quote:

Originally posted by OKCGene:
A few years I rolled up the stoplight and noticed a well dressed man wearing a suit and tie, clean and shaved etc, man on the sidewalk with a sign that read "Why Lie? I just need some beer money".

The light turned red and I had to go, but I decided to circle back and give him $10 or so for beer money. Hey at least he was honest! I turned to go around the block and by the time I got back to that spot he was gone.

I mean, I'll give anybody $10 or $20 for beer money! Guy probably had a tough day at work and a grumpy female at home and needed some beer!!!
.

I've seen/heard of similar.
Not in a suit/tie, but the same "Why lie, I need a beer" sign.
Also heard one that I'd maybe a kick a buck to for the laugh "Family killed by ninjas, need $ for Kung Fu lessons"

There's a young couple that works by me. She sits at the entrance of the Walmart with her sign. He's farther up the highway at the end of the median at the traffic light with his. End of the day she calls him on her smart phone, then walks to her car and waits for him. I've seen the other end as well, watching him answer his smart phone, pack up and walk back. Lots of tax free money.

Years ago when I still lived in New Jersey.
I was coming out of a convenience store down the street from the company I was working for.
A woman was asking for change so she could buy something to eat so I gave her a few dollars.

A few hours later when I was heading back to the office I stopped at the same convenience store to buy something to drink.
I saw the same lady with several packs of cigarettes. When I told her I gave her money to buy food she went off on me screaming and yelling about how it was her money and I could go fuck myself.

I never gave money to anyone ever again. My wife and I either give to the Salvation Army or a local church.


I live in central Florida just south west of Disney. For many years we were still considered rural, not a lot of business around.
A few years back everybody discovered this area and the building boom took off. Along with the people also came the business.
Now at just about every business exit around the I4 exit area their are panhandlers.

The reason they are at the business exits, from what I have heard Polk county no longer allows pedestrians to linger in medians or make contact with occupants of motor vehicles.

This is my favorite panhandling story of all time.

Oil and gas is a 24/7/365 operation so unfortunately accidents can happen on a holiday, and we get called in. My buddy was called in on the 4th of July to look up some critical records and unfortunately they weren't digitized so he had to drive downtown to our office where the records were stored. Downtown is a ghost town on the 4th of July, and my buddy parks his brand new truck in the parking lot across the street from the office. He doesn't even make it out of the parking lot and he's hit up by a panhandler wearing a hard hat and a high visibility vest who is carrying a broken fan belt. The panhandler is spewing some BS story about needing to get to the job site for his job and asks my buddy for $10 for a new fan belt (there are no auto parts stores nearby). My buddy's brand new truck is the only vehicle in the parking lot and he's concerned it'll get vandalized if he doesn't pay so he gives the panhandler $10.

Fast forward a couple years and my buddy, another buddy, and I are going out for dinner after work. We all drove separately to the restaurant, pulled into the parking lot one after the other, and my buddy in the panhandler story oddly drives off to park on the opposite side of the restaurant. My other buddy and I are waiting forever for the buddy in the panhandler story to walk into the restaurant and were fixin' to head out to the parking lot to look for him when he walked in the door with the biggest smile on his face. He's smiling and chuckling to himself which isn't his normal demeanor so we asked what's going on. Turns out the same panhandler wearing the same hard hat and same vest was there with the same broken fan belt peddling the same bullshit story. However, this time there were dozens and dozens of vehicles in the parking lot, and my buddy was nowhere near his truck when he got panhandled. Therefore, my buddy tells him the exact date he used the same line, that he needs a new shtick, and he better get his ass out of there before he calls HPD. The homeless guy spins around, runs out the restaurant driveway, runs into the street without looking, and narrowly misses getting runover by two cars who slammed on their brakes. My buddy was laughing so hard it took a few minutes to gather himself to walk into the restaurant to join us. He quipped that if the panhandler didn't shit his pants when he got called out then he most definitely shit his pants when the cars nearly ran him over.

My wife and I were at a local farm market/ craft market yesterday. A gentleman wearing a baseball cap with the branch of the military he probably served in approached us. He had in his hands what looked like his driver's license, a military ID or VA card and some other cards to show me.
He asked if I had 25 dollars I could give him for him and his wife to get a hotel for the night. He said that what he was short to be able to get the room.
His wife was there sitting on a bench with a suit case and she was on her phone.
I said sorry I didn't have cash with me. He was very polite and thanked me anyways.
I kinda felt bad because what if he was telling the truth and it was not a con job.
Unfortunately based on the story I posted above and story's I have heard I can't trust people in those situations anymore, and it is a shame.
It kinda hurts me in a ways because I have always been what I thought to be a caring person. Over the years I have seen people who really looked like they needed the help including someone I saw on a street corner today but once again I can't trust that its not a con just to make people give them money and again it's a shame.

I'm sure I've told this story before . I was approached at an intersection by a dirtbag . I waved him away and he blessed me with the F-bomb and slapped my window . As I drove off I dialed 911 and told them about the incident . On my return trip about 30 minutes later I saw him bent over the back of a Police car being hooked up .

Several times I have seen a late model Chrysler minivan drop off panhandlers at the Wal-Mart nearest me. First time I saw it the pan handler got out and opened the rear hatch which was full of the chairs they sit on and little bags they all have. Pretty well organized. Friends have told me it is the same at other Wal-Marts in town. Truly amazing is the volume of panhandlers. In some strip malls the pan handlers are aggressive and don’t leave you alone. I finally complained to the managers of one store and said I wasn’t coming back if I see them in the parking lot. What’s amazing is to see them in a strip mall and every storefront in the mall has a help wanted signed posted.

I don't give to any panhandlers ever. Way too many stories out there of them being tracked/followed and they are packing up and getting into luxury cars and driving home.

A girl I dated back in the late 90's told me she was walking into a Wawa and there was a bum/panhandler there begging for money. She felt sorry and bought him a hoagie and handed it to him on the way out. He THREW it at her and started screaming and cursing, he wanted cash so he could go buy cigarettes, drugs or booze. Screw that.

Still my favorite -

I was at a stoplight in Minneapolis and watched a dude holding a cardboard “Kids2Feed” sign put it into his backpack and pull out a “Homeless Vet” sign. It hit me, they are like fishermen and if the first presented bait doesn’t work, try a different one.

I usually have Cliff bars in my car and if I see a dude who is obviously in rough shape, I’ll give him some food. It is telling though, you can really see the difference between the ones who are really in a bad way (I assume with severe mental illness) and those who like like they put on their ‘homeless’ uniform that morning.

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin1069:

I was at a stoplight in Minneapolis and watched a dude holding a cardboard “Kids2Feed” sign put it into his backpack and pull out a “Homeless Vet” sign.

It hit me, they are like fishermen and if the first presented bait doesn’t work, try a different one.

Next trick > bring out a dog.

I lived for years in a small town south of Houston (Pearland). I commuted north into Houston for work on Telephone road (Of Steve Earle’s song fame). Telephone Rd passed under the beltway just north of Pearland. There was an intersection there that was always staked out by panhandlers with chairs and ice coolers. Periodically, when I was early, I would see the panhandlers exiting a window van. Sometimes on the way home I would see the van picking them up at the end of their “shift”.

Looked like a well organized business that had busy intersections identified for their operations. There were service stations close for restroom use . I assume the van could circulate bring needed supplies.

Probably had some kind franchise set up organized by some MBAs.

Years ago in Chicago I was finished working and went to go eat. Guy comes up to me with his hands raised and asked for money for food. He had his hands raised as if to signal he wasn't a threat. I told him I didn't have any money but I'm going to dinner and would buy him a burger, fries and drink. He accepted the offer and we went to some hole in the wall and had dinner. Said he'd been in construction and got laid off and sleeps on the CTA trains at night to stay warm.

These days I don't engage with them, many are crazy and violent. The victim was someone I knew:

https://www.wftv.com/news/loca...TA5APNDBHP6SCSA5ZSM/

He ended up dying a couple months later. Knowing him, he engaged the pan handler and likely told him something along the lines of, "go get a job, you fucking bum!" I especially don't get into it with someone who has nothing to lose. The guy ended up sneaking behind him one morning when he was opening the gates to the reserve center. Slashed and stabbed him. He either ended up dying of sepsis or suicide, we were never told.

There was an intersection not too far from me that had a guy panhandling nearly every day . He was mentally and physically handicapped . One day he got out into the street and was killed . Turns out somebody was dropping him off there and taking the money he collected .

I remember the "squeegee guys" in NYC in the late '70's. We'd make a right turn off the Willis Ave bridge into the Bronx from Manhattan. My dad would have to yell "fuck off" to explain he preferred not to partake of their "service". They left the windshield dirtier than before.

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
Turns out the same panhandler wearing the same hard hat and same vest was there with the same broken fan belt peddling the same bullshit story.

I flew frequently to LAX for years, used the same rental car agency and pumped gas at the same Shell station, etc.

A panhandler approaches me asking for gas money...."I used to play with Magic Johnson....I need to get to the Staples Center......" Yada yada yada.

A few weeks pass and I'm back down in LA with the same routine....Same guy approaches me with his story of being Magic's best friend....I called him out on the story. He quickly stops talking and walks away.

I guess he's just playing the odds that someone will give him money.

On a related note. I wonder why so few of these panhandlers hold signs reading "Looking for full-time employment, clean police records, willing to pee for a drug test?"

quote:

Originally posted by kz1000:

I remember the "squeegee guys" in NYC in the late '70's.

I remember the ones who used an "iffen rag" to wipe your windshield.

"Iffen" you tipped them, they would use the clean side of the rag.

quote:

Originally posted by kz1000:
I remember the "squeegee guys" in NYC in the late '70's. We'd make a right turn off the Willis Ave bridge into the Bronx from Manhattan. My dad would have to yell "fuck off" to explain he preferred not to partake of their "service". They left the windshield dirtier than before.

I remember back in the late 80s or early 90s a story on the news about a young lady who was doing this, I think right outside the Holland tunnel.
When the news found out about her they did an interview. She said she was doing it for money to go to collage. They asked if she thought she might get hurt or beat up and she said something like the other squeegee guys protect me.
Only saw the story once and never found out how long she did this for.

quote:

Originally posted by smschulz:


Then says (after still ignoring him): "You're going to Hell"
I reply: "Probably after I push your ass into traffic!"

Fixed it for ya!

Would have been funny as hell watching him get out of his chair and run!

quote:

Originally posted by Russ59:
On a related note. I wonder why so few of these panhandlers hold signs reading "Looking for full-time employment, clean police records, willing to pee for a drug test?"

The first time I lived in Houston, I saw one holding a sign that said [paraphrase] Not gonna lie, need beer money [/paraphrase]

Here, you see at least 2 cars give them bills at every single stop light. It doesn't help them, it just contributes to their alcoholism, drug addiction or both. It also encourages more and more of them. I had a friend that would give them 1 ounce bottles of booze.....LOL