The Sofa Again

I slept on a sofa again thrown away by a nearby tenant in an alleyway. It wasn't too uncomfortable but without a pillow, it isn't comfortable. I only carry the clothes on my back. I have a oversized sweatshirt I wear which I stretch over my head at night to ward off the coldness of the night. Underneath that, I have a button down shirt which does not fit very well. Then, I have a pair of black stretch cotton pants I wear, with a pair of pink and black (black being the dominant color) converse sneakers and a pair of ankle cotton socks. What I'm wearing does not keep me that warm,though, I am not shivering. California has been experiencing strange, artic cold blast weather, mixed with tropical air filled with moisture. So, on some days, it is cloudy with bits of sun peeking through mixed an artic blast of cold weather and on other days it is full on sunny. Ideally, I would love to sleep in a park, undisturbed by sheriffs and policeman, they mosey around at night looking for prey nowadays, due to the redevelopment of most neighborhoods. It's hard to camouflage yourself and disappear into the night. The first thing a law enforcement officer will do is arouse you and ask for identification. The reason is because they want to check for any kind of warrants you may have against you. If you do have warrants against you, they first give you a citation for "camping", then they handcuff you and incarcerate you until it is time to see the judge in that particular district. The warrant is then recalled and you are remanded and sentenced, paying your dues for whatever you did wrong. I don't know how many homeless people experienced this but I know I have. So, I can't make it obvious I'm homeless, I have to be inconspicuous. In my opinion, the city officials should give people a chance to recall the warrants themselves through a lawyer. It is not fun sitting in jail, in a uniform, with a cholo, waiting to see the judge. You just might get your face bashed in by a deputy sheriff, giving you incentive to see the nurse, missing your court date by a day. Yuck! Back when Bill Clinton was president and before the World Trade Center tragedy, there wasn't any patrolling (trolling) going on in city parks. You could sleep undisturbed, at least in Santa Monica. The former president would sometimes jog along the beach, so from time to time, a Santa Monica police officer would gently arouse you and you would be on your way, feeling really good because you were warm that night and you had a good night's rest. Nowadays it's total pandemonium. You have to keep one eye open and one eye shut. Not because a person may rob you of, lets say, your sneakers but you have watch out for police. They're always in the air and driving around, through alleyways, looking for prey. You are deprived of sleep so, where do you end up? At Starbucks or, if you prefer, a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf store. Or you could, depending on the weather, lie down on a grassy knoll while being bitten by fruitflies and gnats and mosquito's. Yuck! That's what I've experienced anyway. I met an artist who paints yesterday. We had a lonnnnnng conversation in a parking lot of Pavillions located in West Hollywood. I gave him my blog address and mobile phone number, he offered me a job modeling in the nude in front of artists for three hours. Whether or not that happens, depends on him. Guns N Roses are back in action, after a three year hiatus. I love Axl Rose. He will be performing in New York for four days at the Hammerstein Ballroom. It is a sold-out event. Good for him. He's performing with a different roster of muscians. Wouldn't it be cool if he read my blog? It'd be even cooler if I got the opportunity to meet him. His singing voice is awesome but he is also finicky about when to release his music. I can understand that. People should have a little patience. Remember that song? I have met a lot of people. Madonna, Michael Jackson among others. I met Madonna in an art gallery. I got to meet Michael Jackson at an autograph signing for his CD he released in 2001. It was complete pandemonium. Only 500 people got the chance to meet him. He looks very different in person. I've also met Jermaine Jackson at a Starbucks store in Beverly Hills on Beverly Drive. We talked for half an hour! How cool is that. They will be both releasing new CD's. Smashing Pumpkins, you remember who they were, are getting back together and recording new stuff. How exciting is that.