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What you call "nagging", I call "helping"
By victorianbybirth in sodomizing my vast imagination one blog at a time
February 2, 2011

Today was extremely cold....this weather is why I hate Canada! I live in South Texas for a reason & this unusual weather we are experiencing is why I choose to live here, because it is NOT normal!! After dealing with the power outage while I was in the middle of my shower, people driving the temperature instead of the speed limit & another power outage at work, I was having a frustrating day. I was guilted into venturing out to pick up lunch for everyone & on my way back I saw my homeless people were out & that really upset me! It was 31 degrees & the older gentleman was out selling his water, his face was beet red & he was shivering. I pulled up & gave him a couple of dollars & asked him why he was out & not someplace warm, he responded saying he was trying to get money for a room. I asked why he didn't go to our new fancy multi-million dollar shelter & he said he didn't have a way to get there. That broke my heart. He is older, I would venture around 60, has a crippled leg & lugs around a cooler full of bottled ice water throughout the year. The only time I don't see him is during inclement weather. I always buy water from him when the light is red. I had heard he has a truck, so I assumed he had a place to live.

I went back to work to drop off the food & mentioned that he was out there & I wanted to take him to the shelter. My Administrator told me that was fine but that I should be careful because he may rob me or whatever. I called my liberal hubby to see what he would say about it & he said for me to give him some money or call the shelter to see if they had a shuttle. I called the "state of the art" multi-million dollar taxpayer funded shelter to be left on hold for 15 minutes & then when somebody finally answered, I asked about transportation to the shelter & she transferred me to someones voicemail to leave a message. I could not believe it! How many homeless people have a return phone number for them to call back?? If they are going to tout this shelter as the be all end all, they need to actually cater to their customer base who typically does not watch the news or read the paper or have transpotation. I was very upset, so I decided I would go talk to him & see what was going on & what he wanted to do & if he wanted to go to the shelter I would take him myself.

When I was going back, I saw my other homeless man out at his place on the other side of the highway. I call him the smoking man. One evening I was at the light, my window was down & I was looking in my purse & he came up to my window & it scared me to death because I didn't see him. I yelled at him & told him he should not approach a single female at dusk/dark. He apologized for scaring me & told me he would not bother me. The next time I saw him during the day, he waited til we made eye contact & came over & asked me for a cigarette, so I gave him one. It became a routine, not everyday, but once a week he would ask me so I started giving him partial packs. He now only asks about once a month. He is not a greedy homeless guy, he is always polite & thankful. So when I saw him, I was concerned because I hadn't seen him in a few days so when the light turned red I rolled down my window & asked what he was doing out. He stated that the truck broke down & they needed money to fix it. I asked who "they" were & he gestured to the water man on the other side. The light turned green, I told him to meet me at the convenience store so I could figure out what to do to help them. When I got there, he said that he was living in the truck with the water man & his wife. The alternator went out when they were trying to leave their sleeping spot & they needed money to get it fixed. He told me how much he needed, it wasn't that much, so I questioned him further, changed up my questions & he answered the same every time. I told him they shouldn't sleep in the truck, it is way to cold for that & if they got it fixed they needed to go to the shelter to sleep & get some food. I gave him what he needed & told him that they needed to get out of the weather & stay warm. He was very grateful, he always is, and went to get the water man. I hope they got their truck fixed & have found a warm place to wait out the weather.

When my co-worker asked where I went, I told her the story & she started laughing....somebody came up & asked what was so funny & she replied "she was out nagging the homeless"! I found it so funny that it was viewed that way, yes I did stress that they needed to get out of the cold, I did ask a plethora of questions but in the end I was just trying to help, without feeling like I got "took". Everybody tells me I am a sucker for a sob story. I admit I am, I always have been. I collect strays in all forms, be them animal or human, I hate to see living creatures suffer. I will help when I can, but only if I feel like it meets necessity (my option), I just have never thought that trying to help others would ever be viewed as "nagging".

It is my hope that the rolling blackouts are over & everyone stays warm & toasty! Be careful out there!