Reduced Circumstances

Further update: Japan has checked in. Thank you, first donor from Japan!

Also Portugal, Spain, Denmark, and the Netherlands yet again.

In the USA: California, and right here in central Virginia.

Update from Dymphna: Fundraising, The Final Day

That phrase has always intrigued me: “reduced circumstances”. It sounds British, but it could also be from the American South. Lord knows after Sherman created that swath of destruction everyone was living in “circumstances” much reduced from what they remembered. When I travel the back roads of the Carolinas or Georgia, I wonder if the South ever managed to entirely recover from Sherman’s depredations.

So here we are, living in reduced circumstances in Eden. The Baron came here first and it was he who named our house when he moved in. After living in the fast lane in Northern Virginia – there isn’t a slow lane in NoVa – this place seemed Edenic to him.

And it is. We had peaches and pears in abundance this year, without having to tend them at all. Also crab grass, but as the Baron likes to remind me, Eden is never perfection. This is Eden… afterwards.

Our reduced circumstances are the same ones facing millions of other Americans and, just as they are doing, we’ll weather them somehow. The only obstacle is Obama. Come to think of it, his program is beginning to resemble the strategy of General Sherman.

Today we wrap up our bleg. Things were slower, but donors continued to arrive, and I thank them from the bottom of my heart:

Upstate New York
Arizona
California (it’s now the “I told you so!” state for me)
Arkansas, right where it meets Tennesee
Florida again – thanks y’all

The Netherlands
Hungary – our first donation from there!
UK – one final time.

Gratias plena to all of you who showed up during the past week. Your generosity will help us to make it through the end of 2009.

We will muddle on through and let you all know if our circumstances fatten up any. In fact, y’all will be the first to know!

And now this post can finally mosey on down the page with all the rest…


Update from Dymphna: Fundraising, Day Six

Fallen from grace…

…or maybe just fallen from the saddle.

Whatever. Either way, we’re sitting here on the hard cold ground of reality counting our blessings.

In our case, enumerated among them would be our contributors. Y’all have really been generous to Gates of Vienna during this fund drive.

Anyone who didn’t receive a response for your gift let me know. We’ve had a few bounces, one from San Francisco and one that looks like it may be from France. The intent of that latter email isn’t immediately obvious.

Today, the Canadians came by again…and again. For the first time since I remember, the Canadians have been more numerous than the Texans.

There were some cowboys, of course. I hope the generosity they display is an indication of good times to come in the Lone Star state.

Norway was represented today. The Baron tells me this donor is further north than usual. I wonder if they’ve had their first frost yet (I never looked forward to a killing frost before but we’ve been infested with crab grass and that stuff is hard on my eyes). I do hope the Norwegians come in honor of Fjordman. There’s no one else like him.

More Virginia donors, too, and a few from Illinois. The former are particularly welcome since it’s like a letter from home. The latter reassure me that not all is lost in Obama country.

California continues to prove me wrong. My original thought, starting out, was that we wouldn’t hear much from them. Whowee, was I ever wrong! Thanks, all of y’all for being so generous in the face of my doubts.

Florida is California’s rival, and some crackers hit the tip cup today, thankyouverymuch. It’s nice to hear from people in the Panhandle (that’s west Florida, though both parts of my home state look like panhandles). For those who’ve never been there, out a ways past the state capitol starts what is known as the “Redneck Riviera”.

Some “show me” donors from Missouri gave to our fundraiser (The “show me” part is a reference to Missourians who don’t take your word for it: they want to see the evidence. In today’s political climate, that sure is a good idea).

And hello, Arkansas. You know who you are.

Last but not least, thanks to the citizens of Oz who arrived today, all looking a bit dusty. Given the dust storms and the aftermath, it was especially encouraging to hear from y’all.


Update from Dymphna: Fundraising, Day Five

Heavens, it certainly doesn’t seem like five days… except perhaps when I consult my gluteus maximus.

Since traffic is slower on weekends, I thought for sure the donations would be also. However, that turned out not to be the case. Again, our donors showed up from nearly all over. I say “nearly” because it’s a rare day when the Texans don’t come by. No doubt some were at church, some were gardening, and others were sleeping off the events of Saturday night?

Here’s our travel log for today:

Illinois, at least three times. Obama’s home state made a fine showing. One thank you note bounced, so if anyone from Illinois didn’t get a response, please let me know.

Michigan, more than once, but I may be leaving someone out. We’ve never heard from anyone in the Upper Peninsula; somehow I can’t picture them being much interested in lower Michigan, much less matters European. In fact, the U.P. has been muttering about secession for years. It sure is another world by the waters of Gitchigumi. For obvious reasons, when the Finns came to America, they congregated there.

Californians are still hitting the tip cup, so I’ll have to eat my words about California being true-blue. They’re obviously not monolithic. Yesterday, one donor said their son had been a liberal in his freshman year at Berkeley but grew increasingly conservative as he moved through school. That gives us hope. Maybe there will be more movement to the right as the large unionized state bureaucracy starts to fissure.

The New Yorkers have arrived in greater abundance, too.

For our European readers, these three states - Michigan, California, and New York - are being slammed with high taxes and a net loss of residents as people head for the door. Conditions are dire in all of them, so it’s cheering when they come by.

We heard from Maine for the first time and from tah dah! Washington, D.C. Both are such Democrat strongholds that one never expects to see them at the Gates. Things are kicking up in Maine, though: the hippies are ageing out and a newer, younger group will be in charge…eventually.

Several Virginians put in appearances, too, with (as they say around here) right nice donations. Thanks, y’all.

And a previous donor from North Carolina returned with money and praises. Come to think of it, we’ve had a number of previous donors. Cool. And even cooler are the nice things they say.

From Europe, we had Brits in abundance. You’d never know there was a downturn in the economy to see the numbers of donors from the UK.

Ireland and Australia were here, too. However, like the Texans, the Canadians were doing other things with this lovely Sunday.
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Perhaps both will return tomorrow, as offices open up again for the things we do in cubicles where the boss can’t see us. Hmm…I wonder if Gates of Vienna is blocked in government offices yet? I dearly hope not, since government workers are beginning to become the largest segment of the still-employed.

We shall continue, faithful readers, in our genteel squalor reminiscent of the days after the Late Unpleasantness. As long as the electric grid remains intact, however, we won’t have to go back but part way.


Update from the Baron: Fundraising, Day Four

Well, our flatiron won’t get us to a hotel on Boardwalk anytime soon, but, thanks to our readers’ generosity, we get to keep our house here on Mediterranean Avenue.

As a matter of interest — how long has it been since first class U.S. postage was actually 32¢? It seems very recent…

Today’s roll call includes Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Oregon, Massachusetts, and at least two from Illinois.

From the Near Abroad, Canada checked in several times, including British Columbia.

Then there was Dublin — the real one, in Eire.

More from France, and a lot from the UK — Dymphna (who is keeping track for me) says the British were in the lead today.

Thank you all for opening your hearts and your wallets for us. May you draw a Get Out of Jail Free card!


Friday’s Update from Dymphna: Day Three of the Bleg

Top of the Hole, eh what??

I’ve been reading a bit of post-Second World War P.G. Wodehouse. This period of his writing is still amusing, but it’s bittersweet, too, as Wodehouse depicts England’s upper class coming to terms with the new socialism and ruination by taxes. Before the war, Bertie Wooster was timeless and Edwardian. But afterwards… reality caught up with Mr. Wodehouse as the upper class began to be obliterated.

In the first novella, Bertie is off-stage in a school that teaches gentlemen to darn their own socks and otherwise learn living skills. Thus, Jeeves is on loan to another feckless soul, Lord Towcester (pronounced “Toaster”).

It is the usual Wodehouse pretzel of a plot, but it resonates nicely with our situation. Fortunately, we are not being forced to sell the crumbling family manse to a rich American. Heh. Our manse may crumble, but that is its permanent state. This condition is not merely existential, as would be the case with an ancient castle complete with chapel and a damp river running too nearby. No, our castle suffers from its humble antecedents and thus presents with a kind of congenital dishabille. The old place was born skewed and out of kilter. Still, it must have been loved from its very beginnings. You can tell.

To the rescue today rode a veritable posse of donors, spread across the globe. Of course there were the Swedes, a Norwegian, some Danes, and Brit or two, plus the Netherlands and someone from the real Vienna. That’s quite a plus.

Canadians popped up and for heaven’s sake, the Californians were on hand in abundance this time. An old friend of GoV, from Washington state was among the repeats. So there, I was wrong about the left coast, hmm? One donor rightly took me to task for that generalization.

A Michigander who’d last given in 2006 reappeared for another go and someone from Mizzippi, who’d given in the previous quarter tipped the cup again. Thanks!

A lone New Englander from New Hampshire tipped the cup. And, no, it wasn’t Mark Steyn. Where is he, by the way?

My big surprise was a donation from someone in my old hometown, Jacksonville, Florida. The place has grown from the small southern city it once was it was into a massive sprawl. Our donor lives in an area that was scrub palmetto and sandburs when I was growing up. Still, it was home for many years and I was inordinately pleased to receive Jax’s gift.

One of the Canadians said:

I just wanted to mention that I am forever stumbling upon references to Gates of Vienna on other blogs. You have an influence that goes far beyond the number of direct visitors to your site. It’s simply one more reason why it is so important to donate to your site — you are an Anti-Islamic force multiplier!

Thanks for another quarter of thought-provoking reading and I hope the worst is soon over for you and the Baron.

From your keyboard to G-d’s eyes, my friend.


Update from the Baron: Fundraising, End of Day Two

Our readers have once again earned their reputation for open-handed generosity. You all made the tip cup plink almost continuously all day long, and kept Dymphna so busy writing her thank-you notes that she wore her fingers out.

In the Far Abroad, we heard from Australia, Denmark, Finland, France, the Netherlands, and the UK.

In the USA, Texas was front and center once again. We also heard from California, Colorado, Illinois, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, and the Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy, more commonly known as “Northern Virginia”.

There were probably some other places represented in these gifts that I have forgotten. If so, y’all can reprimand me in the comments.

The way this is going, it looks like we will probably be able to skate by for a bit longer. We’re grateful to each and every person who has contributed so far.


Update from Dymphna: Fundraising, End of Day One

The best part of our fund-raising ventures is finding donations from so many different places. Thus far, we have Denmark, the UK, and Australia, all of them from several locations in each country.

On the North American continent, from the vast reaches of Canada we received donations across its breadth (not reaching as far as Vancouver this time, but I’ll have you know we’ve heard from that bastion of the left on several occasions in the past).

The U.S. is always led by Texans, though the very first donation this time around was from New Mexico. Las Cruces looks beautiful, doesn’t it?

Besides the Texans and the Texans, we have donors in the Midwest, the South, and the Upper Plains. No one has checked in from the Northwest, but one brave soul from New England came by with his donation.

Americans know that our coastlines on both sides are bastions of blue, so when someone shows up from either coast, it’s encouraging. I’ll always cherish the donation we received from Berkeley one year. Amazing. The poor donor had absolutely no one to talk to so he had to stay underground when it came to political opinions.

What ever happened to America the Free? I think it was mugged by ACORN and George Soros.

By the way, I’ll be answering those who’ve given me advice about treatments for narcolepsy and fibromyalgia, but not till after the fund-raising is over. If any of your suggestions work even a little, that will be the best gift of all!


22 September

Yes, it’s that time again…

As long as our own personal economic crisis persists, we’ll continue to throw a fundraiser roughly once a quarter. The generosity of our readers is what keeps Dymphna and me afloat, and for that we are deeply grateful.

The response to our “Hard Times” fundraiser back in June was heartening. Some readers signed up for the monthly subscription option, which is an expression of trust: a subscriber likes what he’s reading and is confident that there will be more where that came from.

And so there will be more, much more, given our dedicated corps of tipsters, translators, and contributors. These volunteers do a top-notch job of providing relevant in-depth content for our site. We are pleased to be the American portal for Europe’s crises.

Times are tough for a lot of people right now, and the employment situation here in the USA is likely to get worse before it gets better. Have you heard about our jobless recovery, especially for white men?

Our own circumstances are made more difficult by Dymphna’s medical condition, which limits my choices of what jobs I could possibly take — even if such jobs were available.

Dymphna is mostly unable to get out of the house now, and when she does travel, I have to be her chauffeur — a job she calls “Driving Miss Dymphna”.

The problem with Fibromyalgia is that a person can “look” so well, and yet be unable to function. It has been described as a “soft-tissue” rheumatism. FM can strike at any age, though it affects more women than men. Dymphna knows a young basketball coach who was diagnosed with this condition, and was forced to retire with a disability. Some doctors have decided that Dymphna has narcolepsy, too, but the treatments for it make other conditions worse. The medication is frightfully expensive, so she hoards it for “have-tos”, e.g. the doctor, the dentist, etc. Ironically, the remedies she is given seem to require more remedies for their side-effects.

When you ask Dymphna what the worst thing is about this disorder (besides the pain), she says that, in the long run, it narrows a person’s ability to function, and she has to accept that she is no longer dependable.

So she saves up her energy for special occasions — trying to visit her children and grandchildren, attending two local tea parties, paying a visit to our congressman’s office to beard the beast in his lair — but most of the time she has to stay at home. Outside exertions, even trips to the doctor, are energy-consuming. Dymphna is not bedridden, but things aren’t easy, which means that a lot of the routine chores (including such efforts at housekeeping as I can manage) fall to me.

All of the above makes it problematic to seek work that would require me to be away from home for any significant length of time. Since we live in the middle of nowhere — heck, we have to drive fifteen or twenty miles just to get to nowhere — that limits me to part-time work, telecommuting, or working very close to home. Moving closer to town is not affordable. We chose where we live because it was inexpensive.

With the modest amount of piecework I’ve managed to find over the last three months, plus the generosity of our readers (and our savings), we can eke out a subsistence if we’re very careful. Our circumstances are not a bad way to live. We have no debt, our house is paid for, and I drive a clunker (which they’ll have to pry out of my cold dead hands). I consider myself fortunate to have the options that I do.

Our station in life has fallen to a more modest level, but we’ve kept the wolf from the door — so far.

Once again, I’d like to thank everybody who has helped us.

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The tip cup is on our sidebar to the left, as is a subscription button which opens up to a $10-per-month plan via Paypal. Each of these options leads to a “Natural Intelligence of Central Virginia” screen, which is the name we use for our business account.