6 MAR 05: BEGGARS' NIGHT OUT
Some evenings I can feel it coming.-- that I'm going to encounter a panhandler before the night is over. Saturday night was one of those nights. Even before I started stretching for a twilight run, I was practicing my best lines from prior begs.
The evening run on the Riverwalk was nice, but uneventful. Believe it or not, I've had hustlers stop me during jogs there -- well, one man was a hustler who said he was trying to get into a shelter. I guess I shouldn't count the teenager handing out gospel tracts during a church convention.
My first mistake was taking a different route to drive to dinner. I realized too late I was passing by Little Joe's, the Historic District's best-known "party shop." Someone apparently wanted to start a party on the sidewalk across Sixth Street, because I think he said something to me as I drove by.
But the man could have been talking to someone else, so on I went. The dinner stop was Taco Bell at 14th and Veterans Parkway, on one side of a Spectrum station. A Subway recently opened on the other side. So why doesn't Taco Bell have chipotle sauce?
No one was begging outside Taco Bell as I walked in -- but that's the way it often works in Columbus. As I walked out with dinner, then the man showed up on the sidewalk.
"I just moved here from Anniston, Alabama.... I'm looking for work. I've got my papers in to get a job, and I'm trying to get a job. And for the last three nights, it's been cold. So I've been walking around to keep warm...." It was almost as if he was looking me over, trying to determine how big his request should be.
"And I'm wondering: could you give me some change for a cup of coffee, or something to eat?" Since I was wearing a T-shirt and shorts after the run, the man must have decided I didn't live in a nice enough house to ask for an overnight stay.
As is my custom, I offered to buy the beggar these things -- so with dinner still in hand, we walked back into Taco Bell. The man wearing a "FloTech" hat seemed absolutely stumped by the menu. Perhaps he was used to people simply giving him leftovers.
The coffee the beggar wanted was only available next door at Spectrum, NOT at Taco Bell. Why Juan Valdez is boycotting this chain, I have no idea....
My dinner guest finally settled on a Taco Bell chalupa - but there was a problem with that. I carried less than four dollars with me to dinner, and spent about $2.50 on what was already in my bag. I couldn't do the TV commercial yell, "I'm FULL," because my wallet was almost empty.
To complicate things further, this Taco Bell did NOT accept credit cards. So many fast-food restaurants accept them now that this was a surprise -- a bit of truly OLD Mexico.
The beggar went to the value meal, ordered a burrito -- and with tax, it cost the exact $1.28 I had in my pockets. Now that I think about it, I should have offered this man one of the two items in my bag and bought him the coffee. But what if Spectrum sells that pricy cappuccino kind?
"Are you aware of the places in Columbus which can help people in your situation?" I asked my dinner guest. He said he didn't. "The House of Mercy is about a block away from here...."
"He knows all about that." This comment came from a woman behind the counter at Taco Bell, wearing headphones for drive-through orders. It must be nice to have repeat business like his.
With the good deed accomplished, I finally returned to my car -- but I suddenly changed my mind about driving home. That beggar had a chalupa, and I wanted to make sure he ate it. Some wise guys might try to sell it, then use the cash for the beer they really want.
As I sat in the car watching my dinner guest stand on the sidewalk, another guy walked past my driver's side window. "You're a good soul."
"No, I'm not."
"You're not?"
"Nope. There's only One who's good." The passerby knew who that is, and I sincerely hope you do as well. Here's a hint: he's not the minister organizing the four "days of abstinence."
The second man at my car window was also after some money, and wore a CB&T sport shirt. Is the bank already paying that "training wage" I read about in the newspaper? If so, it's obviously not enough....
"I wouldn't use it for a negative cause," the second man assured me of my loose change.
"But if I've never met you before, how do I know that?" I answered. And then some people wonder why the United Way campaign can't make its annual goal.
The second man admitted my question was a good one - and he had no answer for it. But he asked for money, anyway. "He emptied my wallet," I explained motioning to the first beggar just starting to open up his chalupa.
"Loose change?!" Some sales departments really ought to look for candidates in this part of town.
"He emptied my pocket, too" - with that burrito for exactly $1.28. Loose change, I didn't have. Tightly-placed change at the bottom of my dashboard for emergencies, I did - but I didn't dare open that up, because he might send signals to hidden beggars around the block.
Regular blog readers will recall this downtown Taco Bell was where I met a woman claiming to need gas money last year [18 Sep 04]. Six months later, the number of Saturday night beggars doubled. Come next fall, there may be four of them picketing on the sidewalk holding out hats.
With beggar #1 eating his chalupa as he stood on the sidewalk, I started the car and drove home - only to pass by a man sitting on the grass along Fifth Avenue, surrounded by several little bags. "Is this yet another homeless man?" I asked myself. Or is he the beggars' official food distributor?
E-MAIL UPDATE: The Taco Bell where I bought dinner had a 99 score from the health inspector. I bring this up because of the first topic in the InBox:
Hi Richard,
This has nothing to do with anything you've been talking about lately, but I wanted to get your opinion. Do you ever read the health inspection reports that are published in the L-E? After reading what the inspectors find in some of these places, I am really surprised they still have customers (like Pizza Pronto on 2nd Ave!). Would you continue to visit a place that had a fairly bad health inspection?
Just curious.
Jennifer Moore
Sorry, Jennifer, I don't read the newspaper numbers. I count on WRBL's "Restaurant Report Card" - and I wonder why Blaine Stewart hasn't tracked down Brian Sharpe, to start displaying the giant "golden fork" again.
It happens we mentioned the health inspector's findings on Pizza Pronto last month [4 Feb]. I've personally never eaten there. And I haven't checked to see if they're still preparing pizza dough in a bucket -- and whether that means they put the floor cleaner in mixing bowls.
Would I keep visiting places with bad health inspections? I haven't thought much about it, because I don't tend to have a regular restaurant where I eat. Considering the cockroaches in my kitchen, even a place with a low score might be a step up for me.
We have one more message today -- this one about television:
I really enjoy reading your blog. If there is anyone that can help with this question it's you. Can you tell me why is there no other cable provider in Phenix City? Doesn't Columbus have 2 or 3 options for cable? Cable TV of East Alabama is not a wonderful cable company and it would be nice to have another choice. Maybe I am being to wishful? Maybe I should just pack up and move back to Columbus where we were both born? *Note to self Do Not try to save money by moving to a second class state.*
Signed,
Transient in Phenix City
Dear Transient: Let's clear up one misconception first. I was NOT born in Columbus, but moved here about eight years ago. I'm still trying to learn to say "fixin' to leave."
Yes, Columbus has three different cable TV companies. Not that many years ago, almost all U.S. cities had only one - and they were regulated by city governments. Before Black Entertainment Television came along, some of those companies had very creative ways of explaining why minority parts of town lacked service.
I haven't watched Cable TV of East Alabama, so I don't know how "wonderful" its service is. And believe it or not, I don't have cable TV in Columbus at all. During college football and basketball seasons, I have another way to follow several games a night. It's an amazing device - called AM radio.
Since Phenix City is much smaller than Columbus, it may not be cost-effective to have more than one cable TV company. It's a lot like having only one newspaper - no wait. The Atlanta metropolitan area really only has one newspaper....
But wait a minute -- what's this about Alabama being a "second-class state?" At least Phenix City has a state-of-the-art Wal-Mart store. Columbus still isn't sure it wants one.
Now other quick things from a spring preview weekend:
+ The hip-hop show "DSTV" on TV-66 was, in the host's words: "live at Club Antifreeze." The people in the crowd included the "Scoundrel Squad"-- and no, it was NOT made up of Muscogee County Sheriff's deputies.
+ Christian radio station WFRC-FM returned to the air, after several more days of silence. Amazingly, though, it was on the air for "Share Day" fundraising in late February.
+ Columbus State basketball teams swept Kennesaw State, in the Peach Belt Conference semifinals. Kennesaw State moves up from Division II to Division I next season. Am I the only one who thinks coach Herbert Greene should challenge them for this honor -- winner take all?
(By playing Division I basketball, Kennesaw State will be called by experts a "mid-major." By staying in Division II, I guess Columbus State will be simply a "mid.")
+ Auburn High School shocked nationally-ranked Mobile LeFlore, to win the Alabama 6-A boys basketball title. Auburn University coach Jeff Lebo was at the semifinal game -- perhaps trying to figure out a way to sneak those champions onto the bench for the Southeastern Conference tournament.
+ Instant Message to GPB sportscaster Beau Bock: OK, you improved a bit over last March - by actually keeping track of high school basketball players' fouls. But c'mon, did fans really "fill the arena?" Didn't you notice the end zones at Gwinnett Center were empty?
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