Remember this guy? He's started his "social experiment" of what it's like to be homeless in Melbourne by blogging regularly, being featured in a newspaper article, having weekly meet-ups (?), and lots of lying.

If I had access to razors, a shower and a washing machine, and didn’t enjoy the internet as much as I do, I think I could easily get a part-time job and live my life like this (during the summer, at least).

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I also went online and started house-hunting.

At the end of the month, my Dad is coming down; getting a hotel, and making sure I’m housed and fed before I find a place of my own. Anyone who’s gone house-hunting knows how long that can take, so I set up a temporary email address and started looking today.

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At Coles I bought another loaf of bread. It turns out they do have the cheaper bread and I just missed it last time. But I got the lightly more expensive stuff, as I prefer multi-grain. I also bought an orange and a carrot, which I then ate.

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On a whim, I went up to a donut shop that was closing and explained that I was homeless and couldn’t remember the last time I’d had a donut. The girl behind the counter looked extremely sympathetic, but explained that they couldn’t give out donuts due to store policy. I said that I understood, and went back to doing the sudoku in the paper.

A few minutes later, she snuck over with a bag full of donuts. “Don’t tll my boss, and you can have these,” she whispered.

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Arrived at Fed Square. It seems today is the one-year anniversary of “Black Saturday”, the worst day of the Victorian Bushfires. Some people have accused me of insensitivity, living on the streets on the anniversary of so many people being forced out of their homes. (It’s a coincidence- I chose Feb because it is short and warm) If anyone turns up, I’m sure they’ll be unimpressed by the location. 12 through 2 they’re showing the remembrance service on the big screen. Before, and (I assume) after; they’re showing documentary footage of the events.

I watched the footage for about an hour; the docos are quite well made.

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I’ve reached the point where if I’m fairly picky, I get about a 25% success rate with asking for money. If I was even more selective, I reckon I could get it up to about 50-60% success. You can just tell from some people’s faces whether they’ll give you change or not.

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I’ve fairly conclusively demonstrated that I’m not stealing anyone’s sleeping spots. Except for the first night, I’ve not yet come across a single sleeping person at night. Where-ever they go, it’s not where I’m sleeping. I suppose one could argue that they’re not there because I am, but if you’d seen any of the places I’d slept, you’d realise how ridiculous that is.

The comments on his blog http://www.peterchayward.com are a mix of support and angry (his mom shows up). melbournemaniac has a post with a scan of the newspaper article (with picture!), and sf_drama has nothing but disdain for him. Can't say that I disagree.

ETA: This entry makes me wish I lived in Melbourne so I could punch him in the face. Summary: A nice couple takes Peter home, lets him shower, feeds him, and gives him $50. They sound like wonderful people. He sounds like a douchecanoe.