Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Never Homeless: House bounce

Lost job leads to lost residence

It all started when I was working for Freeway Insurance as a sales trainee in Clairemont. I was hired by my good friend Kevin, my former manager at American Graphics, where we sold promotional giveaways to medical and small businesses all across the country.

I started in October of 2011 and worked there until February of 2012. Everything was going great until I had to take the state insurance test. It was very difficult. If I passed that test, then I would become a licensed agent, but since I didn’t, they couldn't keep me on at minimum wage. I knew I was in trouble, as I had child support to pay and rent was due.

My landlord was a huge Georgia Bulldogs football fan, and every Saturday we would watch football from sun-up to sundown. He slept in the garage because he had rented out all the rooms in the house. I needed help! I went to my older brother Bruce who lives on Mt. Soledad Road with his new wife. They were kind enough to let me live with them for six months, so I could save enough to move out on my own.

Sponsored
Sponsored

My brother said, "I can't help you, you’re on your own!" I was hurt, but I did not give up. I then went to my loving girlfriend Darlene, aka “The Dar,” who had no way to help me with shelter because she lived with her aging parents. They are nice folks, but "old-school.” Darlene would drive out to see me on the weekends and we would go out to dinner, usually at a fast-food place.

She suggested that I stay with her sister Peggy and her husband Eddie, who lived in Vista. I thought it was too far away, but I didn't have a choice so I packed up my clothes in a big black garbage bag and waited for Darlene to pick me up.

I stayed with them for about a month and slept on a bed in their garage. I had nothing to do all day but watch TV with  their dogs — and, boy, were the dogs getting tired of me! I tried to get a job in Vista but there was nothing around and after about a month of their hospitality, food, and shelter, I had to find another place to live.

Darlene and I went to the employment office and found information about homeless shelters in the area. We found a very reasonable shelter called La Posada in the backcountry of Carlsbad. For a mere $20 a week, they provided a bed and three meals. Darlene cried when she dropped me off that first day, and I said to myself. Okay, I have landed in hell! I was right: there were some 50 beds in a military-style building and there was not a finkin’ thing to do.

They would wake you up every day at 4:30 a.m. to roll out of bed. It was impossible to sleep, and people were constantly getting up to go to the bathroom. The beds were terrible! They gave you a comfortless pillow and the lights were out at 9 p.m. They would kick your butt out at 6 a.m. and a lot of my "bedmates" would go off to their meaningless jobs.

I found a friend, though: Big Mike, who showed me the ropes. We would leave and ride the bus to the local libraries and hang out till dinnertime, around 5 p.m. We had to walk a mile or so up a steep hill in the summer's heat.

The food in the place was scarcely edible, and you had to beg for seconds. After dinner you could play volleyball with your fellow “bedmates” or putt on a small golf green that was about 20 years old. You could also go back to your bed and just lie there and be bored to death!

At that time, I was running out of money, so after about a month I decided to get the hell out of there. I figured I would take my chances that my "bro" would take me in just one more time. It was the end of June, and I packed up my belongings and pleaded with my girlfriend Darlene to come pick me up early in the morning. I must have waited three hours for her to come and get me.

She picked me up and said that they had to put Al the Wonder Dog to sleep and that my brother was very depressed. So, there I was, getting out of La Posada homeless shelter, my brother’s beloved dog dead, and my girlfriend Darlene not very happy with me but stlll sticking by my side.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego Reader Best of 2024

A world-class museum, best drinking, best eating, best shops, ups and downs of Del Cerro, parent-friendly playgrounds, peaceful, eaze-y feeling
Next Article

Jacobs Music Center Grand Opening

The concert did what it was designed to do

It all started when I was working for Freeway Insurance as a sales trainee in Clairemont. I was hired by my good friend Kevin, my former manager at American Graphics, where we sold promotional giveaways to medical and small businesses all across the country.

I started in October of 2011 and worked there until February of 2012. Everything was going great until I had to take the state insurance test. It was very difficult. If I passed that test, then I would become a licensed agent, but since I didn’t, they couldn't keep me on at minimum wage. I knew I was in trouble, as I had child support to pay and rent was due.

My landlord was a huge Georgia Bulldogs football fan, and every Saturday we would watch football from sun-up to sundown. He slept in the garage because he had rented out all the rooms in the house. I needed help! I went to my older brother Bruce who lives on Mt. Soledad Road with his new wife. They were kind enough to let me live with them for six months, so I could save enough to move out on my own.

Sponsored
Sponsored

My brother said, "I can't help you, you’re on your own!" I was hurt, but I did not give up. I then went to my loving girlfriend Darlene, aka “The Dar,” who had no way to help me with shelter because she lived with her aging parents. They are nice folks, but "old-school.” Darlene would drive out to see me on the weekends and we would go out to dinner, usually at a fast-food place.

She suggested that I stay with her sister Peggy and her husband Eddie, who lived in Vista. I thought it was too far away, but I didn't have a choice so I packed up my clothes in a big black garbage bag and waited for Darlene to pick me up.

I stayed with them for about a month and slept on a bed in their garage. I had nothing to do all day but watch TV with  their dogs — and, boy, were the dogs getting tired of me! I tried to get a job in Vista but there was nothing around and after about a month of their hospitality, food, and shelter, I had to find another place to live.

Darlene and I went to the employment office and found information about homeless shelters in the area. We found a very reasonable shelter called La Posada in the backcountry of Carlsbad. For a mere $20 a week, they provided a bed and three meals. Darlene cried when she dropped me off that first day, and I said to myself. Okay, I have landed in hell! I was right: there were some 50 beds in a military-style building and there was not a finkin’ thing to do.

They would wake you up every day at 4:30 a.m. to roll out of bed. It was impossible to sleep, and people were constantly getting up to go to the bathroom. The beds were terrible! They gave you a comfortless pillow and the lights were out at 9 p.m. They would kick your butt out at 6 a.m. and a lot of my "bedmates" would go off to their meaningless jobs.

I found a friend, though: Big Mike, who showed me the ropes. We would leave and ride the bus to the local libraries and hang out till dinnertime, around 5 p.m. We had to walk a mile or so up a steep hill in the summer's heat.

The food in the place was scarcely edible, and you had to beg for seconds. After dinner you could play volleyball with your fellow “bedmates” or putt on a small golf green that was about 20 years old. You could also go back to your bed and just lie there and be bored to death!

At that time, I was running out of money, so after about a month I decided to get the hell out of there. I figured I would take my chances that my "bro" would take me in just one more time. It was the end of June, and I packed up my belongings and pleaded with my girlfriend Darlene to come pick me up early in the morning. I must have waited three hours for her to come and get me.

She picked me up and said that they had to put Al the Wonder Dog to sleep and that my brother was very depressed. So, there I was, getting out of La Posada homeless shelter, my brother’s beloved dog dead, and my girlfriend Darlene not very happy with me but stlll sticking by my side.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The ups and downs of Cel Cerro on a bike

Best outdoors times
Next Article

San Marcos Harvest Fest, The Distinct Modernism of San Diego

Events October 13-October 16, 2024
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader