Pieces and Places

January 27, 2010
Well the mystery has been solved... which side of the street people congregate on is determined by the position of the sun. I have been here a week and we have had 3 sunny / cool days and only 1 really rainy day. Yet another myth about this place (that it always rains) has been dashed against the rock of personal experience. Of coarse just saying as much, could be tempting fate LOL. As for the perception of how tough this place is, I am finding that also to be a myth. The population is pretty much the same as any where else I have been, just in much higher numbers.
Today I accompanied one of the senior ladies from the shelter when she went to her doctor and ran some errands. She is recovering from a stroke and still has some weakness in her hands, which makes it difficult to carry her own packages. When one of the counselors found out about our plans I was asked not to do that any more. Apparently, they have people to do such things and I must work on my own plans for the future. As I said before the staff is very focused on directing people to resources and getting them out of the shelters. This is a good thing... but proves more difficult with medical clients (those in need of nursing or mental health supported facilities) because there is still a shortage of such places.
Anyway my adventure today took me out of skid row and into other parts of the city. Tomorrow I have an appointment at the university regarding the problems I am having with my knee. Hopefully the doctor there can diagnose, and develop a treatment schedule
which will allow me to start putting 100% of my focus back on the job. I don't know about anyone else but I'm finding living with chronic pain very distracting. Got to go, I will try to blog most days...even if it is just a short note.