Apartment Blues

I was taken advantage of due to my physical and mental handicap and forced to try living in my apartment without keys. I lost the key to my apartment and was told by the landlord that I could not receive another set for three years!
That was only one of the many problems with that building.
The ceiling in the bathroom was falling down as I showered or bathed and the mirrors were really old. I was told when I signed my lease that these things would be fixed. Now, years have gone by and nothing has been done. The rental office has access to my mailbox and I had to wait on them to get in and out of my apartment and mailbox. It made me feel very upset and full of rage.
Then my apartment flooded. The rental office helped me remove my furniture, but that was destroyed by the water. The rental company would not do anything about the water damage and I am now staying in a shelter, trying to get my life back on track.
The people who are supposed to help me, aren’t. It’s their word against mine. No one knows how it feels when managers and case managers brush you off. I have been on my own for 35 years. I never lived with anyone because they always lived with me.
I and others in the shelter are faced with similar problems. The food tastes bad. They feed you the same thing day after day. And we’re vulnerable to theft of our few possessions.
I never thought I would end up in a shelter. I have slept outside and in hallways, because I couldn’t go home. At home, the manager at my apartment would call the police on me instead of giving me a key. I have been handcuffed as if I was a criminal and put in a hospital against my will. The managers called so much that I stopped going to my apartment. No one should endure what I have endured. Now, I know I have to forgive my enemies and will do my best to do that, but this situation needs resolution.
I have started classes at UDC and am still in the shelter. I continue to pray that my life will get better and that I can live in another apartment. Street Sense has given me the courage to face the obstacles one day at a time.