HOBO SIGNS, PART 3
![[Sign]](/img/hobosigns-defendyourself.jpg)
Yeah! Get into the Unyielding Tiger Stance! Be prepared to unleash some
Bum Fu! I dunno. Hobos are probably more violent than
legend would have you believe. Most subculture stereotypes of gentle,
kind people are untrue; I personally know at least six ways of getting
a hippie to take a swing at you, only two of which involve saying something
snarky about hemp. I'm sure a great many hobos can introduce you
to a world of pain, or at least leave a harmonica-shaped dent in your
forehead. But still, I'm not sure what "preparing to defend yourself"
would mean in this context. Maybe grabbing a stick. C
![[Sign]](/img/hobosigns-rich.jpg)
I have to doubt the utility of this sign. First: they clearly didn't
get that way by handing cash over to hobos. Second: If the money could
be easily stolen, don't you think your fellow hobo would be stealing it
instead of making the sign? Thirdly: if your main mode of transportation
is an unsecured boxcar, are you really in a position to decide who's
rich and who's merely upper middle class? I can only see this as the
hobo equivalent of small talk, followed by the sign for "Boy, I wish I
was rich" and the sign for "I heard that." D+
![[Sign]](/img/hobosigns-meandog.jpg)
For some reason, I really like this one. Partially because it's really
useful. You don't want to figure out how mean a dog is by counting the
stitches. Partially because it looks like someone got distracted in
the middle of making a comb and wax paper kazoo. You'd get distracted
from making a comb and wax paper kazoo, too, if a mean dog was coming
at you. A-
![[Sign]](/img/hobosigns-thisway.jpg)
It requires a great deal of trust to go along with hobo signs. How
can you be sure that the sign wasn't put there by a serial killer
with a new freezer and a little esoteric hobo knowledge? Really,
even if it is another hobo you're relying on someone
who may be under the influence of grain alcohol, delirium tremens,
or the dreaded "Van De Kamp Fever." On the other hand, it's not
like you're going to be getting a lot of useful information out
of the Zagat Guide to Generous Townfolk, so you've got to
go with what you've got. C+
![[Sign]](/img/hobosigns-train.jpg)
Well, it's useful. And self-apparent. At this point, though, I'm
a little sad that the sign for catching a train is just a train.
I was half expecting some sort of wacky-ass drawing of a monkey
wearing a bowtie, or a cross with a sprig of parsley on top.
I was, as they say, expecting the unexpected. I can take comfort
in the fact that at least it's not just a box with the words
"Yo, catch a train here." In the great game of Extreme
Pictionary that is the hobo lifestyle, some things abide. C
