Monday, March 16, 2015

A Sure Sign Of Spring In The City

         Warmer weather must be here at last: on my way into work at oh-dark-thirty yesterday morning, the hookers and hustlers were still on their patches, visibly perking up at the approach of a fancy-looking car with only one person in it and fading back into the shadows when my speed never changed.

          This is not only an indication of better weather but of a still-lousy economy. The worse it gets, the more people you see working the street -- I'm not sure if this is because there really are more of them or if it's due to a decline in clients but outcome is the same either way.

          Cities have their advantages but on a dark-enough morning, the scales barely balance.

10 comments:

Fuzzy Curmudgeon said...

I dunno. I'm convinced that a lot of the roadside panhandlers are a con. They have to be working for someone.

There was a young lady at 38th and Michigan Road at around noon today who had no business hanging out on a highway median cadging donations. Dressed nicely if casually, bathed (!) and her hair "done", and a smile on her face. Couldn't have been more than 30, and probably younger.

There are plenty of jobs out there for such as she. Maybe I don't get it.

Anonymous said...

Hey Bobbi and Tam. I am going to the NRA convention in Nashville next month. If ya'll go say hello if you see me.

I am a white guy, slightly over weigth in his late 50s and will be wearing shorts and an over sized shirt to hide my heater.

Shouldn't be too may like that there, right? :)

Eaton Rapids Joe said...

I worked second shift in a factory for a while. They would let us out at 2:30 most mornings.

I would often swing by Meijer's (a grocery store) to pick up a gallon of milk or some other, necessary grocery item.

I saw many 20-something girls wearing impossibly short skirts doing the same things at that time of the morning.

It struck me that after "work" they also had lives, and kids...much like me. Still, it is a very rough way to put food on the table.

Roberta X said...

Fuzzy: On a warm-ish morning at 0430 downtown, these young people are probably earning their pay by handling more than pans.

LCB said...

I once saw two very nice looking ladies on a corner known for the worlds oldest profession. I says to myself, "Wow...they're awfully pretty to be working dah street."

Next morning in the paper were the list of the men the police arrested on that corner. :-)

Roberta X said...

...And there you have it. Yeah, I used to live downtown (near 13th and Delaware) and it was best to assume nothing and develop excellent ignoring skills if you ventured outside after dark. Directly from the car to the apartment building door, no stopping, no looking, no talking, no staring.

SJ said...

So...is that a downside to driving a car that is nicer-looking?

Fuzzy Curmudgeon said...

Ah, OK -- I read "working the street" and didn't read it as "street walking" ;-)

Anonymous said...

"Cities have their advantages..."
I'm drawing a blank there, but then again I'm a hillbilly. I've lived in cities & hated every moment. I only enter city limits now to buy things or if I'm getting paid to be there.
Just a difference; YMM(& obviously does)V. More power to those who like it.
Anon, I just turned 50, & don't wear shots in public, but otherwise yes. There won't be a shortage of that profile.
--Tennessee Budd
P.S. The verification was "ymate". I was tempted to explain to the little robot, but gave up.

Anonymous said...

Oops, "shorts". I've worn shots, but only after I'd already had so many that my mouth was a hard shot to make. I was once a sailor, after all; there was an image to uphold. That's the only reason I behaved that way, really.
--TB