He says sometimes he is Larry and sometimes he is someone else. Which one is he today?
Category: burlington
Molly Keeps Trying
All I can say to her is try to only do this once. Cut them ties. Just worry about yourself. Work on living. Cold, sitting on the paving stones? They look better than they feel. And it ain’t even winter, yet!
Steve Charges His Chair
Multitasking. Begging and recharging.
Steve says he has been homeless for three months. He lived with his brother who died. Just hard to imagine that a man with one leg, who is losing his second to diabetes, doesn’t have a place to live. He blames it on a social policy that provides housing for people from Eastern Europe who fled to avoid ethnic cleansing. Not an uncommon complaint in Burlington and not one supported by any facts. I suggested there wasn’t enough aid for all who needed it.
Andrew Is Workin on it
Giant step for Andrew. Sure, its a seasonal job at the Bear factory, but he says that they may need him for a real job, because he works hard. Still living at the shelter, where he has a bunk and a place to store his stuff, he sounds clear and motivated. Still early.
Miro Walks Church Street
Weather slightly bitter, as am I for being shut out of the caucus this weekend for reasons I cannot even imagine, but who cares about either of these problems. I will continue to live here, hoping the place lives up to its promises.
Miro walked alone up Church Street. He seemed upbeat about the election and upbeat about serving at a time when the job would be more difficult than if someone forced from office by term limits had succeeded in his task and all he had to do was color in the spaces. Why anyone would want to be a hall monitor in this zoo, escapes me. He thinks he can do the job, okay, but for what reason?
Charming, personable, knowledgeable and seemingly experienced in the ways of small city government, can he, if elected, move the city ahead, leaving the 1950’s where it is mired and make it a place more attractive to a growing upper lower and middle class than a nomadic college crowd? More crime. More poor. More vacancies. Not so chic shops. Lots of coffee shops and semi-fast food, but not a lot of cuisine. Does he support art? How about help for the hopeless and hapless. Is he a puppet of the authorities he has served or a visionary? He says he is a hands on problem solver; if nominated, he gets a chance to run for a thankless job.
Good luck dude. Thanks for the portrait.
Paul’s Still Here
So, they said Paul thumbed out, eh. Nope. Back after a four day stay at FAHC (actually it was three, but he’s not counting).
Buddy, can you spaire a dime?
Kim’s guy got a dollar.
Chad got a place to live. Set up utilities. “First time they did anything for me.”
I gave him an image from last spring.
Eric stays under the radar.
Sean’s strong.
Sweet and Kate
Just relaxing, which is what parks be made for. Were the housing problem to be solved, many of the other issues creating tension like overcrowded prisons and illused hospitals would be eliminated. Then feeding people healthy foods and educating them about civic duty could be the focus of public debate.
Mic just wants to go home to take care of his dogs.
Dean Johnston
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Lost his leg to diabetes last year. Told recently that he has cancer. Benefits being determined.
“They always make you wait.” Cannot live on $200 food stamps.
“I think differently. I don’t think right…. But I am clean and sober.”
Sitting in front of City Hall, he wished every passerby a “happy bird day.”
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Shopping Carts on Church Street Sunday Morning
Weather uncertain. Could rain. Or it could just be raw. At least one of these men has a place to live. The other two carry their worldly possessions around in a shopping cart. Now I do realize that over 2,000,000 shopping carts are stolen every year, worldwide, creating a terrible problem for storeowners and adding to the cost of anything we buy at a store that employs them. But, I would hesitate before depriving the people who use them of a vehicle that has no carbon footprint and allows them to have their property nearby, protected from the elements as much as someone with no place to live can expect to have.