TENT CITY

Image borrowed from Wales Online

A fictional monologue based on a true story

Who would be a Park Ranger eh?

I knows you fat arsed bluebirds won't have a word said against your home. It was meant to be Swansea that is 'the pretty shitty city ' but let me tell you Cardiff pushes it close.

Oh City of Concrete!

" there are some tent dwellers who refuse to engage"

Tent Dweller? So I am a Bedouin Arab now and this is my oasis. Halfway between the Museum and the University Building.

No Man's land because it is literally that.

You know what my theory is, Cardiff City FC are cursed.

There was only one way they were going after that guy from Nantes went down in the drink.

Instead of arguing the toss, they should have given the 15 million to his family.

Cursed, as I am cursed.

It wasn't really my stuff, it was stuff that other people had given me.

You have to engage with services under a roof.

I tell you what has happened. One of these wankers inside has gone to the window dinnertime and seen me out here in the lovely sunshine making a daisy chain, seen me out here in the fresh air with all my freedom to do what I want while he's cooped up in there and he's thought to himself that's not fair. "why should he be out there cavorting and playing like a spring lamb and me stuck in here with my air conditioning and plastic sandwiches?"

I cannot believe these Park Rangers though. They were Park Keepers back in the day. Duty bound to keep the Park and all their inhabitants 'safe'

"Let me take you by the hand and lead you through the streets of Cardiff, I'll show you something that will make you change your mind."

Yo Stevie guy, over here, got any tobacco? Got anything to drink? I am vexed man. I will pay you back, you know that!

I want my stuff back

How can they take my stuff?

That’s stuff that people gave to me.

Stuff that people donated to me.

There’s a lot of animosity against beggars and the homeless community.

This is a really dangerous time to be homeless in Britain.

A tale of two cities

Cardiff and Liverpool where the Councils want us off the streets.

Where the Labour Councils are confiscating our tents.

Keir Starmer can you hear me?

It’s the ones that walk around that make most money

It’s the ones with the dogs.

You put people on the spot.

There is some element of manipulation involved.

Getting official numbers is complicated

Your gonna put me in a hostel with hand bag robbers and drunks, oh no you’re not.

45 Sleepers & 108 Beggars.

Who cares if I am fake homeless and taking people for a ride?

Who cares and who should care?

What if I told you that I used to be a professional footballer?

Would you believe me then?

Or would you automatically assume that I was psychotic perhaps?

Perhaps suffering from delusions of grandeur?

But what if I could produce a football card from the late nineties and early noughties that shows that I was a Second division Professional Footballer?

I mean what division is Homeless?

What division would you put me in?

Because you are judgemental?

You are human therefore you judge?

I’m not a sofa surfer

I’m not staying with friends

It’s because they don’t want to put off tourists from coming here.

They are just moving beggars out of sight

For the Tourists

They are using a law from over 100 years ago to convict somebody of begging.

48 hour dispersal

Everybody is out for a quick fix