Dillon

    Dillon and I started chatting after two people nearly bowled us over on Turk street running after each other and yelling like maniacs.  We made eye contact and both laughed.  “Things are never boring here, that’s for sure,” he said.  I agreed and told him that’s why I moved to SF.  He told me that he moved here from Oregon for the same reason.  We discussed what we love about this city, finding an overlapping fascination at the recent explosion of street art that happened during the COVID lockdown.  I asked him if he has been able to find any shelter beds during this time as the majority of the people I feed have told me that the lottery for beds is hit or miss at most shelters.

Most nights Dillon stays at the Moscone Center which has been converted into a temporary shelter.  I asked him what the situation is like inside there.

    “They give you your own little cubicle, so you’re sleeping by yourself which is great.  I’ve got a couple of little tapestries that I found hung up so it feels homey.  They give you a cot which is pretty basic but I have a foam mat I found that I roll out on top so it’s pretty comfy.  Most things I need I can find...  People throw out so many things in this city that you can usually find just about anything if you look hard enough… I used to work in removals so I know where to look.  Recently I found this 20 foot dumpster just filled to the brim with this beautiful collection of antique furniture… looked like it all came out of Herman Miller’s house or something, I think it came from a place that was going out of business.  It’s really crazy how much stuff we throw in the garbage… I took as much as I could with me on the bus to sell.”

    Dillon and I proceeded to talk about antique furniture for about 20 minutes after that.  He’s somewhat of an expert it turns out.

    “I used to go to auctions all the time, my whole life since I was a kid.  I always loved finding unique pieces and learning about where they come from and how they’re made, how to fix them up.... People don’t make things by hand anymore.  There’s soul in old furniture. It was a long part of other people’s lives at one point. There’s a story in that… 

I think we’re about to see a whole lot more furniture out on the street once the rental protections run out… I already know a few people who got evicted a couple months ago even though they were supposed to be protected.  It’s not like they have the money for a lawyer so there’s not much they can do to fight it….

Thanks for the dinner man, this is some really good food!  Most of the food we can get out here is pretty shitty quality. This taste like it’s from a restaurant!”

There’s more where that came from. I’ll be seeing you again soon Dillon.