Ever since I was a kid, I've had a fascination/respect for the homeless. I know some homeless are bitter cretins who are unable to make good decisions but there are many out there who have simply fallen into tough times. I work right across the street from a homeless shelter in Boston and I see all types go in and out of there. I created the character Ned a few years ago to give me a opportunity to explore some of these observations.
I used to live in a REALLY small town...I mean, we had to drive 20 miles to ANOTHER town just to buy groceries, that's how small it was, literally.
ReplyDeleteone day, on our way back, we saw this woman standing just off the country road with a sign asking for food. We didn't have any cash on us, but we had gone to mcdonalds and had a couple extra cheeseburgers, so we offered them to her. She thanked us and all that, and we left.
We ran into someone else not long after that, and he said that he had actually offered her a job and a place to stay until she got back on her feet, and she turned it down. She said she made more money on that road than she did at her last full time job.
kinda ruined the whole thing for me:\
~Angel
The L.A. Times did a story a few years ago showing the wads of cash some homeless were carrying from begging. The article did not point out that begging is working. In exchange for a buck or two, the giver gets to feel good about helping the poor. If you don't think it's work, you try standing at a freeway offramp with a cardboard sign all day.
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