Sunday, thumb out, get a ride from an American in a working vehicle who takes me right to works door.
Early. Not even 10:00. It says something about the area when hitchhiking is a more reliable form of transport than driving.
Well, maybe it says something about what I drive as well...
Anyways, homeless girl, still in her car on the ferry landing - what, 3 weeks now?
The day spent cleaning, organizing the cooler. The kitchen cooks up the last of the chicken wings and dry ribs, drop them off to homeless and she's grateful.
I'm surprised, I'd tried a few, they were - to put it generously, disgusting, but even disgusting tastes good if you're hungry enough.
Work wraps around 3:30, all cleaning is done. Or as much as is going to be done.
Now, thumb out to get back to Nelson, but, what's the rush? I've no dinner waiting for me and so I offer homeless, hungry, dinner, if she'll drive.
Unsurprisingly she's down. Only - only - her car won't start. Battery is dead. And so after another hour of fucking around and her apologizing for the state of her car/home (and - she doesn't understand - but she's apologizing to me - TO ME! which is hilarious, if she'd ever looked into my jeep....).
Eventually we make it. Dinner, glass of wine, light conversation as to her circumstances, books, films. Her taste in books, not so good, largely salvaged from the free piles, but she proves surprisingly film literate, and so we compare notes on a few favorites.
You can tell, she's glad to get out of her head. I know the feeling, it's not always a welcoming place.
She has advice about housing as well, to get into stepping-stones, they'll move me into the North-Shore Inn, cheap rent...
This is not an option, but it is good to know there are resources.
And my good deed done I buy her a mickey, me a mickey, pay for gas and that's the end of the restaurant, the end of our date, probably I should have invited her back to the jeep, only it's a mess, and, really, there's a special hell for those that prey on vulnerable women and so now it's back to the real world of 100 things too long postponed and overlooked. The winter should be busy.