As I sit here, in a friend’s garage in front of a fan to escape 100F plus humidity, I have a lot of time to think.
Which is good, because that fan only does so much.
But, I mean the sheer improbability of all of this, where a rent hike led me to live in a van and … well, I knew some forms of counterculture, but damn, burners are like ravers who say “yeah, I think we need more alcohol and fire.”
I have a couple of friends locally, but they’re not really the hiring type. And after a decade here, I feel zero connection to the city … an economically disadvantageous divorce led to moving in with my boss (remember, kids, journalism stereotypes are there for a reason), and from there, wilderness.
I’ve been here 10 years, and if I pissed off my friend, I wouldn’t even know how to get home.
I’m sorry your living conditions are so harsh, man. You make a strong case for why we need a strong social safety net - you made a couple unwise decisions (something that we all do from time to time), and now that means you don’t get to have a stable home or guaranteed food on the table for a decade or more? That’s so completely fucked. No human should have to live like that, homes and food should be guaranteed full stop. I hate it here.
It certainly isn’t what I was raised to expect.
