Are you f*cking serious?!?

[Kitten in the box]

I just got off work and was on my way home when this guy came up to me asking for some spare change being as he's homeless and isn't getting crap collecting cans. Well being as I'm cursed with being too nice, I gave him a dollar. He tried to sell me one of his possessions (phone charger which I had already) and then he wanted MORE money (at least $3.00) to buy something to eat. Sorry but no.

Whatever happened to thank you? I mean seriously. Then he mopes off. Why the hell do I keep helpin people??? Maybe I should be a bit more meaner??

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

You really sure he's homeless? Because I have my doubts.

[justhere]

I pretty much had the opposite today - at a busy intersection on my way home from work I saw a homeless man; he walked towards a car and came back to the island with a huge smile and a McDonalds' bag - until I saw the smile drop and the garbage coming out of the bag. I felt horrible for him. I opened my window and offered him my leftover pretzels from my lunch (all I had, and I don't give cash). He gave me a grin and said he couldn't eat them because he didn't have any teeth (and yeah, he pretty much had only a few teeth) but then he thanked me kindly, and when the light changed and I drove off he gave me another smile and a wave.

[Monterey Jack]

I pretty much had the opposite today - at a busy intersection on my way home from work I saw a homeless man; he walked towards a car and came back to the island with a huge smile and a McDonalds' bag - until I saw the smile drop and the garbage coming out of the bag. I felt horrible for him. I opened my window and offered him my leftover pretzels from my lunch (all I had, and I don't give cash). He gave me a grin and said he couldn't eat them because he didn't have any teeth (and yeah, he pretty much had only a few teeth) but then he thanked me kindly, and when the light changed and I drove off he gave me another smile and a wave.

He couldn't eat pretzels because he had no teeth, but he could eat McDonald's?

[Aethian]

Pretzels are hard, McD's fries are not.

[Teskeria]

He couldn't eat pretzels because he had no teeth, but he could eat McDonald's?

I can see it easily. pretzels are hard. you have to really let them soak in your mouth before you can eat them without teeth. Mcdonalds is soft. break off a mouth size piece and gum it to death.

[taxguykarl]

No good deed goes unpunished. Maybe you should just keep walking in these situations.

[MoonCat]

I've heard just about every story you can think of from panhandlers. Couple weeks ago one told me she "was trying to make her co-pay for her medication." Going by her attitude when I said no, I'm pretty sure it wasn't true. She was very pushy.

[Dreamstalker]

A lot of panhandlers around here will try to up the ante once they think they have a mark...give them anything, they outright ask for five bucks (or ten or twenty).

[Monterey Jack]

I've heard just about every story you can think of from panhandlers. Couple weeks ago one told me she "was trying to make her co-pay for her medication." Going by her attitude when I said no, I'm pretty sure it wasn't true. She was very pushy.

So, she panhandles, yet has health insurance and only needs extra to cover the co-pay? Fuck YOU, lady. You can't get health insurance without a JOB that pays you MONEY.

[Dreamstalker]

Some states have 'free' insurance for the unemployed...they get to pick your primary-care doc and it doesn't cover that much (so it sucks).

[MoonCat]

She could be on Medicaid or Medicare, for all I know, although she didn't look old enough for Medicare. But really, I've heard most of the sob stories before, just different variations on a theme, as it were.

Usually it's "I came down here to meet my (GF, BF, friend, BIL, SIL, Mom, Dad, etc.) and he/she/they stood me up and I'm 64 cents short of the bus fare to go home...." It's always some odd amount of money. Knowing, of course, that most people who are willing to help will probably just round up and give them a dollar.

Or the one that goes "My car broke down three blocks from here and I need money to get home." Or "I'm trying to get to (hospital on the other side of town) to visit my (child, mom, whoever) and my car ran out of gas and I only have two dollars..."

And they almost always say "I usually don't do this, but...."

Saw a guy once get off a bus, walk up to a guy and ask for a quarter. The man pulled out a quarter, handed it to him with a big smile. "Here you go, my man!" The panhandler looked at him and said, "Can I have fifty cents?"