Since I got up at 5:30 in the morning I thought that I would be able to take a shower but I must have taken too long because one of the staff members said a line was forming. I can't believe I took that long. Well anyway, it bothered me because now I'm thinking about being more faster when I take a shower here.
I took the shower and had my coffee and cigarette. One of the newer residents was arguing with one of the older residents and the newer resident was thrown out.
Breakfast was eggs and turkey bacon.
The church had brought by another breakfast consisting .of scrambled eggs, hash brown and a slice of watermelon.
Yet another church was going to have an Easter service here and a few residents attended. It is now 1:20 in the afternoon. There are cloudy skies and it looks as though it might rain. Some chocolate cake was for a snack
Lunch was minestrone soup and sandwiches but I was full so I didn't have any lunch. With every meal you're supposed to sign in.
I worked on my legal papers. I had to write out a copy of my response so that I could file it and send a copy to the other side. I want to fie it as soon as possible.
Dinner was chicken and some vegetables with stuffing. It was absolutely delicious.
After dinner I finished my legal paperwork because I want to get it done as soon as possible.
I finally finished it and tucked the paperwork away because it has to be neatly presented when I file it. I had to buy some envelopes because this place doesn't readily provide them and if you're wondering a set of envelopes cost me about $2
I also did my local quarterly taxes. Its funny because no matter how bad things may be going in your life you still have to file taxes! Now I need a $2 money order for that!
Went to bed at 9.
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Up at 6:30. Groggy but awake. Went outside to smoke a cigarette. Went back insi.de and had a cup of coffee. Breakfast was oatmeal. An argument started between the staff and a resident because the resident had spilled coffee and was using a towel to clean it up.
Right now I'm rolling cigarettes.
Lunch should be in about 2 hours.
Lunch was salami and cheese sandwiches and I had potato chips and grape juice. Afterwards, I rolled more cigarettes.
Dinner was ham and vegetables.
One of the residents had a truck and four of us decided to celebrate one of the resident's birthday today. We pooled our money together and came up with $14 which we used to buy a bottle of whiskey, Then we drove around for a while before coming back to the shelter. We kept drinking for a while then we drifted back to the shelter. I actually didn't got to bed until midnight!
Right now I'm rolling cigarettes.
Lunch should be in about 2 hours.
Lunch was salami and cheese sandwiches and I had potato chips and grape juice. Afterwards, I rolled more cigarettes.
Dinner was ham and vegetables.
One of the residents had a truck and four of us decided to celebrate one of the resident's birthday today. We pooled our money together and came up with $14 which we used to buy a bottle of whiskey, Then we drove around for a while before coming back to the shelter. We kept drinking for a while then we drifted back to the shelter. I actually didn't got to bed until midnight!
Friday, March 29, 2013
Friday, March 29, 2013 (Good Friday)
Up at around 5am. There's a woman resident who gets up at 6am every day to go look for work. She even does this on the weekends. She's a quiet person and keeps mostly to herself. She sleeps in the same cubicle that I do and I noticed that she gets up before the 6:30 wake-up call in the morning.
Since I was up so early I made a half a pot of coffee for mu table. One of the residents at my table is a guy that does outside contracting work. (He's he one that I'm doing the spreadsheet for). He got the job from a contractor who drove to the shelter looing for guus who were looking for work. He works six days a week and he's hoping to save enough monehy to get a place of his own. He was the first one (besides me) to sit down to coffee.
It was still early and most of the lights were still off and some of the residents were still in ed sleeping.
Daytime came and the lights came on and the rest of the residents had to gey up.
I had already had my coffee and cigarette for the morning so I was feeling OK.
Breakfast was sausage and eggs and bread - yes you could make a sandwich with it but I didn't think of that at the time.
I had to go out in the van by 8:30 but they were ready to go 15 minutes earlier. My appointment wasn't until nine.
My "appointment" was at Central. I was scheduled for my first official group therapy session.
There were a bout five of us there and we talked. Since I was new, I introduced myself and talked about myself a little.
The topic of discussion was about doing things for others even though you might not be thinking about yourself first. We talked about being taken advantage of and why we let it happen. Is it low self-esteem, wanting to please others, wanting people to like us........ I talked about my court case and the therapist asked me more questions about it and the others commented as well.
During the second therapy session we had a good discussion and it lasted well over the time it was supposed to.
Lunch was next. I went with another resident to the store to get lunch but their card machine was down so we went to a bar that was halfway down the block. I hadn't been to a bar in at least five years so this was an experienced for me. We ordered a pitcher of beer ($7 and some change) and the bartender trook pity on us and we split her uneaten sandwich between the two of use. I saw the ashtrays and it dawnd on me that we could actually smoke inside! Oh Joy! I lit a cigarette right away! I told the bbartender that I hadn't been in a bar for at least 5 years and she was shocked and amused by that. The food and the beer felt good. The bartender, a woman, told us about herself. She was going through chemotherapy and she was also a grandmother and she also works a second job somewhere else.
It was near noon but the bar already had a ew people in it already. I found out that the bar opens at 8am and closes at around 2am in the morning. The music was turned up and the bass was booming and the TV news was on (with the sound turned down of course). We had to finish the whole pitcher of beer so it took a little over an hour because we were finishing it slowing. At first it felt nice and warm a d then I started to feel dizzy and a little nauseated but we finished the pitcher. At $7 and change we definitely were going to finish that pitchdr!
We finished the pitcher and we got enough money together to be able to pay for lunch so we went back to the store but first we donned sunglasses because the bar was dark and the outside was brightl (very) sunny.
We got our cheese steak (we were going to split it) and headed back to Central.
We ate our lunch in the kitchen there and coincidently that was where the next group therapy session was going to start. It was 1 o'clock in the afternoon by now and this would be our third group session today.
This group therapy session was therapy through activity. The activity was art and what we were supposed to do was create an album cover of our life right now. We were supposed to create a collage-type of album cover of how we felt our lives were going right now. We had lots of materials to work with. We had old magazines that we could cut pictures from. We had colored construction paper, colored pens, scissors, glue, paint brushes and water colors. I decided my album cover would be called "Through The Fire" because I felt that was my life right now.
I could only find one picture with fire in it so I used some of the colored construction paper to get mu n\message across. I didn't finish in time but we could continue the session next week. I was so glad that I had a doctor's appointment there next week so That I could make the next therapy session.
Even though I enjoyed the art therapy session the most, I enjoyed all of them as well. It really did seem to help me by talking to others and expressing myself through art.
The art therapy session lasted until 2pm and there was a goal setting therapy group session that I wanted to attend but when I got to the scheduled room there was no one there. I waited until 2:30 but still nobody showed up so we decided to go back to the homeless shelter. The other resident called at 2:45 for the van to come pick us up and I called again around twenty minutes later. The van came at around 4pm. Even though it took a while we finally made it back to the shelter.
I did some organizing of all of my paperwork. I hade so many pieces of paper with things scribbled on them like phone numbers and addresses and names that my poor bag was getting too full and too heavy to carry.
Dinner was at 4:45. Dinner was chicken or fish (I chose the fish), squash stew, carrots, a mix of vegetables and pound cake for dessert. I was quite full!
Back to writing here and a staff member wanted to know if I wanted ply chess again. I reluctantly agreed hoping that he would find more challenging people to play. Hopefully this will happen soon. But first the medication has to be passed out and jeopardy is on.
The minister brought some children by so that they could practice their singing for an Easter Church event here on Sunday (that's what the flyer was for).
I was asked by the agreed. Then I was asked to play chess but a new resident came in. She was Korean and she spoke very little English so the staff member used the computer and a translation program to try and communicate with her. Then it was back to the chess game. I lost again - of course but I really do want to beat him so I have to learn it more. Then he wanted me to play chess with another resident and - of course, I lost again.
I asked to use the computer so I could finish the spreadsheet and the staff member reluctantly agreed so I was able to finish that.
I made the mistake of drinking a cup and then another cu[ of coffee at around 8:30 so I didn't go to bed until midnight!
Since I was up so early I made a half a pot of coffee for mu table. One of the residents at my table is a guy that does outside contracting work. (He's he one that I'm doing the spreadsheet for). He got the job from a contractor who drove to the shelter looing for guus who were looking for work. He works six days a week and he's hoping to save enough monehy to get a place of his own. He was the first one (besides me) to sit down to coffee.
It was still early and most of the lights were still off and some of the residents were still in ed sleeping.
Daytime came and the lights came on and the rest of the residents had to gey up.
I had already had my coffee and cigarette for the morning so I was feeling OK.
Breakfast was sausage and eggs and bread - yes you could make a sandwich with it but I didn't think of that at the time.
I had to go out in the van by 8:30 but they were ready to go 15 minutes earlier. My appointment wasn't until nine.
My "appointment" was at Central. I was scheduled for my first official group therapy session.
There were a bout five of us there and we talked. Since I was new, I introduced myself and talked about myself a little.
The topic of discussion was about doing things for others even though you might not be thinking about yourself first. We talked about being taken advantage of and why we let it happen. Is it low self-esteem, wanting to please others, wanting people to like us........ I talked about my court case and the therapist asked me more questions about it and the others commented as well.
During the second therapy session we had a good discussion and it lasted well over the time it was supposed to.
Lunch was next. I went with another resident to the store to get lunch but their card machine was down so we went to a bar that was halfway down the block. I hadn't been to a bar in at least five years so this was an experienced for me. We ordered a pitcher of beer ($7 and some change) and the bartender trook pity on us and we split her uneaten sandwich between the two of use. I saw the ashtrays and it dawnd on me that we could actually smoke inside! Oh Joy! I lit a cigarette right away! I told the bbartender that I hadn't been in a bar for at least 5 years and she was shocked and amused by that. The food and the beer felt good. The bartender, a woman, told us about herself. She was going through chemotherapy and she was also a grandmother and she also works a second job somewhere else.
It was near noon but the bar already had a ew people in it already. I found out that the bar opens at 8am and closes at around 2am in the morning. The music was turned up and the bass was booming and the TV news was on (with the sound turned down of course). We had to finish the whole pitcher of beer so it took a little over an hour because we were finishing it slowing. At first it felt nice and warm a d then I started to feel dizzy and a little nauseated but we finished the pitcher. At $7 and change we definitely were going to finish that pitchdr!
We finished the pitcher and we got enough money together to be able to pay for lunch so we went back to the store but first we donned sunglasses because the bar was dark and the outside was brightl (very) sunny.
We got our cheese steak (we were going to split it) and headed back to Central.
We ate our lunch in the kitchen there and coincidently that was where the next group therapy session was going to start. It was 1 o'clock in the afternoon by now and this would be our third group session today.
This group therapy session was therapy through activity. The activity was art and what we were supposed to do was create an album cover of our life right now. We were supposed to create a collage-type of album cover of how we felt our lives were going right now. We had lots of materials to work with. We had old magazines that we could cut pictures from. We had colored construction paper, colored pens, scissors, glue, paint brushes and water colors. I decided my album cover would be called "Through The Fire" because I felt that was my life right now.
I could only find one picture with fire in it so I used some of the colored construction paper to get mu n\message across. I didn't finish in time but we could continue the session next week. I was so glad that I had a doctor's appointment there next week so That I could make the next therapy session.
Even though I enjoyed the art therapy session the most, I enjoyed all of them as well. It really did seem to help me by talking to others and expressing myself through art.
The art therapy session lasted until 2pm and there was a goal setting therapy group session that I wanted to attend but when I got to the scheduled room there was no one there. I waited until 2:30 but still nobody showed up so we decided to go back to the homeless shelter. The other resident called at 2:45 for the van to come pick us up and I called again around twenty minutes later. The van came at around 4pm. Even though it took a while we finally made it back to the shelter.
I did some organizing of all of my paperwork. I hade so many pieces of paper with things scribbled on them like phone numbers and addresses and names that my poor bag was getting too full and too heavy to carry.
Dinner was at 4:45. Dinner was chicken or fish (I chose the fish), squash stew, carrots, a mix of vegetables and pound cake for dessert. I was quite full!
Back to writing here and a staff member wanted to know if I wanted ply chess again. I reluctantly agreed hoping that he would find more challenging people to play. Hopefully this will happen soon. But first the medication has to be passed out and jeopardy is on.
The minister brought some children by so that they could practice their singing for an Easter Church event here on Sunday (that's what the flyer was for).
I was asked by the agreed. Then I was asked to play chess but a new resident came in. She was Korean and she spoke very little English so the staff member used the computer and a translation program to try and communicate with her. Then it was back to the chess game. I lost again - of course but I really do want to beat him so I have to learn it more. Then he wanted me to play chess with another resident and - of course, I lost again.
I asked to use the computer so I could finish the spreadsheet and the staff member reluctantly agreed so I was able to finish that.
I made the mistake of drinking a cup and then another cu[ of coffee at around 8:30 so I didn't go to bed until midnight!
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Thursday, March 28,2013
I thought if I got up early enough I would be able to take a shower without waiting too long. I was wrong! I finally managed to take my shower and go back to my overflowing locker.
Had a cigarette and coffee and then came breakfast which was cream of wheat. Not long after that the van took me to my X-ray appointment. It wasn't actually an appointment. It seems that you can just walk in and make the arrangements to have your x-ray taken that day. It's been a log time since I made a hospital appointment!
I signed in, they added me to their hospital files system (since I never been there before and I went to the waiting room, sat down and then was told I was in the wrong waiting room. I was shown where the right waiting room was and I waited. First it's off with your clothes and put on the hospital gown. Then you're taken to the x-ray room where they take the x-rays. Since it was my knee that they were going to x-ray I had to lie down on my back and then on my side so that they could get more than one angle and more than one x-ray. Moving like that made my knee hurt more and (And I'm down to m I wish I could have gotten some crutches but they said no.
Still in a little bit of pain they finally finished. I decided to splurge and buy myself a cup of coffee and a soft pretzel. It cost me all of $2 but I still wanted to splurge a little so did it.
It took a while for the van to pick me up. I had to call twice! (and I'm down to mu last 2 phone minutes!)
I finally got back to the homeless shelter but I missed lunch. I microwaved some popcorn (from my bingo winnings) and that's what I'm having for lunch now. I also managed to get an approval sheet for Central tomorrow.
Dinner was chicken and noodles along with carrots and broccoli and pound cake for dessert.
I used the computer here to finish my local taxes and to help create a spreadsheet for someone else.
The movie playing tonight is The Passion Of Christ.
One of the staff members brought out his chess set and I played a game with him. I lost. And then he played with another resident and he won again. Others were watching us and I think that this chess-playing will become a regular kind of thing.
Had a final cigarette before bed at ten.
Had a cigarette and coffee and then came breakfast which was cream of wheat. Not long after that the van took me to my X-ray appointment. It wasn't actually an appointment. It seems that you can just walk in and make the arrangements to have your x-ray taken that day. It's been a log time since I made a hospital appointment!
I signed in, they added me to their hospital files system (since I never been there before and I went to the waiting room, sat down and then was told I was in the wrong waiting room. I was shown where the right waiting room was and I waited. First it's off with your clothes and put on the hospital gown. Then you're taken to the x-ray room where they take the x-rays. Since it was my knee that they were going to x-ray I had to lie down on my back and then on my side so that they could get more than one angle and more than one x-ray. Moving like that made my knee hurt more and (And I'm down to m I wish I could have gotten some crutches but they said no.
Still in a little bit of pain they finally finished. I decided to splurge and buy myself a cup of coffee and a soft pretzel. It cost me all of $2 but I still wanted to splurge a little so did it.
It took a while for the van to pick me up. I had to call twice! (and I'm down to mu last 2 phone minutes!)
I finally got back to the homeless shelter but I missed lunch. I microwaved some popcorn (from my bingo winnings) and that's what I'm having for lunch now. I also managed to get an approval sheet for Central tomorrow.
Dinner was chicken and noodles along with carrots and broccoli and pound cake for dessert.
I used the computer here to finish my local taxes and to help create a spreadsheet for someone else.
The movie playing tonight is The Passion Of Christ.
One of the staff members brought out his chess set and I played a game with him. I lost. And then he played with another resident and he won again. Others were watching us and I think that this chess-playing will become a regular kind of thing.
Had a final cigarette before bed at ten.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Central?
What is Central? At the homeless shelter its a place that they send people to have a mental evaluation. I didn't know it at first but the doctor I spoke with was a psychiatrist. Central also has group therapy sessions as well as one-on-one therapy sessions. I signed up for both! What's more interesting is what happens outside! There's is a sitting area just outside and when I was there was always someone asking for cigarettes. Some even hunt for butts in the ashtray. Sometimes they will even ask for money!
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