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[–] el_em_en_oh 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago  (edited ago)

Homeless people.

(Growing up, my parents told me to stay away from them, because they'd eat you, or want to rape your corpse, or steal all your shit, or simply skull-fuck you. Through the years, I've met my fair-share of homeless & indigent people, and honestly, they are some of the nicest people I've ever encountered. They have some odd stories of how they got to that point in their life, but they are most often friendly, down to earth, and for the most part, humble and thankful for whatever they have).

[–] [deleted] ago 

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[–] el_em_en_oh ago 

Didn't sound rude at all...

When I was living in Philly (Old City, down at the foot of the Ben Franklin Bridge) I encountered a shit-ton of homeless, as they sort of "congregate" in the area. Maybe congregate isn't the right word, but there are quite a few that call Old City "home". I lived in the Hoopskirt Factory, directly across the street from where the 1`st-Continental Congress used to meet (there's a MASSIVE courtyard out front of the building, that's surrounded by a really tall brick wall, basically creating a compound). Anyway, a lot of homeless people would call the courtyard home, and set up their little boxes & shanty's on the far side of the building. Park Services didn't seem to mind, as they never bothered anyone, and since it was on the FAR side of the building, it was out of sight, so they were basically left alone.

I used to walk my dog in this courtyard 4-5 times a day, and got to know 5-6 of them, by sight, and my dog & I became "friends" with several of them, as we saw them so often. When it would get REALLY cold, I'd take them hot chocolate and a hot meal from time to time, and I'd sit with them outside and smoke, and chit-chat. Got to know their individual stories of how they got to that point in their life, and it was astonishing.

I am truly thankful, every single day of my life, for what I've got. Those homeless people made me realize that we are ALL just 2-3 paychecks away from being homeless (unless you make a ton of money and manage to put a lot of it away). I speak in general terms mind you, but for the most part, for the 'average' American, it's pretty true. If you have zero source of income, you'll be on the street in about 1.5 - 2.5 months, depending on your exact situation.

These folks came from pretty normal backgrounds, and just had bad luck, that landed them living in the courtyard across from my cushy building/loft.