One of my greatest gifts and attributes to my survival, when I was homeless, was the time when I won the Tenleytown online Twitter sweepstakes contest. I won a membership to Tenleytown Sport and Health, which has closed since. But it was a refuge to get out of the cold and catch up on sleep with quick morning naps somewhere cozy onsite, and to catch up on sports and news. It helped give my body a break periodically. I also received a gift card amount of $85 at Cava. I ate healthily. Thank you all for the hospitality!
My second survival mechanism was the YMCA joint that has been sold since then, but it had a basketball court, swimming pool, sauna steam room, a weight room and heavy bags and racquetball. Everything! How could they let that joint go? They did open up a much smaller but brand new V Street location but besides the newness, it paled in comparison.
My favorite place in the spot was the sauna lounge which featured massage chairs and cable news networks. I caught up on my sleep, rest and restoration from the hard knocks of life I was experiencing at that time. No cigarette smoke in there for sure! And I have to thank Street Sense for campaigning for me and covering the cost differences. I’m glad I was worth it. It helped a whole lot. I’d walk down there daily passing by the vice president’s house on all the way down Massachusetts. My sleeping spot was at the top of Tenleytown. The top of the escalators was the warmest spot in the city.
