Fix a Disabled Michigander's Car, organized by E B
tldr: I’m a mixed-race disabled trans Michigander living with (and caring for) my retired elderly grandmother. Recently I got in a fender-bender that rendered my car undriveable and the dealership estimated I’ll need a minimum of $800 just to diagnose the problem. We live paycheck-to-paycheck: I don’t have that kind of money! But you can’t get around in my part of Michigan without a car.
Can you help me get my car fixed, so I can get groceries and get to the doctors’ and lawyers appointments for my SSDI appeal?
You can donate via my gofundme or my ko-fi, or see my cpap supply wishlist for tangible donation ideas.
In any event, I thank you simply for reading this, and even if you can't donate anything financially I would deeply appreciate if you could share this post or the gfm directly.
If you want more details:
I live in Metro Detroit, aka the Motor City, which means public transit is a joke and cars are basically required.
I'm disabled and applying for social security disability (which is generally a years-long process, thanks to bureaucracy, etc) while also living with and caring for my elderly grandmother. Without a car this means we're unable to get to the grocery store, our medical appointments, or the appointments with the disability lawyers.
Last summer I got in a fender bender and thought the damage was purely cosmetic, but seven months later I got several error codes including "hybrid system malfunction." The shop says there's water damage to the hybrid battery (located under the back seat) from that trunk damage, but they wanted $800 just to complete a diagnostic and see if that's actually the case. If it *is* the hybrid battery that's damaged, those are usually several thousand dollars to replace, and water damage would mean it's not covered by the warranty. This is also not including the cost of repairing any of the visible damage, and boldly assuming there isn't any other non-visible damage.
Here's some photos of the car itself, and descriptions are in the alt text:
Ultimately we ended up attaching the side of the bumper back to the body using quick release bolts. This required drilling a hole in the body as well as the bumper, but it's nicer than zip ties, and again, we are paycheck-to-paycheck, so $15 and a terrifying afternoon with my uncle and a power drill are more affordable than Schrodinger's repair bill.
Obviously getting the car fixed is the primary concern, but my disability also means that I've had to cut my hours at work, meaning we're also struggling to cover our normal expenses on top of the car.
Thank you for reading through all of this and for sharing if you do so, and especially if you can donate anything. If a tangible donation is something you would prefer, I have a list here of the supplies I use for my CPAP machine (because my airway closes while I sleep, and this machine keeps it open so I don't suffocate or suffer from sleep deprivation).
"Magic is fucking stupid, you've gotta be the lamest dork alive to use it"
*Wizard on the verge of tears after failing 8 consecutive times to cast a lightning bolt on this guy* "No it's.... no it's not...."
"Magic is fucking stupid, you've gotta be the lamest dork alive to use it"
*Wizard on the verge of tears after failing 8 consecutive times to cast a lightning bolt on this guy* "No it's.... no it's not...."
Love how they're absolutely mugging to the camera but it's shot in a way that says this is a nature documentary and we are observing these men in thier natural habitat.
Anyway I stole their gender
the "came back wrong" trope except like... they didnt. like this mad scientists wife died, and so he studied necromancy, brought her back, and she came back and it all worked. like she came back exactly the same as she was before with literally no difference. but the scientist guy is like "oh no... what have i done.... shes Different now!!!! she came back Wrong!!!!" and shes just like. chilling. reading a book. cooking dinner. shes just so so normal but in the guys mind hes like "oh shes soooo weird" but shes just normal
i showed this to my dad and he said “nebraskans should stay in nebraska because the culture shock of talking to people who know what the ocean is would kill them instantly” and im not over it
this is great, because as far as i know, one of the reasons cats like to knock things off counters is because it gets a large reaction from us. they don’t realize that it’s an unhappy reaction - they’ve just discovered that they can exert a unique kind of agency over their world.
imagine if you walked into a room and there was a button on the wall. you’d want to press it and see what happened. if it did something like make a beep or change the lights, most people will immediately press it again in response, testing out whether it happens again, or what the pattern is.
so the cat is like, huh, wonder what happens if i do this - and then it gets a Big Reaction! it is having a major impact on its environment! cool! wonder if it happens every time? OH IT DOES! this is fun!
and then the dog is getting treats, which dogs hella like. double enrichment! A+ video.
I love how the cat watches the dog gobble down almost a whole fistful of the shit the cat is dropping on the floor before the cat goes ‘hang on, maybe this is edible’
I swear I have a quality blog @thehyperninja13 - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
