‘Twas the night before Christmas
And all through Best Value Inn
Not a creature was stirring
Except the Homeless Editor’s gin.
All were snuggled safe in their beds
Blankets wrapped ‘round their neck
Thinking of might be around the corner
Dreaming of that $600 stimulus check.
Until that peace was broken into pieces
By a shattering of the night in noise.
Thankfully it was not a nearby uprising
Of the Bugaloos or the Proud Boys
Now Dasher, now Prancer!
Where are you Tiny Dancer?
On Donner, on Blitzen!
On President Richard Nixon!
Oh, I needed little this quiet Christmas
Maybe just a $5,000 Peleton
Where I could pedal mindlessly
Until I appeared as a skeleton.
I didn’t see mommy kissing Santa.
But I did see her face him standing tall.
“Why didn’t you tell me,” she said.
“Your bonus check would be so small?”
Oh, I wish you the most merry of days
And hope your present is more the norm
For 2021 is a new beginning, a new year
It sure as hell can’t be the same 2020 shit storm.
You need to come to California and stay in the PROJECT ROOM KEY shelter that I am in. The way we are treated is horrible. Many have left because they are less stressed on the street. I'd like to work with you to get something written. They did a news story within the past couple months that said a resident gave covid to staff. But M its not true. I am the resident the article was talking about and I tested negative. And since the employee brought covid into the shelter, we are now on lockdown because over 20 people have tested positive. We are treated like animals in here. People are being denied going to work even as essential workers. The residents are suffering all because covid was brough in through staff. They feed us food that comes in packages that are bloated from bacteria. And I was just told that I have to smoke my cigarette while I have dog shit in my hand to keep the 5 min rule of being outside my room. They are giving me so much much anxiety that I left my windows down and my keys in the car to run upstairs to my room. I think because you are a homeless journalist you are able to relate and write about the homeless in a way that it should be written. Have you thought about moving to California. Now would be good time considering the way things are here these days. Hopefully you and I can get together. I want to expose the truth about the shelter life and the people in it.
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