Boy I have just the best luck :(

Dropped my phone in the toilet Saturday. Sunday was my 35th birthday.

I just found out it's gonna be $40 just to have the **** thing looked at, +$50-$80 to get it fixed, and I have $80 for groceries and nothing more till next month :(

Even worse, while this project has had to change because my laptop is starting to act up... which also means it's got to be suspended for a bit...

I have another project I was going to submit for the same contest (Retro Reinvented)... except, guess where all the build photos are? :( :( :( :( :(

Go figure. I could've really used that $200. I didn't think I'd get it, I didn't expect to, but I *wanted* it... I could've really used it. All those 'jellybean' parts that everyone has on hand? I don't have them on  hand. I'm on Disability. I have Asperger's and ADD... seems normal, but when I was growing up, "Autism" meant the guy from the "Rain Man" movie and "Asperger's" was an insult involving donkeys, meat patties, and a swear word. So the teachers who are now really good at dealing with folks like me... learned how to do that on me and my classmates. Literally... and I didn't do so well as a result. I live on $1100/mo, roughly, and the second half of the month is hard, because I'm on Disability (international: it works like what you call a pension, but we don't call it that here) and I can't moonlight, which to a point is indeed legal, but I'm not even THAT functional.

So I don't have the money to have standard parts on hand... I never have. I was gonna spend the $200 on that. Now I don't even have a chance... I'm used to not winning contests, sure (not emotional there, just straight-up honest... I won some trinket once in a Halloween thing in college and on the rare occasion that I've bothered to get a $10 scratch-off ticket... the best I've done is $30, and I have a close relative who's got $500+ from them... that's TBH about it) but this honestly kind of stings a bit. I feel like I at least deserved a shot at the prize, and now I don't have that.

Sorry if that gets you down as well... life gets to ya sometimes :-/ that's all.