If I was a labrador retriever then people would happily give me all the food and water I wanted. With that thought in mind I walk into the classy golf course restaurant near my campsite, carrying an empty water bottle. Normally the staff of such a place will either flatly refuse such a request or comply very unhappily. But not if you do it like this, “Hi, I’ve got a very thirsty dog over there. Could I fill this up for him.”
Indeed, the bartender knows there are constantly people walking dogs on the abandoned horse race track that circles the golf course. He carries the bottle behind the bar, not filling it from the faucet but from a fancy ice-cold drinking water tap that rises above the bar. It takes a long time as the water comes out very intentionally slowly.
The only bar patrons are four well dressed older women drinking wine, probably waiting on their golf-playing husbands. Noticing them looking at me curiously, the bartender says something in French, presumably explaining that the water is for my dog. Everybody laughs and smiles warmly. The woman at the end of the bar says something unintelligible to me.
“Yes, the dog is very thirsty.”, I smile back.
Everybody laughs again between sips of wine. The bartender hands the bottle back, nodding politely. Had I claimed the water was for me then the scene would have likely gone something like this; unhappy bartender, glaring women and warm water from the faucet. Everywhere in the world is the same now, no escape.
Not only is the water ice cold but there’s a hint of lemon, the best drink I’ve possibly ever had considering that I’m still catching up from going the entire weekend with nothing. From Friday to Monday it had rained almost constantly, keeping me captive under the old blue tarp, which is far to disgustingly dirty for use in catching rainwater.
I never felt very thirsty over the weekend, but have felt incredibly thirsty since that first drink on Monday. The perfect water from the bartender is gone by midnight. The empty water bottle is keeping me awake, its dull-glowing silver aluminum body standing in the leaves next to my head. There’s a always a glow here at night due to city lights reflected off the ever-present low clouds.
There’s got to be water faucets on the golf course, I think to myself, finding my way there without needing a flashlight. The air is perfect tonight, 60 degrees with a gentle breeze. The huge open area of the golf course is without a soul, without a single light, just the dull glow. I wander around the perfect grass testing hoses and faucets, all apparently shut off at the source. This water might not be drinkable anyway, but it won’t hurt to taste it. Even the faucets on the sides of the buildings are shut off, though.
Something horrifying moves toward me from the driving range. All I can make out in the faint light is a low black whining disk on an intercept course. It’s roughly a foot tall by three feet wide, moving lazily while continuing to make an eerie noise. I’m expecting be shot with some kind of ray or transported somewhere or maybe transformed into golden retriever if I’m lucky, but no, this little UFO is only interested in abducting golf balls. This is the jumbo-sized version of a robotic home vacuum system, moving to and from nearby docking stations.
………
A little Indian girl hisses and growls at me for the whole tram ride to the university library this morning. I’m so bored with sitting that this library but don’t know what I’d do without it. Seems I’m playing the waiting game again. Yesterday I walked back into the agency that had been going to buy me a plane ticket. I requested to talk to that big man in charge and he appeared in the waiting room shortly.
“I just need to know if there are actually tickets or not so I can move on one way or the other.”
We go to his office. He makes a phone call.
“No tickets. Your friends still not help you?”
“No. This agency had me sign paperwork three weeks ago accepting the offer of a ticket. What’s wrong?”
“You still need ticket?”
“Yes. I can get no food here without a Belgium ID. I’m going to starve without the ticket.”
The man gets back on the phone.
“OK, they make new booking. Now we wait.”
Great.
…….
Well it’s actually not true that I’m going to starve because I’ve taken up shoplifting as of Monday, wondering why I had done so on one of those other previous long stretches without food. I’d been a pro 15 years ago, once even walking out of a K-Mart with a $200 VCR. Never did I get caught in any store, but I did stop after getting arrested for something else at 19 years old.
At 34 years old I would feel very greedy taking a VCR, and I would even feel bad about taking food if I had the ability to pay for it, but taking from multinational corporations when I’m hungry and broke……no problem.
Monday’s dinner was two cans of cocktail franks because they fit easily into my vest pockets, not showing any bulges when the vest was unzipped. Last night was a huge marvelous salami washed down with an ice cold Coke. Considering how thirsty I still am, that Coke was……..amazing. Maybe it’s a lack of sugar, because something made me want that Coke so bad. I had actually been planning on going to bed hungry till the idea of a cold Coke came to mind. And while I’m taking a drink I might as well take a salami too.
But this was two days in a row from the same store, and exiting there without a purchase requires walking through the self-checkout area where an employee is stationed at a desk. There is an electronic checkpoint gate just past the employee. The checkpoint often beeps in error but I thought it could look very suspicious if it beeped when I walked through after not making a purchase. So I stopped and asked the employee if there was any hot food for sale in the store. She didn’t understand and asked a customer standing nearby to translate. The customer translated her answer back to me, “No, you have to take this food home and cook it”.
I don’t know what sets off the electronic gate beeper, but it’s not Cokes or salamis. I suspect it’s something in the labels of fresh meat products so I won’t be eating any of those. As for getting caught at this, the most likely outcome would be a couple weeks in jail followed by deportation, which would mean free meals then a free ticket to a place where I can get more food, free or otherwise.
OK, am I the only one that laughed when Garth described tucking the giant salami in his coat? Garth I know you aren’t a thief, so I’m assuming you really are starving. Can we donate money to your website or send you donations? If so, how?
Garth – I think you are living an interesting life and am enjoying your blog – but I also agree with the comments on here about taking responsibility for yourself. Have you looked for cash in hand jobs, or like Chris says, at least working for your food? Can you research on the internet about foraging for food? I was just at a wild foods summit and learned all about foraging, and suburban foraging. (For example, in nice neighborhoods, people may have bought a house that already had an apple tree or cherry tree growing in the yard, but they never bother to pick the fruit, and may quite happily let you get “rid of it”.) Can you really blame someone for looking at you the wrong way when you are having a hard time taking care of yourself and are probably looking pretty ragged? Is it fair to expect anyone else to buy you a plane ticket home? I’m all for being a “freegan” or giving as little money to big corporations as possible. I pay rent to a local guy here in town, try to get as much of my food from farmers markets as I can, and buy my clothes at thrift stores. But the lifestyle you are leading isn’t sustainable… not without relying on other people to cover your ass on a regular basis. And that’s hard for me to swallow, because you are bright and intelligente and articulate. Take care, Nora
I want to add: I am thankful to the USA that they helped to end the National Socialism, even if they whould have done it for own advantage. There was a moment they stopped cooperation and complicity – the good side of the liberal (protestant) ideology . That might have been one reason why the owner of the greek restorant supported you, but I believe he admired you for living a risky, but free life in priority…
Is shoplifting an offense against basic moral values ?
It depends….
If you have a trial because theft of food the judge usually considers if your behavior was social unacceptable. That means, he compares your`s guilt and that of the society. The measure is dignity of man Should be….
At some places in the world you will never come in emberassment to steal. There are people willing to share and being lucky when they can share, if your behavior is o.k. Unfortunatly, there are more and more places where this is totaly different. The big city of Bruxelles, which hosts the European administration ( living on the cost of the poor parts of Europe, you can say) is more or less one of the bad spots.
.In Germany there is a big discussion because a quarter of the procuced food is thrown away by shops and wealthy people.
Many poor people in Germany collect bottles thrown away to dustbins to earn the pawn . They do it because they think it is better and more dignified than begging or even taking money from welfare.
It is not enough to be humble.It doesn`t work if the people surrounding you are not humble, too. I àm a protestant, and there are so many protestants who call christians themself and believe they are blessed by god because they are sucessfull and wealthy. It is the scrooge-like utiliaryan ideologie exported from Europe to America some hundred years ago. Now it is coming back ( so called excessive capitalism)
Your`sPeter.
Desperation is a fickle thing. When you’ve been starving for days and you barely have the energy to walk down the sidewalk (it only takes a few days to get to the point where a half mile feels like a death march), the last thing you feel like doing is traipsing all over town, probably at night, looking for an unlocked and unguarded dumper to jump into a rifle around.
Stupid and unnecessary rules create “criminals.”
The local charity organizations will not feed Garth because he is not Belgian, because he is from the wrong side of an imaginary line. That is the thing that strikes me hardest. It is ridiculous. It makes no sense.
If a charity won’t help him, why would any given stranger on the street? Begging is humiliating and exhausting. I wouldn’t do it either.
Sarah, I’ve applied for many a passport in my lifetime and almost every country spells out clearly you must have your own money when entering the country because they will not pay your way. Besides WHY do you expect someone ELSE to pay your way for you? I think the imaginary line your referring to is actualy called take responsility for your own life.. line…. The only thing I see here that is stupid is Garth stealing, I’m positive Ronnie didn’t teach him to steal, Begging is much better than stealing the consequences far less severe. You can’t compare what a person on the street would do to a charity, besides he doesn’t know the language but they would understand begging and most likely give him something to eat. When your that hungry and can barely walk (as you say) then begging and being humble will give you something to eat. If this bothers you then send him some money Sarah.
Just trying to keep the conversation going. Looks like it worked.
Garth, Please don’t shop lift, surely you can jump into a dumpster to find food, or go by some fast food places and ask others to buy you a hamburger, or ask for money to buy a hamburger. I give down trodden folks a dollar here and there all the time its better than stealing! Garth, start thinking about your life, 40 is not far off, it’ll get tougher as you age.
why not find a bread shop and ask to clean up for a loaf of bread?
Bread is nutritious. The shop keeper will surely appreciate you willingness and enthusiasm, as have your many employers in the past.
Do the honorable thing; feel good about your choices.
oldad
I don`t think shopplifting is such unhonourable -as long few people do it and take few items of minor value.
Belgium , especially Bruxelles, is not a good place for people without money.
Your blog is very interesting. We made a link on the Waldbesetzung blogsport blog in Frankfurt. Our former camp against frankfurt airport extension was evicted years ago. We got food by dustbin-diving at local shopping malls. Frankfurt Occupy camp faces eviction in the next weeks.
Peter