Even *if* he was unless you were in my place in this specific situation I don’t think you can really suggest better courses of action. I am no expert here – in fact I have never had a run in with a homeless person before in my life.

I don’t think Lisa (above) was saying this about my situation but this was not a case of ‘creep[ing] out’ our womenfolk. This was a guy screaming at me within 12″ from my face who had been reaching inside his coat for something moments before. Hard to convey the exact situation in writing – which is kind of the point I’m making above.

The short guy mentioned above actually stood next to my wife while this guy was going off to protect her. After the fact he told me he had my back. He obviously felt some concern for our safety which I thought was pretty touching.

I did not intend this post to be a lightening rod for anti homeless sentiment, they have enough problems to be dealing with – I was just sharing an experience with the community. This experience didn’t even ruin my otherwise very nice evening.

I also feel very safe living in Wallingford – if I didn’t I would leave. This is probably the safest place I’ve lived in my adult life in the US or in Europe.

Obviously when a man’s untreated and poverty exacerbated mental illness “creeps out” our ladyfolk, something has to be done!

But like Fnarf said, it only took one crazy yelling guy to make it seem like there were a hundred of them.

The I-5 crew is much bigger now. There are always 2-3, and they’re drunker than in the past (I see them bothering women in cars who have their windows rolled up – they used to just sit and smile.)

There are multiple beggars outside QFC now, waiting for their turns, and at least 2 sitting at the “breakfast bar” every cold night. The folks actually paying for food can’t/won’t use that area any more.

Time to remove the breakfast bar or hire security, QFC. Passed out drunks don’t entice shoppers. Compassion requires common sense.

It happened a couple of years ago, but I remember it had an immediate effect. The guys who normally drank in the U-District started buying their beer at the 50th St Market. I remember because the first place they started to park it to enjoy their purchases was our detached garage. They seemed pretty satisfied with that arrangement, but after they smashed it all up one night, we resolved to buy a door for the garage, and they started drinking elsewhere.

I still think the problem is far less in Wallingford than other areas like downtown or Capitol Hill.

I experience more “unpleasantness” on a daily basis from the non-homeless driving in traffic, etc.

As for the general “unpleasantness,” I’ve only experienced it once in Wallingford, and it was creepy, not aggressive. I feel like I see it more downtown.

because really – any thing short of that is sending the message that that sort of behavior is without consequence. Just because he is a down and out person and you are not does not mean it is okay for him to scream and yell and possibly spit on you.

what is the saying?
oh. hell. no.

and it breaks my heart that it has come to this, because when i was a kid, my grandma fed guys who came to the door and let them sleep on the porch – but that was long ago (mid 70s and far away (rural Texas).

Note that it only takes one crazy yelling guy to seem like a hundred of them. Most of the homeless guys walking the neighborhood are down and out but not yelling or crazy. And, of course, most homeless people are not single alcoholic men — they’re families. But they’re invisible.

The liquor store didn’t have anything to do with it; a couple of homeless guys hung out outside to bum change but they don’t buy their booze in there; they buy it from convenience stores. The liquor store was a good neighbor, with 99.9% ordinary non-crazy, non-homeless people as customers.