Happy Belated Veteran's Day

Since yesterday was Veteran's Day, I first just want to thank all of the veterans that I've known or to which I'm related. You all deserve our gratitude and thanks, and I hope you all had a wonderful day. Now, I have a couple of observations regarding this observance.

First, one of the things I've gotten used to while working downtown is the large number of "homeless" people occupying the streets of downtown Indy. (I put "homeless" in quotes for a reason which will be apparent later.) When I was younger, I don't ever remember seeing individuals asking for food, money or beer out on the streets of downtown Indy. In fact, the first time I really remember seeing a homeless individual was on a trip to San Francisco, a city which has turned homelessness into a viable profession.

What struck me yesterday was that suddenly every person asking for a handout downtown just also happened to be a veteran. While I don't doubt that some of these individuals are, indeed, veterans, I strongly suspect that some were of dubious intent.

Secondly, Erin, out of the kindness of her heart, gave a full bag of tortilla chips to a guy in the median near our local Costco yesterday. She felt bad for him, so in the spirit of giving, she gave him a bag of chips the size of a garden leaf bag. (It was from Costco, you know.)

A few moments later, she spotted her bag of chips still in the median (opened, but not empty), and the "homeless" individual who had asked for help was boarding a nearby city bus. And not only was he boarding, but he was hooking a rather nice bicycle to the bike rack on the front. The discarded, barely touched bag of chips and the nice bicycle might suggest that this individual wasn't as hungry as he initially seemed.

So I realize it's the spirit of the act which counts, but those were supposed to be MY tortilla chips. I'M THE ONE who now doesn't get TORTILLA CHIPS with my lunch next week.

Apparently there was some discussion amongst the occupants of Erin's vehicle as to whether she should have stopped to retrieve the partially eaten bag of chips.

Let me make something clear. I don't really want to eat from a bag of chips that my kid's hands have been in, let alone some lying sack of, well, tortilla chips who was hanging out in the median of a local city street. I'll take my bag of chips unopened, thank you. (And I really prefer Pringles anyway, if you want to know the truth.)