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Mar. 16th, 2007 09:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kamomilThere is a lady who is homeless, and I believe she is schizophrenic, or in some advanced state of a mental health problem. I used to see her a lot near my work. She typically sat at a coffee shop patio and had a smoke and a coffee, and had a comforter wrapped around her. She must have been a fine lady at one point, because she knew even in her strange mental state to wear makeup, but the eyeliner was plastered on big-time, and she was lining her lips with it too. I'd had a couple of conversations with her, one involved people to watch out for around the town square, basically disconnected statements about suspicion and murder and stuff. I wouldn't see her every day, but I figured that was certainly her neighborhood. One time I spoke to her and asked her directly if she was safe and had help. She indicated that she'd been told to move on, and wasn't sure where she'd be. When I asked direct questions, I'd get an answer. But if there was a lull, she'd ramble on with her randomness.
I hadn't seen her in ages, and wondered where she'd gotten to. Well tonight I found out. I was shopping on Yonge St., and who did I bump into? Herself. I was a bit more pointed this time, I wanted to know a) was she getting help from someone b) was she okay? I got that her name is Judith and she's from Holland Landing. Other than that, I guess I was making her ask her own questions, she asked me if I was medical, I said no, and asked me why I was talking to her so long, I told her I was worried about her, and told her my first name. I offered her about $5 in change, I asked her if she'd had dinner and offered to buy her something, she refused on both counts. She had a shopping cart, and I could see a 2L Coke, and a bottle with orange juice, and a frozen-type chocolate cake in its tinfoil & plastic packaging, she said she was fine with what she had. Below all her strange behaviour, she seems almost as though she's not out to put anyone to any trouble. I have no idea if some social services people bring her stuff, or if she has money, where she gets it, or if she spends any nights indoors throughout the year, or gets a bath or laundry done or anything. :( I want to call someone and see if she's getting any kind of help. I can't help but think that if she was on medication, that she might be apt to be indoors and warm. I wonder what the process would be, to get her psychiatric help - if she's slipped through the cracks, if she had meds but didn't take them, if there's a dumbass waiting list, if I brought her into Emerg would someone see her, or what?
I realized that there was nothing I could do for her, materially, so I walked with her toward my destination and listened to her ramble, for awhile. I know that when I ramble on and make no sense, I appreciate people's patience, and figured I could do her the same favour.
I hadn't seen her in ages, and wondered where she'd gotten to. Well tonight I found out. I was shopping on Yonge St., and who did I bump into? Herself. I was a bit more pointed this time, I wanted to know a) was she getting help from someone b) was she okay? I got that her name is Judith and she's from Holland Landing. Other than that, I guess I was making her ask her own questions, she asked me if I was medical, I said no, and asked me why I was talking to her so long, I told her I was worried about her, and told her my first name. I offered her about $5 in change, I asked her if she'd had dinner and offered to buy her something, she refused on both counts. She had a shopping cart, and I could see a 2L Coke, and a bottle with orange juice, and a frozen-type chocolate cake in its tinfoil & plastic packaging, she said she was fine with what she had. Below all her strange behaviour, she seems almost as though she's not out to put anyone to any trouble. I have no idea if some social services people bring her stuff, or if she has money, where she gets it, or if she spends any nights indoors throughout the year, or gets a bath or laundry done or anything. :( I want to call someone and see if she's getting any kind of help. I can't help but think that if she was on medication, that she might be apt to be indoors and warm. I wonder what the process would be, to get her psychiatric help - if she's slipped through the cracks, if she had meds but didn't take them, if there's a dumbass waiting list, if I brought her into Emerg would someone see her, or what?
I realized that there was nothing I could do for her, materially, so I walked with her toward my destination and listened to her ramble, for awhile. I know that when I ramble on and make no sense, I appreciate people's patience, and figured I could do her the same favour.
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Date: 2007-03-17 02:51 am (UTC)Anyway, she obviously knows enough (or has help enough) to keep her alive on the streets in the winter, so that might give you some peace of mind.
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Date: 2007-03-17 12:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-03-17 12:04 pm (UTC)Those other crazy street people though, I steer clear of them for sure. Some of them holler to you, that scares me, eg. alcoholics or panhandlers. They seem to have more cognitive ability to be aggressive than she does. I have learned since I was a teenager to not look in strangers' eyes in the city, I spose there's always a danger that someone is going to be a salesman pimp, ready to pick up on any weakness. There seems to be no danger of that, with this lady.