I got this email in December from a guy who had read about me in the Hamtramck Review..interesting idea!!
---
I had hoped to send you this before the frigid weather came...and was only reminded by having my gas meter removed yesterday for either updating to digital or because of tampering...I've gotten both reasons...Monday they will install a new meter...removal could have been Monday too, but they're stupid ***holes (sorry)...till then it's 37 degrees in my living room, and counting down.
So I have taken out the aluminum foil and have lined my hat and gloves...aluminum foil is an excellent insulator and retains body heat, but doesn't work so well on feet because it shreds from the walking, but might be OK for keeping feet toasty while sleeping...I'll try tonight.
Spread this tip to those you come in contact with...if you haven't already. Perhaps I could leave you a few rolls of HD aluminum foil at Cafe 1923 with your name on it...or some other place of convenience to you.
--Gary F.
Hamtown
Well then no kidding he left me 4 rolls of heavy duty foil!
necessity IS the mother of invention!
Most of this blog is now dedicated to the homeless project i have been doing. started this in 2007 by cruising around to find the Highway Men, what i call the men who live under the highway passes. In 2008 i bugged people i know and don't for food and clothes as its expanded to anywhere I meet a homeless person on the streets..so yea i just drive around looking for people then ask them if they need any help. these are some of stories. I continue this in 2010 and into the 2011 season.
Showing posts with label Hamtramck. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hamtramck. Show all posts
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Friday, November 13, 2009
Friday night 11-7-09.. a doozy
That night I was on my way to Union Street for Christophers (not Breedlove) birthday gathering and I dropped off soup and bread to four guys I meet on the street. And then after dinner I ran into Larry the 5gallon bucket drum guy- he is a regular in the Corridor. I told him we meet last winter at Avalon a few times, he remembered me. I told him I had no money but if he would like my leftover I would gladly give them to him..and I tried to remember what I had but completely space..and he was like ‘its all right-it will not go to waste’ I then ran to my rental and got him some canned chicken noodle soup and a loaf of bread.
I remember the first time I saw him a few years ago she scared me to be honest. He has a haggarded face and a mean scrowl and just looks angry. Well fuck he might be right. I am glad though that I have gotten over my fear of him and I really do like the fact he plays though 5gallon buckets even if they are loud as fuck and don’t have a great rhythm..who cares he is at least working at something and giving back in a way if you ask me.
Even later that Friday night…on way home I exit off of I75 at Holbrook and see a cop car pulled over to the left at the light talking to a person who I figure must have been beggin on the corner as its getting more and more regular in the past few weeks. I roll down my window to listen but cant really hear anything. The light turns red but they don’t pull away so I decide to pull in front of them and make a left in hopes that they will pull away, again they don’t. At this time I notice at this time it’s a woman so I want to wait for sure now.
I pull into the Coney, which btw has been celebrating it anniversary for like 3 months now…just take the banner down!..and I pull out the exit back onto Holbrook and wait for the cops to go away…its like 5 minutes before they do and I see this person coming toward me then notice there belongings at the light where they must have been begging. I pull up and flip a bitch and ask if she is hungry. She tells me yes and I hop out and pop the trunk and start to give her soup and bread…then she says to me..’I doubt it but area you going into Hamtramck?”, I tell her yes why..and she asked me for a ride. I ask her where to and just to the 75 service drive and Caniff…exactly the way I go home. I tell her to get in..and guess what…she got in the back seat too. WTF? Safer maybe?
We chat as I drive her. I ask her name, its Cheryl and I tell her mine. She asks if I am married, I swallow hard and tell her no. (a question I got asked a few times at the soup kitchen and like 5 times since over this last week…I never get asked that ? so why now?)
She then asks if I have babies..i look at her and gently shake my head. She tells me she an 8 year old and that she is 49 and she just got them a small place over in the projects on the other side of 75. I tell her I am proud of her and wish her well, she was proud too you could tell. She told me she will be looking out for me and will notice my hair …I told her I will be looking out for her as well…and I will be!
I remember the first time I saw him a few years ago she scared me to be honest. He has a haggarded face and a mean scrowl and just looks angry. Well fuck he might be right. I am glad though that I have gotten over my fear of him and I really do like the fact he plays though 5gallon buckets even if they are loud as fuck and don’t have a great rhythm..who cares he is at least working at something and giving back in a way if you ask me.
Even later that Friday night…on way home I exit off of I75 at Holbrook and see a cop car pulled over to the left at the light talking to a person who I figure must have been beggin on the corner as its getting more and more regular in the past few weeks. I roll down my window to listen but cant really hear anything. The light turns red but they don’t pull away so I decide to pull in front of them and make a left in hopes that they will pull away, again they don’t. At this time I notice at this time it’s a woman so I want to wait for sure now.
I pull into the Coney, which btw has been celebrating it anniversary for like 3 months now…just take the banner down!..and I pull out the exit back onto Holbrook and wait for the cops to go away…its like 5 minutes before they do and I see this person coming toward me then notice there belongings at the light where they must have been begging. I pull up and flip a bitch and ask if she is hungry. She tells me yes and I hop out and pop the trunk and start to give her soup and bread…then she says to me..’I doubt it but area you going into Hamtramck?”, I tell her yes why..and she asked me for a ride. I ask her where to and just to the 75 service drive and Caniff…exactly the way I go home. I tell her to get in..and guess what…she got in the back seat too. WTF? Safer maybe?
We chat as I drive her. I ask her name, its Cheryl and I tell her mine. She asks if I am married, I swallow hard and tell her no. (a question I got asked a few times at the soup kitchen and like 5 times since over this last week…I never get asked that ? so why now?)
She then asks if I have babies..i look at her and gently shake my head. She tells me she an 8 year old and that she is 49 and she just got them a small place over in the projects on the other side of 75. I tell her I am proud of her and wish her well, she was proud too you could tell. She told me she will be looking out for me and will notice my hair …I told her I will be looking out for her as well…and I will be!
St. Lads Soup Kitchen - November 5, 2009
St. Lads Soup Kitchen
Started volunteering at St. Lads soup kitchen in Hamtramck last Thursday because I figured if they contacted me to give me all the left over loaves of bread from their weekly kitchen the least I could do was offer to help them.
I had found out through Amber at work that our job actually offers 16 hours of community service a year…BUT no one tells you about it …somehow she learned and told me so of course I jumped on board and since St. Lads had just hit me up .. I filled out my application with there info and asked to have the 16 hours split into 3 hour increments. So I leave work at 1pm covering me from 1 to 4pm when I leave work so I can have 5 Thursdays to be at the church kitchen at 1:30pm to help prep the food. Which they do pretty much all from scratch.
Mind you that was not a great day to start cuz I was an emotional fucking basket case but I told them I would be there and I planned on not letting them down…trying not to let everyone down in my life right! (oh self floggin.)
Well I got there and the lady who contacted me Donna was not going to be there and I was told to ask for Pat. There was a room full of ladies in there 50’s 60’s and 70’s all bustling around preparing food cutting veggies, sorting bread (omg the amount of bread donated by a bakery on Mc Nichols is amazing), cooking soups and hams and pork chops and oi
I was introduced to everyone and promptly forgot every name except the two Pats. And was put to work making ..no joke..coffee. I tried to explain to them I do not drink coffee but they had a new machine and no one wanted to learn it….yea.. ok. I asked if people liked it light or strong…and I instantly realized by all the answers I got that no one in this room agrees on anything…and I have a feeling that happens often. A little old lady who kinda reminds me of my maternal grandmother told me to make it so she can see the bottom of the cup..that confused me…what the hell kind of cofffe is that...So as you can guess I made coffee too strong! And Sophie, I did remember her name, gave me a hard time and told me I might not be welcomed back. I was told to ignore she cuz she harasses everyone. I gathered that very quickly and looked forward to seeing how she operates.
I was put to work cutting pies, peeling taters, and a bunch of other stuff I cant recall all the while suffering from a UTI that decided to start on my way walking there and I had no Azo Standard on me..ie..i was in a mess of pain and had to excuse myself like 10 times to the bathroom to either cry or try to pee…tmi..i know -whatever .
The doors opened at 4pm…and the people piled in. we served baked ham, boiled potatoe, salad, soup, bread and pie ..oh and milk…quite a bit of food. And open to anyone who needs a meal not just homeless folks. Most the people were white but you tell they were not recent immigrants nor where they from the eastern block as the poles have a certain look to them from that area. But all were polite and thankful. One guy got out of hand and the priest had to have a talk with him.
Everyone was allowed to take 3 loaves of bread or 2 depending on who you asked. And that is par for the course there I figured out quickly too. One person tells you do something one way and 30 seconds later another is telling your wrong and do it another way..it was confusing to say the least and in my fragile state oh my god..but it was funny too like a Laural and Hardy skit. (part of me wonders why I wrote that and not Abbot and Costello cuz I liked them as a kid and L&H..i disliked the fat guy cuz he was soo mean to the little guy- but I really liked Costello the chubby guy and not Abbot the skinny mean guy..hmm wonder if they changed it up on purpose so as not to seem too much like L&H..or I am thinking about stupid stuff right now for no reason…ok shut up!)
So yea 50+ people came through..all have to sign in before they get food, sometimes they can get two servings. The kitchen is only open til 5:30 used to be 6pm but with it getting dark they changed it. At the end I went to get my rental cuz they had a ton of bread to give me and Pat had taken me into the store room and gave me like 48 cans of chicken of soup. All of which I gave out over the last week and ran out Tuesday, good timing.
Started volunteering at St. Lads soup kitchen in Hamtramck last Thursday because I figured if they contacted me to give me all the left over loaves of bread from their weekly kitchen the least I could do was offer to help them.
I had found out through Amber at work that our job actually offers 16 hours of community service a year…BUT no one tells you about it …somehow she learned and told me so of course I jumped on board and since St. Lads had just hit me up .. I filled out my application with there info and asked to have the 16 hours split into 3 hour increments. So I leave work at 1pm covering me from 1 to 4pm when I leave work so I can have 5 Thursdays to be at the church kitchen at 1:30pm to help prep the food. Which they do pretty much all from scratch.
Mind you that was not a great day to start cuz I was an emotional fucking basket case but I told them I would be there and I planned on not letting them down…trying not to let everyone down in my life right! (oh self floggin.)
Well I got there and the lady who contacted me Donna was not going to be there and I was told to ask for Pat. There was a room full of ladies in there 50’s 60’s and 70’s all bustling around preparing food cutting veggies, sorting bread (omg the amount of bread donated by a bakery on Mc Nichols is amazing), cooking soups and hams and pork chops and oi
I was introduced to everyone and promptly forgot every name except the two Pats. And was put to work making ..no joke..coffee. I tried to explain to them I do not drink coffee but they had a new machine and no one wanted to learn it….yea.. ok. I asked if people liked it light or strong…and I instantly realized by all the answers I got that no one in this room agrees on anything…and I have a feeling that happens often. A little old lady who kinda reminds me of my maternal grandmother told me to make it so she can see the bottom of the cup..that confused me…what the hell kind of cofffe is that...So as you can guess I made coffee too strong! And Sophie, I did remember her name, gave me a hard time and told me I might not be welcomed back. I was told to ignore she cuz she harasses everyone. I gathered that very quickly and looked forward to seeing how she operates.
I was put to work cutting pies, peeling taters, and a bunch of other stuff I cant recall all the while suffering from a UTI that decided to start on my way walking there and I had no Azo Standard on me..ie..i was in a mess of pain and had to excuse myself like 10 times to the bathroom to either cry or try to pee…tmi..i know -whatever .
The doors opened at 4pm…and the people piled in. we served baked ham, boiled potatoe, salad, soup, bread and pie ..oh and milk…quite a bit of food. And open to anyone who needs a meal not just homeless folks. Most the people were white but you tell they were not recent immigrants nor where they from the eastern block as the poles have a certain look to them from that area. But all were polite and thankful. One guy got out of hand and the priest had to have a talk with him.
Everyone was allowed to take 3 loaves of bread or 2 depending on who you asked. And that is par for the course there I figured out quickly too. One person tells you do something one way and 30 seconds later another is telling your wrong and do it another way..it was confusing to say the least and in my fragile state oh my god..but it was funny too like a Laural and Hardy skit. (part of me wonders why I wrote that and not Abbot and Costello cuz I liked them as a kid and L&H..i disliked the fat guy cuz he was soo mean to the little guy- but I really liked Costello the chubby guy and not Abbot the skinny mean guy..hmm wonder if they changed it up on purpose so as not to seem too much like L&H..or I am thinking about stupid stuff right now for no reason…ok shut up!)
So yea 50+ people came through..all have to sign in before they get food, sometimes they can get two servings. The kitchen is only open til 5:30 used to be 6pm but with it getting dark they changed it. At the end I went to get my rental cuz they had a ton of bread to give me and Pat had taken me into the store room and gave me like 48 cans of chicken of soup. All of which I gave out over the last week and ran out Tuesday, good timing.
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