Royal's Sin City Journal

A homeless camp occupies a drainage ditch off of Swenson Street in the City of Sin- Royal Hopper

For a brief few days a year Las Vegas is a pleasant calm place you can camp outdoors in
Weather wise anyway ….For a few days its not to hot or cold and there is spring.
Spring in the desert is like ..the neon of the city ..beautiful in small isolated spots ..with occasional splashes of color ..but mostly the same as it always is.
Everyone knows this especially the City’s homeless who take this rare opportunity to camp outdoors until the city’s finest or angry property owners run them off. I drive past a dry plain drainage ditch on my way to work that covers one small corner of the city of Sin. Now that spring is here the tent and sleeping bags have popped up like mushrooms on wet grass almost like a small city. This time of year before the oppressive heat of the desert literally drives them underground they come out in the open….

Is this the perfect Vegas mascot or what. Actually this is on the Naked Pizza building on Swenson/Joe W. Brown _ Royal Hopper

Spring in this desert is like the neon of its city’s streets . Brightly colored and filled with artificial promise.

By Royal Hopper

You Drive past a ditch an isolated patch of dirt and dust

and spot a sea of places people live when they must
have someplace and have none
Firt you notice a tent surrounded by scraps
of paper, old food , liqour, space blankets and maps
a dog, a crow and a man taking a nap
then you see a sleeping bag laying in the sand
and a bicycle loaded with booty propped up on its stand
a collection of rags flowers and newspapers next to a pack
another tent another bike
a dumpster turned over and the remains of a mike
a comforter and the ground a box of donuts with the donuts all gone
a pillow some dirt and on and on and on
A quarter mile or more in the bottom of the ditch ist sides and top
it has always been it always is so and aint never gonna stop
so just go home and let me say again
This aint a place to begin
This aint Nebraska, Canada or Belgium
This aint Paradise.. Its the City of Sin
Love You Sinners