HUFFINGTON
08.19.12
TAMPA’S MAVERICK COP
50 feet away from each other, and
Mark’s tent had carpeting, a bed
and a bedframe, and an acoustic
guitar on a stand.
As Donaldson walked over to
him, he and a friend were sitting in
lawn chairs, smoking cigarettes and
talking, and they greeted Donaldson warmly, with smiles and handshakes. Then Donaldson started
badgering Mark to get out his guitar. “What’s that John Mellancamp
song?” he asked. The last time
he’d dropped by, apparently, Mark
had impressed him with a whiskyvoiced rendition of “Pink Houses.”
At the end of the jam session,
Donaldson reminded Mark that he
was available if Mark needed him.
Mark smiled politely and said, “I
love it here.” Donaldson said he
didn’t see that as a problem. The
men had found such a remote spot
that no one had complained. But
as he drove away, he said he didn’t
expect Mark to hold out for long.
One of Mark’s neighbors had already asked for help moving out.
“When Mark sees his friend move
Some
homeless
people such as
“Little John,”
pictured
here, camp
out in the
woods, a few
encampments
more
sustainable
than others.