Title: Renewal in Faith.
The sound of the snow crunched beneath my feet, the air was crisp and bit harshly at my face. I was on a "walk of shame" and quite hung-over, possibly still tipsy from the night before. The sun was just starting to peek up into the cloud covered sky, casting hues of pink and lavender over the sleeping city.
I kept trying to remember where I parked or how I ended up in this particular area of the downtown core. Did I drive here last night? Where the fuck is my car? I kept repeating to myself. I could remember driving to to the pub and parking in that spot that no one knows about behind the buildings, but that was still a good 10 or 15 blocks from where I found myself now. I made the logical assumption that I wouldn't have driven and my car would be exactly where I last remembered parking it. So I headed in that direction.
As I navigated down the sidewalk in a dazed and clumsy meander, partly from the overspill of trampled snow and partly from my less then alert state, I tried to recall the events that had unfolded. Really, I only had a blur of the night before, the shots were plentiful, the bar was packed and I was beyond fucked up.
I had no idea who the two girls I woke up with were, all of our limbs were entangled and it was a challenging ménage to slip out of without waking them, I did manage to get out from in between and partially under the blonde, and there was only a single mumble followed by a soft snore from the brunette.
It took a few minutes to locate my clothes which were scattered around the bedroom and living room and I was polite enough to dispose of the used condoms and wrappers. I dressed and slipped out the door, pulling it closed behind me with a click. Tragic really, they were both super cute, but obviously too young and still too wild for any type of continued relations.
Walking over cold snow covered sidewalks in the sub-zero temperatures of late February is never a good time, being as hung-over as I was only made it that much worse and the partial uncertainty of where my car was had put me in a mostly irritated mood, but there were flashes of drunken passion and soft, supple flesh that kept my mind from focusing on the walk ahead of me and the possibility that my car wouldn't be there.
As I approached the bar district I couldn't help but feel for the homeless man asleep on the sidewalk, he was bundled in what appeared to be several good layers and was snoring loudly so I knew he was alive, but the thought of frostbite crossed my mind. It had to be -10 or colder and I couldn't fathom not taking refuge in a shelter. About twenty steps after the homeless man I heard a van pull up behind me and the sliding door open with a thump.
I turned and looked back to see a heavy set, scruffy man climb out of the back of the van and kick the foot of the sleeping homeless man. I stopped and watched. Perplexed and concerned for the safety of this homeless person who was waking up and was obviously disoriented. I had just taken my first step back towards them when the scruffy man reached into the van and produced a thermos and bowl of steaming soup or stew. He held them both out for the homeless man who sat up and took them with a toothless smile and a nod.
The scruffy man quickly jumped back into the van and yelled out the window at the homeless man as the van drove off... "Stop sleeping in the cold!!!!".
This was late Feb of 2011 and I have since seen this same homeless man riding around the city on his bicycle. I have no doubt that the reason he is even alive is because of the care of the scruffy man to deliver warm liquids throughout the bitter cold of the winter, and THAT renewed my faith in humanity.
The sound of the snow crunched beneath my feet, the air was crisp and bit harshly at my face. I was on a "walk of shame" and quite hung-over, possibly still tipsy from the night before. The sun was just starting to peek up into the cloud covered sky, casting hues of pink and lavender over the sleeping city.
I kept trying to remember where I parked or how I ended up in this particular area of the downtown core. Did I drive here last night? Where the fuck is my car? I kept repeating to myself. I could remember driving to to the pub and parking in that spot that no one knows about behind the buildings, but that was still a good 10 or 15 blocks from where I found myself now. I made the logical assumption that I wouldn't have driven and my car would be exactly where I last remembered parking it. So I headed in that direction.
As I navigated down the sidewalk in a dazed and clumsy meander, partly from the overspill of trampled snow and partly from my less then alert state, I tried to recall the events that had unfolded. Really, I only had a blur of the night before, the shots were plentiful, the bar was packed and I was beyond fucked up.
I had no idea who the two girls I woke up with were, all of our limbs were entangled and it was a challenging ménage to slip out of without waking them, I did manage to get out from in between and partially under the blonde, and there was only a single mumble followed by a soft snore from the brunette.
It took a few minutes to locate my clothes which were scattered around the bedroom and living room and I was polite enough to dispose of the used condoms and wrappers. I dressed and slipped out the door, pulling it closed behind me with a click. Tragic really, they were both super cute, but obviously too young and still too wild for any type of continued relations.
Walking over cold snow covered sidewalks in the sub-zero temperatures of late February is never a good time, being as hung-over as I was only made it that much worse and the partial uncertainty of where my car was had put me in a mostly irritated mood, but there were flashes of drunken passion and soft, supple flesh that kept my mind from focusing on the walk ahead of me and the possibility that my car wouldn't be there.
As I approached the bar district I couldn't help but feel for the homeless man asleep on the sidewalk, he was bundled in what appeared to be several good layers and was snoring loudly so I knew he was alive, but the thought of frostbite crossed my mind. It had to be -10 or colder and I couldn't fathom not taking refuge in a shelter. About twenty steps after the homeless man I heard a van pull up behind me and the sliding door open with a thump.
I turned and looked back to see a heavy set, scruffy man climb out of the back of the van and kick the foot of the sleeping homeless man. I stopped and watched. Perplexed and concerned for the safety of this homeless person who was waking up and was obviously disoriented. I had just taken my first step back towards them when the scruffy man reached into the van and produced a thermos and bowl of steaming soup or stew. He held them both out for the homeless man who sat up and took them with a toothless smile and a nod.
The scruffy man quickly jumped back into the van and yelled out the window at the homeless man as the van drove off... "Stop sleeping in the cold!!!!".
This was late Feb of 2011 and I have since seen this same homeless man riding around the city on his bicycle. I have no doubt that the reason he is even alive is because of the care of the scruffy man to deliver warm liquids throughout the bitter cold of the winter, and THAT renewed my faith in humanity.
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