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Speaking as someone that lived in van in SF for 6 month before I left for immigration reasons: 1. I’m not from SF, I came there to live with my partner who was

Speaking as someone that lived in van in SF for 6 month before I left for immigration reasons: 1. I’m not from SF, I came there to live with my partner who was in school there but we couldn’t afford a place to rent. 2. I’ve never been homeless anywhere else and I wouldn’t have been homeless in SF if rent was fair. 3. I’ve never pan handled, but I didn’t need to. Dumpster diving is easy, there is plenty of free food options (including free farm stand with organic vegetables; I also cooked for food not bombs but that was more for the fun then the food). 4. Didn’t get any free phones, paid for my own bus fairs (or just jumped the muni). 5. Police never hassled me too much. Only one time when I parked near Dolores Park too see if they had their porta potties open all night (they didn’t). Police advised us to stay out of this neighborhood. We did and moved back to a friendlier neighborhood in the lower mission. 6. Showering is impossible for the homeless. I could really only shower and shave once a week. I had to wait in a line for a ticket at a charity and then wait there for an hour or two at a cramped space for my turn. Sometimes I would sneak at my the campus of my partner’s school and steal a shower. Speaking from experience the only thing that is creating the homelessness in SF is lack of reasonable, affordable, and accessible housing options.

hevelvarik 6y ago
This is the best example of “speaking from experience” I’ve ever read. The question how representative are you of the general homeless population in SF. I would guess not much. Am I wrong?
- runarberg 6y ago
  No, you are not wrong. I am not at all representative of the general homeless population in SF. I doubt anyone is. The homeless is probably one of the most diverse of any classifiable group in San Francisco. People are homeless for numerous reasons, and I bet any similarity you find is only superficial. Note that I never considered my self homeless. My 1981 VW vanagon—which we named Sunny—was a plenty good home for me. It was the first home I bought with my partner and we had a really good life in it. We would have stayed in it longer if it wasn’t so difficult to immigrate into the USA. But I know—and understand why—many people consider that homelessness.
  - jelliclesfarm 6y ago
    Do you realize that a tax paying citizen would have to pay a pretty hefty fee if they parked anywhere for an emergency? Street parking everywhere because parking garages are being converted into affordable homes for people who can’t afford to live in one of the most expensive zip codes in the USA. Homeless people who park their RVs and vans in public parks and open spaces are removing them from public consumption for those who paid taxes to maintain these spaces and commons.
proc0 6y ago
The housing options are there, just not the city option.
- jelliclesfarm 6y ago
  I have hired people in the farm who were getting homeless benefits. I have also hired juvenile girls who lived in a half way house as part of their rehabilitation. The homeless worker ..one of them..had more benefits than the young girls. I wish I could have worked more with them. People need help. The right help at the right time for the right people is more effective than blanket free for alls. He was living in his grandmother’s two million dollar Mountain View home and the first thing he asked me was if he could smoke his pot because granny wouldn’t approve...while the girls were huddled and chaperoned at all times. I would pay more in social taxes if I could choose the programs and if there were more transparency as to where that extra money went.
  - tremon 6y ago
    I read this as: [The homeless worker] was living in his grandmother’s two million dollar Mountain View home and I have a hard time imagining why anyone would consider that "homeless". Could you elaborate/clarify?
    - jelliclesfarm 6y ago
      Definition of homelessness in California: California defines homelessness if you come out of an institution(jail in this case..but also includes substance abuse rehab, mental institution etc) after a 90 day stay and don’t have a place to stay. If you don’t have a utility bill in your name, then you can be called homeless. Because he was in jail twice consecutively and was out on bail, if he could claim mental disability he doesn’t have to go back. But if he can claim mental disability and homelessness..citing them as a reason not to work, he could get benefits for life. He skipped something legal and was at risk for going back to jail. So he just claimed that he was sleeping on the streets and didn’t have an address. Look..he was really smart. At that point, I really wanted to help him and I can even appreciate some lateral thinking for problem solving. I didn’t mind that he was using a break to get back on his feet. If someone says they are mentally disabled, I am going to believe them and not question it. But he was doing things that made me feel unsafe because he was setting up the stage for me vouching for his mental instability if I were questioned. Like fire. He would get the blow torch for everything..wasp, weeds, gophers. I have worked previously with the homeless and previously incarcerated. And the most harrowing, addicts. With the former, it’s easy to integrate them back into society. A lot of times you know when you are being lied to and that’s ok too. But our loopholes are so gaping in CA that people who need help are not getting the right kind of help. And it’s nuts to keep doing the same thing again and again ..and keep expecting the same results. And just throwing more money at it is not doing it differently. A lot of organizations, non profits and sub contractors who win bids are making more money than what actually goes to the homeless people. Homelessness alleviation is an industry of its own. Without the homeless, there would be a lot of jobs that do homelessness outreach. Which by itself could be a way to prevent future homelessness. But that’s just creating jobs to give people money..those needing other kinds of help are not getting it. Because at the end of the day, money doesn’t solve the problem entirely. https://www.provost.usc.edu/initiatives/wicked-problems/homelessness/definition-of-homelessness/ https://www.provost.usc.edu/initiatives/wicked-problems/home...
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
Jommi 6y ago
Why did you feel the need to live in SF if you couldn't afford it?
- runarberg 6y ago
  I said it right there in the same sentence. My partner was in school there. To provide a more detailed explanation. They were already renting a room when we met, and their landlord (who was them self subletting from another landlord because they couldn’t afford their own rent even though they have rent controlled price from the 80s) didn’t want us both living there. My partner had a year left in school but they finished quickly because we didn’t want to push my immigration status.
xibalba 6y ago
In summation, you chose to be homeless by choosing to move to SF. This is exactly the problem.
snicky 6y ago
In terms of showering, I've heard some homeless people buy gym memberships to access a clean shower every day.

hevelvarik 6y ago

This is the best example of “speaking from experience” I’ve ever read. The question how representative are you of the general homeless population in SF. I would guess not much. Am I wrong?

runarberg 6y ago
No, you are not wrong. I am not at all representative of the general homeless population in SF. I doubt anyone is. The homeless is probably one of the most diverse of any classifiable group in San Francisco. People are homeless for numerous reasons, and I bet any similarity you find is only superficial. Note that I never considered my self homeless. My 1981 VW vanagon—which we named Sunny—was a plenty good home for me. It was the first home I bought with my partner and we had a really good life in it. We would have stayed in it longer if it wasn’t so difficult to immigrate into the USA. But I know—and understand why—many people consider that homelessness.
- jelliclesfarm 6y ago
  Do you realize that a tax paying citizen would have to pay a pretty hefty fee if they parked anywhere for an emergency? Street parking everywhere because parking garages are being converted into affordable homes for people who can’t afford to live in one of the most expensive zip codes in the USA. Homeless people who park their RVs and vans in public parks and open spaces are removing them from public consumption for those who paid taxes to maintain these spaces and commons.

proc0 6y ago

The housing options are there, just not the city option.

jelliclesfarm 6y ago
I have hired people in the farm who were getting homeless benefits. I have also hired juvenile girls who lived in a half way house as part of their rehabilitation. The homeless worker ..one of them..had more benefits than the young girls. I wish I could have worked more with them. People need help. The right help at the right time for the right people is more effective than blanket free for alls. He was living in his grandmother’s two million dollar Mountain View home and the first thing he asked me was if he could smoke his pot because granny wouldn’t approve...while the girls were huddled and chaperoned at all times. I would pay more in social taxes if I could choose the programs and if there were more transparency as to where that extra money went.
- tremon 6y ago
  I read this as: [The homeless worker] was living in his grandmother’s two million dollar Mountain View home and I have a hard time imagining why anyone would consider that "homeless". Could you elaborate/clarify?
  - jelliclesfarm 6y ago
    Definition of homelessness in California: California defines homelessness if you come out of an institution(jail in this case..but also includes substance abuse rehab, mental institution etc) after a 90 day stay and don’t have a place to stay. If you don’t have a utility bill in your name, then you can be called homeless. Because he was in jail twice consecutively and was out on bail, if he could claim mental disability he doesn’t have to go back. But if he can claim mental disability and homelessness..citing them as a reason not to work, he could get benefits for life. He skipped something legal and was at risk for going back to jail. So he just claimed that he was sleeping on the streets and didn’t have an address. Look..he was really smart. At that point, I really wanted to help him and I can even appreciate some lateral thinking for problem solving. I didn’t mind that he was using a break to get back on his feet. If someone says they are mentally disabled, I am going to believe them and not question it. But he was doing things that made me feel unsafe because he was setting up the stage for me vouching for his mental instability if I were questioned. Like fire. He would get the blow torch for everything..wasp, weeds, gophers. I have worked previously with the homeless and previously incarcerated. And the most harrowing, addicts. With the former, it’s easy to integrate them back into society. A lot of times you know when you are being lied to and that’s ok too. But our loopholes are so gaping in CA that people who need help are not getting the right kind of help. And it’s nuts to keep doing the same thing again and again ..and keep expecting the same results. And just throwing more money at it is not doing it differently. A lot of organizations, non profits and sub contractors who win bids are making more money than what actually goes to the homeless people. Homelessness alleviation is an industry of its own. Without the homeless, there would be a lot of jobs that do homelessness outreach. Which by itself could be a way to prevent future homelessness. But that’s just creating jobs to give people money..those needing other kinds of help are not getting it. Because at the end of the day, money doesn’t solve the problem entirely. https://www.provost.usc.edu/initiatives/wicked-problems/homelessness/definition-of-homelessness/ https://www.provost.usc.edu/initiatives/wicked-problems/home...

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

Jommi 6y ago

Why did you feel the need to live in SF if you couldn't afford it?

runarberg 6y ago
I said it right there in the same sentence. My partner was in school there. To provide a more detailed explanation. They were already renting a room when we met, and their landlord (who was them self subletting from another landlord because they couldn’t afford their own rent even though they have rent controlled price from the 80s) didn’t want us both living there. My partner had a year left in school but they finished quickly because we didn’t want to push my immigration status.

xibalba 6y ago

In summation, you chose to be homeless by choosing to move to SF. This is exactly the problem.

snicky 6y ago

In terms of showering, I've heard some homeless people buy gym memberships to access a clean shower every day.