I guess I live in Cloverdale now!

[Jimmy Beans]

So, I'm driving along 101 passing the Willits offramp, I see a person sitting criss cross apple sauce on the southbound on ramp, wrapped in a blanket. I'm going 65 and already passing the offramp so I go another couple miles, flip around and go back for them.

Hard times for the hitchhiker these days, I rubberneck those onramps from the highway just in case I can help someone. So I pull up, lean my head out the window and ask "are you hitchhiking?" Because though she's on an onramp, she has no sign or thumb out.

She says "umm, nah I'm good. Just trying to get some food". Odd place to look for food, there's nothing here but an onramp/offramp in the outskirts and a fruit vendor across the road from her. Ok maybe she's trying to eat some fruit idk, whatever.

She then asks where I'm going. Santa Cruz, but stopping in Point Reyes first to buy a banjo from a guy on Craigslist. So if you're hungry, I can buy you some fruit? "Umm, nah I'm good, but you're going to Santa Cruz?" Yeah, that's where I'm headed. "Alright, I'll ride with you!

She loads up, we start on down the highway. Decent conversation, she's a traveler, likes the same music things are kinda nice it's a really pleasant ride. About an hour down the road she asks if she can smoke weed. Sure! She pulls out a shriveled up tangerine? Dried to a crisp, looks like shit. She's using this for a bowl apparently.

She mentioned needing to stop somewhere to buy a pipe. Further down the road coming into Cloverdale the truck starts overheating. I know what it is, it's been happening the last couple days. The radiator has some sort of leak, antifreeze gets low and I need to top it off.

I have GPS directing me to Santa Cruz, mainly because it tells me where the speed traps are. I can find my way just fine. Anyway, I pull off into Cloverdale, and the GPS is trying to route me back to the highway. I'm ignoring it and just trying to find a gas station.

She says in an irritated tone "you just do what it tells you? People just listen to this device and you go where it says? This is a trap, they lead you into traps this is obviously a trap!" I'm like what? If you pay attention you'll notice I'm actually not doing anything it's telling me, it's trying to reroute me back but I'm ignoring it and looking for a gas station.

"Sorry, if I sound mad at you I'm not. I'm really mad at Elon Musk!" Ohh, ok? I keep driving looking for gas. She starts in again about the GPS telling me what to do. "I guess this is what rich people do" I'm like what? You think I'm rich? I just told you I'm homeless. "Yeah but just the fact you have this truck" ohh, this 1991 Toyota that's been rolled twice and it shows? That means I'm rich? "Yeah, you're rich all I have is a blanket".

I pull over, my thermostat is nearly redline. I Google gas stations, it's not far. I drive ahead more but now the gauge is full on red line. Fuck, I pull over again. This is in the middle of town mind you, not some back count road.

I pull up next to a park. She starts in again about this is all a trap. I'm like hey dude look at the temp gauge, see that? I gotta put antifreeze in and then we'll be fine the rest of the way. "Oh, perfect I guess I live in Cloverdale now. I guess I live in Cloverdale!" She jumps out and removes her things and walks into the park.

I put some antifreeze in, got gas, drove to Point Reyes, bought a banjo and traveled on. I guess that chick lives in Cloverdale now. Good luck Joanna. Good luck Cloverdale.

 

[Deleted member 24782]

GOOD STORY GOOD MORNING!

This I why I typically don't pick up anyone unless there THUMB is out, but hey whatever!

 

[Deleted member 125]

It didnt immediately occur to me on the phone last night but reading it now this sounds alot like meth.

Glad yer safe homie!

 

[Claude]

At least you were the one driving. A guy picked me up once who was on acid and thought he was driving a chariot! Of course I didn't realise it at first, but when the gauge hit 80+ on a rainy night and he started hooting and hollering and calling the horses by name I figured it out real fast! I finally convinced him to let me out, but he scared the hell out of me. Last time I hitched at night. From them on I wanted to see the whites of their eyes before I got in the car!

 

[roguetrader]

we picked up a hitchhiker in the North of England once, and agreed to take him 200 miles down the motorway.... he turned out to be a hardcore activist Road Protestor, which were abundant at that time, and despite being theoretically on the same side he gave us a mountain of shit about being foolish dupes of the capitalist system - chiefly coz we were owning /driving a car - but the main thing that got to him was that my girlfriend had borrowed a (just released) Tamagochi and was fiddling with it while I drove - this capitalist object sent him into an unbelievable rage and after a mega rant about how stupid she was for playing with it, I suggested he get out of the car at the next exit, a long way from his destination.... he kinda shut up after that but I was glad when we finally got rid of him...

another time I picked up a guy who hitchhiked as a hobby - he had a little book in which he wrote a brief description of the journey and driver - he said I was his 2000 and something ride so he must have been doing it for years

 

[Hazardoussix6six]

Tamagochi sic lol that's not capitalist that's nostalgia

 

[roguetrader]

this was mid 90s when Tamagochi were fresh on the scene....

 

[Desperado Deluxe]

It's really common for a lot of homeless people to have weird quirks like that because they get messed with. CA has been really bad for that the past few years. I went through a spell of it myself where people would just bug the hell out of me wherever I went, made me really paranoid and miserable. And trust me I've been through every conceivable thing in my head as to not let it bother me but when your confined to a region with whatever business I had going on, not being able to just leave town it'll drive you crazy.
People think it's like a choice or something. Even if you have a job it's still really hard to find a place to go or acquire lodging or at least some stability and peace of mind without some kind of help.
I feel really bad for female bodied "home free" folks because they're on the top of predators lists. And trust me there's a lot of predators here in ca. Many of which are not homeless and enabled through privilege. If they're not outright preying on you they're accusing you of whatever sick crap is going on in their head and in turn messing with you.
The social climate is really crappy in CA.

 

[AyeAaron]

Thus is life, between years of homelessness, drifting and being involved in the psychedelic scene, I'm all too used to dealing with crazy

Seeing the erratic behavior of others has at least taught me to manage my own public face somewhat

 

[Beegod Santana]

This kinda sounds like someone I know...