This essay was written and acted out for us in a recent fellowship when Penny and I found ourselves in a homeless state.
To Shawn & Penny during their homelessness: 08/07/09 by Marshal Coke
Some tips of the need to knows, and some of the need not to knows of homelessness.
The first and most important thing is the acquisition of a good grocery basket cart. Really, any old basket cart will do to start. A list of “how to’s” to improve the quality of your cart are as follows. First, wander around the Wal-Mart parking lot on a really busy day, like payday or weekends. Carts are scattered everywhere amongst the cars, so you can pick and choose one that has really good wheels, (the kind that don’t wobble or stick). In that heavy mass of traffic and comings and goings you can change out your belongings from the worn out old cart to the new sound one, (having a really good fast rolling cart can be a plus), especially if during a dumpster diving foray you are caught by another homeless person who has staked the dumpster out as his personal picking grounds and feels the need to be confrontational.
Now some of the things that make life as a homeless person a little easier, is an ample supply of good cardboard. If you really get lucky and can score an old refrigerator cardboard box, they are useful for so many things. Such as; a garage for your amply full grocery cart of all your worldly possessions. They can also double as an outhouse as they are easily moved to a new location as needed. They can be used as a windbreak from the driving rain and snow. Finding some old used pallets is also good because they can be stood up under a railroad trestle and backed up by some of your other cardboard sheets. These can be tied together by punching holes in the cardboard and running old nylon stocking through and tying everything together. (note: nylon stockings are very durable. They can be tied together for extra length and will hold amazing amounts of weight) Paper bags are an important item also for when you are dumpster diving you can sort out the food items from some of the other treasures of your quest.
It is also a good idea to check out the various city parks and learn when their watering schedule is, and do a search for some of the more secluded areas because after a busy day of dumpster diving, the need for spending some time in a sprinkler is not a bad plan. Learning about park benches for sleeping is important. The solid ones are preferable to the slotted ones because you don’t wake up with stripes down your back. All in all, after a few months, you will develop a routine of knowing the best times to get the good old veggies from the big chain store dumpsters, the right times to trade in your old cart, (when the wheels start sticking and wobbling) and will have met and made friends with a whole host of interesting––I say interesting new people, as you trade ideas and techniques you have developed. Then you will have to decide when to leave for the warmer climates of, let’s say, Vegas? I hear they have really liberal missions there and the dumpster diving is absolutely Phenomenal!
