(no subject)
/ A 2nd squirrel infestation happened yesterday - less than 6 hours after the caretaker installed new screens. We've taken some more aggressive steps independent of her. I'll leave it at that.
/ Beautiful bike ride in this morning. A light rain, cool air. I went to the cafe, got my coffee and did the quiz real quick. Then I walked my bike back to work taking in the morning. Being in the Stevens neighborhood so much now brings back some good and bad memories. But it's been mostly good. I like the cafe and the baristas (save one).
/ My Surly is two steps away from it's new incarnation - I've got the new bars on but I need to install the new brakes and the front rack. Ugh. I need to buy new cables before that can happen. I'm hoping it's not too awkward to carry up the steps at the shelter, we've been storing our bikes in a locked closet due to past problems with others bikes...
/ I've had a little better chance to explore the systems that are intertwined with our shelter - our group did something that our organization runs called "A Day in the Life". The day starts with us lying in one of the bunks at our shelter and imagining what it might feel like to have to get up and face the day as a homeless person (in shelter at least). We then walked and walked, met with and talked with homeless folks of all backgrounds (including a couple that biked up here from Missouri with trailers, old janky bikes and 2 dogs) and ate lunch and dinner at 2 different meal providers. Having been always half a check away from losing my own shit for so long, I was familiar with the meal process, the walking, the activity where they had us take a check to a check cashing store and go through that process... I felt like we got let off pretty easy. Turns out, they've mellowed the program out some after a group from a private college completely freaked out - started calling their instructor and parents, they were scared to go downtown and complained "we're not camels, we need water!". So it goes.
Yesterday afternoon and evening, I spent more time on Currie Ave (where Salvation Army's shelter, Harbor Lights is and Catholic Charities shelter Secure Waiting is (a.k.a. Tramp Camp) and the other shelter nearby, Sharing and Caring Hands, a.k.a. "Mary Jo's" (I decline to comment on both experiences I had there). Currie Ave. is notorious for drugs, prostitution, people getting jumped or taken advantage of and the like. While there was a cop stationed outside Tramp Camp, he was short and stout and didn't really "do" anything. Apparently I missed it but there were deals going down left and right the entire time I was there. Oh, we (the Street Outreach team and some of the VISTAS) were there doing a survey (for county funding for housing) trying to get numbers of how many people sleep in their car/outdoors/in empty buildings the evening before. I saw a handful of my guys from the Jobs Room (with the lottery, the guys eventually get shuffled around the shelters if they don't get a bed at one place or another). Having got to work at 8:30 that morning then being over at the count until 7:00pm, it was a long day. It went quickly though and I had a nice ride home. Anyway, I can see how Currie Ave. could be intimidating at dark or if someone gets zeroed in as vulnerable. There are not only the folks coming and going to the shelters, there is also a pawn shop across the street (WTF?) and the Greyhound/Megabus station...there is also the folks that are camping outdoors elsewhere coming in for meals then heading back out and just general loiterers hanging around selling their treats to everyone.
Word is, some of the camps have been being busted up lately by some people - they've been destroying everything and beating people up.
Our shelter is very nice and safe compared to anything on Currie Ave. or outdoors, I know that for a fact.
Some of the guys hang out at the neighborhood coffee shop, sometimes I stop in on my way to work and do the quiz with them (for old times sake if nothing else). I'm still debating if this is crossing boundaries. That being said, most of the shelter workers have pretty loose boundaries, so I can't imagine that I would get called out on it.
/ I think the VISTA situation might be on the up. It started off with resistance and the feeling of not being welcome by one of the employees that I'm supposed to be working with - today, there was a meeting with the organization's director, the person I report to, the person I am feeling shut out by and their boss. The hope was to clarify roles, involvement, why there may be resistance, etc... I'm sticking it out for now but I nearly ran and just tried to get some dumb cubicle job that would pay a more reasonable living wage. But I don't want to sabotage any future opportunities at this organization...
/ Beautiful bike ride in this morning. A light rain, cool air. I went to the cafe, got my coffee and did the quiz real quick. Then I walked my bike back to work taking in the morning. Being in the Stevens neighborhood so much now brings back some good and bad memories. But it's been mostly good. I like the cafe and the baristas (save one).
/ My Surly is two steps away from it's new incarnation - I've got the new bars on but I need to install the new brakes and the front rack. Ugh. I need to buy new cables before that can happen. I'm hoping it's not too awkward to carry up the steps at the shelter, we've been storing our bikes in a locked closet due to past problems with others bikes...
/ I've had a little better chance to explore the systems that are intertwined with our shelter - our group did something that our organization runs called "A Day in the Life". The day starts with us lying in one of the bunks at our shelter and imagining what it might feel like to have to get up and face the day as a homeless person (in shelter at least). We then walked and walked, met with and talked with homeless folks of all backgrounds (including a couple that biked up here from Missouri with trailers, old janky bikes and 2 dogs) and ate lunch and dinner at 2 different meal providers. Having been always half a check away from losing my own shit for so long, I was familiar with the meal process, the walking, the activity where they had us take a check to a check cashing store and go through that process... I felt like we got let off pretty easy. Turns out, they've mellowed the program out some after a group from a private college completely freaked out - started calling their instructor and parents, they were scared to go downtown and complained "we're not camels, we need water!". So it goes.
Yesterday afternoon and evening, I spent more time on Currie Ave (where Salvation Army's shelter, Harbor Lights is and Catholic Charities shelter Secure Waiting is (a.k.a. Tramp Camp) and the other shelter nearby, Sharing and Caring Hands, a.k.a. "Mary Jo's" (I decline to comment on both experiences I had there). Currie Ave. is notorious for drugs, prostitution, people getting jumped or taken advantage of and the like. While there was a cop stationed outside Tramp Camp, he was short and stout and didn't really "do" anything. Apparently I missed it but there were deals going down left and right the entire time I was there. Oh, we (the Street Outreach team and some of the VISTAS) were there doing a survey (for county funding for housing) trying to get numbers of how many people sleep in their car/outdoors/in empty buildings the evening before. I saw a handful of my guys from the Jobs Room (with the lottery, the guys eventually get shuffled around the shelters if they don't get a bed at one place or another). Having got to work at 8:30 that morning then being over at the count until 7:00pm, it was a long day. It went quickly though and I had a nice ride home. Anyway, I can see how Currie Ave. could be intimidating at dark or if someone gets zeroed in as vulnerable. There are not only the folks coming and going to the shelters, there is also a pawn shop across the street (WTF?) and the Greyhound/Megabus station...there is also the folks that are camping outdoors elsewhere coming in for meals then heading back out and just general loiterers hanging around selling their treats to everyone.
Word is, some of the camps have been being busted up lately by some people - they've been destroying everything and beating people up.
Our shelter is very nice and safe compared to anything on Currie Ave. or outdoors, I know that for a fact.
Some of the guys hang out at the neighborhood coffee shop, sometimes I stop in on my way to work and do the quiz with them (for old times sake if nothing else). I'm still debating if this is crossing boundaries. That being said, most of the shelter workers have pretty loose boundaries, so I can't imagine that I would get called out on it.
/ I think the VISTA situation might be on the up. It started off with resistance and the feeling of not being welcome by one of the employees that I'm supposed to be working with - today, there was a meeting with the organization's director, the person I report to, the person I am feeling shut out by and their boss. The hope was to clarify roles, involvement, why there may be resistance, etc... I'm sticking it out for now but I nearly ran and just tried to get some dumb cubicle job that would pay a more reasonable living wage. But I don't want to sabotage any future opportunities at this organization...