- [Interviewer] Matty.
- Yo.
- [Interviewer] You're homeless in Detroit.
- That's right.
- [Interviewer] Tell me about it.
- I mean, I traveled for a lot of years
and because of parole I would end up getting caught
and brought back here to Detroit so this became my home base
and now that I'm done with all that legal stuff,
I'm just here so kinda stuck here.
- [Interviewer] Now you told me
you slept outside in the winter.
- Yeah.
- [Interviewer] That's gotta be horrible.
- Yeah, I mean you make the best of it.
- [Interviewer] So how'd you survive?
- Sleep on the steam drain for warmth,
panhandle for money, for food and whatnot.
With zero overhead, I mean it's not totally impossible.
- [Interviewer] It's gotta get freezing cold here.
- It definitely did, yep.
- [Interviewer] Oh my gosh, now what happened
that you ended up homeless?
- Well, I was travelin' for a lot of years like I said
and then just I had legal problems
and I wouldn't ever stay in one place
so I would be on parole and then abscond from parole
to travel and never establish myself anywhere.
- [Interviewer] So you went to jail?
- Yeah.
- [Interviewer] And when you got out there was no support?
- No, nothing at all.
- [Interviewer] And probably impossible to get a job.
- It's not impossible, but it's hard from this position
because I mean the person at McDonald's
when they see that this is my situation
they're not gonna hire you, you know.
- [Interviewer] And then plus you got a record.
- Right right, but I did some construction work
but again it was hard.
I was doing roofing for awhile, but
the job was in Southfield so I had to wake up
at six in the morning to get on the bus.
Take an hour and a half long bus ride
to get there by nine and then
when I got back I would get back at like 7:30 at night,
have to leave at six in the morning again.
It just was really hard especially being homeless.
- [Interviewer] Because you can't shower.
- Right.
- [Interviewer] You don't have a bathroom.
- No.
- [Interviewer] What people don't understand
is there's no relaxing out here.
- Right, no you have to be actively
doing this all the time or else you will starve.
- And survival - Right.
- [Interviewer] You've gotta have your street sense going.
- Yeah, definitely.
Detroit's not the easiest city to be homeless in.
- [Interviewer] Oh I bet, oh my gosh.
So what got you travelin' in the first place?
- Just the desire to see the country.
Meet people, see the United States.
- [Interviewer] How old were you when you started to travel?
- Probably my early twenties, I'm 34 now.
- [Interviewer] So what's your future like?
I mean, you spent this time traveling,
did a little jail, trouble getting a job.
Where do you see yourself in five to 10 years?
- Oh I have no idea, hopefully still alive.
That's the only thing I can shoot for at this point.
Yep, no I can't even look that far ahead.
Five years, 10 years, shit, I don't know.
- [Interviewer] If you had three wishes what would they be?
- I don't know.
Probably be able to get down South to work.
Just to be established, to be a regular person, I guess.
It might sound weird but I have a desire
just for normal shit like I want a job.
You know what I mean, I just want to be regular.
You know, yep.
- [Interviewer] Is that it?
- Yeah, pretty much it.
- [Interviewer] Well thank you very much
for talking to me.
Yep, thank you, right on.
(tranquil music)