THE SHUT DOWN...

The Shut Down...

Life Being Shut Down and Turned Off....

Life on the streets has never been more challenging than at this

current time we are experiencing through the dangerous and

world shaking outbreak of the Coronavirus that created

mass hysteria, the world over, and something that was

deliberate and Intentional.

Life is literally being turned off and completely shut down.

Forced isolation. Social Distancing. Businesses, schools,

Restaurants, Movie theaters, being shut down and closed.

What few places that are still open for food, have

imposed strict requirements to access food.

No longer allowed to sit inside, or even go inside to

pick up food, only Pickup, Take-out or Delivery... 

all at a distance. Restroom access is not allowed.

Grocery Stores have nothing but empty shelves

filling the space. What few places remain open,

hours have been greatly decreased to “Maximize

Social Distancing”. Imposing a NO CONTACT Law.

Libraries, Wineries, Bars, Schools, Any and All Events;

Closed and shut down. No crowds of any kind are allowed.

All park restrooms locked up. Where a forced

“Shelter in Place” has been put into effect, requiring

people to stay “Home”, have your meals at home.

This poses a real challenge to those of us forced to live

outside, indefinitely. You have no Home to go to.

Having no restroom access to take care of personal needs,

or have any place to use to go when you need to.

Having limited or no access to food...Because we are

already in “Shelter in Place”, though our place

is every place. We are home, wherever we go. Having

to carry our homes with us every moment of

the day, and all through the night.

Once again, when disaster strikes.... 

The homeless are literally left out in the cold. 

And the rain. And the high winds.

Being exposed to everything, at any moment,

we do not have the safety of a true “Shelter in Place”.

Our place is everywhere and all over. We do not

have the protection and are not given any thought

about how all these imposed changes affect our

lives in a very real, very devastating way.

Turning life into an even greater hardship for those

of us outside.... blocking access to restrooms,

limiting food access, not allowed to be where you are.

The Virus from HELL is turning our lives into a living

hell, while making life itself inaccessible for even the

most basic, essential Human Needs.

As the Shut Down continues....The IMPACT on our

lives is Injurious and Detrimental. Life....

Turned OFF.

The Compromise....

~ The Compromise.... Life on the Streets ~

Life is an endless series of compromise. And when that 

life is lived on the streets, even more so. Our lives, our health, 

our safety.... what we eat, how we live; are all deeply compromised. 

Without refrigeration, we cannot keep and safely store foods.

Our sleep is compromised and continually disturbed,
being rudely woken more nights than not, sometimes 

several times a night, just for not having the

luxury of sleeping inside a home, on a warm bed.

Comforts of Life.... have been compromised so completely, 

you forget what it was even like to have it a part of your life. 

You never realize what you had until it is gone, and then it 

is too late to really appreciate it for what it was and all it did.

Your very personality changes living on

the streets, from the inside out....and outside in.

The only language my body speaks and communicates 

in is through pain. Why is this the only language my 

body is fully fluent in and knows?

Decades of my life have been taken from me, consumed 

by the Streets. Everyday a painful and pain-filled reminder. 

Not a few days, a couple weeks, or a month or two, 

but decades of my life have been consumed on the streets.

I have spent several lifetimes on the streets....

Lifetimes that can never be recovered.

Living on the streets teaches you things just by being in a 

circumstance not of your choosing, but imposed on you, 

regardless. Nature truly is the Best Teacher.

It teaches you to be resourceful, and improvise as you

go along, using what you have on hand and all around. 

I have learned about the very essence of life

while on the streets. Nature teaches you how to survive 

by the very nature of being in Nature. And survival becomes 

second nature because of Nature.

You become a survivalist by the very nature

                                                        of being out in Nature.

You become better at disengaging.

I've learned how to make great coffee without the use of a 

coffee maker, and it turns out so much better and richer 

than any coffee maker could make. I've learned how to cook 

without the use of a kitchen, by using and utilizing

what I have all around me. Using a single item for 

hundreds of other uses.

Improvising through life, every moment of every day.

Living on the streets becomes more of a fine art, and the 

best training ground for life. Teaching you how to let go and 

move on, while learning to let things be as they are. 

Life teaching you on the Fly about how to be.

And should be included as an Olympic Sport...

I would medal at the very top!!

Living on the street takes camping to a whole new level.

Living on the Streets teaches you to be more resilient, stronger 

than you thought possible, and finding strength just by 

being present. Nature teaches you to adapt, because 

you have no other option available to you. It forces you to

change and bend to its will, not your own at any given time.

It conditions you to adhere to its Rules, and Will.... 

another Compromise.

Improvisation becomes second nature in all you do. You learn to

MacGyver your way through life when you live on the streets,

without the comforts of home, using a

single item for multiple purposes, like re-purposing LIFE

every moment of the day, all day, everyday

Living on the Streets

…. A Blessing and a Curse

You learn more about living and LIFE on the streets than

you could ever learn in any classroom. Nature teaches you

everything – about life, about death and what truly

matters in the deepest context.

You learn a lot about life, more about death and what truly

matters living on the streets. You come face to face

with who you really are – at the core level.

You find out what you are truly made of.

The lessons you learn on the streets are immeasurable in life. 

it changes who you are and strips you down until there is nothing

left and builds you up, literally forcing you to become a different you---

in every way, shape and form.

Being on the streets is wholly consuming, completely draining 

and leaves you depleted and raw, while hardening you 

around the edges and cutting you to the very core.

Life....and endless series of Compromise.