The fire dept Santa was/is a big thing. They publish when he’ll be around neighborhoods and people get out of their houses with their kids and wave to Santa. I’m pretty sure I know the cashiers you speak of at the Publix.
They know me and my partner and always call us by name and inquire about my brother and his kids. (My niece is the spitting image of Merida from Disney’s “Brave” with hip length red hair) It’s a good place to live.
I also like what the city is doing at older 'burbs. They’re putting in bike and jogging lanes and all connected to the new Library and ‘youth center/gym/pool’ thing.
I was just thinking, “Young Black Man driving a “White Man’s Car” in Alabama?” Blimey, I’m cynical.
… Also the fact that he could have ridden a bike the distance about 2 hours. I’ll assume he’s more familiar with the cars and roads in the area than I am, and that walking those roads at those hours was probably safer.
It has a happy ending so it must be a fairy tale. We can tell it is a fairy tale because (as others have noted re him not being shot):
When they heard his story, the officers decided to take him to breakfast at Whataburger and made sure he got something for lunch, too.
The world needs more fairy tales and more happy endings.
From reports I’ve been reading, Amazon expects the elderly to walk that distance during a shift. I’d be shocked to find they give a fig how they got there.
I was reading that a lot of times there is a tipping point where just one crisis is what leaves people homeless or hopelessly poor. Some times they can claw back up from that, but if they had just enough for an emergency grant to get a car fixed or rent paid etc they could keep on their feet.
Personally if I were to start a charity, it would be a network of getting cars to people. Take in donations, fix them up, and distribute them on a need basis. They would be beaters mostly, I am sure, but they would get you to work. And the ability to work beyond what the bus or walking can take you is another way to escape poverty - as let’s be honest, the jobs in the poor areas usually aren’t very good (that’s one reason they are poor areas.)
Thought i had commented on this last night, but this story reminds me of my own struggles when I was in my 20’s and I don’t look back at it fondly as it was a difficult time. Though I’m deeply grateful for the people who came into my life that helped me out when I needed it the most and everything seemed helpless. Stories like these make me smile and give me hope because people like this that just want to work their ass off and are humble about their day to day really deserve gestures of kindness. I myself always try to help people that are struggling because I see myself in their situation and I can never repay what others did for me.
This particular story worked out, but don’t forget that it took this turn when the cops decided they should question him for walking at 4am. He basically won the lottery of baseless police questioning.
I disagree. Someone walking between towns at that time is unusual, their car could’ve broken down, they could be experiencing some other emergency, or any number of things. It’s also unsafe as he could’ve gotten hit by a car, stopping him and asking him why he was walking was not just kind but necessary.
Exactly. Hate to be a cynic, but it’s true. These are akin to the “look at the cool cop sharing a popsicle with the neighborhood kids!!” stories. Yeah, great. Meanwhile they are absolutely running amok, shooting unarmed people, confiscating people’s money and property, etc etc
Still better than ‘torture porn’ or ‘trauma porn,’ IMO; some folks need to hear stories about people not giving up, in order to keep going themselves.
There’s something to be said for people who complain about this. Would they prefer their days and news be filled with tragedy and misery? I’m a jaded person but damn complaining about a genuinely heartwarming story is something else
They say misery loves company for a reason, I guess; negativity can also be an addiction.
Same here; I’m generally cynical as fuck.
So just imagine how odd it feels for me to be playing the role of ‘cheerleader’ nowadays… but the alternative is giving into despair and hopelessness, and I just fuckin’ REFUSE.
‘Just lay down and die’ isn’t an option in my playbook.
You’re right. I used to have insomnia and would get harassed by police for taking walks around 4am, and they usually weren’t checking if I was okay. (Apparently I look just like the description of someone who was spotted breaking into houses nearby for several years running in two states…) But, in this case I’ll give 'em the benefit of the doubt.
Not at all, we watch lots of cute animal videos.
Are you able to reach out to other libraries via inter library loan or the county to supplement?
The new thing seems to be county-wide library systems where the collection is spread across multiple libraries, and you have to put in a hold and have the book shipped to your pickup point. (Unless you’re close to one of the large “main” libraries).
It’s an interesting concept… you save $ on duplication at the expense of wait times
It’s possible he didn’t have access to a bike. Not everyone does.
Awesome story! I too would like more of these.
He probably doesn’t have a bike (nor access to one). That’s the thing about living in a car culture…
I didn’t have a car or bike for years. Can confirm not having either blows but is an easy circumstance to find yourself in.
Alternate headline - Alabama cops pick up black student, take him to Whataburger then work