>started with nothing and still have most of it left
All horseshit, name one, just one. Can you count to one? Your a paid agitator.
>smirk-of-satisfaction on the face of someone who didn't need it but took advantage of my generosity and laughed at me for it
That does happen and there are many con artists. There is also the case that I get all the time, where you do something great for someone, then they act like something you did offended them so bad that they no longer want anything to do with you. That is very prevalent, because it gives them an out to not reciprocate.
Listen, call your social services office HEAP unit, which stands for Home Energy Assistance Program. They have program that can help you fix you heating issues and will pay as much as $2k dollars for a furnace, water heater, etc. so a thermostat is only about $200 dollars at best. I hope that helps. Hang in there, I am sure President Trump will answer the call before Christmas.