Fleeing the Plantation

[user328]

The mattresses at the night shelter are thin and covered in plastic. Sometimes they have sheets and blankets, but usually not. The plastic mattresses make an annoying sound when the people who don't have sheets slide around on them.

I brought my own bedding when I fled. I put a heavy folded quilt over the mattress for a pad. It makes the mattress a little firmer. I have one of those breathable woven cotton blankets that I sleep under.

You have to pack all your stuff up and either put it in the storage room or take it with you when you go. There are no permanent assigned bunks. You have to tell the staffer at the front desk your bunk number before you leave to reserve it for that night.

I put my stack of folded blankets on top of my head and head for the exit. I put them in the back seat of my car. Then I go to one convenience store for coffee and the one across the street from it for cigarettes. Then I go park at the day shelter until the shade disappears and it starts getting hot. I usually go to the park for a few hours. In the afternoons, I pick up a bag of ice and more pops if needed. Then I go park at the night shelter and open the pop stand until check-in time.