beckyblanton » Film

It’s Okay to Be Alone

Becky Blanton — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 00:04:19 +0000

It’s okay to be alone. Many homeless people are – even when they are part of a family. It is okay to be a “party of one” at a restaurant, to take up a table for four when the buffet line is crowded. It is okay to see a movie without turning to comment to a friend about something you noticed or thought or found immensely funny. It’s okay to laugh out loud even if there is no one to hear.

A friend of mine shared this marvelous YouTube video with me on “It’s okay to be alone,” and I sighed happily. Someone else gets it too.

Someone else understands that rain on the roof of a car at night is comforting because it means the police will leave me alone all night. They hate to get out in a downpour to roust the homeless from an all night parking spot. Okay, maybe she doesn’t understand that – but she sounds like she’d understand the patter and ping of rain bouncing off a car roof, the thunder of a downpour, the hiss and trickle as a thunderstorm fades into a steady drizzle.

Someone else understands that park benches, a rock in the sun, a spot under a shade tree on a hot day, the solitude of a shower – time stolen to soap and soak – is precious.

I’m so glad to have seen this and so happy to share it.

United BREAKS Guitars

Becky Blanton — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 06:13:15 +0000

United Breaks Guitars

Ever wanted to really stick it to an airline or company who screwed you over, broke something, or caused you undue grief? This band did – writing a VERY catchy song after United AIrlines broke their guitars, then passed the buck in admitting they were wrong. I’m sure the resulting viral song will be around a long time. Lesson? DO THE RIGHT THING.

Never Walk Away

Becky Blanton — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:00:09 +0000

Three years ago Jess Hess began filming a homeless man in Corvallis, Oregon. Jess told me:

“Corvallis has been recognized as one of the best places to live in the US on numerous occasions. It’s also been recognized as one of the smartest places in the US. What I found is that, in Corvallis, the homeless are not invisible, rather they are seen and disparaged. The local shelter (incorporated) does not allow anyone suffering from alcoholism to stay there and it’s well publicized.

As the executive director puts it “We only take in people who want to change their lives.” While the intent is honestly to help those most likely to change their lives, thereby getting the most out of the donated dollars that run the shelter, an unacknowledged result of this characterization is that the people remaining on the street are seen as people who have chosen to be there.

Corvallis has made watch lists for violence against it’s homeless population. A fraternity member shot a homeless man looking for cans behind his fraternity. Three youths beat another homeless man to death. There’s a city ordinance against ‘illegal camping’ that other cities have struck down as unconstitutional.

What I came to appreciate, albeit from behind a camera, is the unique misery visited upon these people in knowing how they are perceived and reviled by the majority of the house who populate the city. How this weighs upon them without articulation except through escape into a bottle, and how this only perpetuates the entire cycle.

In many ways, Corvallis is a city that is lost. The pinnacle of what we’ve achieved as a society that has compartmentalized empathy to a social service job.”

Jess is hoping his film will be a conduit for dialogue and discussion. Anything you might do to help spread the word about this project would be most appreciated. You can watch the trailer and find out more at http://www.neverwalkaway.com