The Pacific Northwest

When I first got to Seattle, my first initial impressions got  to the best of me. I found it to be a rather daunting experience and such a change from San Diego. I was so use to the warm SoCal. weather and sleeping out on the beach where the elements could be a blessing rather than a burden like it is here in the mysterious and wet Pacific Northwest, athough i must admit it is rather easy to find shelter here; at least In terms of finding moments of sanctuary beneath overpasses. 

I’m on University Avenue now which the kids refer to as "The Ave", a stretch of road right in the heart of the University District, which harbors broke college students and indie vegans foraging for their next "Raw" diet. Amongst the walking dead lost to higher education sits a collection of boutique store fronts and Vegan restaurants, flickering neon signs enticing the famished masses to cram their faces with tofu and complex carbohydrates. I pan handled enough money recently to give one of these places a chance and needless to say I was quite impressed, despite my rather initial apprehension.  I can’t claim that I was impressed enough to switch completely, especially considering the street is a rather harsh condition that disallows for a discriminate diet. 

It’s nice here and not as phony and conservative as Downtown Seattle which could be described as a chaotic rush of business men buzzing about with an opportunistic fervor as they dart in and out of coffee shops while poorly dressed tourist’s are snapping polaroids of over rated landmarks and being charged 3x the asking price for a hunk of shit. it’s a consumer’s paradise and the locals frown upon the less fortunate. Their presumptuous apathy can be somewhat rude and merciless. In fact just the other day I witnessed a fellow pan handler on 4th and Pine get pushed aside as his cup full of change went sailing through the air and scattered onto the sidewalk.

"Get a Job!" you could hear the asshole snicker as he rushed off across the street to the Starbucks 

"Fuck you asshole!!!" The guy responded as he fell onto all fours crawling around after the coins that weaved to and fro.

"Fuck you" he said one more time with a defeated sigh that sounded as if he was about to cry. People who witnessed the situation just continued walking with no regard to the man who’s spirt was just broken by a few actions. Others who witnessed it just laughed. There was one lady though who was at least kind  enough to stop and point into the direction of some of the loose change that were scattered on the outer cusp of the sidewalk but then moved along to her next destination. No one seemed interested in helping out,  It was such a disheartening sight that I almost followed the guy who slapped the cup out of the vagrants hand so I could jump him, beat the shit out of him, and rob him, but that isn’t my style. Besides jail is not a fun place to be. 

Despite my move across town to a more seemingly receptive neighborhood I’ve been told by other street walkers in the vicinity that in recent years, the residence of "The Ave." have also begun treating its homeless population with disdain. Some have said that they have gone as far as enacting a community alliance to combat these vagrants. It’s not as bad as everyone has made it out to be so far but I’ve only been here for a short time. I’m guessing it will present itself over time. Until then I’m content where I am at.

On a more positive note. I have a job interview at the Safeway on the corner of Brooklyn and 50th next week  as a Stocker. I had to fabricate a place of residence just so they wouldn’t know I was homeless. I also told them that I didn’t have a contact number so they decided to just schedule an interview right there on the spot during the application process. That should be a more uplifting experience after months of depression and bad luck. I’m hoping this time next month I will be out of the street and  returning back to becoming a contributing part of society.

Anyways, I will have to update later as that i’ve been on this computer for a few hours now and the gas station attendant is looking quite suspicious of my activity. Plus these free computer terminals are for paying customers and seeing that I walked in and only bought a single cup of coffee is probably raising some sort of suspicion. I imagine that 1 coffee for 35 cents could only buy me an hour of computer use.