"Ten years ago," Sam began, "we lived in a visible family unit each of us could identify ourselves in. We each understood our standing within that unit -- -- father/husband, mother/wife, daughters/sisters, son/brother. Ten years ago, did any of us truly know rejection and homelessness? Comparing that situation of ten years ago to their own situation at that time, certainly many family units in that timeframe would have decided that our family unit of that time knew poverty. Yet, no one would have expected that any of those family members would in less than a decade know rejection and homelesness. We had love in our home, for each one of us, which transferred to a feeling of security. Today, insecurity reigns with some of these family members. What went wrong?

"Three years ago, I decided to throw in the towel with the micro-resale shop, Save Sale, in Sept., 1999. Each in the above-mentioned family unit had, at the time, a roof over his her own head. Two of the sisters had their own places, and I, as the brother, shared his business-residence part-time, while the youngest sister wasn't quite old nuff to remove herself from her mother's home. Today, the three sisters each live in her home with others, two with youngsters, but are watching homelessness, the very mother who bore them always daily questioning where to go, while I am frequently blamed.

"'Damn Mom's homelessness," I could yell, or so it would seem. "I'll pick up the phone and dial now. On-site managed, easy-move-in apartment complexes will take my call. They'll take my rent money. But they won't accept illegal tenants. And it's often onsite management , which would notice. Yes, I'll finally do it. ...I was accused of it over the past two years, but finally, I'll do it; I'll leave my own mother like my caring family members wish out on the streets for them to care about while I dial and rent a place. No longer will she have a place to go because of MY homelessness, her expecting of my finding a place we could share.'

"The real facts are I remain outside of my own place because of a refusal to say those words. But, who else cares? Unlike my case, certain others who have a big house, or a new apartment, a spare bedroom empty -- -- they don't do much about this -- -- but that other homeless person is the one responsible and who reportedly doesn't care about our mother. 'Mas will take care of it,' they are saying. 'It's his responsibility.'

"Why did anyone criticize the utter sanity of having an in-house Save Sale to block want, poverty, homelessness? For opportunities increase in size. I'll try to explain: I read somewhere that a man began trading one item at a time over a one-year period. He started very small, with an item worth no more than a common lead pencil. Yet, a year later, his one-item-at-a-time trading resulted in his owning a large boat. I can only wonder what he did next. Save Sale increased its opportunities over seven years, starting with only several dozen items, each worth about a pencil's value, with some cash-on-hand. In its third year, Save Sale, through the owner, owner sold a car at a profit only after weeks of owning it! Opportunities can increase in size while decreasing the likelihood of poverty, want, and homelessness.

"How important to me was Save Sale? I don't shed a tear over many of the aforementioned situations, depressing as they may seem, but I cried as I de-inventoried the business in Sept. '99. A few months later, I was no longer living at that site, and family-like controls haved prevented life from being anything but downhill from the beginning of the homelessness. The very people one thinks should and would love subtly or overtly work against one's interests.

As always, many deceptions and distortions I have seen/heard cross my thoughts. And, as I think about those lies, my mind burns. Transfering those burns to others' minds, if resulting in benefits, would be painless:

"Burn #1: A major burn is in me as a result of restrictions hinted at earlier which did not allow me to use control to take care of the situations properly I need to care for. Those restrictions were re-worded in 2000 in this way: 'THIS IS MY HOME, SO YOU MUSTN'T/CAN'T...'

"Earlier on, the restrictions were more sub rosa, criticisms designed to destroy my attempts at business; the Save Sale shop, which saw profits, but admittedly there were doomed failures which were profitable lessons to me of what wouldn't work -- -- doomed failures which successfully showed I refused to stagnate. I tried again and again, even if something seemed to be momentarily bleak.Like the time the resale shop leased a new location only to discover the phone line situation didn't allow anyone to contact that Stretch's Article Shop. Quickly, Save Sale pulled out of that situation of loss. ...Burn #1 will eventually become a homelessness-incinerating, poverty-incinerating flame heatedly melting away the debts, guilts, arguing, and fights which enable us to live in unsuccess.

"Burn #2: was from a blaze lit in a city just over the PA border in NY -- -- a city with the same name as its nearest PA city touching it on that border -- -- the oxygen flaming the flames soon thereafter was found on Third Street, Greensburg, PA, the second Saturday of October, 1999 at 7:30 P.M., in a church service, an oxygen most call Polly. Within days, no longer interested in being churched, I was at work developing my energies -- -- many surrounding me said I was "fornicating." And, within 2 years, the accusation was "adultery" with license-married T.Y., accused with such language by who? By those very types eager to die, to meet death, to prevent mankind from deliberately and indefinitely extending to forever the expected life span of people; it is they who are suicidal as well as murderers of human life.

"The mind burns with the knowledge of those hinted at above being the ones presenting themselves as the righteous best of mankind; and also at one time I did the same with distorted pride. ...Few in the area forgot and of those none allowed me to forget and move on."

Burn #3: Too many people surrounding me who have little or no inclination to be online -- -- who often have no clue about online activities -- -- from lack of experience -- -- are too frequently critical of certain online ways, and my participation in them, such as the online romances which were and are treated with the same seriousness as any offline ones. "Words do not alone enable you or anyone to know others truly in online, long-distance situations in which the parties have never met,' say the criticizers. "The probability of deception on the part of others or even oneself is too great..." They fail to notice the differences between online and offline lifestyles."