunately my situation hasn't changed, and new emergencies have arisen.

This time, my cat needs to go to the vet because she either has diabetes or a thyroid problem, and she's losing weight fast. She needs to go to the vet, but I can't afford the vet visit or the testing she needs. (update: people suggested I look into grants, I was approved and she'll be seen by the vet on the 28th! As such, I dropped the goal by $500 since I no longer need that money.)

To make matters worse, my car broke down and I have no way of getting her to the vet outside of a $100 round trip via Uber or Lyft. I think it's the alternator, which I can repair but the part is upwards of $200. (update: I also need to renew my car tag, about $80.)

I'm also in another bind with the rent, and have until the end of the month to come up with $1100 of back rent or I'm going to have an eviction filed against me. There's also the usual monthly bills: electric, phone, internet, etc. The amount I'm asking for is basically two months' expenses, car parts, and money for a vet visit and testing for my cat.

As for the disability situation, everything is in the lawyer's hands right now. I'm just waiting on a date for the court hearting. (update: lawyer screwed me -- two years with no paperwork filed whatsoever -- my case is now being handled by the ADRC and they're being very diligent about it)

To recap what got me into this mess, this is from my previous fundraiser:

I used to be able to work, but then suddenly I couldn't. COVID came and limited the work I can do because I'm at risk for it. It wouldn't be good if I caught it, so I'm limited to staying at home and wearing a mask when I do go out for groceries. I can't visit friends or go out to restaurants.

Then came the sleep disorder. Last year, I was diagnosed with Non-24 Hour Sleep-Wake Disorder, a sleep disorder that is very rare in sighted people. So rare, that my doctor actually wants to write up a medical study about my case. It turns out that I've had it all my life; I'd just been able to tolerate it, despite being sleepy all the time with my days or nights being out of sync. As I got older, it became impossible to ignore. My sleep time gets pushed back every few days, resulting in eventually flipped days and nights every two weeks.

This is what my sleep looks like in a typical month, taken directly from my CPAP machine:

Between severe clinical depression, anxiety, fibromyalgia, migraines, and a rare sleep disorder, a logical person would believe I'd be able to easily get disability.

They'd be wrong. I've been trying for five years now. During the first year, I got by with the COVID stimulus checks. The second year, I got by selling some assets I'd acquired as a gift from a friend. The third year, I was forced to sell a game collection I'd accrued that was worth around $40k. Last year, I ran out of stuff to sell and I was forced to start begging for money. This is why I'm in my current situation.

I just need time. You can help me with that.

Thank you for reading this far. Any amount helps, even $1. Even if you can't give anything, please consider sharing.