James Richardson (SF)

About:
Despite adversity, James is a happy person. He occasionally panhandles to make sure he doesn't ever starve, with a very friendly approach and smile. James is pretty fit for his age, not that you tell under his layers of clothes, but what he will tell you is that he is very self-conscious about his missing teeth. If you say no he happily wishes you a good day. A cancer survivor. James had a former life as a glass blower and owned three houses, including 10 acres of land on Hawaii. At age 38 he was at his physical peak, and even fell in the 20% percentile in a Spartan race.

Falling down:
In 2010, James met the love of his life. Alisea. He was swept off his feet and adored her despite her addiction to certain substances. Sadly heroin would soon kill her. James lost one job and poured his money into a glass blowing shop, only to have it broken into and everything stolen. He turned to heroin, he had cancer, his own father stole from him, and gradually he liquidated what he owned to pay off debts, including a single night in the ER which cost him $20,000. Yes, America really is like that. Currently his only possessions are stored in a green backpack, which he says is less likely to be stolen, he can sit on it and it keeps him fit. His most treasured possession is a journey that he keeps to talk to god and write down ideas and events from each day. James he never steals anymore, he once stole from big stores like Target but he apologizes and panhandles near the WholeFoods sometimes. He feels slightly bad for panhandling, but he says you learn to lose your pride pretty quickly on the streets.

Family:
After years of not talking, James is now finally close to his mother, but not his father. James has a son and daughter. He hasn’t seen his daughter for 5 years, but he is happy that he can chat to her over text. By writing a book he hopes to make his daughter proud.

Aspirations:
James has come off drugs, all drugs except methadone (the drug to help you off drugs) and weed (the drug pretty much everyone in SF uses, even before it became legal). James hopes to get back onto his feet by getting a job at a glassblowing place, and often applies for work. He tells me he had a job interview yesterday, but he could tell that they judged him the second they saw his teeth. He has an appointment to have all his remaining teeth pulled out and hopes to get dentures so people can no longer reject him based on his mouth. James wants to be seen as an equal. James is a dreamer and loves writing. He is writing two books, one on human kindness and another one as fiction. He hopes to publish and his book on kindness goes big. He also wants to co-authoring this book, and that particular goal seems the most achievable for now. If you are reading it, then this one goal has been fulfilled. With a job and a little luck he hopes to see his daughter again.