Urban Decay: The death of an amusement park

It was like walking through a bad movie set in California… At the same time, it felt as if someone was watching my every step.

I was at Guntown Mountain Amusement Park in Cave City, Kentucky. The park opened in 1969 and closed down a number of years ago. It was later purchased by a Louisville, KY businessman who had big dreams in 2015. Will Russell renamed the park “Funtown Mountain” and reopened it with the idea of a multi-million dollar renovation plan set for the near future.

While the park was once again opened in 2015, the renovation plan was never executed.

The Courier Journal newspaper reported that Mr. Russell saw his plans threatened after a severe manic episode related to bipolar disorder. Later that year, the Cave City Police Department shut down Funtown after vandalism and looting were reported on the property. The article suggested that Will Russell somehow instigated the crime, but failed to report as to why that accusation was made.

The newly named Funtown was quickly closed for good when bank payments could not be made on loans to keep the park active. It was later sold at Auction in April of 2016 for less than $300,000. The new owner had grand plans of turning the property into a resort complete with zip lines, cabins and an indoor water park. Those grandiose plans have yet to materialize and the park sits like the movie set of an old Friday the 13th movie.

“We're all lonely for something we don't know we're lonely for. How else to explain the curious feeling that goes around feeling like missing somebody we've never even met?” 
― David Foster Wallace, American Writer (1962-2008)

Bonnaroo 2017: "Hey! Take our picture!"

I guess what I enjoy about Bonnaroo more than the entertainers is the excitement in the air. The trusting of everyone. The total strangers greeting other strangers. 

This couple, and I have no idea if they knew one another prior to the concerts, said to me, "Hey, take our picture!!" With the click of a shutter the moment was frozen in time with a massive techno concert in the background. 

Alabama is surrounded by oceans

Mental illness is far bigger than most of us could ever imagine. Thoughts or ideas get locked inside of the brain of the person suffering and they become concrete as to what that person believes to be fact.

“They tried to expand Alabama, but it fell apart,” he told me in a convincing voice. I asked, “Is there anything outside of this area [Birmingham, Alabama].” He then replied, “I don’t think so.” He then suggested that all of the other states are gone and we, where we were sitting, are surrounded by ocean. “If you walk that way [pointing] you’re hitting the ocean and if you walk that way [pointing] you’re hitting the ocean,” he explained.

He fully believed that Alabama was an island surrounded by the ocean and all of the other United States were gone, crumbled away. It went as far as him telling me that if I got on top of a nearby building I would only see ocean for miles.

“People assume you aren’t sick
unless they see the sickness on your skin
like scars forming a map of all the ways you’re hurting.”

― Emm Roy, The First Step

Wisdom: You Know Nothing

"The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing." - Socrates, Greek Philosopher (469/470-399 BCE)

Hippie Sleep in Tennessee

I love the way that sunlight falls between the trees at places like Hippie Hill in Tennessee. The freedom to nap through the afternoon is equally beautiful.

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves." -Abraham Lincoln

They Litter My Property

Mississippi Delta – Land Lost: He was armed with a small sheep knife on his side when he came around the corner. The knife was not exposed, but on a strap around his shoulder as if to say that he means business.

“You need to leave now,” he growled at several men on his property behind a market that he has owned for about 30+ years. The men were sitting around on old milk crates that were previously stacked behind his store. The area in which they were sitting was once a car wash behind the market in Drew, Mississippi.

After the men walked away he told me in a tone that made me quickly realize he has grown tired of cleaning their mess, “They sit around and drink all day and litter my property (pointing at a pile of liquor bottles and beer cans).”

The men slowly walked away as if they knew the routine, once again leaving behind beer cans.

The poverty rate is 36.1% in Drew City, which is in Sunflower County, Mississippi. It is the 8th poorest county in the state. In Sunflower County, only 70.2% of adults 25 and older have a high school diploma or higher education. The per capita income over the past 12 months stands at a low $12,177 in Sunflower County.

Once a Train Hopper

His friends call him “Bald Head” and that was how he introduced himself to me. He told me that he made his way to Nashville several years ago by way of a boxcar. He once jumped onto moving trains to get him from point A to point B.

After I offered him some new clothes he said to me, “I take my weekly shower tomorrow, so now I’ll have something clean to wear!” As he picked out a couple of shirts he said, “Let me hop in the back of your truck, I’ll show you where lots of homeless are.”

Once he got in the truck bed we started to drive towards the J.C. Napier Housing Complex and he told me to stop for a homeless man he saw walking past the Greyhound Bus Station. Mr. Bald Head told me he wanted to give the man a shirt, but warned the individual not to be greedy because there were others that he wanted to help. The man carefully picked out one shirt and then asked Bald Head if he had any change. Bald Head pulled out his only dollar and handed it to the man.

We later arrived at his chosen destination and were met by about 10 to 15 homeless gentleman in front of a closed down business on Lafayette Street. His friends were almost cheering for him when he got out of the truck and handed them new shirts and bags of toiletries.

The J.C. Napier Housing Complex and the area around Lafayette Street is somewhat forgotten by many. I won’t say forgotten by all as I know some groups help out the less fortunate in that area, but others avoid it due to the high and somewhat uncontrollable crime that has occurred in that area over the past 15 years.

A recent Nashville crime map shows that in the past seven days, a total of 50 thefts, robberies, assaults, burglaries, vandalism’s or arrests have occurred within a one mile radius of the J.C. Napier Housing Complex.  

The Value of the Human Touch

Love among those who are homeless is just as real as love among everyone else in this fast paced world. While it sounds somewhat ignorant to make such a statement, I think people often look at those standing on the corner and assume they are incapable of forming a loving relationship.

Two things can be said of this photo that involves two homeless individuals embracing one another outside of a local soup kitchen. One, they are in love and two, while they may not fully understand it, their natural human touch keeps them going.

Psychologist in France once researched the positive side effects of the simple, non-sexual human touch. The results were awakening.

The research found that the more humans touched each other, from a pat on the back to shaking a hand, the less violent they were towards one another. The basic touch built trust. The human touch in communities that worked with one another, had more positive economic gains, decreased disease and stronger immune systems.

Daniel Keltner, the founding director of the Greater Good Science Center and professor of psychology at University of California, Berkeley says, "In recent years, a wave of studies has documented some incredible emotional and physical health benefits that come from touch. This research is suggesting that touch is truly fundamental to human communication, bonding, and health." 

God Forbid You Ever Had to Walk a Mile in his Shoes

Homeless, but smiling and always a positive conversation. 

“God forbid you ever had to walk a mile in his shoes
'Cause then you really might know what it's like to sing the blues
Then you really might know what it's like” – Everlast, What It’s Like

Life can be full of downs, not ups

Life can be full of twists and turns, ups and downs. Sometimes, it seems as if many of us experience more downs than ups.

Jill told me, “I became a drug addict at 14, a meth addict. I got clean when I was 21.” She then jumped to the subject of her mother and talked about how the two of them were best friends while she was clean and sober. The mood then turned somber, “I moved to the state of Washington and my mom got breast cancer – got really sick and then she died about three and a half years ago. And then my life became (pause)… hard.”

The death of Jill’s mother was terribly painful for her as they had built a great relationship while she was clean and off the street. She talked to me about how she turned to alcohol to cope with the loss of her mother.

She continued to talk about the aftermath, “I became an alcoholic and then I got clean. I went into a clean and sober house – I lived there for two years and then things didn’t work out there - I got kicked out. I ended up with some men who sexually abused me and because I told, they put my life on the line so I came out to Tennessee to start a new life with my brother and his family, unfortunately he passed away about a week ago (8/10/16).”

I read her brothers obituary on Friday (8/19/16). His name was Wade and he died at the young age of 49. The obituary from Woodfin Chapel in Smyrna, TN stated, “He was a devoted family man who never met a stranger. Friendly and outgoing, he was liked by all who knew him.” This is her second brother to pass away at an early age. Not to mention the fact that her sister has breast cancer and she is battling the after math of chemo at this time in Washington State.

For so many it is one tragedy after another as they struggle through this thing called life. Jill is in her early thirties, so life can still turn around for her and be great, but there will be a mountain to climb. 

The next plan for Jill is to find a way to get back to Washington State and enroll in a yearlong program to help her continue to stay sober and clean. The program will also address her adult sexual assault and help with childhood sexual drama as well.

While living in a shelter in Murfreesboro, she has tried her hardest to hold down a job. One of those jobs was in Smyrna, but the costs of taxi money quickly lead to her losing the employment. In other words, she was working for enough money to simply afford transportation to and from work. She was then hired as a painter, but quickly fired when the head painter realized she did not have her own brushes or rollers.

Today, she is out of work and continuing to live in an overcrowded shelter. However, she still has that goal of making it back to Washington State where her sister lives and where a yearlong program awaits her arrival. But, the wait will continue as she is finding it impossible to make money, live and save enough for a single bus or plane ticket.

“The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of those depths.” - Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, a Swiss-American psychiatrist (1926-2004)

The struggle continues.

Mechanic Mike

They call him “Mechanic Mike.” He lives atop Hippie Hill in Tennessee and he always has a project beneath his hands.

“Your family – how you feel about yourself and your health – those are the real measure of your success or failure in a human’s short adventure called life.” - Henry "Smokey" Yunick. Smokey was an American mechanic and car designer associated with motorsports. Yunick was deeply involved in the early years of NASCAR. (1923-2001)

Good ole' Dwight on Hippie Hill in TN

I shot this at Hippie Hill yesterday. This is Dwight, super nice fella. I went out there with the Beesley Animal Clinic to give free vaccinations for dogs and cats on the hill. The folks really appreciated it. I don't think Dwight's cat was too find of it though, judging by the claws. 

"Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it’s time to pause and reflect." ~ Mark Twain

Dog Day at Hippie Hill

Today I got to head out to Hippie Hill with the Beesley Animal Clinic to vaccinate the dogs on the 40+ acre site. This was our 12 month follow up visit to re-vaccinate and provide tags for the animals at the hill, free of charge. The owners were very appreciative of the service.

When I think of Hippie Hill, I think of individual freedom to be yourself.

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams, Live the life you’ve always imagined." ~ Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

Just Waiting

Waiting on a bus… The two traveled from Puerto Rico to Florida together.

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” - Augustine of Hippo

Augustine of Hippo was known as Saint Augustine. He was a Christian theologian and philosopher whose writings influenced the development of Western Christianity and Western philosophy.

Interesting side note, part of Saint Augustine is actually in St Augustine, Florida. The Cathedral Basilica of St Augustine has a small relic of the 5th century bishop stored in an ornamental clear vase made of glass and precious metals. A relic is a part of a holy person's body, usually part of the bone, kept for the purpose of reverence.

Waiting on medication

He was sitting across the street from the hospital waiting for his medication to be filled in the pharmacy, he told me. “Do you need any help,” I asked? “No, no I don’t,” he replied. “How old are you,” I asked him. He looked down at his hands then across the street… “21.” 

Leave the property, now

They were quietly folding freshly cleaned towels in a vacant lot behind a large for sale sign in downtown Orlando, FL. Damion told me, “The police harass us something awful here – they told me that they would charge me with grand theft larceny because of the shopping carts. They treat us like we are stupid, I got the shopping carts from a dumpster.” I took a look at the rusted carts, it was more than obvious they had not been used by any store in years.

“I have PTSD,” he told me. I asked for more details and he said, “I was stationed in Italy and one of our own guys accidentally ran over me in a military truck – he hit a bump and I was the next bump. [sarcastic].”

“You may want to stick around, I’m sure the cops will be here just as they always are,” he told me with a slight chuckle. “We are nothing to them,” he sadly said.

Within 10-minutes of my conversation, five Orlando Police Officers rode up on their bikes surrounding the two. “We ordered you to move yesterday. You cannot be on this lot. This is private property,” one of the officers said in a deep tone. The property owner then showed up while taking photographs on his phone. The property owner would not make eye contact with the two homeless individuals and told the police he wants them gone, which is his right.

As an onlooker, I did not see the point in mandating the two leave. The property was totally vacant and was simply a concrete slab with two for sale signs that were put up in 2011.

"Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent then the one derived from fear of punishment." - Mahatma Gandhi (1869 – Assassinated in 1948, Civil Rights Leader)

You cannot obstruct the sidewalk

The homeless father and son were quietly minding their own business at the intersection of Orange and Pine Streets in downtown Orlando, FL. The father, sitting on an upside down milk crate and the son talking to several other homeless persons who were told to immediately leave a vacant lot that was for sale, were the next who were told to leave.

“You can’t obstruct a city sidewalk,” barked the officer. The elderly father stood to his feet without saying a word while his son came to his aid to explain they would be leaving Orlando in one week. The police officer continued to tell the duo they had to move on.

I had to inquire further and learned the father was waiting on his social security check to arrive and with that money, he aimed to buy a bus ticket so that they could venture back to their home state of Texas. The son told me, “People are nicer to us in Texas.”

“You can all go to hell; I will go to Texas” ― David Crocket (1786-1836)

196 Years Old and Homeless

I noticed she was sitting quietly under a bridge by herself next to a basket full of bags. I asked, “Where are you from?” I had to listen intently as she spoke very quietly, “I was born in New York, New York at General Hospital, but it’s not called General Hospital anymore.”

I asked where she currently lives in Orlando, Florida where I met her and she said, “I was living with my uncle who lives out there in um, a grave site in Odie land.” Later, she said that all of her “kin people are dead,” but she remembers them in Groveland, Florida which is near Orlando.

I asked if she has children and she replied, “I have a lot of kids, but they’re not what you call – uh, listed as mine.”

My next question was one you should never ask a woman, but I went for it... “How old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?” She responded, “About a hundred and ninety six years old.”

“Old age is no place for sissies.” - Bette Davis (1908-1989)

Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, FL

What was once an active night scene is now a memorial for 49 victims. There was overwhelming sadness in Orlando outside the Pulse night club in Florida.

Tonight, I saw parents crying, brothers and sisters shaking almost uncontrollably, visitors walking quietly in disbelief and others unsure of how to act or react.

It appeared as if some visitors have been to the scene of the terrifying massacre every night for the past two weeks.

While mourners stopped to pray together, complete strangers would walk up to someone crying and place their arms around them in comfort. This was true of those who may have been gay, straight, white, black, Hispanic or other. Everyone was truly holding each other together.

Officers respectfully stood to the side carefully watching over the area, which is still an active crime scene.

A large chain link fence covered in black canvas surrounds the outside walls of the club that stands silent tonight and likely permanently.

"The tragedy of modern man is not that he knows less and less about the meaning of his own life, but that it bothers him less and less." - Vaclav Havel

It was all an accident, an explosion

“In 1994 I was on a construction site in Washington and I remember entering the room and something exploded… I inhaled insulation and whatever else was in that room,” he told me while pointing out scars, recent scabs and more. “It’s in my blood, they can’t get rid of it. That afternoon I rode the bus home from work and when I got home I started throwing up,” he continued to give me more details. "It causes these scabs," he pointed at his arm. 

“Are you homeless,” I asked him. “Yes, I am,” he replied with a look of disappointment.

He then pulled an old and weathered health magazine out from under his arm and started flipping through the folded pages. He pointed at several photos, “See, that one looks maybe jaundice (pointing at a man on page 24).” He then headed to the next page, “What’s wrong,” he said while looking down at the many photos on the faded pages. “I don’t know,” I replied.

Before I left he said to me, “Why would you want to tell about me, take my picture – who cares.”

"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around." -Leo Buscaglia (1924-1998)

A listening ear… that is all you have to offer if you have no means to help another financially. It really is that simple.   

Leo Buscaglia, PhD was known as Dr. Love. He was an American Author and motivational speaker. He also worked as a professor of Special Education at the University of Southern California.