When the stress of life gets overwhelming, I sometimes play a little mental game with myself.

If I were going to build Utopia, what would it look like?

First let me clarify:  The subject of Homelessness has been on my mind a lot lately.  Not the usual depiction of homelessness, that of people living on the streets, or in shelters.  Those are the ones easily counted, and those that immediately come to mind.  I am thinking about the Hidden Homeless: single adults and families that live in motels, in their cars, or couch surf with various friends and family while trying to sort out their lives.  This group consists of people that generally have a job, but through some misfortune ended up losing their house or apartment at a time when it was difficult to obtain another place quickly.  Due to their lower Middle Class income (Think a family of three or four making anywhere between $32,000 and $75,000 annually as a rough estimate), not only do they not qualify for any type of emergency aid, they often have very little of no savings to fall back on, as this group tends to live paycheck to paycheck, or alternately used up any savings they may have had on whatever misfortune caused them to lose their homes in the first place.

When creating my own little version of Utopia, I tend to start with this lower Middle Class group, also referred to as the Working Class.  This is the class of Blue Collar, and lower level white collar employees that we depend on to get those critical, front line jobs done, but overlook when it comes to thinking of someone who may need assistance down the line. Although this is mostly a self sufficient group, even they realize that they are not islands unto themselves, and everybody needs a little help sometimes, even if all they want is enough time and space to comfortably get back on their feet.  It is this lack of room to fix errors or make up for lost income that turns what should have only been a temporary setback into years of attempts to recover a family's life.

In my own little world, all people would be paid enough to keep pace with the cost of living.  There is no reason a working person should be priced out of having a decent place to live within reasonable distance from their job.  And, no, I don't consider having to live 60 miles away from your job in order to find decent, affordable housing in reasonably family friendly neighborhoods (an issue endemic to Los Angeles County) a reasonable distance.  Whatever money is saved by living far away from work is immediately lost in time (over an hour each way), transportation costs (gas and maintenance on the car, or obscenely expensive bus or train passes), and physical exhaustion from the commute.  I can't see where having employees worn out from from hours long commutes benefits any business.

Another option, since we are so fond of handing out tax breaks, is to offer tax breaks to property owners willing to embrace an income based rent structure.  Here's how it would work: A family finds, and applies for, an apartment. Once they pass the requisite background and reference checks (for those concerned about criminal behavior), they present the owner/landlord/property management firm with recent paystubs (or tax returns for the self employed), from which the receiving party determines what the family's rent should be based on their net income, ideally no more than 1/3 or 1/4 of the total family income.  The tax break would make up the difference.  This would ensure that no family was spending more than 60% of their total income on housing costs (which is where quite a few families are now), it would provide for constant residency, and very low turnover for apartment owners, as well as a stable and steady income (with residents needing to provide proof of income either annually, or whenever there is a significant shift in income, such as a job loss, or total family income moves to over six figures, at which point most can afford Fair Market Rent) for the owners, and the ability of residents to build community within their neighborhoods.  It is this sense of community that prevents neighborhoods from the downward slide that occurs when there are people constantly moving in and out, and neighbors no longer know each other.

The key to eliminating homelessness, in my world, anyway, would hinge upon employment for all who wanted to work, a wage that would allow for living at least adequately, help and services for those that needed them the most (not based on income, a method which leaves out that same working class), and a rent system that allows everyone to participate.  The subtext of all of these changes, is respect for the work and lives of the working class people that drive the economy.  They are people, not statistics, whose labor, and who are we kidding, money, contribute the most towards keeping the American way of life moving forward.  The lack of respect for this group, (which led to the subsequent financial squeeze on them that ended up contributing greatly to the Great Depression), is a sad reminder that were we not so busy thumbing our collective noses at those we consider socially beneath us, while groveling for crumbs from the tables of the upper classes, we might actually stand a chance of solving some of the more pressing social issues of our time.

I know my little world will likely never happen.  What I hope for is that sometime during my lifetime, our nation will come up with a more compassionate, humane way to help everyone who actually needs it.  We are one of the most advanced societies on Earth, but we cannot manage to think of a better response to a dramatic increase in homeless families than subtle victim-blaming followed by suggestions that if they really wanted to change they're circumstances, they would "work harder"?  We can manage to find money to support conflict in every corner of the Earth, but can never manage to come up with the money to solve internal issues (housing, education, infrastructure repair), that might actually restore America to it's place as a leader among nations. It can be done, but it would take a partnership of leaders and citizens with a will of iron to create and enforce a plan for solving our issues that would be structured enough to meet our goals, but flexible enough to adapt to changing circumstances.  That is how problems get solved.

It's worth noting that in my little world, the government we elect, actually represents US.  Not the groups and individuals that financed their campaigns and may have a vested interest in Utopia (or any kind of balanced society) coming to pass. The cynic in me figures that this is the real reason things never change, and permanent solutions are never found.  The optimist in me wants to be proven wrong.

You never know...

So my daughter and I went on a mission last weekend.

I was mailing some postcards for a geography project for a friend of mine, and decided that since I was mailing postcards representing different facets of the Southern California lifestyle, I would mail them from the cities on the postcards so that they would have a matching postmark.

I proceeded to unglue grumpy daughter from her phone, and pour her into the car with a mission: spot the blue U.S Postal Service boxes on the route, then get out and mail the post cards once I pulled to a stop.  She looked at the postcards and read out loud that we were headed for Santa Monica, Beverly Hills and Hollywood.  She pointed out that she had never been to any of these places, although she had heard about them on tv.  This was true: like most Los Angeles natives, I tend to avoid going anywhere that involves a freeway unless I absolutely have to.  Because a trip to the Westside involved two of the most consistently congested freeways in Los Angeles (the 405 and the 10, respectively), and guaranteed horrific traffic once I arrived, this trip was not high on my to-do list for a holiday weekend.  But since I promised myself that I was going to do it, I looked at this as an opportunity to get my daughter out of our familiar neighborhood, and give her a chance to see some things she had only heard about.

Looking at the Santa Monica postcard, she noted the iconic Ferris wheel at Pacific Park, and asked if she would be able to see it from the car.  I assured her she would as I exited the freeway, aimed my car north to Wilshire Blvd., then west to the shore line.  The late afternoon sun, preparing to set behind the Pacific Ocean, formed a picture perfect backdrop framed by towering palm trees.  In moments like this, I know why I love living in Southern California.  It's a reminder that sometimes the fantasy really does match the reality, even if only for a moment.  After she mailed the postcard, I drove west, pointing out the Third Street Promenade, The Fairmont Miramar hotel, and all of the casual strollers out on this perfect afternoon.  When we finally turned south again, she immediately spotted the Ferris wheel, the roller coaster, and saw all of the people walking up and down the strip of park.  Her fascination was earnest, especially when she heard a comedian, surrounded by a large audience, regaling the crowd with his routine over a loud speaker.  She didn't realize people could do that, as that's just not something you see down in our neck of the South Bay.

Even though she wanted to see more, we needed to get moving to get to Beverly Hills, so after a few turns, I was back on Wilshire Blvd., heading east to show my daughter perhaps the most famous zip code, and one of the tonier shopping areas, in Los Angeles.  As we headed east, I marveled at how Wilshire Blvd works as a kind of a thread that ties together multiple diverse neighborhoods in Los Angeles.  The section we were on would give us a nice tour of the tony Westside of Los Angeles, winding it's way from the western terminus in artsy, laid back Santa Monica, to the staid upper middle class Brentwood, then on past the sprawling VA complex,  the cold austerity of the towering steel Federal Building and Veteran's cemetery into Westwood, the home of UCLA.  Once past UCLA, we climb through winding hills, passing between massive residential towers that I am positive have a pretty enviable view of both the placid ocean, and the gleaming towers of Downtown Los Angeles, giving the residents the feeling of being a participant in Tolkein's saga of the the Two Towers, only instead of Orthanc and Minas Morgul, they have a choice between the bustle of the financial district surrounding the U.S. Bank Tower, or the relaxed, gateway to the Westside feel of Westwood's Condo Canyon.

Just past the Los Angeles Country Club, we pass the Welcome to Beverly Hills sign.  A few blocks after we cross Santa Monica Blvd, we spot the familiar blue post office box, I pull over onto a side street, and my daughter happily jumps out to mail the next postcard.  My daughter rolls down both windows, and comments on the wide, clean streets and glitzy shop exteriors lining the street.  I ask her if she'd like to see all the fancy shops on Rodeo Drive.  She whines at first, asking what the big deal is.  I turn left onto Rodeo Drive, and her whining immediately turns to squeals of excitement, as she sees the names of designers she recognizes from television, magazines, and conversations with friends.  She is swearing that at some point, she is going to come back here with friends to see what the REAL THING looks like up close.  As much as I loved her enthusiasm, it was getting late, and we still had to make our way to Hollywood.

I turned east on to Santa Monica Blvd, and ended up giving my daughter a tour of West Hollywood.  Even I sometimes forget about this stretch of Los Angeles between Hollywood and the Westside.  We both ended up marveling at exactly how busy it was, with all of the people just walking around, into and out of stores, bars and restaurants.  My daughter also rather comically noted the number of men walking around with their shirts off.  It was a warm enough day to justify it, of course, but I wasn't quite ready to explain that among the large gay population in the area, this was just something they do.  Score one point for mental laziness.  While navigating monster traffic, I was unwilling to answer the onslaught of questions that I would have gotten more than anything else.

The sun had not quite set all the way when I finally turned north onto La Brea.  Driving toward Hollywood always gives a sense of excitement, as the farther North you drive, the more lights you see.  Even us crusty LA natives are dazzled by the bright lights that promise big thing to all those that come here with big dreams.  My daughter spotted the final post office box as we turned on to Hollywood Blvd., and I pulled over to let her deposit the last postcard.  She chattered, oohed and ahhed non-top as we inched our way slowly down one of the most storied streets in America.  She read as many of the names of the stars on the sidewalk as she could see in the dim light before she gave up, and made me promise to bring her back on day so she could walk around at look at everything at a slower pace.

And that seemed to be the theme of the day.  How often we don't venture outside of our own little comfort zone unless we have some pressing reason to do so.  Southern California is undeniably beautiful, but how many people never feel the warm breeze coming off of any beach, or see the bright gleaming shops, or dazzling lights right next door.  There is something to be said for being a tourist in your own state.  You never know what you might discover, and you still get the thrill of coming home after an adventure to view something you haven't seen before.

Driving south on La Brea, we drive through several neighborhoods, including one that locals call The Jungle, recently renamed by urban planners to the more friendly Baldwin Village, and after the winding drive through Baldwin Hills, we drive over a hill, called Overhill, BTW, and I glimpse perhaps my favorite view in Los Angeles: as you descend the hill southbound on La Brea, as soon as you come around the curve, you are greeted by the lights of the South Bay.  More than the tall shiny buildings of Downtown, more than the lights of Hollywood, or the beautiful blue of the Pacific Ocean, the sight of the South Bay speaks to me of home.  My home of the last ten years, that I love for the access it gives me to the glitz and promise of the Los Angeles dream factory, while still affording me the ability to go home and get away from it.    We make it home to the relative peace of the neighborhood we call home, with a promise to venture out for another look at what we know is there on another day.

Because it is so close, we know we will, too.