Can you help my mom buy food this Christmas?

Hello everyone!

Apologies to everyone for not updating this thing in a while.  The Jpop world has been overflowing with goodness these past few weeks, but unfotunately due to life, I was, let's say, less than motivated to write.  But now, I must.

This post is very long, but if you read it all, I will be in your debt.

As we people in the Western world all know, the holiday season is now upon us.  It is a time for many things: gifts, silly musical cards, merriment, stuffing our faces, and SoCo and egg nog--but most importantly, it's about taking time to show your friends and family you appreciate and care about them.  The latter has become so important to me now that I am out of the nest, and I had hoped to be able to do more to show my family how much they mean to me.  But I need some help.

My mom is one of the most important people in my life.  We didn't have a perfect relationship when I was growing up, but that fact was one of many things that has helped us become very close today.  She taught me how to read and write well, how to remodel a house, and how to make creamed eggs on toast.  She encouraged me to become a well-rounded musician, even though I was a stubborn and terrible student.  She taught me that failure is always an option, and that people who look down on you for mistakes that you yourself acknowledge and apologize for aren't worth knowing.  She taught me that women are amazing people, and that we need to love and support each other no matter what.  It is because of my mother, who worked many late hours to raise a horrible, horrible child like me, as a single parent and a badass woman in this red state, that I turned out to be a somewhat okay person today.  For doing all these things, it is safe to say that any mother deserves (and IS OWED!!!) a lot of appreciation, love and support.

And right now, it's support we need most.

Mom is finding it nearly impossible to make ends' meet right now.  As the editor-in-chief of a small town newspaper in Oregon, she works upwards of 60 hours a week to put the paper out.  With only one other reporter on staff to help cover all the small-town news, she does almost all the work herself, which includes pagination, proofreading, marketing advertising and, oh yeah, writing almost all of the articles.  (And dealing with ancient Mac software...)  She is a fantastic and honest writer, which isn't an easy job, either.  

When Mom lived and worked as a journalist in Wyoming, she won several awards in several different categories from the Wyoming Press Association.  Her honest and concise writing infuriated any and all wing nuts and violators of our state's open meetings law, but that was more than made up for by praise and thanks from many community members in the three towns whose papers she contributed to.  

And for all this work, all of her overtime, all of her nearly two decades of dedication to an industry that is so important to her, her publishers get away with paying her less than what my partner makes selling phones.

I have not seen my mom in almost 4 years because neither of us have been able to afford the trip.  She was not at my college graduation in 2009 because there wasn't enough money, and there have been no holiday visits.  The mortgage is getting later every month, the gas tank is never full, and with the price of food skyrocketing, grocery shopping doesn't happen often.  If my mom doesn't get a significant raise soon, she will have to quit her job and sell her tiny house.  And we don't know what happens next.  I and my partner help when we can, but it is not very often and it is never enough.  I have been looking for a second job for almost a year now to earn some extra money, but the job market in Laramie is terrible.  Not I, nor anyone else I know, has had much luck.

I want to give my mom something really meaningful this holiday, since I cannot see her this year either.  And this is where I'm asking, no, begging, for your help.  None of us have a lot these days, I know, but if you can spare even a dollar, my mom might to be able to fill her fridge and gas tank this winter.  I have set up a Chip In page for contributions, which you can find here: 

http://momsgroceryfund.chipin.com/moms-grocery-fund

And with this widget, and the one I posted at the top of my sidebar:



Donations can be made via Paypal (which is completely free to set up and use) or by debit/credit card.  I will be making contributions of my own whenever I can as well.  Everything you can donate will go straight to her on December 20th, though I will keep the page open for at least another month, if not longer.

Thank you all so much for even reading this.  It means more than you will ever know, and I love you all for even considering doing this.  By chipping in, you are helping save the home, job, and life of someone I love and cherish.  

Happy holidays to you all.