life is not a pretty picture
Been thinking about Nancy Baker recently, the homeless woman I've written earlier stories on. She was in such bad shape last time I saw her late Sept, beaten & badly bruised, I wondered if she had, in fact, survived the incredibly harsh 08/09 winter in Toronto. Yesterday, I saw Nancy & her boyfriend Bruce panhandling on the street.
She was still in the wheelchair, her legs & feet so swollen she couldn't wear shoes. Sciatica, she said. She was swigging the last dregs of a large size bottle of Listerine, their affordable drug of choice. Told them I would not give them money, as it would most likely be used to buy more Listerine, but would buy food, whatever they wanted, and coffee. Quite frankly, they were so smelly & dirty it was not a good idea to take them into the restaurant. I asked if they would wait in the nearby parkette while I got the food. Turkey & bacon sandwich for Bruce, ham & swiss for Nancy :) Nancy survived the winter because, since November, she's had a room in Strachan House, a converted warehouse of 76 units, a city 'Homes First' project to get people off the street. But she hates it. She says bed bugs are rampant (bite marks on her exposed arms & legs attested to that) & that it's full of crack dealers. There's a communal kitchen. "But everyone steals your food to buy crack ". Now the weather is good she sleeps in the park. I've never researched Strachan House so I only have Nancy's version of the truth. I asked if she ever buys crack & she admitted she does. She's always been willling to answer any question I asked. Except about her daughter, from whom she is estranged. She won't talk about her. Hurts too much, I guess. Bruce has been in the Don jail for the past 5 months, charged with assault. Assault on Nancy. Released recently, his lawyer got him off on an 18 month suspended sentence & 3 years probation. He insisted he didn't beat her up. Nancy..... said nothing. She did not attend the court hearings. Two more of her street friends died this winter. Two more for Toronto's Memorial Wall to the Homeless. She too expects to die on the street. Nancy is 50 years old. How many more winters can her feisty spirit carry her through? There but for the grace of God.....
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NB : I have Nancy & Bruce's permission to write about whatever they tell me. Many thanks, everyone, for your most empathetic response. Have a good day / evening !!
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..................
life is not a pretty picture
Been thinking about Nancy Baker recently, the homeless woman I've written earlier stories on. She was in such bad shape last time I saw her late Sept, beaten & badly bruised, I wondered if she had, in fact, survived the incredibly harsh 08/09 winter in Toronto. Yesterday, I saw Nancy & her boyfriend Bruce panhandling on the street.
She was still in the wheelchair, her legs & feet so swollen she couldn't wear shoes. Sciatica, she said. She was swigging the last dregs of a large size bottle of Listerine, their affordable drug of choice. Told them I would not give them money, as it would most likely be used to buy more Listerine, but would buy food, whatever they wanted, and coffee. Quite frankly, they were so smelly & dirty it was not a good idea to take them into the restaurant. I asked if they would wait in the nearby parkette while I got the food. Turkey & bacon sandwich for Bruce, ham & swiss for Nancy :) Nancy survived the winter because, since November, she's had a room in Strachan House, a converted warehouse of 76 units, a city 'Homes First' project to get people off the street. But she hates it. She says bed bugs are rampant (bite marks on her exposed arms & legs attested to that) & that it's full of crack dealers. There's a communal kitchen. "But everyone steals your food to buy crack ". Now the weather is good she sleeps in the park. I've never researched Strachan House so I only have Nancy's version of the truth. I asked if she ever buys crack & she admitted she does. She's always been willling to answer any question I asked. Except about her daughter, from whom she is estranged. She won't talk about her. Hurts too much, I guess. Bruce has been in the Don jail for the past 5 months, charged with assault. Assault on Nancy. Released recently, his lawyer got him off on an 18 month suspended sentence & 3 years probation. He insisted he didn't beat her up. Nancy..... said nothing. She did not attend the court hearings. Two more of her street friends died this winter. Two more for Toronto's Memorial Wall to the Homeless. She too expects to die on the street. Nancy is 50 years old. How many more winters can her feisty spirit carry her through? There but for the grace of God.....
_______________
NB : I have Nancy & Bruce's permission to write about whatever they tell me. Many thanks, everyone, for your most empathetic response. Have a good day / evening !!
_______________
..................