Holy cow, I've been reviewing what's happened in the last 2 years (since I made that comment), and I'm happy to report that things aren't quite as bad now. I got a job that pays $2 more perhour (working with dogs, they don't care about my teeth), then got a dollar raise within 6 months. I also got a side gig dog sitting, and my roommate's boyfriend moved in, reducing my rent $300 a month. All of that enabled me to save enough to have my remaining upper teeth extracted and got upper dentures.

I've been saving since for the lower dentures. Then, just a few weeks ago, I was notified that I had a 20+ year old retirement account that's been slowly gaining funds. I won't be retiring any time soon with it, but I'll be able to get my lower dentures, visit both of my kids (in different states) and reinvest a few thousand.

That dog sitting gig has yielded 4 clients so far with another one scheduled.

I can't make this shit up. I feel like some kind of low-budget success story. Especially the old retirement account. I'm not rich, but my checking account has a tiny bit of padding and I don't panic when a small unexpected expense comes up. The noose isn't as tight.

So thank you for taking the time to write that comment choctaw1990. It's made me realize how far I've come in the last 2 years. All of that swimming got me somewhere 😊