I suspect that the last thing that the powers to be at The San Diego Reader were expecting or looking for when they created this contest was a entry from someone living in a sleeping bag. Nevertheless here goes.
There are a number of things that can attract a person to a certain neighborhood. Convenience is a biggie. As a transplant from Texas (which by the way, I was more than flush when I left Texas in a 2005 Nissan 350 Z. That was in November of 2005. Can you say Casino?) I was shocked to discover the absent of public restrooms in Las Vegas as well as in California because in Texas it is against the law to sell a candy bar, potato chip or any type of foodstuff without having a public restroom that is in working order. When you are homeless, public restrooms aren’t an optional thing. In Kearny Mesa the MacDonald’s at Shawline and Claremont Mesa Blvd. is open 24 hours for drive thru and from 5 AM to 11 PM the doors are open. That is where I wrote a Novel longhand that is over 125,000 words and a Christian book that is over 40,000 words. That is also where I take My Macdumps and MacPees. And when I still had my Car and an income I ate three meals a day seven days a week for about eight months. When Mickey D’s have the doors closed there is a 24 hour Wal-Mart and two 24 hour convenience stores and all three are sympathetic to the homeless. Although convenience is major factor what makes a ‘Neighborhood’ is ‘neighbors’. Texas and the Deep South is known for “southern hospitality’ and for generosity. To Texans, California is known as the ‘Granola State’; full of ‘nuts’, ‘fruits’, and flakes so I figured that I should fit right in.

Let me tell you something though, although there are some jerks in any neighborhood; I am convinced there is no place on the planet where the people are more hospitable or more generous than in San Diego and in particular, Kearny Mesa. But since I am on the street the neighbors I am going to speak of are also homeless. First there is Alaska Dave which is his given name. Like every homeless male that I know in Kearny Mesa, to my surprise, he is a political conservative. With as many Vets as they are on the street, I guess that I shouldn’t have been so surprised. I met Alaska, who is in jail at the present time; by catching him in possession of goods that I had stashed in some bushes and had been stolen. Needless to say we got off to a rocky start. I learned though as time passed he is a caring and generous person. He can consume more booze in a day than most can in a week, and yet not wobble, slur or dose off. He is also one of four people that I have met in my lifetime that habitually makes up lies for no reason. Then there are a few homeless in Kearny Mesa that are female. Each one is certifiable insane. I will not reveal names but I shall give personality descriptions. Lady ‘A’ is schizophrenic and has Obsessive, Compulsive Disorder. She constantly speaks to persons that don’t exist, believes that George Bush is her father and sometimes believes that kids playing at MacDonald’s playground are terrorists. Once in MacDonald’s she accused me of “always staking her daughter,” and ranted that I followed her daughter from a Lexus to a motor home out in the parking lot. This was in front of customers. Lucky for me it was late there were only three cars in the lot; no Lexus and no motor home and she was the only female on the premises other than Mickey D employees and I have never seen her daughter; that is if she has one. Lady ‘B’ has a boyfriend and is bi-polar. She recently was hit by a car and probably will never walk again. She was drunk of course and broke her hip. Nevertheless the driver was at fault. Lady ‘C’ has to be the best fed homeless person on the planet. She is about 5’ 6” in any direction; top to bottom, front to back or side to side. She once got angry at some guy for what reason I still haven’t understood and so she shaved her head. Yeah right, that makes a lot of since. There is Billy. He is another one of the four people I know that has to make up lies without any cause. If he drinks more than two 24 ounce beers, which is every day he can afford it, he gets both stupid and insane and usually gets arrested. He is very fortunate that he has no ID because he is on parole and has been arrested time after time and put in the drunk tank for 12 hours and released without the police fingerprinting him or checking his record. Then there are the kids; ages 21 and 29. As is the case with every other homeless male I know in Kearny Mesa, neither one of them has any ambition to better themselves and get off the street. This was a shock to me and unbelievable. Both the kids are shop lifters and joke about ‘Food 4 Less’ being ‘Food 4 Free’. Needless to say; the 21 year old is already in jail and the 29 year old confesses that he is most likely going to be the next arrested. I am the only one I know in my homeless neighborhood that hasn’t been arrested and though some things I do are illegal, such as existing, because if there is any legal place to sleep outdoors in San Diego I sure haven’t been able to discover it. Hopefully I will be able to make some money with my novel. I have been offered a contract by the only major publisher that I have been able to convince to read it, but I cannot accept the offer as is and haven’t been able to find an agent, which I have discovered is not an optional thing. If by chance this is published I would like to thank the UCSD Geisel Library and the folks who work there for allowing me the use of their computers not only for this article but my two manuscripts. Also I’d like to request that any readers who read this article would say a little prayer for all of us.