The Weather Outside Is Frightful
We are bracing for another sub-freezing night on the Florida Panhandle. I’ve got lights on concrete pads for the feral cats, moved tropical plants inside, and built a “tent” for my Mother’s goldfish pond, which should protect both the fish and any cats who chose to go inside.
What I can’t do is fix the lack of shelter space for the homeless. We have fewer housing units than ever because of the hurricane, and shelters are already strained to capacity because some of the facilities were also damaged by the storm.
One shelter manager said that after all the pews in their chapel were filled all he could do was offer people a blanket and an MRE [Meal Ready to Eat, military rations].
Our homeless tend to have jobs, but they can’t afford the local housing because all most no affordable housing has been built in years. If you are employed and don’t have a drug dependency there is no assistance available.
Welcome to Red America.
[Edit for a typo]
