More random thoughts
So I've been riding the subway a lot which I'm sure is not surprising, but I've made some observations. People always seem to be falling asleep as they ride. They ride along with their eyes closed, usually listening to their ipod, and don't look up at the stations that the train arrives at. I keep thinking that they are going to miss their stop, but I guess they've been taking that route long enough that they know how many times the train will stop and so don't need to pay attention.
But I was wondering why so many people ride with their eyes closed. I mean, the ride of the train isn't all that soothing. A few days ago I figured it out because I did it myself. It's so you don't have to stare at the other passengers. If your riding for longer than two stops you run out of ads to read. They only way to keep from staring at random people is to close your eyes and pretend to nap.
I've also been thinking about the homeless or just job-less people. I don't know what to do when I pass them. I don't like to give money to people who aren't doing something for it whether it's singing, playing an instrument, or pretending to be a statue that only moves when you deposit money in their hat. The problem is I don't like opening up my purse and wallet on the street. I need to start putting my change in an outside pocket of my purse so that I don't have to open the whole thing to grab a donation. Now if only I could figure out how much I should give.
I also don't know what to do about the people who are just begging. There's no way to know if they've exhausted all job searches and are really desperate and need the money. There's also no way to know if they have given up looking for a job but could find one if they tried. I don't know if I should give them something (although it is illegal for them to panhandle) or not. I haven't but wonder if I should.
Sometimes there's a man outside of Grand Central who has a large container and he announces that he is collecting for the homeless. He makes comments about how we can afford to put in something, even a penny, but I never donate. He isn't wearing a shirt of a particular organization. There's no way to know if he's really collecting for an organization that helps the homeless or if he is homeless and the money is for him, or if he's just looking for easy money. I feel bad just walking by, but since I can't know for sure where the money would be going I don't feel comfortable donating anything.
I guess that's enough rambling. I'll update again later.
But I was wondering why so many people ride with their eyes closed. I mean, the ride of the train isn't all that soothing. A few days ago I figured it out because I did it myself. It's so you don't have to stare at the other passengers. If your riding for longer than two stops you run out of ads to read. They only way to keep from staring at random people is to close your eyes and pretend to nap.
I've also been thinking about the homeless or just job-less people. I don't know what to do when I pass them. I don't like to give money to people who aren't doing something for it whether it's singing, playing an instrument, or pretending to be a statue that only moves when you deposit money in their hat. The problem is I don't like opening up my purse and wallet on the street. I need to start putting my change in an outside pocket of my purse so that I don't have to open the whole thing to grab a donation. Now if only I could figure out how much I should give.
I also don't know what to do about the people who are just begging. There's no way to know if they've exhausted all job searches and are really desperate and need the money. There's also no way to know if they have given up looking for a job but could find one if they tried. I don't know if I should give them something (although it is illegal for them to panhandle) or not. I haven't but wonder if I should.
Sometimes there's a man outside of Grand Central who has a large container and he announces that he is collecting for the homeless. He makes comments about how we can afford to put in something, even a penny, but I never donate. He isn't wearing a shirt of a particular organization. There's no way to know if he's really collecting for an organization that helps the homeless or if he is homeless and the money is for him, or if he's just looking for easy money. I feel bad just walking by, but since I can't know for sure where the money would be going I don't feel comfortable donating anything.
I guess that's enough rambling. I'll update again later.
posted by Anne @ 6:01 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home