Hey Mike!
Sending much love to you and ALL APOLOGIES for my delay in writing. I recently moved from Ohio (Cleveland) to Florida (Loxahatchee) and things been a little hectic to say the least. I looked through our last correspondence to see where we last spoke and I'm pretty sure its when I was couch-surfing and working construction in the 216. I've been blessed since then, praise Jah, landing on my feet - trying to be a better servant/better man since.
Ill catch you up :-) :
Worked in Cleveland for a little over a year with the same people, but didn't save a dime - though I learned alot. After that I moved a few blocks away to my best bro Stevens spot, an abandoned car outside a bodega. Technically we were doing nighttime security for a car lot also & he worked the bodega doing stock boy stuff during the day, but I really wanted to help my dude Steve ride out the winter not being alone and I wasn't ready to leave Cleveland as of that time. Steven is a little older and doesn't really have family like that and is a good older cat to learn from. Him and I rode out the winter and I got pretty deep / known the neighborhood we were in Made family with all the folks around (metal scrappers, drunks, crack heads, dealers, hookers, etc) and started making a plan to find a job job (back in activism) around April. I also worked a simple gig through most of winter with an awesome Arabic dude, Isiah, who held me down - making $20 a day for driving his van and doing deliveries (of anything he could flip - vegetables, paper towels, ebt receipt paper). Very sweet dude.
The neighborhood we were in was great, alot of people helped me and Steve with food, blankets and there are at least 4 churches in a 4 block radius so there was often free food, provisions etc. Also a rec center 2 blocks away for a shower. Me and some other cats would panhandle by the store so life was good as we had the drinking spot right by the cars we watched where people would stop by all the time to have a beer and kick it. We called it the Office :-)
So I got to job hunting around the beginning of this year... and Thank the lord!, I was blessed with an opportunity after all the interviews in Florida. Some new canvass operation (New Florida Majority) hired me to take over an office in Miami. Isiah sold me his Ford f-250 van and with a small loan from my folks I bought it and drove down to Florida with an acquaintance of mine Scott.
The New Florida Majority gig had a two week training in DC so I left the Van with Scott (to sleep in / watch) till I got back from Washington. The following is what happened that first week
Monday - Got to training, same old same old - but a little more elementary than I'm used to.
Tuesday - Got a call my best friend Rasheen was killed Monday. If there was one person I had as a best friend in Cleveland it was him. When I had a house he lived around the corner and we would see hang out every day. I took that day off.
Wednesday - Got in to training late and had a very 'blah' day. I wasn't so into it.
Thursday - Same ol, same ol.
Friday - Friday evening I got a call from Scotts Mom that the van was stolen back in Florida. I went on a bender later that evening and stayed out all night.
Saturday - I Brought this house-less dude I was hanging Friday with into training Saturday to the chagrin of many of my bosses. (We had free food - how could I resist? :-) I also let him come back to our collective air BNB to take a shower and chill for a little bit.
Sunday - Boss calls me saying my coworkers were bent out of shape about my company and we would talk on Monday.
Monday - They let me go / I made new plans to be at the farm Im at now. That was May 7th.
I went on a bender for the whole next week and arrived at the farm Sunday May 13th - been there ever since.
Whew! So I guess your all caught up when it comes to where Ive been.
The farm is awesome- positive people in a wonderful setting. Im hoping to get to Peru in November and work a farm there for 6 months before I return. I bought a ticket and hoping to save enough between now and then so I can afford my return ticket around May 2019. Seems silly to make plans considering the Universe is gonna decide for me anyway lol
