Day Eight: Austin

Oh it's on big boy, it's on like donkey kong

I decided to write about today instead of day six because the events of today were pretty extraordinary in my opinion and I want to write while they're still fresh in my mind. Today we ventured into the short north area with my good friend Ethan Newman who's brother is the inspiration for our whole project. We set up two blocks north of Yoga on High right across from Magnolia Thunderpussy, which is a record store. To our left was a big stone building that had very few windows and made for a terrific spot to set up. Across the street, hanging out on the sidewalk, was a group of 6 or 7 men who all looked to be pretty poor.

So we sat at this spot and waited. Our first few questions were merely about the stand, general curiosity. Then a man from the other side of the street who had been looking at us for sometime came over. He asked what we were about and asked general introductory questions. His name is Red. Red is a man about my height (5' 7'') but deffinately has a mix of races to his background. He has a bald head, dark skin, and a lot, I mean a lot, of freckles. Red promised that if we gave him a dollar, that he would tell us everything there was to know about Columbus, his service in the military, and anything in general about his life. I gave him the dollar and asked what he could tell me about Columbus, more specifically High Street. Red pointed to the large condos they were building down the street and asked "how much you think those things are going for? Hundred thousand at least." He remarked that Major Michael Coleman thinks the only way to make a city better is to build nice condos. Those condos weren't going to help regular people at all. I think he saw it as an invasion on his home. As an official kicking out. I asked if he knew what investment would make the city better. "I think I'm gonna go think about that." He went and bought his smokes and sat over on the other side.

Some other guys came over and asked the eight ball questions about their girlfriends, whether they were gonna get paid, and if they were going to have a good day. Once those guys had finished, Red came back over across the street and asked us "Did you know that sittin over there, there's a convicted murderer and a child molester? How does that make you feel?" Talk about blowing my 18 year old prep school mind. All three of us looked at one another with bewilderment. I asked him why he told us and how he felt about sitting over there with people he knew had committed crimes our society pretty universally judge as unforgivable. He also was at a loss for words. He didn't want to disclose details, but he did comment that one of the crimes was understandable with context, but the other was not. "Why a child, something so innocent and pure?" No one knew the answer, we were all pretty baffled.

After a couple more comments, Red again returned to the other side of the street. Just as Red had left, we were addressed by a man who's watch would give Chris Gardner's a run for its money (and a pinky ring to boot). He said he liked what we were doing, liked our stand, even called us "hustlers". After talking to us and finding out a little more, he explained that he was a starting this new TV network thingy and he wanted to let us know if we wanted to shoot some videos and help out with the project (he told us of his high ambitions and told us how we could play a part). He wanted us, the three of us, to shoot video for him and send it in for one part of the network. He even invites us to see the studio. A little weary of the validity of what's going on, we follow him to the studio, which indeed gave the impression of authenticity. The opportunity was really cool and exciting, but the thing which really struck me was the stark difference in person one can meet on one street corner just by answering questions, honestly.