Falling shoes

Well, the other shoe finally fell yesterday. After 9 months of hanging in there on one paycheck, making the bills and the mortgage and buying enough food and clothes to keep the family from being hungry and naked, the good times have come to an end.

The hospital decided to call in all their chips. "Give us 9 grand by Thursday," they said "and we'll write off the rest. Or, alternatively, go to collections and pay an additional 33% on it all."

So, after making monthly payments for 2 years and not hearing a single peep of dissatisfaction from the health care facility, I gotta come up with a bunch of money I don't have in two days. I put it on a credit card and now I have to figure out how to pay two credit card bills. On top of everything else. And my wife needs to continue treatment at said hospital so it's not as if I'm done with them either.

I know there are a lot of families out there that are hurting, that are struggling to make it from week to week or even day to day. But, you know what? That doesn't bring me a lot of comfort.

I have no idea what I'm going to do. So long as I have my small savings, I can make the mortgage and the bills until August, but after groceries and gas there is nothing left. And once the savings is gone, I'm done. I have no plan B nor do I even know who I could talk to about plan B.

Just how much more does the universe think it can squeeze out of me?

And this situation does nothing for my wife's current state of health. Well, nothing positive anyway, making it even less likely she'll be able to work any time soon, thus keeping us in this evil cycle.

Yeah, I'm feeling rather Woe Is Me.