Page 51 - Louisiana Loop (manuscript Edition)

It was not a night for “a walk on the wild side” I would have recommended to
to anyone. I had left the Greyhound Station at midnight being tossed out by an
oversight of a supervisor not telling the Security Guard that this 3rd night of
waiting for my Kayak Gear to arrive was OK for me to be inside since all my
gear was in fact my place to stay and I did not have funds for motels. No doubt
with so many “hustling” him when he woke me up and I was groggy, my inept
explanations seemed like excuses and getting grilled and forced assertive training
techniques played on only made me side with him though I knew “downtown” and
Greyhound Station outside was not safe for me. I wondered how many times in my
jobs in Security and different firms I had worked in if I had pulled some of the same
things I was being done to. I felt sorry for him because I knew he was wrong but in a
reverse logic sort of way, I knew he thought he was right.
SO OUT IN THE NIGHT OF BATION ROUGE I WENT TOTALLY UNPREPARED.

Getting to the waterfront had been fun. Four guys muttering from a few blocks away “I’m gonna mess you up” over and
over again did not make me run or increase my walk but I did change streets so I was not heading to them . My turns
though left me at a darker area where down some steps I saw as I passed without really looking some were shooting up
and others sleeping in a downstairs park building area. Yep, I really did not want to head back the way I came but since
the wind increased and the rain started and I had not gotten a real chance to get any warm clothes though the guard did
let me get some clothes from one of my cargo boxes. I knew I had to get out of the cold and rain and try not to get
noticed by City Police because even my explanation sounded hollow in my ears. Since I had passed construction of a
high rise and the fencing was fairly open I decided I should find some kind of wind break there and with materials
plentiful I doubted locals were hanging out as construction people or guards would be watching and I just needed to get
thru the night till 6am when I would be allowed back in the Greyhound Bus Station. It worked out well and by the time I
returned to Greyhound in the Morning cold and stiff the Supervisor had told the Guard I was ok to stay. They all
apologized…...