Day Seventy-One

    ****NAMES CHANGED TO PROTECT PORTLAND'S STREET KIDS*****

I decide I can't take not having a phone anymore so I go and get one at the store company across from Cricket. It's really convenient that they put all the phone stores on the same block in Portland. I would think this is bad for competition but it's good for me. I know just about every phone plan offered in Portland in about five minutes.

KL says she can get me a phone for $10. I don't care I'm feeling impatient. I spend $60 on a phone that was one of the first to come out in the 90's. I call Savior Man to see if I can visit Spencer but it sounds like he has plans so I hang out in downtown instead.

We go to spange up money to buy some pot. The new girl hangs out with us for the day and puts in money for the weed too. This is kind of unusual for Kitten Lady and I. People find it really hard to hang with us but the new girl is really good at just going with the flow. I'm enjoying her company.

Houdini is being grumpy. He doesn't put in a fair amount for the blunt so he and KL start arguing outside of McDonald's, where we are waiting to find someone to buy pot from. The arguement is heated and from what I'm seeing it looks like he's about to push her off the stairs and into the highway. People we don't even know start yelling at him.

I drop my laptop and run outside. I leave all my stuff behind trusting our new friend will watch it. I come between KL and Houdini and push her wheel chair as hard as I can down the ramp when I think he's going to come at her again. I know I can't really fight him and I'm not sure what to do. I don't want to escalate the situation but my heart is racing. Seeing her struggling by the stairs really scared me.

Houdini finally leaves so it's just the three of us girls and KL is crying. We did get some pot from Pot Head so we go and roll a blunt in a parking lot. I don't get as high as I would like but we go from crying to laughing so I guess it's alright.

When we go up to shelter Houdini doesn't talk to me. It's almost as if he's a little kid that knows he's in trouble so he just wants to pout. I gladly leave it that way and try to have a quiet night but as we all know there are no quiet nights in shelter.

--mm