I have been that smelly cat in Phoebe’s jingle,
Homeless, smelly from minimum wage hard work,
Working ‘til I feel the pins and needles at my feet, a-tinglin’
Hustling and bustling on the streets of downtown Toronto;
with an infected tooth, borrowing money for a necessary surgery
Bouncing from uni to work on weekends on the GO bus;
Wasn’t as convenient as Presto back in the day.
Comfort stations closed to the homeless, pissing in the pavements
Exposing myself and embarrassing myself out of desperation
The only solace was my friends and my ex-boyfriend’s mom’s Airbnb
To rise above this miserable existence;
I gave half my paycheque back to my retailer employer
So I can turn into Cinderella during work;
Thus no one would suspect homelessness
Lie after lie to hide the shameful truth.
I have been that smelly cat in Phoebe’s jingle,
Homeless, smelly from minimum wage hard work,
Working ‘til I feel the pins and needles at my feet, a-tinglin’
Hustling and bustling on the streets of downtown Toronto;
with an infected tooth, borrowing money for a necessary surgery
School on weekdays, commuting and working on the weekend.
No days off. No breaks. No opportunity to give up. No chance to fuck up.
Everything on the line. My knife at my throat. No going back to that toxic life.
Betting my livelihood on my life to gain emancipation.
You gotta fight for your right. No one’s going to hand it to you.
Survive. Survive. Survive. You’re a Survivor! Rejoice!
sugurugetos
theartofmadeline
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
