On the one hand, it's a lot more open to houseless folk than some other parts of Portland. On the other hand, many of the houseless there are very hostile and territorial. Apparently, some of them steal other people's things when they're sleeping.
Not much got taken, just my purse, which had my ID, social security, CPR certification, some envelopes, some stamps, my index cards and small stationery, some hand sanitizer, a tube of lipstick, possibly a crochet needle and a pen. Most of those things can be replaced with a small bit of hassle. But the thing is, I was not expecting it at all.
See, in Northern California, we were a bit more wary, but we also grew to trust the community around us. No-one stole anyone else's stuff (not in Northern California, anyway; the Slabs were a different matter). People respected each other's privacy and property, and no-one told you, "You can't sleep here because I don't know you."
So you know. I felt safe taking my two sleeping pills (first time in a while I've done the full dosage) and just nudging my purse into our sideways cart. Apparently, that was a mistake, and you're supposed to sleep hugging your purse here.
That kind of sucks, really. I'm a little irritated. Now I've got to find the Social Security Administration and the DMV, and I go everywhere on foot. Oh and I have to memorise an address in Oregon so I can put it on my ID application -_- Meh.
I mean, you can tell that I'm not really angry about it. I was just sort of numb at first. Most of the things I actually value are scattered through various parts of our luggage, and they blatantly didn't go through all our stuff. They just saw "a thing that usually contains money" lying at the top of a pile and nabbed it. They didn't know that the debit cards are at their withdrawal limit, my credit's too bad for them to apply for a bank account in my name, and I don't carry cash in that purse. My spare Clipper card, with the pictures of my sister and me from high school taped to it, was in there, but no-one uses Clipper here and there was only about $8 left on it anyway. So it's not like they can actually steal my identity-- or not that it would do them any good.
I can go by my deadname for a few weeks before I get my new ID card, and it might even protect me a little bit. I don't much like it, but hey, at least I kept my passport in a different area than my purse.
The thing I'll miss most is the tiny little chibi-Loki card I made. It's about the size of an ID and it features an exasperated Loki saying, "What am I going to do with you?"
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