Continued from Part 2

Life in the transitional living program was not what I had expected it to be. I lived in this transitional housing program for two years before finally being able to generate enough income to rent my own apartment. During my two years living there, I saw that the staff did nothing to address the issues of its clients' continual drug and alcohol misuse, and general neglect to follow rules. I was virtually the only person using the program for its intended purpose.

I was removed from the first house to another because the clients there were so uncomfortable living with me, being a drug and alcohol free person half their age, with knowledge of their typical day to day activities including regular drug and alcohol misuse and overall neglect of personal and household responsibilities. They were expecting me to do as they did, which was get drunk and high and watch TV all day. I could not participate with them because I would have been subject to violating my probation and sent to jail.

Instead of doing what the others did, I occupied myself with landscaping the front and back yard, cleaning the scum that had built up on the kitchen floor over the years, checking in with my probation officer weekly whether they requested to see me or not, consistently meeting probation requirements, including getting court slips signed, etc, along with the daily responsibilities of being a resident.

I also had time to expunge my long criminal record of seemingly endless trespassing, loitering, vagrancy, panhandling and 'illegal camping' charges I had accumulated over the years. I did all these things mainly to occupy my time to keep me from violating my probation and re-entering the jail system. If it were not for that motivator, I may have just kicked it on the couch smoking pot, watching TV and arguing with rest of them.

As the other clients saw it though, I was seemingly not like them, and they collectively persuaded the staff to move me to a different house. The staff agreed that it would be best to move me, but the staff's reasoning was not because I wasn't complying with their rules. It was because they had not experienced having a compliant resident, and therefore had no idea what to do in this situation.

All they knew was that it was obviously causing them problems to have one compliant resident living in their transition house with nine others who were non-compliant. It was easier for the program staff to house a full clientel of non-compliant residents. The program staff could then allow the clients do whatever. Anytime the staff were questioned, they would respond that all is in compliance, and that would be the end of it.

The clients got what they wanted; a place to do whatever without being told otherwise, and the staff got what they wanted, space to not be bothered with anything that had to do with them actually working or doing their job.

It was obvious they did not see me or anyone like me coming. I was actually putting this homeless service provider staff to work, as most of the staff seemed to be used to doing nothing other than waiting for their next paycheck to arrive. (Interestingly enough, during a mandatory house meeting one week, a staff person facilitating one of the meetings told us residents of how the organization was misappropriating huge amounts of money, and lining their pockets with it. This would not surprise me.)
 

Continue to Part 4