Homeless Supplies

Something you should always carry with you when you are homeless:  a kitchen sponge.

A sponge is used mainly for keeping yourself clean when no shower is available.  I also wet a sponge before I sit on a toilet seat: squeeze water on the seat and use toilet paper to wipe the seat clean.

Sleeping supplies.  Yesterday, someone took my sleeping bag, blanket and sweatshirt (which I use to cover the carrying bag to use as a pillow) from where I was hiding it in a raised planter next to a commercial building; then, later that evening, one of my guardian angels instructed a human being to give me a sleeping bag!

Keep a small towel in your bag for drying your face and hands when no paper towels are available.

A small metal or plastic cup to fill with water or free coffee.

Clean underwear and socks.  I do laundry once a month and have enough underwear to complete the month; I shower once a week and use the sponge method in between showers.

Nail clippers and dental floss; homeless centers always have free toothpaste and toothbrushes but never give out floss--which is critical for oral health care.

A plastic knife, fork and spoon.  When you happen upon that perfectly good meal in a takeout container that someone has left on a park bench, it may not have eating utensils.

Extra pair of reading glasses and a couple of pens to write with.

Roll-on deodorant.  You MUST do all you can to keep your body as clean as possible and NOT stink--or places will ask you to leave.

Half a roll of toilet paper.  Toilet paper is good for A LOT of personal things--and, sometimes, right after you finish your business at the toilet, you discover that the TP supply is out in that stall.

A small airline-size blanket to use while resting on the lawn in a park--or use for warmth in winter.

And, a small, collapsible umbrella.

FOOD

Homeless and the housed poor will never starve in Santa Monica.  Food is everywhere--both cheap food and free food.

If you have no money and you find that panhandling is too humiliating (which it is), there are several ways to eat.  The OPCC Access Center on Olympic at 5th gives out free food almost every day.  On Friday mornings, there's a small group that gives out free coffee and sack lunches in Reed Park on Wilshire.  The abundant Farmer's Markets in Santa Monica are a great place to graze for free food (mostly just fruit).  Many compassionate people will leave food on the street for the poor and homeless.  And, finally, if you are truly desperate, trash cans in and around downtown Santa Monica frequently have perfectly good food in them (one time I found a box of pizza, still warm from the oven and not a bite taken out of it).

The problem is that free food is usually the worst kind:  starchy, sugary, carbohydrate-laden breads, bagels, crackers, etc.  It is very difficult to find protein like meat or eggs or cheese.

But beggars can't be choosers, of course.

Fat Cops & Other Observations...

I've been noticing a lot of fat cops lately...seriously, dudes, lay off the carbs!

There's a crazy/demonically possessed homeless black guy who practically lives at the corner of Third and Arizona on the Promenade in Santa Monica...he is always yelling obscenities at people and acting crazy.  This morning, I watched a middle-aged white dude give him some cash.  WTF?  Don't give that demon any money!  Are you giving him money because of your white guilt?

Seriously, all filthy/demonically possessed street people need to be rounded up and put somewhere where they can't bother people anymore...LOCK THEM UP!

Every County needs to have an assisted suicide center--just like in the classic movie "Soylent Green."  I saw that movie when I was a kid and even then it seemed like a compassionate, rational thing to offer people whose lives are completely hopeless.

Lots of homeless people never set foot inside a homeless center...they beg, steal, and eat out of trash cans.  What a fucked up life this is...I am sick of the whole, shitty mess.

This world is fucked up and getting worse every day.  Popular culture is sinking lower and lower...it's become a race to the bottom.

And, demons, you don't scare me anymore with your tiresome parlor tricks...FUCK YOU!

Have You Noticed?

Have you noticed a huge increase in the number of people talking to themselves on the street?

Have you noticed how many more people are wearing/displaying crucifixes now?

Have you noticed the huge amount of people (adults AND kids) wearing clothing with human skull images?

Have you noticed how many movies these days are about demons, evil, etc?

Have you noticed how many people have telepathic powers now?

What is behind all of this?  Is it the Second Coming?