Will You Help?
Saturday, January 28, 2006
My name is Michael Dickerson Deluno. I'm in a huge financial bind. I need $1000 immediately and more than that soon. I'll be making money before long, so this isn’t a long-term need. But it is a real, desperate, immediate short-term need for help.
Here’s how you can help, if you’re willing. If you want to know more first, there’s a little bit of explanation and introduction that follows.
How you can help
1. Donate $1 to me. That’s all I'm asking for - $1. You can either send it to me via PayPal (use ohanamd@earthlink.net as the e-mail address), or else you can send it via surface mail to Michael Dickerson, P.O. Box 33091, Santa Fe, NM 87594. (In reply to a couple of questions, yes, of course you can contribute more, but, please, only if you’d really like to.)
2. Buy any of the things I have for sale – a carved wooden box, a desktop computer, a printer, a DVD player, a stereo, a TV, a VCR, a fax machine, a 3-person tent, a floor fan, and a filing cabinet. See http://forsaleinsantafe.blogspot.com/ for further information. If you don’t really want the items, I'll buy them back from you when I have more money.
3. Loan me some amount of money that feels comfortable to you. I'll give a good interest rate (12%) and will begin repaying it within a couple of months.
4. Invest in one of my businesses. More information coming soon.
5. Use my services or purchase them in advance for use later or to give to someone else as a gift. More information coming soon.
6. Purchase pre-paid legal services and/or identity theft protection through me. Does health insurance seem like a good idea to you? If so, then this will probably make sense to you, too. Call 512-404-2330 and press #2 for a quick overview. If it sounds like something you are or might be interested in, call me at 505-473-0952 or e-mail me at pplitp@gmail.com (please use this e-mail address only for interest in pre-paid legal and/or identity theft protection).
7. Pray for me. If nothing else, I’d appreciate your prayers.
What I need money for
1. Rent. I still owe half of my January rent, and my February rent is due on the 1st. I'm at serious risk of being evicted.
2. Car payment - overdue. I'm at serious risk of losing my car.
3. Loan payments – overdue.
4. Food. I'm nearly out of food.
5. Gas for my car. If I don’t have gas, I won’t be able to get to work.
6. Internet payment - overdue
7. Phone bill – overdue
8. A medical test that I need NOW.
9. My medications. I'm nearly out of the one I take to control the pain from my Trigeminal Neuralgia.
As I add everything up, it’s really more than $1000. It’s closer to $1150.
Why I'm in crisis
I'll do my best to make this short. Since November, 2004 (at least), I’ve had Trigeminal Neuralgia, a neurological disorder affecting one of the facial nerves. It causes severe pain in the face, jaw, and scalp. Some medical scientists say it’s the most painful affliction known to medicine. The best I can describe it is that I’ve had nearly constant throbbing pain (like a toothache, if you’ve ever had one of those) with periodic attacks that are like electric shocks or lightning bolts through my face. (See http://www.tna-support.org) TN is often mistaken for dental problems, and I had extensive dental work done before I was finally diagnosed correctly. I recently had an MRI that ruled out the possibility of either a brain tumor or M.S.
All along I haven’t had either medical or dental insurance and have had to rely on other programs for low-cost care. And, of course, I’ve had usual ongoing expenses.
However, because of the severe pain that I’ve experienced, I only worked about half of the past 14 months. I probably shouldn’t have been working a few of those months because the pain was compromising my ability to do my work well, but I needed the money enough that I pushed on. I’ve considered that I might have to go on disability because of the TN.
The good news is that the medication I started taking this past October finally seems to be working, and I’m only experiencing a little pain. In case it comes back, though, I’ve made plans to do work that won’t require me to talk or be present anywhere most of the time. Thus the TN will impact my work life significantly less in the future.
Who I am
First, Dickerson is my legal name, and Deluno is my spiritual name. Eventually I'll change my name legally, but right now I have higher priorities for my time and money.
I'm a kind, compassionate, caring, and creative man who is committed to making a positive difference in the lives of people and thereby in the world.
The following things are my real work (i.e., the things I do easily and effortlessly with great joy and feel spiritually destined to do in some way):
1. Spiritual, relationship, academic, and life coaching (M.A. in psychology; I was a professional counselor for over 25 years and have become clear that coaching is a better fit for me)
2. Interfaith ministry (M.Div. in Unitarian Universalist ministry and lots of work in other spiritual paths)
3. Teaching (over 30 years of adult education; recently high school and middle school substitute teaching)
4. Public speaking (over 30 years of speaking to audiences ranging in size from a few people to hundreds)
5. Writing (lots of writing on the internet, and I’ve begun working on my first book)
6. Designing programs (I’ve designed an M.A. program in psychology, a Lay Ministry training program, a treatment program for offenders, and more)
7. Acting (see me in “Into the West” and the upcoming “Bordertown” with Jennifer Lopez, Antonio Banderas, and Martin Sheen) and doing voiceovers
8. Coordinating Santa Fe Spiritual Cinema Community and Santa Fe Spiritual Cinema Professionals
I also have done and still do a variety of other things to make money. My friend Barbara has taught me that many of us have to do things that aren’t our real work in order to make enough money to live on.
I love living in Santa Fe, NM, and love talking with other people about the wonderful people, places, sights, activities, and restaurants in the City Different.
My long-term plans to stay out of future crisis
1. I'm building my own businesses:
a. Information coming soon
b.
c.
2. I'm open to whatever acting roles come available. Lots of movies are being shot in NM, so there are casting calls fairly frequently. I’d really like to get speaking roles and am researching how to accomplish that.
3. I’ve applied for a freelance writing job, and I'll be looking for more opportunities as a writer.
4. I’ve just been hired as a secret (or mystery) shopper. That’s an easy part-time job that will pay well for the amount of time I'll put into it.
5. I’ve taken on a part-time business as a representative for pre-paid legal services and identity theft protection. This could be a great opportunity.
6. I'm going to a training session to be a tutor and will most likely be hired for that. It’s also part-time and pays well.
7. I’ve just applied to be a substitute teacher with a different school district (one where there’s less chaos management necessary). I'll also be applying to the local private schools. I'll take jobs if they’re really right for me.
8. I've started working through a couple of temporary agencies and am picking up jobs that not only pay me more per day than substitute teaching at Santa Fe Public Schools does, but are far less stressful.
9. I’ve been considering taking the classes to become a real estate agent as another option for me. I’d probably specialize in the field and do it part-time.
10. I'm still investigating other options. I'll let you know about them if and when I'm ready to pursue them.
11. And, as a super long shot, I invest a couple of dollars in Powerball now and then. Everyone will benefit if I ever win the jackpot.
How I’ve helped others
Most of my life I’ve been the one in the position of helping other people. Here are a few examples out of many:
1. As I’ve said, most of my work has been about helping people in one way or another. Just one example of that: I spent 12 years working as a therapist with abusive people, doing my best to make women, men, and children safer from anyone who would harm them. I did it primarily because I wanted to make a difference.
2. In my counseling practice and in some of my workshops and trainings, I’ve offered a low cost sliding scale, work trades, time payments, and occasionally free services for people with low incomes. So far I’ve forgiven over $15,000 in fees owed to me that weren’t paid by people who disappeared after making time payment agreements.
3. On several occasions I trained facilitators at no cost to them for classes I designed, then gave them the classes to do on their own for a very low fee. I was more concerned with supporting my friends and in getting the material out to people who wanted it than in making lots of money.
4. I’ve done thousands of hours of volunteer work of a wide variety of kinds.
5. Whenever I’ve been in a romantic relationship, I’ve always done my best to give as much as I possibly could – gifts, fixing things, driving them to and from work, compliments, presence, taking care of their kids, etc.
6. At one time I dated a woman who wasn’t making much money. She had a couple of kids, and her ex wasn’t coming through with child support. I paid for things we did together, and I also gave her at least $100 in cash every month. I never asked for any of it back, even when she broke up with me.
7. I belong to a group called “Santa Fe FreeCycle” in which people ask for what they need and offer what they have. All transactions have to be gifts. I’ve given away a number of things and so far have received nothing from anyone in the group. I accept, though, that it isn’t designed to be an exchange.
8. Quite a few times I’ve let people stay at my house for free for as long as they needed to be there.
9. At one time I met a woman who was visiting some mutual friends. She was sick and had little money, so I took her to the local inexpensive clinic and paid for her meds. I never received or asked for the money back.
10. I can’t possibly count the number of people who I’ve volunteered to help move just because they needed the help. I always joke that by now I should have earned my M.A. in moving.
11. One day I was in a pizza place, and a couple didn’t have enough money to pay for their pizza. I gave them the money. When he asked for my address to send it back to me, I said, “Just do something kind for someone else.” I still do that whenever I can.
If I had enough money to provide housing for everyone who’s homeless, I would (if they want it, of course).
My intention is always to give more than I receive. Recently I haven’t been able to do that immediately. However, I will do so as soon as I'm able. I know that things return to us in some way when we give what we have with an open hand and an open heart. They may not come back from the person we gave something to, but they come back from somewhere.
My promise to anyone who helps me
I have a 4-fold promise for whomever helps me:
1. I'll use it to help other people as well as myself.
2. I'll return whatever I receive, multiplied, to the people who help me.
3. I'll pay whatever I receive forward. In other words I'll pass it along to other people who need help.
4. If I ever happen to win Powerball or receive another very large windfall, I'll give a significant gift (“gratitude bonus”) to anyone who helps me.
This is my sacred agreement with God and with everyone concerned. And so it is.
Once again, how you can help
1. Donate $1 to me. That’s all I'm asking for - $1. By about Feb. 1 you’ll be able to do that via PayPal. In the meantime, you can send it to Michael Dickerson, P.O. Box 33091, Santa Fe, NM 87594. (In reply to a couple of questions, yes, of course you can contribute more, but, please, only if you’d really like to.)
2. Buy any of the things I have for sale – a carved wooden box, a desktop computer, a printer, a DVD player, a stereo, a TV, a VCR, a fax machine, a 3-person tent, a floor fan, and a filing cabinet. See http://forsaleinsantafe.blogspot.com/ for further information. If you don’t really want the items, I'll buy them back from you when I have more money.
3. Loan me some amount of money that feels comfortable to you. I'll give a good interest rate (12%) and will begin repaying it within a couple of months.
4. Invest in one of my businesses. More information coming soon.
5. Use my services or purchase them in advance for use later or to give to someone else as a gift. More information coming soon.
6. Purchase pre-paid legal services and/or identity theft protection through me. Does health insurance seem like a good idea to you? If so, then this will probably make sense to you, too. Call 512-404-2330 and press #2 for a quick overview. If it sounds like something you are or might be interested in, call me at 505-473-0952 or e-mail me at pplitp@gmail.com.
7. Pray for me. If nothing else, I’d appreciate your prayers.
Thank you
I have enormous gratitude to you for thinking about this. I hope you’ll choose to help me (and in most cases to thereby also help yourself). If so, I'll be even more grateful.
My plans for the future of this site
In the future, when my crisis is resolved, I will turn this into a site for giving attention to other people who have some important need for help. I hope you will choose to return regularly to see who you can help and how.
Here’s how you can help, if you’re willing. If you want to know more first, there’s a little bit of explanation and introduction that follows.
How you can help
1. Donate $1 to me. That’s all I'm asking for - $1. You can either send it to me via PayPal (use ohanamd@earthlink.net as the e-mail address), or else you can send it via surface mail to Michael Dickerson, P.O. Box 33091, Santa Fe, NM 87594. (In reply to a couple of questions, yes, of course you can contribute more, but, please, only if you’d really like to.)
2. Buy any of the things I have for sale – a carved wooden box, a desktop computer, a printer, a DVD player, a stereo, a TV, a VCR, a fax machine, a 3-person tent, a floor fan, and a filing cabinet. See http://forsaleinsantafe.blogspot.com/ for further information. If you don’t really want the items, I'll buy them back from you when I have more money.
3. Loan me some amount of money that feels comfortable to you. I'll give a good interest rate (12%) and will begin repaying it within a couple of months.
4. Invest in one of my businesses. More information coming soon.
5. Use my services or purchase them in advance for use later or to give to someone else as a gift. More information coming soon.
6. Purchase pre-paid legal services and/or identity theft protection through me. Does health insurance seem like a good idea to you? If so, then this will probably make sense to you, too. Call 512-404-2330 and press #2 for a quick overview. If it sounds like something you are or might be interested in, call me at 505-473-0952 or e-mail me at pplitp@gmail.com (please use this e-mail address only for interest in pre-paid legal and/or identity theft protection).
7. Pray for me. If nothing else, I’d appreciate your prayers.
What I need money for
1. Rent. I still owe half of my January rent, and my February rent is due on the 1st. I'm at serious risk of being evicted.
2. Car payment - overdue. I'm at serious risk of losing my car.
3. Loan payments – overdue.
4. Food. I'm nearly out of food.
5. Gas for my car. If I don’t have gas, I won’t be able to get to work.
6. Internet payment - overdue
7. Phone bill – overdue
8. A medical test that I need NOW.
9. My medications. I'm nearly out of the one I take to control the pain from my Trigeminal Neuralgia.
As I add everything up, it’s really more than $1000. It’s closer to $1150.
Why I'm in crisis
I'll do my best to make this short. Since November, 2004 (at least), I’ve had Trigeminal Neuralgia, a neurological disorder affecting one of the facial nerves. It causes severe pain in the face, jaw, and scalp. Some medical scientists say it’s the most painful affliction known to medicine. The best I can describe it is that I’ve had nearly constant throbbing pain (like a toothache, if you’ve ever had one of those) with periodic attacks that are like electric shocks or lightning bolts through my face. (See http://www.tna-support.org) TN is often mistaken for dental problems, and I had extensive dental work done before I was finally diagnosed correctly. I recently had an MRI that ruled out the possibility of either a brain tumor or M.S.
All along I haven’t had either medical or dental insurance and have had to rely on other programs for low-cost care. And, of course, I’ve had usual ongoing expenses.
However, because of the severe pain that I’ve experienced, I only worked about half of the past 14 months. I probably shouldn’t have been working a few of those months because the pain was compromising my ability to do my work well, but I needed the money enough that I pushed on. I’ve considered that I might have to go on disability because of the TN.
The good news is that the medication I started taking this past October finally seems to be working, and I’m only experiencing a little pain. In case it comes back, though, I’ve made plans to do work that won’t require me to talk or be present anywhere most of the time. Thus the TN will impact my work life significantly less in the future.
Who I am
First, Dickerson is my legal name, and Deluno is my spiritual name. Eventually I'll change my name legally, but right now I have higher priorities for my time and money.
I'm a kind, compassionate, caring, and creative man who is committed to making a positive difference in the lives of people and thereby in the world.
The following things are my real work (i.e., the things I do easily and effortlessly with great joy and feel spiritually destined to do in some way):
1. Spiritual, relationship, academic, and life coaching (M.A. in psychology; I was a professional counselor for over 25 years and have become clear that coaching is a better fit for me)
2. Interfaith ministry (M.Div. in Unitarian Universalist ministry and lots of work in other spiritual paths)
3. Teaching (over 30 years of adult education; recently high school and middle school substitute teaching)
4. Public speaking (over 30 years of speaking to audiences ranging in size from a few people to hundreds)
5. Writing (lots of writing on the internet, and I’ve begun working on my first book)
6. Designing programs (I’ve designed an M.A. program in psychology, a Lay Ministry training program, a treatment program for offenders, and more)
7. Acting (see me in “Into the West” and the upcoming “Bordertown” with Jennifer Lopez, Antonio Banderas, and Martin Sheen) and doing voiceovers
8. Coordinating Santa Fe Spiritual Cinema Community and Santa Fe Spiritual Cinema Professionals
I also have done and still do a variety of other things to make money. My friend Barbara has taught me that many of us have to do things that aren’t our real work in order to make enough money to live on.
I love living in Santa Fe, NM, and love talking with other people about the wonderful people, places, sights, activities, and restaurants in the City Different.
My long-term plans to stay out of future crisis
1. I'm building my own businesses:
a. Information coming soon
b.
c.
2. I'm open to whatever acting roles come available. Lots of movies are being shot in NM, so there are casting calls fairly frequently. I’d really like to get speaking roles and am researching how to accomplish that.
3. I’ve applied for a freelance writing job, and I'll be looking for more opportunities as a writer.
4. I’ve just been hired as a secret (or mystery) shopper. That’s an easy part-time job that will pay well for the amount of time I'll put into it.
5. I’ve taken on a part-time business as a representative for pre-paid legal services and identity theft protection. This could be a great opportunity.
6. I'm going to a training session to be a tutor and will most likely be hired for that. It’s also part-time and pays well.
7. I’ve just applied to be a substitute teacher with a different school district (one where there’s less chaos management necessary). I'll also be applying to the local private schools. I'll take jobs if they’re really right for me.
8. I've started working through a couple of temporary agencies and am picking up jobs that not only pay me more per day than substitute teaching at Santa Fe Public Schools does, but are far less stressful.
9. I’ve been considering taking the classes to become a real estate agent as another option for me. I’d probably specialize in the field and do it part-time.
10. I'm still investigating other options. I'll let you know about them if and when I'm ready to pursue them.
11. And, as a super long shot, I invest a couple of dollars in Powerball now and then. Everyone will benefit if I ever win the jackpot.
How I’ve helped others
Most of my life I’ve been the one in the position of helping other people. Here are a few examples out of many:
1. As I’ve said, most of my work has been about helping people in one way or another. Just one example of that: I spent 12 years working as a therapist with abusive people, doing my best to make women, men, and children safer from anyone who would harm them. I did it primarily because I wanted to make a difference.
2. In my counseling practice and in some of my workshops and trainings, I’ve offered a low cost sliding scale, work trades, time payments, and occasionally free services for people with low incomes. So far I’ve forgiven over $15,000 in fees owed to me that weren’t paid by people who disappeared after making time payment agreements.
3. On several occasions I trained facilitators at no cost to them for classes I designed, then gave them the classes to do on their own for a very low fee. I was more concerned with supporting my friends and in getting the material out to people who wanted it than in making lots of money.
4. I’ve done thousands of hours of volunteer work of a wide variety of kinds.
5. Whenever I’ve been in a romantic relationship, I’ve always done my best to give as much as I possibly could – gifts, fixing things, driving them to and from work, compliments, presence, taking care of their kids, etc.
6. At one time I dated a woman who wasn’t making much money. She had a couple of kids, and her ex wasn’t coming through with child support. I paid for things we did together, and I also gave her at least $100 in cash every month. I never asked for any of it back, even when she broke up with me.
7. I belong to a group called “Santa Fe FreeCycle” in which people ask for what they need and offer what they have. All transactions have to be gifts. I’ve given away a number of things and so far have received nothing from anyone in the group. I accept, though, that it isn’t designed to be an exchange.
8. Quite a few times I’ve let people stay at my house for free for as long as they needed to be there.
9. At one time I met a woman who was visiting some mutual friends. She was sick and had little money, so I took her to the local inexpensive clinic and paid for her meds. I never received or asked for the money back.
10. I can’t possibly count the number of people who I’ve volunteered to help move just because they needed the help. I always joke that by now I should have earned my M.A. in moving.
11. One day I was in a pizza place, and a couple didn’t have enough money to pay for their pizza. I gave them the money. When he asked for my address to send it back to me, I said, “Just do something kind for someone else.” I still do that whenever I can.
If I had enough money to provide housing for everyone who’s homeless, I would (if they want it, of course).
My intention is always to give more than I receive. Recently I haven’t been able to do that immediately. However, I will do so as soon as I'm able. I know that things return to us in some way when we give what we have with an open hand and an open heart. They may not come back from the person we gave something to, but they come back from somewhere.
My promise to anyone who helps me
I have a 4-fold promise for whomever helps me:
1. I'll use it to help other people as well as myself.
2. I'll return whatever I receive, multiplied, to the people who help me.
3. I'll pay whatever I receive forward. In other words I'll pass it along to other people who need help.
4. If I ever happen to win Powerball or receive another very large windfall, I'll give a significant gift (“gratitude bonus”) to anyone who helps me.
This is my sacred agreement with God and with everyone concerned. And so it is.
Once again, how you can help
1. Donate $1 to me. That’s all I'm asking for - $1. By about Feb. 1 you’ll be able to do that via PayPal. In the meantime, you can send it to Michael Dickerson, P.O. Box 33091, Santa Fe, NM 87594. (In reply to a couple of questions, yes, of course you can contribute more, but, please, only if you’d really like to.)
2. Buy any of the things I have for sale – a carved wooden box, a desktop computer, a printer, a DVD player, a stereo, a TV, a VCR, a fax machine, a 3-person tent, a floor fan, and a filing cabinet. See http://forsaleinsantafe.blogspot.com/ for further information. If you don’t really want the items, I'll buy them back from you when I have more money.
3. Loan me some amount of money that feels comfortable to you. I'll give a good interest rate (12%) and will begin repaying it within a couple of months.
4. Invest in one of my businesses. More information coming soon.
5. Use my services or purchase them in advance for use later or to give to someone else as a gift. More information coming soon.
6. Purchase pre-paid legal services and/or identity theft protection through me. Does health insurance seem like a good idea to you? If so, then this will probably make sense to you, too. Call 512-404-2330 and press #2 for a quick overview. If it sounds like something you are or might be interested in, call me at 505-473-0952 or e-mail me at pplitp@gmail.com.
7. Pray for me. If nothing else, I’d appreciate your prayers.
Thank you
I have enormous gratitude to you for thinking about this. I hope you’ll choose to help me (and in most cases to thereby also help yourself). If so, I'll be even more grateful.
My plans for the future of this site
In the future, when my crisis is resolved, I will turn this into a site for giving attention to other people who have some important need for help. I hope you will choose to return regularly to see who you can help and how.
