Squatting In New Orleans

A Man Eating Rat

"Hay Duke do you mind if my friends Stinky, Dip, Stew, and his girlfriend squat here with us?" Robo asks, now back at the squat with his friends waiting outside.

"I'm not no squat nazi, there's plenty of room in this place bring em on in." Luke said, happy to see more faces, and glad to invite them in.

Stew had a bunch of beer, and a bottle of booze. Together they all sat around, and drank the rest of the night. By morning they new each other well. They decided to stick together, and spare change as a team that day.

While sparring change with the five of them Luke met plenty of new faces of kids that had squats in the area. One fella in particular Luke hit it off with. He was a black kid with a red mohawk named Joker.

"Where do you stay at Joker, you got a squat to crash in?" Luke asks figuring Joker had to have squatted somewhere.

"I sleep on a bench by the river every night."

"Really that's where I stayed my first night here I'm surprised we didn't meet then."

"I saw you sleeping there, and new we'd run into each other sooner or later."

"Well your welcome to stay at our squat from now on if you want."

"Sure I'll take you up on that."

"It's the slave quarters to an old mansion over on Esplanade boulevard, I'll take you there later."

The group sparring change kept growing in numbers. By the end of the day there was about twenty street kids hanging out begging bread together on Decatur Street. They were all acting crazy and wild. They may have been in the gutter only that didn't stop them from having a good time.

By nightfall they headed for the squat, and now even more kids wanted to stay at the place. There was Luke of coarse who they called Duke, Robo, Stinky, Dip, Stew, Stews girl friend, Trash, Skitz, and Joker all making it there humble abode. Together they bonded over time, and became like family.

Joker would often lighten up the atmosphere by saying his favorite line "Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight." The kids always got a chuckle out the theatrics he put into it.

Stew was the go to guy, and kept order in the place. Robo continued on getting wasted off of cough syrup, and hardly ever talked. Stinky fit his name to a tee. Everytiime he'd take his shoes off the smell would linger through the place like you wouldn't believe. The guy got a lot of flack, and sometimes wasn't aloud to come in unless he washed his feet.

Trash, Dip, and Skitz, were three real crazy guys. Before coming to the squat Trash preferred to sleep in dumpsters, that's how he got his name. Dip was a light skinned black kid, he found road signs that said dip to be amusing, and for some reason due to him poking fun at dip signs so much the kids just started calling him Dip. Skitz was a little psychotic but absolutely harmless, he heard voices that told him all kinds of crazy shit.

"Hay Duke I got a gun." Trash said while laying down for the night with the rest of the bunch."

"You don't have no gun Trash, stop your lying." Stew's girlfriend said with a little chuckle in her voice.

"Yes I do." Trash said out to convince anyone who was listening that he was holding.

"Alright then show it to me." Stew's girlfriend said, determined he was lying.

"I can't, if I pull it out it means I gotta use it." Trash said, trying to act tougher than he really was.

"Like I said you don't have a gun." Stews girlfriend said now fully content he was lying.

"Oh yeah, try me bitch, and see what happens." Trash said trying to sound intimidating.

"You don't have no gun Trash now knock it off so we can get some sleep." Luke said trying to come to Stew's girlfriends aid.

"I do to have a gun, and I'm about to use it up in here on somebody if you all don't take me serious." Trash said sounding real frustrated, and angry.

"Whatever, o.k. You got a gun, are you happier now that I believe you." Stews girlfriend said trying to appease Trash hoping he'd shut up so she could get some rest.

"You better believe I'm holding, I ain't no joke man." Trash said trying to sound tough again.

Things then got real quiet, and everyone fell asleep. Then the oddest thing happened, a rat crawled up on Luke's chest, and woke him up while nibbling on his bottom lip.

"AHHH, a rat!" Luke yelled but woke no one. He then went over by Trash to wake him up.

"Hay Trash, come on wake up buddy."

"What?" "What do you want?" Trash mumbles then rolls over and looks at Luke.

"If you really got that gun I'm gonna need it."

"Why?" "What are you gonna use it for?"

"I just woke up to a rat chewing on my lip." "I'm fixin on shooting the varmint before sunrise."

"Man your nuts, what if the cops come?"

"I'm not worried about the cops." "If you haven't noticed gun shots go off in this neighborhood all the time, have you ever seen the cops do anything?" Luke said stating his case.

"I guess not."

"Well then no worries right?" "Go ahead, and give me the gun, I'll be sure to give it back to you when I'm done."

"Ok I guess I can let you use it." Trash says then reaches underneath his bedroll, and pulls out a little 38 snub nose revolver.

"Wow you really do have a gun, where did you get this thing?"

"Ask me no questions, and I'll tell you no lies." "Another words I can't tell you where I got it, but you can use it if you want."

"I want to use it all right, I got a man eating rat to kill."

Luke went back to the room he stayed in, and waited patiently for the rat to come out of hiding. Sure enough just before dawn the dirty little varmint reared its ugly head. Luke waited tell it got nice, and close while holding his finger on the trigger. Then he made aim, BANG! BANG! BANG! He shot three times killing the rat.

"I got him Luke shouts, after scarring the crap out of everybody in the place. Skitz, Dip, and Stinky all woke up and darted for the door thinking a shooting was taking place. Robo was even on his feet looking confused about what to do. Joker went running into Luke's room to see if everything was O.k. Stew's girlfriend started screaming over, and over again "He's really got a gun!" Trash just laid in bed laughing like crazy.

After all the commotion everybody became real quiet for a moment except you could hear Trash trying hard to stop laughing. Then Stew finally got involved, and broke the silence.

"Who shot that gun off, was that you Trash?" "I don't think it's funny." Stew said sounding really upset.

"Nope it wasn't me Stew, your gonna have to talk to The Duke." Trash said, still giggling a little.

"It was me Stew, I woke up to a rat chewing on my lip." "I asked Trash if I could use his gun to shoot the damn thing." Sorry I freaked everybody out, I can guarantee you the rat won't be bothering anyone anymore, It's dead now."