mmmmdclxvii

Lobstering Consumer Spending

You’d think I was about the business
of bolstering things, but I’m so sun
burnt I am walking sideways all day,
sort of bringing my thumbs and
forefingers together in the way of
Mister or Ms. Pacman. There aren’t
any colorful ghosts, or Skittles or
those old-school bottle caps to eat
with my thumbs and forefingers,
but I’m so hungry, and I want to
go shopping. I was never a big
fan of shopping. Shopping end
lessly, that is. I exhaust easily
when it comes to department
stores or Banana Republic or
even Target. It was, well, yes,
I didn’t paint my hands and
fingers yellow or anything,
but they were hungry, too.
When consumers no longer
have anything to spend,
there is no easy means 

for which to obtain food.
And one needs to eat. I 

did the dine and dash thing 

once, during the height of my 

two year bout with homeless

ness (it was during the six
months of those years

that I lived on the street
while working in a cubicle
weekdays during regular
business hours. It weren’t
fun.) – after that job was
over, by the way, it was
June, and it was one of
the coldest summers in
San Francisco during 

the 25 years I’ve lived
here. Anyway, I was 

sleeping on the 

Franklin Street

sidewalk next to 

the Opera House, 

More on that

sometime, surely.
All I’m saying is,
how does one eat
when one has
no money? The
thing is, I know
ways. In fact,
the three odd top 

things that I found to 

be surprisingly easy

to obtain when I

lived with no home 

were: 1) there’s

always food to be 

had; 2) one can 

find clothes – even
business attire – 

quite readily; and

3) one can manage
having almost per
fect medical cover
age. And I am 

saying that each

of these things 

can be had without
paying a dime.
Or that was

certainly my

experience.