“Today and tomorrow are going to be frigid – zero degrees again.”

Story by Eric Beaubreau. Edited by Amanda Yonushatis.

Transcript for To Have a Yacht in Valpo

So, I’m not native to here, but I’ve been here a while. If I had to say something about – I mean, I love this county. I love Valpo. It’s very, very, very nice. You know what, all they do is implement more sidewalks, more public, more everything for families and the thing, and that’s what they do. But they don’t, as much, being that I’m on the lower level… I mean, I’ve been there, I was head chef at the country club. So I made sixty grand, but now I’m making like sixty bucks. Okay, so I’ve been on both of the scale. I don’t think Valpo does enough to help people like me. They could do more.

Day-to-day life, very difficult. Cold. It’s winter, mid-Feb. Cold. Outside quite a bit. I work, so I have some money, but I spend it just being inside to pay for food so I can be somewhere warm. It’s temporary. I’m not really super concerned, because it’s going to warm up, even though today and tomorrow are going to be frigid – zero degrees again. And, yeah, I’ve been sleeping outside for quite a while, for a while. It’s okay, though, I’m used to it now. I have a sleeping bag, so I just cocoon myself in that thing. I mean, I got my hat or whatever, my clothes. I’d say warm enough, enough for – trust me, if anybody has to worry about hypothermia, I might be one of those people. I keep as warm as I can for as long as I can. Like I said, I’ll go to like Round the Clock or I’ll go Cosmos or something, just to get some coffee, stay warm. And then, when I go where I got to go, then that’s what I got to do, and that’s what I do. I get inside my sleeping bag and just kinda chill. I make sure that my phone is charged wherever I go so I have some kind of outlet to society or at least just in general life. So, I’m kinda huddled up in there and I play solitaire, cribbage.

There’s enough money around this town where people just give money away. But they don’t give it to the right – it’s nice if you have a yacht in Valpo, it’s nice. If I had money, I’d be giving – [robust laughter]. Anytime I read the marquee – the marquee up here – I bring it. Need laundry, need toilet paper, need dut-dut-dut-dut. I go to Town and Country and I get it and I bring it. And they’re like, “Where do you sleep tonight?” I was like,
“Outside,” and they’re like, “Why are you doing this?” I said, “Because other people need help, too.”

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