The Man Who Can't Be Moved

Day 61

Day 61, July 11th

Archie told me today that he thinks I’m in love with Mally. I didn’t have the heart to remind him why I was on the corner. He seemed so excited about it. I just told him that I wasn’t and that he should mind his own business.

Mally brought me another magazine with Claryse’s picture on it. As I see the pictures, I’m realizing that Mally is prettier than Claryse. Claryse wears too much makeup and too few clothes. She tries too hard to make people notice her. Mally is just a person. She just…is. I told her that she should never change, but she didn’t know what I was talking about.

We’re running low on money because we’ve had to buy food for Bernard, but we still gave what we had to Mike to help with his surgery. We told everyone that offered us money that most of it would go to Mike. That made a few people tell Mike that they were donating money to his cause. One woman gave him $1000. He sat down on the curb and cried after that.

Mike has taken up permanent residence on our corner during the day. He stands watch over us and keeps tab on the crowd – and Archie. Archie hasn’t tried any big thefts lately, but he told me last week that he’d nicked a few dollars off a man. Mike didn’t hear that part.

The crowd like Mike as much as they like me, Mally and Archie. They consider him to be a big part of the whole deal. I think he likes feeling important.