[identity profile] copperpoint.livejournal.com posting in [community profile] davis_square
So who knows anything about Mike? Not Mike of Mike's Pizza, but Mike the strange, incomprehensible, belligerent (and sometimes drunk) man who wanders college ave and broadway shouting at people? He's yelled at me and followed me down the block, and also just flashed me the two finger peace sign as I walked by. I've seen shout at tufts students, and also be very nice to small children.
Anyway, that's my question for the night.

what people had to say in April 2007

Date: 2008-06-09 12:37 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] m-b-w.livejournal.com
http://community.livejournal.com/davis_square/824542.html

Date: 2008-06-09 01:25 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] rikchik.livejournal.com
I think you've just explained him entirely, in your post.

Date: 2008-06-09 02:45 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] gwodder.livejournal.com
just another one of those humans like anybody else is in a situation most people could never picture themselves in

Date: 2008-06-09 02:46 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] gwodder.livejournal.com
i'd like to retract the word 'just' from the previous post.


thanks,

gwodder

Date: 2008-06-09 04:19 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] infinitemorning.livejournal.com
I find him rather frightening, honestly. I've seen him in 'nice' mode once, when he was sitting outside the church on College Avenue (not the UCC, Methodist or Baptist churches...I want to say it's the Unity Church of God or something?) talking with someone who seemed to be acting in a supervisory capacity. Otherwise he's extremely intimidating and I'm glad I haven't run into him in a few months.

I get the impression most people just put up with him as a bit of local color, and I was fine with that until I went back and read those other posts and found out that he's followed people home and made actual threats. That is very much not OK. I sympathize with whatever it is he's going through, exactly, but I still wonder if it's really safe to have him out and about like that.

Date: 2008-06-09 05:43 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] ron_newman
Unity Church is on the west side of College Ave, kitty-corner from the UCC (First Congregational). It was once a Christian Science Church.

Date: 2008-06-09 11:21 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] infinitemorning.livejournal.com
Definitely the one I'm thinking of, then.

Date: 2008-06-09 07:07 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xuth.livejournal.com
In the couple of times that I've talked with him and really tried to understand what he was saying, I got the sense that he's most frustrated a) that people can't understand him and b) that people don't treat him as a human being (the latter really bothers him). And that seems to mirror much of what I see in the postings here about him, ie that the people here can't understand him (and without really working at it, it really is difficult) and don't treat him as a human but at best as just a fixture of the neighborhood or the far worse, someone who shouldn't be allowed in the neighborhood.

The biggest problem I have with him is that he really wants your time and sometimes gets mad when you don't give it to him. On at least one occasion this has made it very difficult for me to eat at the restaurants at powderhouse with friends because he knew me and wanted me to pay attention to him and I wasn't.

Date: 2008-06-09 01:39 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] valadil.livejournal.com
I let him talk at me for about 5 minutes at the bus stop in powder house. I couldn't understand a word of it except for "angels," "demons," and "next tuesday." After the rant he spoke somewhat clearly, "thank you for listening, that was very kind of you." He hasn't bothered me since.

Date: 2008-06-09 02:42 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] kalliejenn2.livejournal.com
well hey, he brought us together...so, meh. i can deal w/ him. ;)

Date: 2008-06-09 02:14 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tt02144.livejournal.com
I haven't encountered him personally, but I'm sure it can be a little frightening. He sounds pretty harmless, though. I think this is one of the results of the big push in the 70's and 80's and on to de-institutionalize people with mental health issues who were in state hospitals. It was determined that these people were better off living in the community, and most of the state hospitals have since been closed. This is also when we saw a spike in homelessness. I find it cruel that the state decided to just send these people off into the community to fend for themselves when most are clearly not able to do so. It's sad that these people are just not getting the help they need.

Date: 2008-06-09 04:17 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] xuth.livejournal.com
It has been stated before (I have no reasonable way to confirm this but no reason to doubt it) that he lives in one of the several group homes for MRDD (mentally retarded developmentally disabled) individuals in the area. So he is getting at least some of the help that he needs / deserves. On the other hand, he has a right to go out on his own into the community if he desires and so long as he is not an immediate danger to himself or others even to refuse the care that is offered to him.

The biggest problem (as I see things with the aid of a housemate who works with MRDD individuals) with the deinstitutionalization was that people who had been spoon fed (often literally) all their lives were being pushed into a world that they didn't know how to deal with. And the problem is exacerbated by their caregivers who often perpetuate the problem since it is much easier in the short term just to do something for the individual rather than teach them how to do it for themselves. This often includes even the most basic of basic hygiene such as how to use toilet paper.

P.S.

Date: 2008-06-09 02:16 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] tt02144.livejournal.com
I just noticed that the tag for this item is 'local landscape'. I find this offensive, as if he's some sort of tourist attraction, or perhaps the 'village idiot'. I personally would prefer that the designation be changed.

Re: P.S.

Date: 2008-06-09 02:23 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] abilouise.livejournal.com
I agree. I don't enjoy his company, but maybe "local characters" would be less dehumanizing.

Re: P.S.

Date: 2008-06-09 05:44 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] ron_newman
'local landscape' has become a sort of catch-all for 'urban observations' that don't fit into any other tag. We probably should rename it.

Re: P.S.

Date: 2008-06-10 04:28 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] gwodder.livejournal.com
well from living here several years it does seem like a lot of people wish they could treat the guy like landscape

Re: P.S.

Date: 2008-06-11 05:00 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] ron_newman
Please bring the tagging discussion over here. Thanks.

Re: P.S.

Date: 2008-06-12 12:59 pm (UTC)
From: [personal profile] ron_newman
As a result of your comment and the subsequent discussion, I retagged this (and other similar posts) as local characters.

Date: 2008-06-09 04:34 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] whitefire.livejournal.com
I have lived in Ball Sq for 3 years so I've dealt with him quite a bit. I've found that the best tactic is engagement. If you let him rant at you for like 5 minutes or so that'll be it for months. All you have to do is listen and nod your head and "mmhmm" every so often. It's not too much time, it makes him feel better, and after he does it he generally leaves you alone except for the occasional greeting as you pass by. As long as you return it you'll pass unmolested. I couldn't diagnose him by any means but he is no idiot and he recognizes people very well. He basically just wants acknowledgment that he exists.

That being said, if you are put off by him and the above doesn't seem like a good idea, you can either walk in groups (he's mostly interested in single people) or carry cigarettes as giving him one will make him go away.

Or you could just circumvent Powderhouse Circle entirely.

Date: 2008-06-10 02:39 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] laynamarya.livejournal.com
I agree. He just wants to talk to someone. Yesterday we were both at the bus stop, talked about how hot it was for maybe three minutes, and then he went off in search of more enlightening conversations, perhaps.

I would think it's hard to live in Boston and want to engage with disinterested people all the time.

Date: 2008-06-09 06:46 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] icecreamempress.livejournal.com
I'm torn about interacting with people who display the behaviors Mike often does. On one hand, he's a person who has every right to approach other people in public spaces and invite interactions with them. On the other hand, I've often had interactions with him that started out fine and ended up with me feeling physically and emotionally threatened (and I didn't know that he had followed people home until reading this post--I really doubt he would harm someone, but being followed home is a huge trigger for me and it would send me into a real emotional tailspin).

So I find him a difficult person to interact with. Unfortunately, his behaviors really intersect with my personal hot-buttons of fear and anxiety. My general coping strategy is to greet him very genially and tell him I'm in a hurry and don't have time to talk right now.


Re: the tagging issue: I think "local scene" would encompass both our fellow residents and the physical environment.

Date: 2008-06-09 09:24 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] dylanesque29.livejournal.com
I find him an incredible pain in the ass, and avoid him like the plague. I've never had him get violent or anything towards me. Having said that.....

.....his caretakers (that makes him sound like livestock...living assistants? Home Mental Health Aides? Case Workers? Whatever.) should be fucking ashamed. I was lazily taking the 89 home to Ball Square, and he got on the bus at Davis. The bus driver was barking at him about something (I don't know what, I had headphones on), and he was somewhat more subdued than usual. When he got off the bus at Powderhouse Square, I noticed that his clothes were really filthy, and his pants were falling down, and I mean WAY down, beyond plumber's crack. The bus driver was yelling at him, and some of the other riders were laughing, but I was kind of mortified. Is it so hard for the people who work at this group home to get him a fucking belt and make sure he's got in on before he leaves the house?

Date: 2008-06-10 01:21 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] icecreamempress.livejournal.com
He may not live in a group home at all, but with parents or other relatives whose own issues make it difficult for them to help him with this stuff. I've never asked him what his living situation is.

Date: 2008-06-18 01:51 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] jaypee.livejournal.com
I've actually spent a good bit of time speaking with Mike. I've never seen him drunk, or even drinking. He certainly smokes though. He's never given me a problem, but that's because I talk with him. Sometimes he's more coherent than others. Usually the topic of conversation is how much better it used to be in (insert decade here), as he seems to jump around as to which decade was the best. He's never asked me for anything, and he's never followed me.

Just flash him the peace sign, and say "Hey Mike". He usually just smiles and flashes the peace sign back. If I don't have time to speak with him, I simply say "Sorry Mike, I'm in a hurry, peace", and he smiles, flashes the peace sign, and walks away.

He really isn't a bad guy, he just has some serious communication issues. I think he told me that his mother used to take care of him, but she wasn't around, so he didn't have anyone anymore. I'm not actually sure how he gets food and the like, but he seems to be doing alright, and he's never asked for anything. He's actually offered to buy me coffee a few times. Sometimes I can't understand him at all though, and I just nod and say "Hmmmm".

Date: 2008-07-01 05:28 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ladyraycello.livejournal.com
what does he look like?

Date: 2009-06-09 03:48 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] teele-sq.livejournal.com
if you're still curious what he looks like, you can see photos here:
http://community.livejournal.com/davis_square/1812054.html#cutid1

Date: 2008-07-01 05:40 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] ladyraycello.livejournal.com
what does he look like?

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