I love animals, and I'm a ready sucker for heartstrings fundraising appeals, as every animal rescue/adoption/advocacy organization worth the name clearly already knows. Virtually every mail day delivers at least one, and often more than one, appeal from an organization on the brink of closing, lest I fail to contribute. Aside from the shelters and anti-abuse organizations I have supported for years, since the economic meltdown I have caved on several newcomers. Tigers, horses and elephants have joined my menagerie, alongside the usual rundown of dogs, cats and chimps. The problem is: the more I give, the more I am asked to give. Not only from the organizations that have already banked my checks, but from an unceasing river of others that have clearly purchased my name from a database of animal saps who can't say
no.
The onslaught borders on abusive, and it's gotten to the point where I can no longer even look at the mail. I can't take the emotional toll. I can't bear the photos on the outer envelopes, and I can't stand to read about their trials and tribulations and having to toss them aside. I have a child leaving for college next weekend. I have a mortgage, credit cards, and car payments. There is simply not enough to go around, and much as I wish I could support each and every one of them, I simply can't. My first obligation is to keep food in Cupcake's bowl and allergy medication for her itching. What I can do beyond that I have and I will, but I won't be pushed into a corner by fundraisers who know how to play on my animal-loving proclivities.
Beware: Angry Donor Bites!
