The skies are always grey in this town. Years of the steel mills and foundery's cranking out industrial waste into the sky have turned it from blue to something not as bright.

I awoke to the rain on my face. It wouldn't be the first time, and I'm pretty sure it won't be the last. I hate the days that start like this. I made my way out of the cematary were I had been sleeping and onto the street. As I was walking down one particular artery of the West Side, a kid and his girlfriend stop me. I don't recognize them, but they do me.

I bullshit with them for a minute, until a kid walks up to us. He looks at the kid talking to me and says, "Don't take no offense to this but...." and decks the goon in the face. The goon staggers after just one punch and says he doesn't want a fight. The black kid turns to me and I flash him the crazy white boy look. He tells me, " I don't want none from you", turns to the goon and says, " You a bitch though." and walks away. I do the same. I don't know these people, much less care.

I make my way to the train station and start in on the old spare changing. If you didn't already know, when you spare change you, big surprise, ask people for spare change. After about an hour the cops tell me to move along. No matter, I've made enough for a bottle of wine and some cheap smokes.

I spend the rest of the day doing the same thing. Spare changing, buying cheap booze, then repeating the process when the bottle runs dry. I hate who I've become and I need a change.

I decide to make my way to a friends house, but to do so requires me to get on a bus. As I wait for the bus, a woman comes into the shelter. She's a clucker. I can tell by her eyes. She keeps telling me how bad she has to pee, but can't miss the bus. I just ignore her, until I look in her general direction, and see that she's taking a piss not but a foot from where I'm standing. I get up and walk to the bus stop before that one. When I'm about ten feet away, a cop rolls up on the shelter with it's lights on. Makes me glad I can stand up to piss.

I get off at 98th and proceed as planned. The house might as well be abondoned. No power, water, or heat. Makes me feel right at home. We sit around drinking until the wee house of the morning. Somewhere around 2 o'clock, dude bro gets his hair set on fire, and a fight ensues. I make my way back to the street and proceed to the park. I'm drunk. Mission accomplished. Now I will find a nook in wall of a factory, or a sucluded spot in the park to sleep. Tommarrow brings another day. Another bottle. Another chance at life. I need to stop throwing away my chances.