Portland Rescue Mission

Each night before dinner at the Portland Rescue Mission a lottery takes place. Not a lottery to win any obscene amount of money, but a lottery to win a bed for the night. Before you can be eligible for this lottery you need to have a Tuberculosis test done. To get this test done you can go across the street to the Salvation Army. They do the tests on Tuesdays and Fridays between 1:15 and 3:15 in the afternoon. I went in last Friday and got the shot. Then, on Tuesday afternoon I went to have it checked.


Once you are diagnosed Tuberculosis free, you are given a TB card. Armed with proof that you are in fact free from Tuberculosis you can enter the lottery. Each person who would like to stay at the mission is given a number. Last night my number was 38. Every night there is a different lottery and so, every night you get a different number.

Then, the winning numbers are randomly selected by a computer and posted for the world to see. Last night I was among the 50 lucky people to get a bed. For those who don't win there is an additional way to be inside at the Portland Rescue Mission in the winter months. They have 75 mats that they lay out in the chapel, and so there is a second lottery for those at 8:30.

At about 8PM you are able to check in with your winning lottery number. At check in you show your slip with the winning number on it and, unless they already know you, your TB card so they can get your name. You are then assigned a bed numbered 1-50 and sent down stairs.

Once you're on the bottom floor you are able to take a shower, get a change of clothes, or just get ready for bed. I was assigned to bed 41. On each bed there is a pillow and a milk crate containing a blanket, a sheet, and a pillow case. I promptly made my bed and spent about 40 minutes reading one of my favorite books, My Custom Van by Michael Ian Black. At about 9PM it's lights out.

I fell asleep pretty quickly, although, I didn't stay that way. The beds are small and close together, so every time someone coughed, I woke up. I had a cotton blanket that was crocheted. It was like sleeping under a doily.

The Portland Rescue Mission works entirely off of donations and they do the very best they can with what they have. I don't want anyone to think I'm ungrateful or complaining about anything they do. In truth I see them among the top of all the shelters in Portland, a city that is among the leaders of cities that are friendly to the under privileged.

Home Sweet Home

At 11:30 this morning I finished moving out of my apartment and have my car weighted down by my things. The count down to hitting the open highway is on. I will be going through my things and deciding what is necessary and what doesn't need me in it's life anymore. I took my first shower as a homeless person today, it was truly luxurious. I'll be at work for the next twelve hours, I think when I'm done with work tomorrow morning and don't have a bed to go sleep in is when I'll get my first actual taste of what being homeless is really like. Really, though it will be a while before I truly understand. Staying near home, I have too many places where I can and will go to get some air conditioned rest.

I'm excited for the following months, but to be completely truthful, there's a part of me which is also really scared. This is, however, a common emotion for anyone embarking into the unknown, and I intend on using my uneasiness to stay safe and aware of my surroundings. I don't intend on getting many nights of good uninterrupted sleep.

So with my car, camera, and curiosity I will venture out into the cruel world to do what I envisioned the day I walked into a camera store and walked out with my dream; that is capture images that will be remembered and show the truth about this world we live in. The great thing about the truth of the world is that so many opposing things are true at the same time.

There's beauty and the promise of new life...

There's death and sadness...

There's longing for things and feelings long since passed...

And there's hope that we could hold on to the present and make it our future.

These are all reasons why I spent so much time wishing I had the camera sitting next to me; who has been with me to celebrate in the good times, clear my mind in the bad, and in some cases, help me to try and hold on to the present so I can relive it again, if only for a short time.

Please read on and live this journey with me.