day two of my search for GE's homeless. 9/18, 8:30 p.m.

searched high and low. scoured the usual spots and covered every street in the CBD. even looked deep into ppp for sleepers. . . my heart raced as i walked into the dark underbrush, only to be frightened out of my wits by a large man talking VERY loudly to himself. . . alas it was only a local talking into his bluetooth device as he relaxed after what looked like an evening run. gotta love a guy who runs w/a cell phone. but i digress.

fianally i searched the tall grass at montclair and the prairie path. nothing. nada, zip. zero.

tally to date (since 9/17): one (guy w/bike)

until tomorrow.

Stinky McSmokes sighted on the bench outside Starbucks around 7:00 p.m., appeared unconscious.

musta gone home by 8:30, i guess. i'll try a little earlier today.

btw, in the course of about 15 minutes, i watched two partrol vehicles cruise/stop by the ppp while i was on tour last night. it appeared they were making sure no one was loitering. good for them.

This is definitely a good start, but the problem I see is prior to 6:00 AM. Which, by the way, they are well aware of.

so you're telling me to get up earlier. . . damn, i knew this was gonna get tough.

;^p

btw, if predawn homeless sightings is our main problem, i don't see how that affects biz in the CBD.

i thought this was a 24/7 "night of the living dead" kind of problem.

i'll keep checking, though.

T..A SUPERETTE:

SORRY....caps off....

Anyway...knowing you as long as I have, I understand that your posts are tinged with a bit of sarcasm and disbelief. You know me as a rational person...and I can assure you that at least two days/nights per week, there are indeed a number a visitors roaming the street of our once proud and purty hamlet. These people ain't seeing things.

The guy who always says, "How's it goin'?" and then proceeds to ask me for money is the one tha tmakes me nuts!

Then, there are a few others that think they own the benches by Starbuck's and some of the chairs in Starbuck's too. Perhaps that has imporved since the "incident" over the winter with the bad press Starbuck's got for kciking out a woman....

day three. 9/19, 6:20-6:40 p.m.

two spotted:
• one humpty dumpty-lookin' guy sitting on a bench in ppp with a samsonite carry-on luggage thing. guy had a belly the size of a medium workout ball and a sort of prince valiant-like haircut.

• ciggie mcsmokes takin' a snooze on the bench outside of starbucks.

tough work sched. tomorrow, and friday am out of town 'til late evening. think i can get a look tomorrow night after nine, though. kinda important since that's a PADS night.

You have to realize that most will be using PADS' facilities at that time. If by chance you happen to see any, these folks may either be the ones that got turned away or have missed the strict entry time cut-off. You really need to get out in the AM.

yeah i know. clam told me. my sched. is not going to allow the friday a.m. thing this week. i might be able to drive thru very early, say 5:00 a.m. will that be too early? i'd really rather walk and get a closer observation. maybe converse w/one or two.

TA, you seem like a very intelligent person. Why you talk to Clam is beyond me. I plan to schedule a meeting in the next couple of weeks or so. 58 gave me your contact info. I will send you an invite and at that time you can decide for yourself whether you would like to attend.

GEmom, I will send you a PM at the other board tomorrow.

Converse with one??? You're a pioneer, t.a.

day four (missed thursday -- out of town 'til tonight). 9/21, 8:00 p.m.

not as thorough a tour as i'd like; quick bicycle ride through town.

one spotted:
• good ol' mcsmokes in front of starbucks.
• oh yeah, also a mysterious return of the 40-ouncer (hah-hah)

otherwise, all clear at ppp and everywhere else. looking forward to the sunday a.m. onslaught.

There was a new man asking for money today. He was polite and relatively well-kept. I suggested that he needed to talk to the walk-in ministry at the Methodist church. He didn't respond and then asked me for money again after I left Starbucks. I called the police to report a man soliciting money again....so frustrating!

TA, I just came from Einsteins and there were 4: Mr. McSmokes; Humpty (as you described); one other that I have seen before, but not in while; and a new guy. Humpty was talking to an invisible friend across from his table and became visually angered when he wouldn't accept a sip of his coffee.

Amy, Was the new guy tall, slender, very short hair and wearing army pants? I noticed he was carrying an empty paper bag? Hmmmmmmm...............

No. Long, grey hair but clean and brushed. Tennis shoes without strings. Non-descript T-shirt and pants. If he had been wearing shoes with shoelaces, I might have just assumed he was a hippie throwback....until I smiled politely (as I do to be friendly - why not?) and then he proceeded to tell me how he was homeless and needed money....

Perhaps I get better results than Bitter Boy when I voice my concern about those that are passed out on village property because I am cooler than he is.

So I am at my bank because, as usual, they screwed something up with my account. On the bench right outside the front door of Joe Costello's store is a man that is either dead or passed out. Either way, he doesn't belong there. Just like I wouldn't belong there. I get in the man wagon and drive around the block looking for one of our finest and I find a pair of them sitting in front of the FD in a newly designed police car. I told them of the situation, they left...and took care of the problem.

Kudos to the police.

Here are some interesting things I've encountered on the way to the train in the morning:

1. A large pair of purple underwear hanging on a post across from McChesney;
2. A large black garbage bag near the Prairie Path in the Duane/Lorraine commuter parking lot (I believe it was there for AT LEAST three weeks); and
3. A pair of latex gloves laying on the Prairie Path at Prospect.

Not sure where they came from - but kinda gross...

This message has been edited. Last edited by: notinkansas,

UNSEXY UPDATE:

After collecting my shirts and my lady's skirts at J&S, I turned onto Prospect. There were about 10-12 dudes in various states of undress and dress...smoking ciggies...and....get this....trying to provide another bottle for Ruydah's social experiment. There were at least two bottles that I could see. Don't get me wrong...they could have been quaffing Perrier or San Pelligrino. Just when I was thinking the bottles came from our troubled youth, it turns out that they come from the half-naked dudes in that park that nobody knows the name of.