Be Broke But Happy: You Don't Know Broke

January 28, 2009

You Don't Know Broke

After attending an Association for Women Journalists event at ABC 7 Chicago studios tonight, I walked back to my car which was parked on Wabash Street in the Loop. It was about 9:00 p.m. The temperature was 15 degrees Fahrenheit.

I passed these two folks who had settled in for the night on the sidewalk just outside Macy's.

No, I did not stop to give them money. But last night I rolled down my window to give coin to the person toting a cardboard sign near the southbound Fullerton exit ramp off the Kennedy expressway.

Those pigeons were eating whole wheat bread scraps, btw.

2 comments:

silverhartgirlJanuary 28, 2009 at 11:18 PM
That is just so sad.
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Broke but HappyJanuary 29, 2009 at 12:26 AM
Dear SHG, Yes, so sad, but very common in my town (and now everywhere, even rural areas). There *are* available beds in shelters around the city; some people choose not to go to them for various reasons--they weigh the advantages and disadvantages, and presumably these fellows (or a couple, or women I did not see their faces) prefer to be out on their own.

I believe it is my duty to share a bit of moolah with homeless people. Many result from several dire events occurring simultaneously - too much to overcome all at once. For others, the circumstance was borne as a result of mental illness.
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