Meanwhile a list of people that I have yet to address.
Last year there was "Norm", a young girl (~14) who was wanting to switch Gender to Male.
I won't open up the can of worms that presents, but - for the moment, we were all treating her as if she was a boy. "His" name - chosen, of course by "him", was Norm, which was a pretty weird-ass name to be chosen, like "Rod" it seems a name you bestow on someone, not choose. Anyways JR and I were discussing the peculiarities of this name choice when I realized; of a sudden; that it wasn't after "Norm" in Pscho rather it was reflecting her wish to be "Normal" - Norman (Normal Man) shortened to "Norm".
***
It's as good a theory as any.
***
Mornings at the fishbowl, the slow recombobulation; an older businessman behind me talking loudly about RRSP's, Pensions, Golf...
Fuck there are some boring conversations. There's never an in-between, an intelligent conversation, it's all day to day mundanity or fucking UFO's over Baker.
I sometimes wonder if I'm the only sane one here.
Bloody Hell.
***
At the laundromat, having retired my filthy moccasins for a pair of mismatched equally filthy moccasins, "treated" with dripping motor oil in my back seat.
I recognize another of the landed gentry, a fellow middle class homeless person of close enough age, we chat, introductions, her name - "Bee". Curious, I've known a few Bea's, never a Bee. While the laundry is spinning she's rearranging her home - a yellow/black later model jeep, the color scheme (intentionally?) chosen to represent - well, herself. "Bee".
It should be noted that there are grades of homelessness here. The first grade, mental health, addictions, shopping carts & homelessness encampments.
These are the highly visible.
The second is the live-in-your-car, with some means of support (in my instance a job, in others disability, CPP, EI, Welfare, etc). We're the second class.
There's a third class, those with vans, travelers, on their way to Shambala, the Island, wherever. But they're transients or seasonal, we're not.
Anyways, a bit of chit-chat while the laundry's doing and then we go to lunch. She suggests the Mall, A&W, I pick otherwise. Clearly she's not one of the working homeless.
Chit, chat, we've a lot in common, it's nice to put a name and life to people you see around daily. I mean, really, I should know the name of everyone in this town, only; well, I've a natural reserve born of serving.
She loves Jesus, drops it in passing, attends a church in Castlegar, knows a lot of the homeless by name, many of them go to Church and profess a great love of Jesus as it avails them of the resources the Church offers. I meet a lot these, women of a certain age, men having failed them take up the Cross, Jesus the ideal man, dead and absent...
I have some theories, but wisely choose to keep them to myself.
We go for a walk, her dogs - 2 furious little chihuahuas that strain at the leash and miss no opportunity to set themselves upon any larger dog that passes.
She laughs it off.
***
She's good company, adds me to her facebook, I get to see what's up. She's an old-school evangelical, random posts of the "Get Behind Me Satan" variety.
Probably still one of the most-read books in the world and nobody gets it...
***
Reminding me of another woman of a certain age that also loves Jesus, lovely woman, likes to read (the Bible only), she passes in normal conversation until it comes round to the point, she's been dating, it's tough out there, she's decided to "save it" for marriage, save what I'm wondering but apparently she's some sort of born-again-virgin, she's looking for a man that loves Jesus more than her, Jesus, he's gotta be #1....
***
There is a part of me that wants to ask if she doesn't realize that this is a cheap power and control tactic that's only going to work on the worst quality of men, that she's limiting her relationships and made the same pact with celibacy I have (or, not the same pact, but to very much the same effect), but, damn, if they haven't figured that out by now they never will...
***
Jesus, by Golly, the most glorious savior of junkies, addicts, the homeless & middle-aged spinsters. The underdog for all occasions. I've nothing against him but he could do a lot better with his representation.