sorry this is off topic but i promised forrest that i would give his plan a serious effort and i am going to do the work.
i did something good for someone today. a girl at work is having financial difficulty. she applied for a consolidated loan from the bank and her application was denied. her credit card bills were piling up and paying a whopping 24% interest. she was afraid that filing for bankruptcy was her only way out. and it was not an option for her. she was determined to pay off her debts herself. i can't imagine the stress.
so last night, i did some research myself and found her a free credit counselling service. it has given her some hope. perhaps they can help her with a debt repayment plan to get her back on track. i hope this works out for her.