This is his story:
I am a British citizen, living in Greece, under the sprectre of Brexit & until recently working from home as a freelance translator from 5/6 continental European languages into English.
I have lived in over 10 countries, over 4 continents, and consider myself a global citizen.
I became homeless at the end of last week (27 October 2018) as a result of not being able to meet my rent, due to an interruption of my income stream as a result of a lightning strike on Saturday 16. June that laid waste to all my IT equipment while I was in the middle of a commission that was to be delivered on the following Monday. Needless to say, panic ensued in order to complete the assignment, but all the remedial action that I took was not enough to save the project in question, let alone further smooth continuation of work.
Once I had directed my resources to replicating my lost equipment, summer holidays were in full swing and commissions rare on the ground. I struggled on with a replacement second-hand laptop and other new equipment but was unable to restore myself to my previous stability. To further add to my already deleterious conditions, I had taken what I considered a wise proactive measure and ordered a new battery for my phone, in order to extend its deteriorating autonomy. Once I had installed the new battery, the phone would no longer work and all my personal contacts (via Whatsapp) became inaccessible, together with all my usernames/passwords and other functionalities such as the camera to photograph ID documents and e-mail them. To illustrate this new folly, I had an older model wherein I inserted my SIM card and could use it solely for telephonic functions. However, all my contact details were lost and when I wanted to get in touch with a friend on the island, I had to ride to his house and restore contact with him. All my Whatsapp contacts remained inaccessible.
With this in mind, my field of contacts is now limited in scope and accessibility to those that had been fortuitously stored on a cloud in my browser settings - but these are merely professional contacts with clients and my Twitter account.
Having moved my household items to an acquaintance's doorless, cement garage (that also serves as my sleeping quarters), I have "set up office" with my replacement laptop at a friend's shop where he grants me space to use his internet in a hope to arrest the current situation.
I would very much appreciate any help you can give me. With many thanks. Neil
