NICE ONES

‘You waiting for something?’ I said to the man sat outside the printer’s. ‘You want some change?’
‘Thanks.’
He took the pound coin as he stood up talking.
‘I don’t do drugs or the drink and I won’t go into a hostel at night the last one they showed me there were three beds in a room and it was twelve by twelve. I just need the money for food. I sleep on the street I’ve a few places and some where people know me. There’s a man I met was seventy and he’d been on the street since he was sixteen.’
‘That’s a long time.’
‘Yeh, you meet people on the street. There was this man I found lying drunk in his own puke one of the drinkers I know him and I picked him up and leant him against the wall. And this man gave me twenty pounds because I got him to the bus station without him getting mugged.’
‘Nice one,’ I said.
‘There are some good people, good people out there, might stop have a chat, give me some money. I was in Bedminster near Asda’s and over the road is the camping shop Taunton leisure and I went in and said, “you got any sleeping bag I can have?” I didn’t hear the door go behind me but I heard this voice, “what you after?” so I said, “a sleeping bag, it’s getting cold out there,” and he said, “which one do you want?” so I pointed and said, “that one,” and he bought it and gave it to me cost him forty pounds.’
‘Nice one,’ I said.