Ketchup Soup/The kind of Homeless Guy I Might Be

I think I told this story way back in my first blog, but I've been thinking about being homeless, and I remembered a guy I met years ago. This would've been the early 90s I think. Wendy's used to have a salad bar that was pretty good. I'd always get there right at 11 when they opened because they'd just put out everything fresh. I got an unsweet tea and loaded up my first plate of salad.

 There was a gentleman sitting at the table next to me and I nodded as I sat down. I might have thought he was Joe Average except for his jacket. It looked almost new but it screamed 80s and was about a decade out of date. If you're old enough to remember the 80s, you may remember those jackets that looked like they were made from plaid stadium blankets. I figured he'd gotten it at Goodwill, so he was most likely homeless. Besides that he didn't look homeless at all...he was clean-shaven, well-groomed and sober. 

 I noticed that he had a coffee cup but it looked like it had tomato soup in it. I didn't think soup was on the menu so I asked him what it was. I'm glad I asked because he was a really nice fellow, and he went against the stereotype of a "bum." He said that most days he'd show up early and they'd give him a coffee cup. He'd fill it with hot water from the coffee machine and stir in a few cups of ketchup which they let him have.

 He always came early too, but it was because they didn't want him hanging out when a lot of customers were there. It was nice of them I guess to help him in some small way. "Ketchup soup, huh?" I asked. "I guess so" he replied.

 I excused myself and went and ordered him a double cheese, large fry, tea and a Frosty. I took it to him and he thanked me generously. I grabbed my tray and sat across from him. We had a nice chat. I don't remember what his story was or how he ended up homeless, but it wasn't the typical story of someone getting into dope and losing everything. 

 He said he didn't drink or do drugs and I believed him. His eyes were clear and he didn't have that druggy, boozy thing that many homeless people have. He had short hair and clean fingernails. He could've been totally bullshitting me but I don't think so. I'm certainly not saying that most homeless people are automatically fucked-up, just that it's rare to see someone who doesn't seem to be homeless but is.

 We talked about normal stuff and he was well-spoken. It was a little weird really, because he wasn't physically disabled, and he didn't seem to have any mental issues, although I'm not a doctor, so it was a little odd that he was homeless at all. I wish I could remember the story. The fact remains though, that even though he wasn't a junkie or a crazy person, he was still homeless. He did mention doing occasional odd jobs and such, so hopefully he didn't stay homeless forever. 

 I asked him about what his days were like, and I remember him telling me that he'd check payphones for quarters and that people would give him money sometimes but that he didn't like to ask. This was before the days when you can whip out your phone, film something and make your own mini-doc and post it on YouTube. I thought it might be interesting to borrow a camera and follow him around for a day. For the next few days I found myself checking payphones, and there were more quarters than I'd have thought. 

 It was interesting to talk to a homeless person who had at least some of his shit together. Looking back I wish I could've bought his jacket so I'd have a souvenir of the 80s, but I didn't. I bet the other homeless people called him "the professor." Godspeed, bud. The moral of this story is that if I ever become homeless, I won't get a jacket that's so datable. I'd be a sober and fairly well-spoken homeless person too. Maybe someone will buy me a meal. Maybe I'll eat ketchup soup.