Theatre director or homeless person?

I first noticed her as I was warming my hands on my coffee mug while waiting for my friend Sidney.

Those of you who have suffered through all 100 previous IDGOM missives will know that Sidney, which is not his real name, has a mental health issue and I have been “linked” with him for more than two years through a local befriending charity. We meet once a week for coffee and a chat.

I digress, though purely for reasons of providing some background.

Scene of my caffeine caper was a well-known high street chain of bakers in my local town. Having finished attempting, unsuccessfully I may add, to link my smart (?) phone to the Wi-Fi network of a neighbouring business I turned my attention to one of my favourite pastimes – people watching.

The establishment had the usual Wednesday afternoon crowd – mainly “older” people, a few younger couples and a sprinkling of mums and young children. And the woman.

She stood out initially because she had occupied a table for four. And I mean occupied. Two massive suitcases blocked off one way to the back of the table where the bench seat was and she was perched at the other end. There was no way through. A very effective method of marking one’s territory, I thought.

The table itself was covered in a mass of paperwork, catalogues and brochures. At first I figured she was some arty-farty type, perhaps a theatre director who had finished her run at the local theatre and was biding her time before catching her train/ taxi/ friend’s car home.

She had many bangles on her very slim wrists, had a hippy’ish look about her and seemed to be writing (a new script?) on an A4 pad.

Then it dawned on me. She was nothing of the sort – she was a homeless person. My initial reaction was to ask the staff what was going on. Once a hack, always a hack.

I was told she had been there since 10am (it was now 3pm) and had not bought a thing. She’d just sat there, looking busy.

Apparently two days earlier she had spent the whole day there and had to be asked to leave at 6pm when the establishment closed. I was also told she had previously frequented the local McDonalds, again without every buying a thing and it appeared she had been asked to leave and was now using “my” establishment.

I said I would pay for a tea or coffee if one of the staff asked her what she wanted but I was told that would not happen “as she’d never leave”.

Now I can understand that - it could be construed, by her, as meaning that if she stayed there long enough someone would buy her a drink. It could also be interpreted as condoning her non-purchase, stay-all-day actions.

But it looked to me as if she was going to stay there for as long as possible anyway, drink or no drink. Especially as the establishment’s policy (staff had checked with Head Office) was not to ask her to leave or to throw her out.

By the time Sidney and I left, the woman, who was probably in her 50s or 60s, had done her make-up at the table and changed her top.

I couldn’t help wondering whether she found somewhere to bed down for the night.

Or maybe she WAS waiting for a train/ taxi/ friend’s car. What do you think…?