Hobo For A Day

We here at The Rhodester Chronicles are really sorry that we haven’t been around for a while.

The truth is, we were cast out onto the street and got to be hobos. Or hobi. Or something like that.

Okay, so we only spent two days and one night on the street, but we’ve had a difficult time of it lately – much more than usual – which means posting to this blog took a back seat to defending ourselves against crack-addicts, junkies and thieves.

Actually, we didn’t have much luck against the thieves.. all of our clothes were stolen with the exception of a few dirty items that were in a separate bag, which we’ve been wearing since then.

But other fun things have kept us from dwelling too much on the lack of clothing, like the city taking away our two kitties and Mrs Rhodester Chronicles having to go to the hospital.

We didn’t have a great Labor Day Weekend, but gosh, we hope you did!

Because we’re cool that way.

It’s all very sad and lamentable, but the bright side is that things are picking up and we’re staying in a new place for a bit and we’re getting some new clothes and the city just might give the kitties back.

Also, we seem to still be employed, albeit very part-time, and we have some food and we have each other, now that Mrs. Rhodester Chronicles is out of the hospital.

There’s a book coming, by the way.

We promise it will be a fun read and won’t be all gloomy, even though it’s about being on the street with all of one’s belongings plus a sick wife and two kitties with the possibility of being murdered in the dead of night looming over one’s head like a guillotine blade getting ready to whoosh down and end everything in one briefly excruciating moment.

Speaking of which, we had no idea that we could stay up for two days straight at our age, but apparently we can.

The book will contain loads of fun little anecdotes and silly stories for your amusement, but before we get the book out we’d like to tell you three important things that you should know about people on the street..

1. Not everyone living on the street is there because they’re lazy addicts who made bad choices and chose to slide into the abysmal pit of homelessness. We weren’t that at all. We tried to make it work, we tried to get a job (even have one, part time) and we tried to avail ourselves of services to help us. We still ended up there, without the help of drugs or alcohol. We simply ran out of money.

2. It’s true that people who REMAIN on the street are probably choosing it so that they can continue using drugs and/or alcohol, at least in San Francisco. There are many services available and even though one has to wade through a lot of bullshit and red tape to get the help needed, it can be done. Your typical panhandler wants to continue drinking or getting high, which they can’t do if they want to get into a program that will help them.

If you’re in San Francisco and someone hits you up for change, you can be fairly certain they’re going to buy a bottle of booze or some crack because food is available to the homeless in this city. So if they told you they’re hungry and need it for that, don’t believe it. We’re not saying don’t give them any change, that’s up to you.. but just know it’s probably not to help them live. There are programs they can use for that.

We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the mentally disabled, who are the exception to this. There are those you could try to get into a program but they’ll forget where to go the next time they need to show up because they can’t even remember their own name. If this type asks you for change so they can eat, then they probably really want to get food with it because they can’t remember where the shelter is.

3. Not all of those who choose to remain on the street so that they can continue with their addiction are evil people. In fact none of them are, they’re all just lost souls. A lot will rip you off to get what they need and they might lie to you, but there are some that are angels. Sure, they’re drunk angels who are smoking crack, but they’re angels nonetheless. We met a few and the book will tell of them.

We have to go do laundry now, which you’d thank us for if you were in our personal vicinity. Then we have to start on the book.

Our objective with the laundry is to look and smell better, while our objective with the book is to make you laugh, then cry, then laugh again and then say, “Damn, I had no idea!”

Because a week ago we didn’t have any idea. We thought we did, but we really didn’t.

Perspective can be a necessary bitch.

Show other people this little post you found..

•