Street roots., February 06, 2015, Page 6, Image 6

S tre e t R o o ts
Vendors
Page 6
Magna Coffee
by A ve n d o r
I pour my coffee into the cup
of Saint Nicholas
Where it goes down my throat and
like a geyser
Shoots up into my mind and explodes
like fireworks
Giving off bursts of light...
Which travel fervently downward
From my head into my left hand
That commences reflectively
scrawling
These blue ink words onto paper
That becomes a white tablet
of petrified rock
A modern Magna Carta of art
Thrown together by a 40-year-old boy
As if he had nothing better to do
But he didn’t, did he?
Answers to puzzles on page 15
particular, at a metal finishing plant, refused
to employ him after he went on medical
leave because he hadn’t been given a
qualifying medical release.
Despite the availablility of
welding and blasting
jobs that are easier
on the wrists, the
BY SAM BOUMAN
STA FF W R ITER
plant opted to let
him go. He has
ill Smith sells Street Roots outside
worked as a day
of the bustling Target at Southwest
laborer through
10th Avenue and Taylor Street, a
Labor Ready,
block from the public library, surrounded by
which placed him
the rumble of MAX trains and clanging
in a range of
streetcars. It’s not an easy place to sell,
temporary jobs
given the proximity to other vendors and
from contruction to
panhandlers. However, Will, who started
selling just before Christmas, has seen his
share of good days at the spot and is
optimistic that business will grow,
“I like getting to know people and having
a conversation,” he says.
Aside from the need to get a permanent
place to live, his fondness for people is
what motivates him every morning when
he goes out to his sales spot. He is a
low-key presence on the busy corner
but has done well enough to afford
basic necessities and slowly get to
know his customer base, including
a few regulars who buy from him
every week.
Will was born in South
Dakota, but his family moved to
the Portland area before he can
remember, and he’s lived here
ever since. Experiencing
homelessness in downtown ;
Portland, h e has found it difficult to J-
Will Smith
■
• February 6-12, 2015
warehousing to mopping floors at WinCo.
For a while before selling Street Roots, he
was panhandling to make ends meet, but he
finds that selling the paper not only brings
in more money, but people are also far more
willing to talk to him. He says he has no
plans to quit selling, even after he
housing.
Will spends his spare time reading
and science fiction novels as
as helping people out when he
“There’s a saying that the street
have to stick together,” he
“which they do. You are pretty
much a family when you’re on the
hold down a steady job because of his
carpal tunnel syndrome. One job in
Dignity
Poverty
small
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Please report any errors to our managing
editor, Joanne Zuhl, at 503-228-5657, or write
to joanne@streetroots.org
O ver 6 m illion people worldwide vote for dignity over poverty
when they buy street press. By doing soj<hey help vendors
in 40 countries,, selling over too different titles; to change
th eir lives. In return, readers enjoy quality, independent
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