guy in powderhouse

[jd-science.livejournal.com]

does anyone know anything about the guy who hangs out in powderhouse circle, talking to passersby and yelling a lot? i think his name might be mike. i can rarely understand him - sometimes he's aggressive and nice, sometimes he's aggressive and scary. he seems fairly harmless, but i wonder where he sleeps and how he eats, and generally what his story is.

Comments

[anotherjen.livejournal.com]

I've only seen him yelling very angrily. I've never seen him being nice either.

[elusiveat.livejournal.com]

My perception is that he is very frustrated by the difficulties he has in communicating. He is lonely, and approaches people, but his behavior makes them uncomfortable (it's certainly made me uncomfortable at times) and so they look away, or ignore him. This gets him agitated and/or angry. If he pays attention to me, I make a point of smiling, and sometimes flash him a "peace sign," and he doesn't give me too much trouble.

[vanguardcdk.livejournal.com]

I think sometimes he gets in a vicious circle:
1. he's lonely and wants to communicate but has problems and scares people,
2. then he gets angry becuase nobody will talk to him so he gets louder and harder to understand
3. this just scares people more and he gets avoided more
4. he gets angrier/more frustrated becuase nobody will talk to him

Cycle repeats...

[elusiveat.livejournal.com]

I agree. Since he doesn't have the tools to step back, understand the cycle, and mediate his actions, it's sort of up to the rest of us to decide how to deal with it. Just smiling at him as you pass can be an important step toward decelerating the circle.

[anotherjen.livejournal.com]

Good idea. I'll try to be friendlier next time I encounter him.