Too Cold for Crackheads | Do Try This at Home: Too Cold for Crackheads

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Too Cold for Crackheads

The-Guy-Who-Knows-A-Song-About-A-Chicken and some friends and I went to Lola's last night and there was no crackhead outside to watch our car. That's because it has yet again gotten too cold for hanging around on street corners here in tropical Houston, Texas.

Dag nab it.

I don't have any really good pictures of Lola's, but of course have a picture of the toilet in the men's room from my bar bathrooms tour:Normally when we go to a bar near downtown, a crackhead offers to watch our car. And then we're supposed to pay him some measly amount that presumably he's going to spend on beer or crack or what have you. But they DON'T spend every penny on mind altering substances. Or at least all of them don't.

I happen to know because one day I was stopped at a traffic light back in the early 90s in my shiny, new red pick up truck. Being somewhere around 22 years old, I also had a six pack of beer rolling around the floorboard of the passenger seat.

A pan handler appeared at my window and asked if I had any change. Change?!?! I didn't have change! Or dollar bills either for that matter.

What I did have was my cute little apartment, the one and only new car I have ever bought, a few snacks, and a six pack of beer. That pretty much precludes the existence of spare change.

Still, I had some things and out of those options, I offered they guy snacks and beer. He was willing to take the snacks. But as for the beer, he told me, "I don't drink."

Even at 22, it was a little embarrassing. HE was the street person, but I was the drinker? Mostly it was a relief though, because that meant that all those people who told me, "Don't give those people money! They'll only spend it on alcohol!" were exaggerating at best.

Even so I had already decided it really didn't matter to me WHAT the bums did with the money. My only worry was whether or not I wanted to give a quarter if I happened to have one. It's totally the street person's own responsibility how to spend all those measly earnings.

I actually don't know what substances they are or aren't abusing, really. I just know that I've always heard the people who hang out downtown offering to watch cars for money referred to as crackheads.

And I know that I'm the one who is going inside to drink, after all. And I know that my car has never been broken into while a "crackhead" has been watching it.

So hopefully it will warm up before we hit the bars again. Because I don't own clothing adequate for 30 degree weather. And neither do the street people. Apparently.

11 comments:

Unknown said...

How sad! What is Texas without it's crackheads!

Tracy said...

It is sad that we all judge the less fortune, isn't it.

When I have change I always give it. As you said what they do with it is up to them.

Pink Heather said...

measly earnings? I was watching one of those news shows 'once upon a time' and the topic was panhandlers. They showed one guy who packed up every evening and went home to a mansion. Another couple spent six months a year panhandling on the streets of some city and the other six months soaking up the sun in Florida (not panhandling)
I 'almost' considered a career change right then and there. LOL

Of course the drug addicts and homeless are very sad.

Unknown said...

Did you guys just get a snowstorm? i heard that part of the country got gold and snowy. not what I think when I envision Texas. Yes even crackheads get cold. LOL!

Jill said...

SJ - I know! We've totally lost our charm!!!!!! (until the weather warms up)

Tracy - Yeah, I can't imagine they're going wild with the couple nickels from me and three cents from my boy. But who knows?

Pink Heather - There are always a few people ruining things for everyone. But my guess is that the mansion/Florida people are the exception, not the rule. Otherwise some of the street people might get their teeth fixed and maybe a boil or two removed. Seriously, many of them look like they are just in constant pain. I can't imagine that they would live like that if they didn't have to.

Ricardo - We've gotten some VERY RARE instances of snow, one even this year. But it wasn't very recent - must have been somewhere else in Texas.

Beth said...

I too, just give them money if I have it and if I decide to at that moment. How they spend it is up to them, I am not going to change the world by withholding money so he doesn't buy booze. A couple of weeks ago I gave a guy a couple of dollars and he was so happy, said it was his birthday that day, really made me feel good.

Arizaphale said...

Have you heard that song 'Underpants on the inside' (or is outside...I can never remember)...I love the line where he says:
"People always say don't give them moeny because they're going to spend it on drugs or booze and I say, well that's all I am going to spend it on....
(or something like that)

A Free Man said...

I got all sorts of hell for posting a picture of a redback spider. I think you've posted a nastier picture by far!

Bruce Johnson said...

Ewww, there is no seat on that toilet. Gross.

Here in Phenox, we have homeless that sand on the freeway on ramps (next to the metering lights) with signs that say "Homeless Vet, Hungry" or some such thing (usually with a Big Gulp and pack of smokes at there feet).

Those homeless crackheads....they are resourceful.

Nishant said...

When I have change I always give it. As you said what they do with it is up to them
work at home in india

Jill said...

Wow! How on Earth did I miss these comments?!?!? Gee whiz...sorry!

Good point Beth! I hadn't really thought of it that way.

Arizaphale - Actually, I thought I DID answer this comment! I wonder if something just went wrong. I hadn't heard that song, but it's funny!

A Free Man - Well, I did a whole series of bar toilets...and I posted all that squirrel road kill. My kids were actually upset at the squirrel roadkill! I can't imagine a spider pic bothering them though.

Bruce - Well that's in the men's room anyway. It's probably best not to even have a seat (in the men's OR ladies' room!) in a bar like Lola's. I mean, people are just going to pee all over it anyway.

That's what I thought Nishant!

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