Panhandlers

I've gotten used to seeing them at busy corners in the Twin Cities. Often they are scruffy looking, a tattered backpack or duffel on the ground next to them. Always they hold a handmade cardboard sign. Typical messages are "Homeless Vet, Please Help" or "Will Work for Food". About half have "God Bless" on them. Some have gotten adept at appealing to traffic from one direction on a corner, then as soon as the light changes, hitting the other side of the same corner to nail that traffic. I've mostly learned to avoid eye-contact and guilt.

The one appeal that worked was from a homeless Mom at X-mas time. I donated a ten-spot and hoped she was for real, before deciding the donation was really more about me and not her. I could feel good about my actions, and she could settle her own conscience about whether she was going to spend it on kids or her personal demons.

Today a new sign caught my fancy. The fellow was reasonably well-groomed, squatting on his heels curbside in Minneapolis. I have no idea whether it worked for him or not, though I was uninspired to give. It read, "Need Fuel for Lear Jet."