I appreciate the kind words. We actually did have an intervention. 5 of us all got together and brought him to one of the friends homes in the country and all talked to him about it. We didn't force anything, but we all told him exactly what we felt, and what we saw, and that we were all willing to help.
He said he didn't want our help, and he didn't even apologize to one person for stealing their stuff, and said he wanted to leave or he would start walking away. Then he started yelling at me for giving the stolen stuff back.... then I just let him finish and asked if he felt better. Then he broke down.
I brought him to my friends place in the country. So we got one more round about how we felt, and everything we could get out, but he still wanted to go back to his van without us. He got so mad then just slammed the door and left to go back to his van, 15 miles away... I picked him up and took him to his van while telling him exactly what we all talked about.
That hurt us all pretty badly, and I wish him the best with where he is now, but we all still try when we can when he's around. We'll buy him a few things from the $ menu or some other real cheap odd food like things every once in a while. Sometimes he'll act like he hasn't eaten in weeks... I've done it only twice, and a different friend did it a few times, and a third did it once. Each of us said the same thing about it. We told him that it's fucking disgusting the way he eats and to get some fucking help about it. He sells his food card for drugs, and so he doesn't eat for 3-4 days in a row until someone buys him food. He always finds some friend or random person to give him a few cents and eventually he will get a few bucks to buy some food. Sometimes it takes a few days... then will live off of panhandling or get this, he told me that he hunted scorpions in Slab City for a while because he had no food.... I'm like if you got a job, professional help, or kept your food card instead of selling it for drugs, you could eat you know.
Yet he still doesn't think anything is bad, so are we enabling him by giving him $2 worth of food from McDonald's, and when do you just give up? It seems like even buying him food is keeping him from even trying to get help :( We never know with him.
Last year he was around for a winter, and he stayed around the homeless shelter and took cash only jobs for raves / drugs. He can't even save $50 for anything, unless it's $50 for a ticket or drugs, etc.
We just don't know, and it's gotten far far worse over the recent 5 years. We're at the end of our rope, but a few of us haven't given up, but we also don't go out of our way for him anymore. We just try to push him to get shit fixed (like his teeth, or he had fucking tuberculosis around kids... and didn't tell my friends or their kids... until 3 weeks after he lived there).
So I dunno man, i just dunno. I feel bad for not doing something, but I feel like by doing something it's only making him worse. But I really can't stand the sight of someone who hasn't eaten in 3 days either.. :(
sorry for the rant. We've tried so much.