My Transient Journey: Final Days of Lakewood, Washington, USA

Author's Note

I made the cover image with NightCafe a few days before I left for my journey. The prompt was: Everything always works out for me….[[|:-O

My Transient Journey: The Final Days of Lakewood, Washington, USA

Well, it took longer to get around to writing this, so there’s probably some things I’ve forgotten. I’m trying to be more active with cataloging things with scribbles now.

I forgot to mention in the last one about the really nice cop that I met. One of the other security guards at Safeway wouldn’t let me fly my sign where the other one said I could, and so I went to a spot by a main road on the edge of the shopping complex. I had seen someone flying a sign there, but it was open. After a while, a bicycle cop with those shiny, rainbow sunglasses came over. I was worried at first, especially because of the sunglasses. However, he was very cordial, and after reading my sign, he immediately knew of my plight as his wife also has gastroparesis. He was going to tell me to kick rocks, but after learning that and that I was in the Navy for a minute, he let me stay. He even told me how colas could help my stomach break down fiber, which normally just sits and rots in my stomach.

That spot was terrible. I was about to give up, having made nothing, when a woman and her son stopped for a second and told me they would go to an ATM. I stayed there for about fifteen minutes before I figured that they probably didn’t have enough to spare, plus I had to pee really bad. I went to Safeway and got a drink before heading back out. She saw me and flagged me down to give me $10 and a few smokes. It was nice to see her follow through, which about half the time doesn’t happen.

So, after that horrible night, I ended up going to the Tacoma Rescue Mission. I was really hoping for a shower, a nap, and maybe some new bedding. The problem is: they just don’t have resources nor necessary funding. When I arrived at about 8:30 AM, they were serving a breakfast that looked like jail food. I was hungry, but it looked gross. Plus, with my specialized diet, I can’t just go and eat free food.

The young man at the desk seemed like he wanted to help, but they only provide so much in the morning. He wasn’t supposed to, but he let me take a shower in the nastiest shower room I’ve ever seen, and it was freezing in there. I felt lucky that I have my own towel and toiletries.

I didn’t bother to shave or trim my nails, and even if I wanted their breakfast, it was over by the time I got out. The young man was in the office and on the phone, and so another man told me that I had to leave and wait until 3 PM. It was still raining when I went out and got under the large eave adjacent to the entrance next to three older black ladies. These ladies were very nice, and we all chatted for those six hours. One of them was an Army brat who grew up in Germany for a bit.

After a few hours, the sun finally came out and I was able to dry out the sweatshirt that got wet and my gloves. While we chatted, an encampment on the sidewalk along the main road, and another across the street from it, started getting evicted. First a large truck arrived, then the cops, and then a civilian agency called HOPE arrived. Many of them started moving their stuff, but a few ended up having their stuff thrown away, and after it was over, I said, “Looks like all HOPE is gone.”

When 3 o’clock finally rolled around, I went inside only to discover that they had no beds nor further help of any kind. I went inside to warm up where they were showing some weird movie. So weird, I can’t even explain what I was hearing from it, not that I was really paying attention. I was trying to figure out my options, which were very slim.

My ex wasn’t answering, which is typical for her. She did finally get back to me, and we agreed that I would tuck my tail and head back to Seattle. So, she knew I was coming, and agreed to pick me up from the light rail station. I texted her when I was several stops away, but when I got there, she hadn’t even left yet. I was so pissed, looking at all the cars lined up waiting to pick up their loved ones, some of which were still there when my ex finally arrived twenty minutes later while I was still freezing as it had become dark by then.

She let me sleep in the van, which I don’t know how I did as my hyper-sensitivity doesn’t usually allow. I was completely exhausted though. At this point, I thought we were still friends, but when I asked to leave my stuff in the van to go fly a sign, I could tell that she didn’t want that to happen. It felt weird, like she was finally showing me her true colors after eleven years.

I ended up feeling sick after a few hours, feeling nauseous and having a severe headache which was making the nausea worse. I hadn’t made much, and so I asked if I could sleep in the van again, but she said that her new boyfriend wouldn’t allow that. I ended up puking a bit, and finally I broke down and asked to stay in our old place. Luckily, she agreed, and I was able to get my laundry done and get some sleep. However, that was the final straw for her, and when I left, I left for good. It did feel a bit cathartic, but it meant that I was truly on my own.

For all the shit that her and I have been through, I was shocked that it was coming to such an abrupt end. I know her schizophrenic boyfriend has been talking shit about me even though he knows nothing about me other than what she’s told him. Not that I care anymore, but I know it was that that caused her to flip.

In any case, that’s what I can remember for now. More to come….[[|:-)

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Thank you so much for reading. Please like, comment, and share. I hope you have a wonderful day….[[|:-)