Former Member

I cannot imagine Coming Out back in 1972 – of course I was barely a teenager back then and living in the then very conservative little Navy Town, San Diego at the time! It would be four or five more years before I met a classmate who was actually Out. He told me he thought I was in the Closet, but I denied it. I’m sure it was as transparent a lie back then as it seems now! ;–)

I like this idea. At one of the shelters, we talked about how it could make a great situation comedy TV show. There are some people who never seem to move on from homelessness and others who briefly appear, then disappear (just like a cameo appearance) – both clients and staff. ;–) One of my friends was supposed to have bedrest while recovering from surgery. But he’s a restless sort of guy and he tried to sneak outside. He's legally blind, but not totally unable to see things, and he thought he saw his nemesis (a staff member) leave the main area and tried to make a run for it. He opened the door and bounced off her more than ample bosoms! She asked him where he was going, he could only meekly say, ‘Nowhere’ and turn around to return to his bunk with his tail tucked between his legs. ;–) Homeless programs don’t work in isolation, they often refer clients to others who provide services they can’t. Some agencies are better set up to help find housing for clients, others help with legal issues. One of the most important referrals I got was to a group with pro bono lawyers who represented me at my Social Security Disability hearing – they helped me win my case! ;–) A few years ago, there was a movie that played at Frameline (San Francisco International LGBTQ Film Festival – the world’s oldest and largest LGBTQ film festival) called Saturday Church. Set in NYC, a teenager runs away from home and eventually discovers Saturday Church, a program set up to serve the homeless LGBTQ community. It’s based on a real organization with a fictional protagonist. Many of the actors are actual clients of the real agency. Aside from providing food and clothing, they also have a drag runway presentation event. While the lives and situation were very different from my own, it was a fascinating view of their world and I recommend the movie. ;–)

As much as I hate puns, yes! ;–)

I think I always expected the three of them to end up having sex together eventually…

I’ll bet! ;–)

I might try if I had even the slightest clue who that is/was/will be! ;–)

Natalie is perceptive enough to realize who is causing Jeremy to back off, but not enough to realize that Alex’s feelings are being reciprocated. Such a rocky chapter! Is Alex actually betting money on that new app?

Okay, I was going to joke that their rivals would call it Ronald McDonald Middle School. But I looked it up on Wikipedia to make sure Anson wasn’t one of the early Canadian politicians that I vaguely recalled (John Alexander Macdonald, as it turns out – ‘arctic’ CA politics aren’t taught in ‘semi-arid desert’ CA history classes). And it turns out you hid yet another Science Fiction reference right under our noses! Anson MacDonald was a nom de plume of Robert A Heinlein – his middle name, Anson, plus his second wife’s maiden name. I wish I’d had access to the information on Heinlein’s Wikipedia page when I was reading his books in the ‘80s! It would have made things much easier to understand. The early juvenile stories vs the later Libertarian novels, as well as the frequent references to free love, nudity, and the sometimes disturbing sexual references (including pedophilia and incest). Heinlein’s politics shifted in time from ‘raving Liberal’ to conservative Libertarian in part due to the influence of his three wives (he was divorced twice, he didn’t have simultaneous multiple wives despite what his characters might have done).

Steve was discovered second, but had been stored.

On my limited income, I cannot afford anything else…

So was Natalie dating Steve? Or was that just a ruse to get closer to his pottery? How did she get his body up under the bridge? We might know who the murderer was, but I feel like I have nearly as many questions as I ever did! ;–)

Eric might have more in common with @Timothy M.’s characters from The Cardmaker and the Caretaker – specifically the rose bush-growing neighbor who just sold his house to Patrick and Peter's Aunt Grethe who befriended him. ;–)

"...sharing love like August sun..." A bevy of interpretations from Gershwin's opera. First, Lawrence Tibbett with the stage production. Then, a few tribute versions. The Buzzard Song, lyrics by DuBose Heyward

Personally, I’m not sure that the classroom antics will cease, I cannot imagine Dizzy not doing crazy things. As long as their grades improve, I think they’ll get some slack. Adam and Colleen know Ryan too well to expect that Dizzy cannot be completely suppressed. ;–)

When I stayed in one shelter, there were different groups who came in once a month to bring us dinner. One group was about half a dozen high school students, they weren’t from a school or religious organization at least that they ever identified. They planned the meals, bought all the ingredients, and prepared the food for us. There was one time when it was very obvious that teenaged boys planned the menu, but they were enthusiastic and friendly. And consistently there every month. Unlike some of the other groups, they ate with us. ;–) At least two groups brought young children (early elementary school aged) with them. One was a woman who brought her young son with her and they served us a tasty vegetarian soup (and I say that as a dedicated carnivore). The other group was two men who brought their young nephews in with them. The kids were always a hit with the shelter residents! ;–) The Berkeley Zen Center was another group that came every month. Before many of the meals, the groups would often ask for a volunteer to pray before we were served. It didn’t seem appropriate to me to pray when the Zen Center was there, so before the usual suspects could drone on with their King James-inspired thees and thous, I would ask for a moment of silence. ;–)

I feel like a very unwilling citizen of the nation of Dicksville.

Note: these comments refer specifically to the US, but might be applicable elsewhere too. I‘ve been housed for about 5 years now, but I was homeless for a little over two years. I was lucky and was only forced to stay in a bus shelter for two nights – the rest of the time I was able to find homeless shelters to stay in. I met plenty of people who stayed out on the streets. I still keep in touch with a few of them. ;–) There are all sorts of reasons why people are homeless. Some because they hate following rules. Some because they can’t take care of themselves or their finances. Some because they can’t afford to pay rent for shelter, either because their job(s) doesn’t pay enough or because they’re too deep in debt. Some because of a disaster like a house fire. And only some of them are alcoholics and/of drug abusers. Many homeless people are dealing with mental health problems. The only thing they all have in common is that they don’t have a place to live. When I applied for CalFresh (aka SNAP or ‘food stamps’), I was forced to submit to fingerprinting and a mug shot. This was because California Republicans wanted social services applicants to feel like criminals. In addition, long lines in social services offices are intentionally designed to discourage applicants – multiple services use the same waiting room so you have no way of telling how long you’ll be forced to wait. Those in need are forced to waste time in waiting rooms because social services are deliberately underfunded. If you miss a deadline for reapplying, your benefits are reduced permanently. Wealthy people would not put up with these kinds of conditions, but poor people have little political influence and cannot object if they want help. I noticed The Boot offers showers. People often complain about smelly homeless people, but fail to realize how difficult it is to keep clean when you don’t have a home. There are few places to take free showers and few free places to launder your clothes. One non-profit I used for psychological therapy also used to offer free showers and free laundry, but the funding ran out and they switched to other services – I don’t know where all their former clients go to shower or wash their clothing now. There are no easy answers. There is no single solution. Homelessness is only a symptom, not the actual problem. To fix the homelessness problem, we have to solve the addiction problem. We also have to solve the mental health crisis. We need to pay a living wage instead of a minimum wage. We need to build a lot more additional affordable housing in our major cities. We need to adjust our social services to assist those being helped to more easily transition to full employment instead of punishing people for trying to improve their situations. We need to subsidize those who cannot work full-time due to disabilities or other conditions out of their control. And we need to stop criminalizing homelessness! Thank you for calling attention to this critical issue! Not enough people think about what it’s like to be homeless, much less how they can help. There are too many reasons why people become homeless for the condition to be permanently eliminated, but we all can do our bit to change that! ;–)

It’s much easier to live without a car in a city dense enough to have decent transportation options – I even have overnight bus service right across the street from my apartment! ;–)

If Ezra really is a CEO, I don’t think Adam’s lawyer would have found it difficult to locate him. But it doesn’t sound like he was asked to sign away his parental rights until Adam demanded that he do so. I don’t know anything about the laws, but does a birthparent’s abandonment of a child affect their parental rights? Is there a statute of limitations (aside from the child becoming an adult)? I’d think the county in Texas would want a reimbursement of all the back child support that he owed Sarah and the funds the county paid in his stead. Governments don’t seem to have statutes of limitations on things like that. They can send you a bill even if they made a mistake that caused an overpayment.

I used to see the occasional raccoon in the streets outside my last apartment and wild turkeys outside one of the shelters during the day, but the only wild turkey around here is in the hands of the wild life who wander around getting drunk or high.

Please keep Tanka in mind for those moments when you have poetic stirrings. These are wonderful; truly wonderful. All I can do is encourage you to write more and let the moments inspire you.

I don’t have a posse, you have the posse! Griffin, Benny, Gary, and Clint! That’s your posse! ;–)

From Ursula Le Guin’s The Lathe of Heaven – Jor-Jor is what the Alien called George. ;–)

Sheesh! ;–)