it's hard as balls and i really want a tablet
You could always get a really cheap one on amazon. I have an off-brand tablet, and it was around 10-15 bucks. It's small and the pens are damn near impossible to replace but it works fairly well. It does feel odd but at least I can draw with it.
It's better to have a cheap tablet that's usable than to not have one at all. I'm poor as dirt but I wanted a tablet so I got that one just so I could at least own one before saving up to get a used Wacom tablet.