The reading material on the free bookshelf at the Day Center is getting thin: a Hillerman, Lehane and Grisham; some spirituality and self-help books; and Sunset publications on "Wall System & Shelving" and "Garage, Attic & Basement Storage."
I wonder why someone thought these last titles would be of use to homeless people.
***
Today I was glad to see one of our former guests back. The last time I saw him, he was walking down the street shouting and leaving clusters of worried-looking people in his wake. I don't think he recognized me when I biked past and waved.
Later that day, he was picked up and committed to a psychiatric facility. He had stopped taking the medication to control his paranoid schizophrenia, and he for weeks he'd been wandering in a scary place that made him dangerous to himself and others.
When I left town, he was living under restraint and not liking it. I thought I'd never see him again, which made me sad, because when his demons were under control, he was a decent, interesting man who occasionally gave me a glimpse into the bizarre world inside his mind.
Now he's volunteering on my crew, and he brought along another man from the group home where he lives to work here, too.
His eyes are clear and an amazing alpine blue.
***
Two regulars I hadn't seen since I was here in the spring came in with a newborn baby today. It was so small and quiet, at first I thought they were just using the stroller to transport some belongings. I didn't get a chance to ask about their housing situation, but there's not much question the kid has been born into tough circumstances.
If you want to be judgmental — or even if you're not — what the hell are they thinking? easily comes to mind. In fact, I don't know what they were thinking or what choices were available to them. Both mother and father were caring for the baby, and for all I know, they will be responsible parents.
Earlier in the week, I was in a Twitter exchange with a conservative who has discussed the errors of my thinking here before. The topic was loosely whether a progressive tax system punishes ambition. This view holds that higher taxes affect behavior, and therefore, if we tax the income of people who are successful in this economic system, society will enjoy less of their productive effort. I don't disagree with the economic theory, but the effect is overstated for political reasons — usually by people who would much rather see the poor punished for their alleged moral failings.
I wonder if a baby born to two homeless people should be "punished" more or less than a person with a high income?
***
Last week, commenter Ford asked me a question about the owners of some heavily loaded shopping carts. (If you haven't read his comments about his homeless brother's situation, do visit this post.)
I learned the woman who owns two of the carts has been banned from institutions and public places that can help her: shelters, the soup kitchen and a few others. She's still welcome at the Day Center, but it's only open between 8 a.m. and noon.
She doesn't do drugs. She's clean and not violent. She has six degrees and considers herself an evangelist, but also apparently has a tendency to get into arguments that the other places consider to be too disruptive. So now, besides not having a home, she has very little of the support system designed to help the homeless.
The Center's director has made some calls, but so far the woman is out of luck.
***
One of the guests received a jury summons today and was asking me if I'd ever been called. He was trying to figure out how to respond, and the process appeared to make him anxious. I tried to tell him it would be a good thing to do.
The father of the baby chimed in, "Tell them you're a drug addict." He spun an account of his own failures to show up on time for jury duty, as if his was a success story. "I told 'em, put me in jail. I don't care. It's not my job to judge anybody."
