I'm sorry to hear about your perils Xadie, being without electricity AND Internet, even less a computer, sounds like one of the First Circle of Hell... I'll see if I can chime in somehow...
Regarding donation, then I think the math goes to tell that you can expect donations from 1 in 1000 visitors, even when especially asked for, which means you have to have a well-established readership if you shall be able to count on any revenue, however small it can be. A need for larger donations for special occasions usually require a major continuing readership which again is fed by regular updates...
The entire Dragonboard burst some 10-15 different visitors daily, and most only tends to visit forums that shows some activity, so I guess that count as one explanation with regard to activity...
I've had the donation button up on the Archive (more as an experiment) for years and so far all it have brought in is dust!

... then again, I think the Archive accounts for some 20 daily visitors, so it might stand to reason...
Hope you'll make it until Thursday!