June 16, 2011

The song of the day today is "Killing Time in Texas" by Gurf Morlix.

I stopped at a convenience store not far from Tent City on my way back last night to get something to drink.  I walk in at the same time as another resident who I've spoken to on a couple occasions.  He's an old man of about seventy with grey hair and a big, thick, grey beard.  He doesn't have any teeth and he gives me a big, toothless grin as he stumbles inside.  He's a little overweight and he always wears a pair of stained work pants and a t-shirt.  On top of his head sits a hat that crowns him World's Greatest Grandpa, and I decide to call him Pops.  Pops is drunk right now and he heads straight for a tub of twenty four ounce cans of high gravity beer.  He picks out a can of Steel Reserve and turns to the clerk.  "Rang me up one more time, boss." he tells the man with a Texas twang.  Pops pays the man in change, gets a bag for his beer, and heads outside.  After I pay, I head outside to find Pops waiting for me.  He asks me how things are going as we begin to walk towards Tent City.  I find that I have to slow my pace as Pops takes three steps swaying side to side for each one of mine moving forward.  He says that he and a few guys are drinking beer behind an abandoned house near the gas station and invites me to come.  I decline and we part ways.  I can hear his compadres behind the house laughing at some joke I didn't hear and, even though Pops didn't hear it either, he lets out a cackle.

I arrive back at Tent City and have a seat near the Administration Building where Slim is telling a few residents about the new computer that was donated to Tent City.  He's telling them that it's a Linux based system and, as is the case in most open source software, easy to use but not easy to look at.  I look at the other residents gathered around and a few nod intently, but they're not getting a bit of this.  Pops shows up at Tent City and he plops down to join our conversation.  Slim goes on for a few more minutes about all the machine has to offer, but he really only mentions games.  No word if Tent City has moved to electronic records.  There is no telling what Pops thinks we're talking about as he makes a remark about soup that goes ignored.  Personally, I'd rather talk about soup than just about anything Slim has to say as he drones on about the most mundane topics.  Sensing the apathy, Slim shifts the conversation to camping gear and begins pointing out the best brands and how much things cost at which stores.  He says that Coleman gear is fine for tailgating and camping if you're hauling it in by car, but that another brand should be purchased if you plan to carry your gear.  Pops agrees and says that Coleman gear is good to use if you're going to be staying put, but you should really consider a different brand if you want to carry your gear.  This game of repeat goes on for several minutes with Pops echoing Slim's exact sentiments on camping gear.

The game is interrupted when someone appears at the gate wanting to be let in.  Slim lets the man in and I see that it is the man who went forward last week at the church service.  He's obviously drunk and I learn that he was with Pops drinking beer at the abandoned house.  He introduces himself to me as Bill before another resident tells him that a man was out here looking for him today.  The two go back and forth until the identity of the man is revealed.  Upon learning who it is, Bill proclaims "he's so full of shit, his breath stinks."  Bill makes sure that he's accusing the right man by asking if the man was smoking a pipe and, when he learns that the man was, he tells everyone that the man's name is T.G. and that "he's so full of shit, his breath stinks."  Bill stumbles towards the door of the Administration Building and decides to tell everyone before he enters exactly what T.G. wanted and, again, says that "he's so full of shit, his breath stinks."  The third time's the charm as Pops howls with laughter.  Looking pleased, Bill steps inside to get something to eat.

With Bill gone, the conversation turns to work.  Not too long ago, the Lubbock Avalanche Journal began employing people to sell newspapers on street corners on Sundays.  Of course, most of the people they employ are homeless.  The newspapers cost two dollars, and Slim says that the employee keeps seventy five cents of each paper they sell.  His goal each Sunday is to sell 100 papers, and he says that he often gets tips which he is allowed to keep.  Pops says that he only sold about forty papers last weekend, but that he got a twenty dollar tip which made the day worthwhile.  Slim criticizes Pops's selling technique and says that you have to appear very eager to sell a paper for people to buy one.  He may have a point, but it's clear that Slim has a better location than Pops when Pops says that his location is on the east side of town.  From what I've heard, selling papers is one of the better jobs the homeless can have as far as short-term employment goes.  People often show up at Tent City looking for some workers for a day or so, but some of them are deemed untrustworthy by the residents as far as pay goes and others do not show up when they say they will. 

Steady employment presents a new set of problems.  While all residents of Tent City have some sort of picture ID (new residents are required to show identification), they may not all have a drivers license.  As this is required of applicants at many jobs, the homeless can either show the identification that they have (oftentimes a Salvation Army ID which can be obtained with a copy of your birth certificate) or get a drivers license.  I have nothing to back this argument up, but I believe that a Salvation Army ID will put an applicant at the bottom of the list of hireable candidates as many employers will assume that this applicant has made a host of bad decisions and is not fit for employment (probably true).  So, a person without a drivers license is forced to obtain one which will cost anywhere from $11 (the price of replacing a lost drivers license in Texas) to $36 (the price of a driver examination plus the ID itself).  Say a homeless person cannot find employment other than selling newspapers on Sunday.  They must save $39 (52 newspapers) to cover the cost of the driving test and a one day bus pass to get to and from the DMV.  One must be sure and bring with them the proper documents to obtain a drivers license.  The complete list can be seen here, but none of the documents are easy to come by for the homeless unless they happen to have a passport.  The most likely combination of identification on the list that a homeless person might have before they are able to obtain a drivers license is a birth certificate, medicaid card, and immunization records.  Another thing needed to apply for many jobs is a social security card.  This is easier to come by than a drivers license, but one must have a form of ID before obtaining a replacement social security card.  A certified copy of a medical record will do, or you could wait for your drivers license.  So, for one day's work selling newspapers, you were able to take the bus to no less than three locations, speak with countless government employees, obtain all of the proper paperwork, and told to wait two weeks for your drivers license and social security card to be delivered via U.S. mail.  Don't have a mailbox?  Get one at the post office where they want....PROOF OF CURRENT ADDRESS AND ID.  Or, you can apply for a mailbox at the Salvation Army so long as you're in their good graces.

Once you've obtained the correct documents, go apply for some jobs where the manager watches you get off the bus or walk in off the streets.  I'm sure your chances of getting the job are equal to the kid wearing his sister's jeans whose mom brings him in to apply.