Hello! As many of you know, Matty and I had a little bout of homelessness this past winter, from November until March. While it was indeed stressful, I've been trying to look on the brightest side possible and think of how much more understanding our time living through the coldest winter in living memory with our little dog in our now-defunct Grand Cherokee has made me of those who continue to experience the lack of a stable home, and how much more grateful I am of our tiny new place. Unfortunately, one of the unforeseen problems we ran into was literally losing most of our possessions, either because we simply couldn't take them with us or because we were so exhausted and ill-prepared that things just...went missing, and, well, most of those things were mine. I miss my clothing and such, yes, but the worst was the loss of my smaller personal effects, such as gold jewelry and sentimental items, and my jewelry-making tools and supplies.

At the same time, I was assaulted a few years ago, the effects of which are only now truly settling in. I find that it's been a challenge to keep a job; I feel as though something in my brain has broken and I just can't do the same goddamn nonsense things for the same goddamn capitalist monsters one day longer. Matty has finally gotten concerned enough that he insisted I quit the few remaining hours that I was pulling at my day job, which had been netting me less than a couple hundred dollars a month.

But I haven't been idle: I find a lot of peace working on my own things. I had begun playing with metal clay about a year after the assault, and I found that I loved it. It filled a place inside of me that had been empty for a long time: I could finally feel like an artist again. That lack had been literally killing me, and that work is when I am at my happiest these days.

I've always loved jewelry, so it seemed like a natural progression to start making wearable pieces and, yes, advance to selling them. So I started to plan out an initial jewelry line. But now I can't go any further. I bought a few replacement tools, but these ones are not the same quality as the ones I had before, and I don't have even close to everything I need. I also desperately need a kiln, even just a small, inexpensive one, to successfully produce commercial-quality jewelry.

Some of you kindly offered us money when I posted on Facebook last winter that we were living out of our car. At the time, we were okay, pretty much just living in survival mode but able to subsist. But now I have the ability and need to look to the future, to rebuild. I've enrolled in a business course for jewelry artists lead by the South African designer and YouTube coach Megan Collins, and it's helping me hone the logistics side of my business plan, giving me inspiration and a community to explore. But I have nothing to sell -- all of my finished pieces and prototypes were lost as well -- and, with no raw materials and inadequate equipment, no way to make anything to sell.

So now I will ask for financial assistance. There's no reason to stand on pride any longer when I know that I can't go it alone any more. Aging has left me with a better sense of when to ask for help, and when I am able to stand on my own.

I estimate that around $1500 will give me enough to afford basic hand tools and the expensive materials as well as a simple Ultralite "Beehive" Kiln that can suitably fire fine and sterling silver (as long as the pieces are not too dimensional...) and a jewelry tumbler for polishing and hardening fired pieces. This will also cover the fees charged by Gofundme well-enough to afford the good stuff.

If I hit $2500, I will be able to afford a far better industry standard kiln that reaches higher temperatures and is much more sophisticated: I would be able to make any kind of item I wanted in any shape using any firing schedule, as well as work in base metals like copper and bronze that sinter at higher temps, giving my creativity a greater range of success. Base metal clay, interestingly, is much less expensive than precious metal clay, but requires more expensive equipment and typically more complex firing schedules. Very funny, chemistry. I see what you did there.

If I have any cash left at the end after getting the physical things that I need, the money will go towards startup costs associated with web hosting and other digital ephemera.

I would love to announce a digital "grand opening" by the end of the year (ambitious, I know), and maybe even capitalize on the holiday gift-giving season by making my first few sales. Will you help me get there?

What I will gain is freedom: freedom from living under the constant boot of criminal and negligent employers, freedom from the fear of housing and food instability, and the freedom to live a creative life.

Thank you for all your love and support.