July 1 update - when it rains it pours......

Ok - the good news is I am in temp housing until the end of Augustbut it is taking 80% of my Social security check :( - but at least I am safe

the bad news is my ankle infection keeps flairing up - I was just in Whidden Hospital in Everett for a week

Still I am thankful I am not out on the streets......it is really bad around Harvard Sq right now - some real bad people out there :(

Now.....I had a slight disaster a couple of weeks ago and I just reposted this on Craigs List

LOST/STOLEN - Dell™ Inspiron™ Mini 10 (1012) (Central Sq Cambridge)

It is bad enough I lost the backpack - which had my passport, birth certificate and other papers....but I had gotten a very small netbook from Sprint for no money , I simply had to buy a contract for $30 a month for 2 years.... I am on the hook for that even if the puter can not be found.

The computer was my lifeline.....I am lost without it. Problem is Sprint says I replacement would cost me $450 ( might as well be $45,000)

My contact information is on the sidebar of the blog - and If anyone wants to help me out in my electronic paper cup begging for change, I would be very grateful.



But hey at least the Broons won the Stanley Cup :)

Thanks for reading

Boston Globe video story on Harvard Sq shelter

Can not say enough good things about the students who run this place.



The print edition also writes about the shelter

Volunteering spirit catches fire

Young adults donate time, embrace the chance to give back

At Harvard, the Winthrop Street homeless shelter is one of 86 service and social change programs associated with the Phillips Brooks House Association, which is a student-run nonprofit. Students can work with deaf children, tutor prison inmates, bring pets to nursing homes, and prepare Chinese students to become US citizens, among other opportunities.

The Harvard Square shelter provides shelter, food, and resource counseling for a minimum of 24 guests each night, as well as dinner plates for those who come to the door. The shelter also has a “street team’’ of students who go out each night to bring food and conversation to homeless people.

It is a wonderful place.

When it rains it pours......I need eyeglasses

I simply can not believe how bad my luck is right now....

Since November 15th (when it opened) I have been spending most evenings at the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter which is totally run by Harvard students.

The shelter works this way as their website indicates

Two Week Beds: We are now lotterying all 14-night beds. Callers may call in between 7:30am and 8:00am to put their name in the lottery at which point the caller will receive a lottery number. The lottery will be run between 8:00am and 8:05am. People may call back between 8:05am and 8:30am as well as between 7pm and 9pm to find out if their lottery number was picked. Lottery numbers that have been selected (but not names) will also be posted on the shelter door during the day.

One Night Bed: When a guest with a reserved two week bed is not able to make it to the shelter that night, their bed is open for others to use as an emergency one night bed. Call in the evening at 9:30PM for a one-night bed.

So when the shelter opened I was able to get a bed for 8 days ( as when they open they do not give out all 14 night beds ) and then on several nights have been able to get a 'one night bed'.

If I don't get a one-night bed, it is off to the airport for a very uncomfortable sleep.

So that is good, but going to the shelter cost me dearly in another way.

Just 2 weeks ago I got a new set of bifocals as my old frame was broken. My insurance allows one set of eyeglasses a year. I put the eyeglasses inside my shoes when I went to sleep and someone stole them. Now on top of everything else I am can't see except to read.

If anyone has any suggestions on where I can go to get an inexpensive pair of glasses I would be very grateful.

Thanks

It sounds funny - but you wonder

OK on the surface I can see how somebody could laugh...

Homeless man wakes up in ATM on fire

But there is a possible dark side to this story given the time it happened - 2 AM

The bars are letting out and sadly some people think it is a hoot to spit, kick or just harass people who are sleeping at The Coop or other Square locations.

Sadly the possibility exists that this person was set on fire as a joke. Most likely the homeless man sat himself on fire but you just don't know anymore.

The Harvard Coop Hotel

It is no fun sleeping in the entrance of the Harvard Coop overnight but it does offer some shelter and safety in numbers. I am told there was a woman who slept there for 20 years 365 nights but has vanished and people fear she has died.

Last night I was chatting with another resident of the Coop hotel who is a Harvard grad but lost her job 2 years ago and lost her condo 2 months ago. She says she just can't tell her parents she has 'failed'. She told me that women's shelter beds are VERY scarce and in Cambridge there is a daily lottery for a woman's shelter in Somerville. If she loses she stays at the Coop Hotel.

It is frightening to see how many people are living on the streets of Cambridge.

This is just a nightmare and whatt is frustrating is actually having been told more than once just get drunk and you can get a bed at 240 Albany St.

The nightmare continues....

Just waiting for Square to quiet down

Out of the hospital, feeling OK

Now it is myself and a few others just hanging at Dunkin Donuts waiting for Harvard Sq to quiet down and grab a few hours sleep.

None of us are drunk or on drugs - just having a very hard time.