The Riemenschneiders were reeling over their toddler’s bloodied face and lacerated lip when they received another shock in the Children’s Minnesota emergency room in St. Paul.
Two-year-old Kenzie had lost the top third of her ear from a severe dog bite, and a doctor wanted to try an ambitious hyperbaric oxygen therapy to save it.
“We were just adrenaline-driven at that point. I didn’t want anything to do with any decisions,” said the mother, Jaisa Riemenschneider, who recalled thinking, “Let’s just trust the doctor and let’s get going.”
The quick decision proved smart. Surgery reattached the ear fragment after the Nov. 2 injury, and then 40 days of hyperbaric treatments at Hennepin Healthcare in Minneapolis helped it grow healthy blood vessels and return to life.
“Seeing her ear turn gray, then black, and then slowly starting to see skin color come back?” her mother said. “You just never thought that a body part could change colors like that.”
Doctors from both institutions are writing an academic paper to teach others about this promising expansion of hyperbaric medicine — a specialty that increases the lungs’ distribution of oxygen to tissues by placing patients inside sealed, high-air-pressure chambers.
Surgery alone had little chance of success, but Children’s Dr. Siva Chinnadurai believed hyperbaric therapy could improve the odds enough to try it on Kenzie. A similar approach a few weeks earlier had been successful in treating a 10-year-old’s wound but, as far as Chinnadurai knew, that was the world’s first attempt at combining an ear reattachment procedure with hyperbaric treatment.
“The likelihood of healing by just sewing something back on [to the ear] is historically close to zero,” said Chinnadurai, the facial trauma surgery specialist who was on call at Children’s when paramedics brought Kenzie in.
It wasn’t the only fortunate decision. Kenzie’s bloodied face made it difficult to identify the ear wound when paramedics arrived at the family’s home in Houlton, Wis. As they were preparing for the trip to the hospital, one paramedic noticed an ear fragment that fell out of the girl’s sweater and put it on ice.
‘Clock starts ticking’
The general rule is that tissue or skin grafts need to happen within 72 hours to work, but that timeline probably shrinks when dealing with ears, Chinnadurai said.
“You immediately start having cell death right away when the blood supply is interrupted,” he said. “So that clock starts ticking almost right away.”
The top of the ear plays no role in hearing, but there were reasons beyond cosmetics to reattach it. Normal glasses, headphones, masks and other headgear won’t stay on the head without that segment of the ear to anchor them, the doctor said.
Hyperbaric chambers in oceanside hospitals often treat decompression sickness in divers who surface too quickly. HCMC’s unit often treats adults with burn injuries, frostbite, wounds and carbon monoxide poisoning — though one memorable case involved a diver who ascended too quickly from a shipwreck in Lake Superior and spent 53 straight hours in a chamber.
Children, much less toddlers, aren’t common patients in the unit.
“We didn’t know exactly what it was. We were like, ‘Yeah, right. You’re going to stick her in a tube? Good luck,'” said her father, Andy Riemenschneider. “We didn’t know it was a whole room like this.”
HCMC’s unit is the only one open 24 hours a day for emergencies in Minnesota. It features room-sized chambers that are large enough for patients plus nurses or technicians to monitor them during treatments — called dives because they mimic the changing air pressure of deep-sea diving. On the morning after her injury, Kenzie received her first dive with her mother alongside.
Kenzie cried briefly but calmed down; tubes had been implanted in her ears to help her deal with the changing pressure. The biggest challenge was that her mother’s ear pressure failed to level off at the end of the therapy session, and she suffered a bruised ear.
Stress from the ordeal probably didn’t help, she said: “I still had blood in my hair. I hadn’t been home yet.”
A happy patient
After that, Kenzie received treatments with nurses or technicians in the chamber. Her bravery and bubbly nature won over the entire unit. Several caregivers returned off-duty on Tuesday to see her during a return visit.
“She was a dream in the chamber — bonded with all of our nurses,” said Dr. Tom Masters, the hyperbaric medicine specialist who oversaw Kenzie’s treatment. “She did really well. We were concerned about it, but it turned out to be something she could handle.”
Masters used a camera with fluorescent dye to monitor blood flow, and over time 90{35112b74ca1a6bc4decb6697edde3f9edcc1b44915f2ccb9995df8df6b4364bc} of the ear fully healed. A small portion at the top scabbed and fell off. A follow-up cosmetic procedure when Kenzie is older could fix that deformity.
Kenzie is happy back home with her parents and 3-year-old sister, showing few if any signs of mental anguish from the attack or the prolonged treatment.
The puppy that bit Kenzie has been adopted by another family. It was a brief, freak incident that might have occurred when Kenzie accidentally yanked the excited puppy’s collar, her father said. The family still has cats and another puppy. Kenzie plays with the dog — sometimes cautiously.
Pet dog homeowners expend an average of $368 a yr on food stuff and treats, although cat owners devote an regular of $326 a year, the APPA claims.
Get meals in bulk. Obtaining pet food items in big quantities can assist reduce foodstuff prices. The crucial thing when purchasing in bulk, even though, is to continue to keep the food items clean, claims Munden. That usually means storing pet foodstuff in sealed containers and in room-temperature areas or holding it refrigerated, based on the sort of foodstuff.
Get a food stuff subscription. “Major marketplaces like Amazon and Chewy will provide all around 5{35112b74ca1a6bc4decb6697edde3f9edcc1b44915f2ccb9995df8df6b4364bc} off if you subscribe to obtain the foodstuff on a standard foundation,” suggests Daniel Caughill, co-founder of The Pet Tale, an on the net resource for canine homeowners. Of system, not all pets — even animals of the identical breed — consume the same volume of food, but “you can typically pause, skip or cancel [subscription] shipments at any time,” Caughill suggests.
Be a part of pet shop loyalty clubs. You can gain details for buys at major pet retailers, including PetSmart, Petco and Pet Supplies Moreover, by signing up for their no cost loyalty memberships. Points can be redeemed for shop credit. Some shops also provide their customers unique product sales, coupon codes and other perks.
Consider generic makes. When it will come to pet food items, generic does not necessarily imply reduce quality, claims Jenna Stregowski, pet wellness and actions editor at Every day Paws, a way of life and tips web-site for pet owners. Some generic makes comprise the identical higher-excellent components as pricier identify-manufacturer products and solutions, Stregowski says. But just before shopping for any meals, run the product or service by your veterinarian to guarantee your pet will be getting the appropriate vitamins.
Make your personal treats. Treats can be high-priced. “They also tend to be loaded with unhealthy fillers and preservatives,” Caughill states. As an alternative of acquiring treats, develop your own. You can retain things uncomplicated: “Single-component treats like sweet potato bites are both equally inexpensive and healthful,” suggests Caughill. “You just minimize up a pair into cubes and bake them for 2½ hours at 250 degrees.” Or you can make much more elaborate treats by using other pet-helpful substances, this sort of as peanut butter (invest in one which is free of artificial sweeteners, like xylitol), bacon, cheese, pureed pumpkin and carrots. You are going to obtain no lack of recipes online.
Cat house owners and puppy house owners expend on normal $41 and $56 for each year, respectively, on toys, the APPA stories.
Shop at discounted merchants. Stregowski says Marshalls, HomeGoods and greenback stores usually sell pet bowls, beds, toys and other materials at a portion of the price of key vendors.
Make your individual toys and beds. Have an outdated T-shirt and a pair of socks you are willing to part with? Knot them together to create a tug-of-war rope for your pet, Caughill implies. “It’s cost-free, and your pet will adore that they eventually get to enjoy with your socks,” he suggests. A further Do-it-yourself venture: Establish a doggy bed by repurposing a suitcase, wine crate or picnic basket, lining the makeshift crate with padding or pillows.
Obtain the most resilient toys. No pet dog toy is indestructible. That reported, there are manufacturers that manufacture relatively extended-long lasting toys, these types of as KONG. Both Caughill and Stregowski like the Super Chewer toy line from BarkBox, a canine toy and deal with membership company that begins at $20 a month.
Brace oneself: Practically fifty percent (45{35112b74ca1a6bc4decb6697edde3f9edcc1b44915f2ccb9995df8df6b4364bc}) of pet proprietors shell out at least as much on their animal’s healthcare as they expend on their individual healthcare, in accordance to a LendEDU study. Pet insurance policy can make these bills a lot more workable. But pet insurance coverage is not appropriate for absolutely everyone, states Janet Ruiz, director of strategic communications at the Insurance plan Facts Institute.
Maintain up with preventive oral treatment. “Dental illness can guide to coronary heart and kidney challenges and pricey treatments,” warns Lori Bierbrier, a veterinarian and senior clinical director of the ASPCA. Brushing your dog’s or cat’s tooth every day making use of a pet-friendly toothpaste can maintain their gums and enamel wholesome and assist stop pricey operation, says Wendy Hauser, a veterinarian and president of Denver-based mostly Peak Veterinary Consulting. The Veterinary Oral Wellness Council’s web site publishes a list of vetted dental merchandise for dogs and cats, including toothpaste, dental chews and h2o additives.
Reduce ailments. Heartworm, intestinal parasites and tick-borne health conditions can be expensive to treat — and in some situations lethal. Guard your pet by earning certain they get an yearly vet exam, vaccines and capsules for tick, heartworm and flea avoidance. And stay up to date on their booster pictures, suggests Zac Pilossoph, a consulting veterinarian at Healthful Paws Pet Coverage.
Maintain your pet at a balanced fat. Good food plan and work out can help hold your pet healthy and out of the hospital— and maintain clinic expenses at bay. “When a pet is overweight, it can direct to an amplified threat of diabetic issues, osteoarthritis, ligament and bone accidents, most cancers, and kidney, coronary heart and respiratory disorder,” Pilossoph claims.
Store for drugs on the internet. Your veterinarian can prescribe and offer drugs for your pet, but several cost major greenback for them. On-line pharmacies, such as 1800PetMeds, VetRxDirect and PetCareRx, are likely to offer you discounted charges.
Test for savings on spay or neuter surgical procedure. Some nonprofits, which includes Close friends of Animals and the Humane Society of the United States, provide price cut vouchers for spaying or neutering. But look at with your vet to make confident their clinic participates in the system, Caughill suggests.
Cats generally really don’t need grooming. In the meantime, a standard puppy grooming session, which involves a bath, blow dry, nail trim, ear cleaning and oftentimes anal gland expression, commonly prices between $30 and $90, dependent on a dog’s sizing and the length and thickness of their coat, amongst other variables, in accordance to Day-to-day Paws. But prices can be appreciably better for haircuts.
Go Do it yourself. One way to save dollars on pet grooming is to understand how to do it your self. April Chillari, the owner of Core Canine, a pet instruction organization in Northern Virginia, indicates starting off by studying how to trim your dog’s nails. “There are a large amount of good films on YouTube that demonstrate how to situation your doggy to nail trims,” she claims.
Shop all over. If you never want to do pet grooming by yourself — or your animal demands professional grooming (some puppy breeds do, the American Kennel Club’s Munden says) — get a handful of pet groomer recommendations from your vet, good friends and loved ones, and then look at premiums.
Brush your pet. Some pet groomers cost added for detangling matty coats, Chillari claims. So if you have a long-haired doggy or cat, it is a fantastic strategy to spend in a substantial-high quality hairbrush and consistently brush their fur to avert their coat from matting.
Pet dog kennels generally charge $20 to $50 per evening, experiences Rover, a peer-to-peer pet dog strolling and pet boarding cellular app, whilst doggy working day care begins at about $40. Cat boarding expenses are inclined to be lessen, about $15 to $20 per night time, PetCareRx states.
Locate a regional pet sitter. If you are going to require anyone to check out or wander your canine, Chillari endorses using Rover. Rover pet sitters and puppy walkers are “usually less expensive than the greater amenities and give more a single-on-a person focus to your pet,” she states. Rover suppliers established their personal rates, with charges primarily based on date and place, the firm states.
Variety a pet-sitting down co-op. Band collectively a group of neighbors with animals who are keen to provide absolutely free pet sitting down for each and every other as necessary. Pro tip: Generate a rotating timetable if you go into the business office on opposite times from anyone else.
Order a daycare package. If you like to just take your pet to a daycare middle, numerous supply multiday deals at diminished rates. For case in point, one particular Northern Virginia daycare center rates $44 for every day but also sells 5-working day deals that provide the amount down to $41 a working day.
The common charge to hire a non-public pet dog coach is $140 per session, in accordance to Thumbtack.
Take edge of team courses. Team classes “tend to get you much more bang for your buck,” Chillari says. PetSmart, Petco and quite a few independent trainers supply group education periods.
Go virtual. A lot of trainers demand significantly less for virtual periods than in-particular person teaching. A amount of stores also give virtual schooling PetSmart, for instance, delivers a one particular-hour, one-on-a single virtual education session for $35.
Turn out to be your personal pet coach. There is no lack of pet instruction tutorials on YouTube. For instance, canine trainer Zak George’s YouTube films help you residence practice your dog and restrict barking.
Like vacationing with your pet? You’re in excellent enterprise: Six out of 10 canine and cat owners get their 4-legged companions with them when touring at minimum some of the time, a latest Wag study observed.
Continue to be at pet-helpful lodges and homestays. Research your lodging solutions to come across accommodations with low to no fees for pets. You can lookup for pet-friendly accommodations all over the environment at Carry Fido and Pets Welcome. Bring Fido also has lists of doggy-pleasant things to do at your place. But constantly browse the fantastic print — some lodges and Airbnbs prohibit particular animals, breeds or measurements.
Look at airline pet service fees. If you have to have to fly to reach your spot, choose time to study your alternatives because pet costs can differ by carrier. Airways commonly cost a $100 to $150 one-way charge to deliver a doggy or cat in the cabin. You can come across a listing of airline costs at www.gopetfriendly.com.
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Every single month, you are shelling out oodles of cash to pay out for a variety of wants: your auto payment, a mortgage, perhaps a every month subscription or two and, of system, food. Out of all of those bills, food items is the one factor that can differ drastically from month to month. And if you’re not cautious, your spending behavior in this group could be draining your lender account quicker than you believe.
In 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Studies observed that the typical American domestic spent 36.5{35112b74ca1a6bc4decb6697edde3f9edcc1b44915f2ccb9995df8df6b4364bc} on food stuff eaten absent from home. You’ve got possibly been explained to that ingesting at residence is the most inexpensive decision, and that may possibly be accurate for the most part. Even so, there are other vital elements to maintain in head when you’re attempting to extend the family price range — without having depleting all of your other methods.
The following guidelines will enable you keep on major of your finances so that both equally your wallet (and your belly) stay easily comprehensive.
Know your alternatives
It really is easy to assume of your food solutions as merely a alternative in between consuming at house and feeding on out. These times, it really is truly much more nuanced than that. For foods at dwelling, you can do all the grocery buying by yourself or you can purchase do-it-yourself food kits. When you are feeding on out, you can pick from rapid meals, quickly informal, casual or great eating places to eat. Certainly, the price tag and high-quality of your foods rely on which of these options you decide on.
Make a approach
You can find nothing at all improper with wanting to hit up your favorite restaurant now and then. Sometimes it really is superior to shake factors up! Take the guilt out of your occasional food splurge by scheduling in progress how typically you can find the money for to eat out for each month.
If Saturday is your weekly day evening, you should not sabotage the spending plan by buying takeout in the middle of the week. Obtaining certain foods planned forward of time can clear away a lot of the choice tiredness included in whipping up the nightly menu.
Photo: nito/Shutterstock.com
Limit foods squander
Buying at your nearby grocery store isn’t really going to preserve you any revenue in the very long operate if you will not use the food items you purchase. Nonetheless foodstuff waste is a widespread difficulty among American households.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that amongst 30–40{35112b74ca1a6bc4decb6697edde3f9edcc1b44915f2ccb9995df8df6b4364bc} of the meals offer winds up in landfills. People add to this problem by getting or cooking extra than they have to have and throwing absent the extras. The remedy: Buy and cook dinner the ideal parts of food stuff to satisfy your requirements. If you have excess, preserve it for the next meal — or share it with someone else.
Be thorough when you are taking in out
It’s no magic formula that Us residents enjoy to try to eat out, and this can surely include up each and every month if you usually are not very careful. To no surprise at all, of all of your food items solutions on the table, this 1 is the priciest. In accordance to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Stats, the regular home expended $3,459 on meals away from dwelling in 2018. That was about 1-fourth the total spent on simple shelter, only a little less than utilities, fuels and general public products and services, and twice as significantly as apparel and solutions.
Of class, restaurants do drop into unique segments. In an article for Investopedia, Trevir Nath writes that a fast-meals cafe (these types of as McDonald’s or Wendy’s) usually expenses concerning $5 to $7 for each food. A speedy-casual restaurant meal (assume: Chipotle or Café Zupas) costs about $11. The price of informal and good-eating eating places goes up from there.
Realize the value of do-it-yourself meals
It is really time to communicate about the cost of home made meals — and not just the amount of dollars you are going to spend. Producing for Money Below 30, Amy Bergen notes that a residence-cooked meal expenditures about $4 on common. In principle, this would be the cheapest solution. But you also have to element in the time you can commit organizing, procuring, food prepping and cooking due to the fact, as they say, time is revenue.
Several drained, time-crunched People choose for these much more convenient quick-foodstuff meals, even if they are a little bit a lot more high priced and fewer nutritious.
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If you change some of your routines, you could be in a position to lessen your pet paying.
Crucial details
Proudly owning a pet is a large accountability, and in addition to supplying your furry buddies lots of appreciate and interest, you may also need to go over their economic obligations.
A new study by Insuranks.com identified that lots of pet homeowners are having to pay more on pet care expenses when as opposed to yrs past.
You may well be ready to help save funds on pet expenditures by purchasing pet supplies on-line, switching to a far more reasonably priced vet, and investing in pet insurance policies.
Possessing a pet can be a fulfilling experience. Animals are generally cuddly creatures, and they can present snuggles and companionship even though also bettering your mood. But it requires funds to care for your pets thoroughly. As daily costs increase, possessing a pet is finding additional costly.
Prices are higher almost everywhere we glimpse — and not just at the grocery retail outlet. A modern Insuranks.com analyze found that “petflation” has impacted the wallets of lots of pet house owners.
In accordance to the survey, approximately half of all pet homeowners come to feel they put in a lot more revenue on their animals in 2022 in comparison to preceding several years. Irrespective of higher fees, you may perhaps even now be equipped to help save on essential pet treatment expenses. Here are four ways to do so.
1. Consider getting pet supplies online
If you devote a great deal of income on pet materials like prescriptions and food items, you may perhaps want to compare prices from on line merchants. Many pet treatment businesses give added discount rates to prospects who get drugs and pet food stuff delivered to their residences on a regular basis by their subscription providers. By buying important goods on the net in its place of in shop, you may perhaps be in a position to cut down your pet treatment paying out.
2. Obtain an reasonably priced veterinarian
If you have a furry pal, committing to frequent vet exams is very important. But not all veterinarians demand the very same prices some are far more high priced than other individuals. If you are emotion pressured about the substantial expense of your pet’s vet expenditures, exploring other vets in the location may well be worthwhile. You may be ready to hold more cash in your checking account devoid of skipping excursions to the vet by switching to a a lot more affordably priced observe.
3. Groom your pets at home
A further way to preserve on pet care charges is to do your have grooming. Even though using your furry companion to a expert groomer can be easy and signify much less get the job done for you, these expenses can swiftly insert up. If you happen to be inclined to find out how to groom your pet, you can retain much more cash in your pocket.
4. Commit in pet insurance
When it will come to having to pay costly vet payments, pet insurance plan can be practical. The suitable protection could support you commit much less income all round as you care for your pet. Options range greatly, so it truly is crucial to very carefully critique coverage particulars to make sure you get the ideal policy for your furry buddy. Some options go over qualified sicknesses and harm-associated expenditures, although other folks assistance protect the cost of preventive care and routine visits.
Preserve income and prepare for the unpredicted
No make any difference what kind of pet you very own, you may need to have to devote revenue to give them a great lifetime. Even if you have a healthful, delighted pet, there may possibly arrive a time when you need to have to expend more dollars on their treatment. You can approach for upcoming prices ahead of you get an surprising monthly bill.
Placing aside further money in an unexpected emergency fund for prospective unexpected emergency pet care costs is very best. You will truly feel considerably less money anxiety in the upcoming if you just take the time to save now. Stashing excess hard cash in a superior-yield personal savings account is an great way to get ready for surprising bills — additionally, you’ll generate desire on your contributions.
We are all carrying out the finest we can to stretch our dollars further more. If you happen to be seeking for other approaches to conserve money, test out our particular finance methods for supplemental recommendations.
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Dealers clustered at Seventh and Mission streets, openly selling drugs. At their feet, people smoked fentanyl off tinfoil while others nodded off. Tents dotted the sidewalks. Piles of food scraps, trash and feces filled the gutter. Pedestrians, including a woman pushing a baby in a stroller, nearly swerved into traffic on Seventh Street to get past.
Laurie Steves, 57, stood amid the commerce and the chaos, waiting.
Her daughter, 35-year-old Jessica Didia, whose addiction to opioids has shattered her life, lives at the corner in a large gray Coleman tent placed under the awning of the shuttered Good Hotel. The hotel’s website still brags that its location “brings the best of the city to your doorstep,” but if that was ever the case, it sure isn’t now.
Laurie, a nursing home cook outside Seattle, had flown to San Francisco the day before — Jan. 2 — after learning Jessica had been hospitalized for a disorder that caused recurring seizures, just as
a fierce storm
was barreling down on the city. She wanted to get her daughter inside.
But she knew her mission was a long shot. She needed to go step by step. First, she’d settle for taking her daughter for a walk.
Laurie Steves watches as her daughter Jessica Didia looks through drug paraphernalia in Victoria Manalo Draves Park in the South of Market.
Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle
“Come on, Jess!” she kept hollering through the zipped-up tent. Jessica would yell back that she was getting ready. But then she’d shout that she couldn’t find her shoes or her pipe. We kept waiting.
Laurie and Jessica appeared in this column a year ago
as the city’s fentanyl epidemic exploded. The story of a mom’s desperate, failed attempt to rescue her daughter from homelessness and addiction to a drug now ravaging the country resonated with San Franciscans. Readers shared their frustration that the city seemed so ill-equipped to help people like Jessica even as their lives unravel in full view.
Laurie had moved to San Francisco in spring 2021, determined to save her daughter after losing her 25-year-old son, Zachary, to an overdose. But the three-month attempt fell short. Laurie couldn’t make it in wildly expensive San Francisco, and Jessica made it clear she wanted no help. They spent much of their time together arguing, and Laurie left, dejected. A brief visit in November 2021 proved no more fruitful.
Fourteen months later, we connected again, and I found myself entertaining fresh hope that something would change. But nothing has improved — for Laurie, for Jessica and for San Francisco itself.
Jessica’s day-to-day life on the edge — exposed not only in this column but in frequent videos posted to Twitter by business owner Adam Mesnick, who has sought to help her — exemplifies so many of the city’s problems and tensions:
the overdose crisis,
the pull of fentanyl,
the
legal battle over tent encampments,
the plight of a pandemic-battered downtown and city leadership seemingly unable to make headway on any of it.
While Laurie and Jessica’s lives remain stuck, San Francisco over the past 14 months has been volatile. Just after the first column ran, Mayor London Breed announced that “the bullshit that has destroyed our city” was about to end and declared
an emergency in the Tenderloin.
But she failed to quickly and meaningfully improve police staffing in the neighborhood, and the emergency order ended. The streets remain chaotic,
especially at night,
so much so that neighborhood merchants have demanded that
San Francisco pay back their 2022 taxes.
Breed opened the Tenderloin Center in United Nations Plaza, billing it as a place for people like Jessica to access the help they need. She didn’t advertise that it included a makeshift overdose-prevention site where people could smoke fentanyl under supervision on the patio. In early December,
Breed closed the center,
and she hasn’t replaced it with the
real, clinical supervised-consumption site she promised.
The mayor has opened more permanent supportive housing and treatment slots, but the system remains byzantine and hard to access. Outraged voters recalled District Attorney Chesa Boudin in June, partly over what they saw as his disinterest in addressing fentanyl markets, and new District Attorney Brooke Jenkins has had only minimal success jailing dealers.
The biggest change for Laurie and Jessica over the past year was a heartbreaking one: On April 12 death, Jessica’s boyfriend, Abdul “Dula” Cole, died of a drug overdose. The 2022 tally of city drug deaths isn’t out yet, but will probably approach 600,
bringing the three-year total to nearly 2,000
— more than COVID-19, homicides and traffic crashes combined.
Dula grew up in San Francisco, graduated from McAteer High and was drafted by the Florida Marlins to play outfield. But that early promise turned to tragedy, and he died alone in his room in a single-room-occupancy hotel on Eddy Street, his body found by his case manager days later. He was 46.
I talked to Jessica about Dula’s death in the spring at the Deli Board, the South of Market sandwich shop she visits regularly to chat with her pal, Mesnick. He gives her soda, pickles, chips and cash. She lets him record videos of her talking about her life and posts them on his controversial account, @bettersoma. Critics call the videos insensitive and exploitative; Mesnick says he’s forcing people to see the city’s street misery up close so they will pressure the city to intervene.
Jessica is a charismatic, spunky, witty woman who competed in beauty pageants as a girl and was a cheerleader in school. That day at the deli, she wore pink cat-eye glasses and purple leggings, but the color had drained from her face. She said she was aimless without her boyfriend, who had provided her an on-and-off place to sleep, depending on whether the desk clerk would allow it, as well as physical protection on the streets and emotional support.
“It’s been terrible,” she told me. “I lost everything all at once. I just keep waiting for him to ride up on his scooter. I turn, thinking it’s him, and it’s not.”
She didn’t lean on her mom for support in her grief, only talking to Laurie a few times in 2022 when Adam persuaded her to use his phone to check in. Meanwhile, Laurie thought constantly of her daughter.
“Every day,” she said. “Just showering or brushing my teeth, I think, ‘How long has it been since she did this?’ When I fix food I know she would like, I think, ‘I wish I could bring her a plate of this.’”
In December, more than a year after she’d last seen her daughter, Laurie received a phone call from Adam. Jessica had landed at a local hospital after suffering from seizures. Laurie planned to fly down immediately, but developed cold symptoms and tested positive for the coronavirus.
By the time she tested negative, Jessica had been discharged from the hospital with a taxi voucher to a shelter she didn’t use, a referral to a methadone clinic she didn’t visit and anti-seizure medications she didn’t take. Instead, she went straight back to the tent at Seventh and Mission where she stays with a friend.
Laurie arrived in the city on Jan. 2 and, with Adam’s guidance, quickly found Jessica’s tent. It sits at what was once a pleasant corner dotted with small businesses, many of which have closed down. The Good Hotel became a shelter-in-place hotel during the pandemic, a program that surely helped save lives but one that
didn’t include enough effort to prevent dealers from taking over the sidewalk
outside. It’s now vacant.
Jessica Didia smokes a mixture of fentanyl and crack as her mother gets drinks at a coffee shop on Seventh Street.
Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle
Laurie and Jessica chatted in the tent for a while, and Laurie promised to visit again the next morning. The next day, after waiting a long time for Jessica to emerge from the tent, Laurie told her she’d come back in half an hour and try again. When we went back, she wasn’t there.
Laurie walked around SoMa looking for Jessica, even checking the aisles at Target where Jessica freely acknowledges she shoplifts items to sell for fentanyl money. Laurie said she sometimes hopes Jessica will get arrested stealing more than $950 worth of goods, enough to count as a felony, and be forced to detox in jail.
On our walk, we spotted banners affixed to light poles promoting the city with a slogan, “San Francisco: Ahead of the Curve.”
“Yeah, right,” Laurie scoffed. “I’m not seeing the compassion in action. I’m not seeing the millions of dollars they have for homelessness services. I’m disgusted by what I see in San Francisco, I really am.”
We headed to the Deli Board and sat out front until Jessica appeared on the back of a scooter driven by her friend, Paris Vines. She was unsteady on her feet and said she felt terrible. She wore a clear, plastic first-aid box tied around her neck with foil and cigarettes inside.
We all headed to a park across the street. Paris tried to persuade Jessica to go with him to a drop-in center where she could get referred to services and shelter. After a decade of homelessness in the Tenderloin, he said he recently got a spot at the Embarcadero Navigation Center and loves it. He said it’s great watching people jog, go to work and live happy lives.
“The Tenderloin compared to other parts of the city is like a horror story,” he said. “It’s an underworld.”
Jessica didn’t seem interested. Laurie suggested they go back to her hotel to watch movies. Or get a cup of coffee. Jessica didn’t seem interested in that, either.
“We need to get you in a program,” Laurie told her. “Things could be good, Jess.”
“No!” Jessica shot back.
“You know you’re going to die out here?” her mom asked her.
“So?” Jessica responded. “I’m going to die one day anyway. Who isn’t? I’ve been dead over 100 f—ing times, and I’m still here.”
She was referring to overdosing and being brought back with Narcan.
“You could be warm at night. You could be dry,” Laurie said. “You could have a home and have a job and have a life.”
“Because you say these words, it can happen?” Jessica asked her. “You can’t make me want it to happen.”
Jessica walked away, telling her mom to leave her alone.
Laurie went to her hotel for a nap, but bolted awake at 3:30 a.m. as the storm grew closer. She walked to Jessica’s tent in the darkness and offered to arrange a hotel room for her and her tentmate to get out of the rain. But then she couldn’t find a place with vacancies that she could afford.
Jessica Didia walks outside of Victoria Manalo Draves Park, where a man is passed out.
Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle
The next day, Laurie went back to the tent and suggested Jessica join her at her hotel or go to a shelter, but Jessica didn’t want to go anywhere without her tentmate. Laurie said Jessica yelled and swore at her, accusing her of lying that she’d buy the pair their own room.
“I wasn’t going to sit there and listen to it,” Laurie said. “I just walked away.”
Laurie didn’t see her again before flying home the next day, having failed once again.
To be sure, there are no easy answers.
Supervisor Matt Dorsey, who represents SoMa, said he’s met Jessica at the Deli Board and that her case points to the need for the city to do more to end open-air drug scenes, mandate treatment for those who are too gravely disabled to care for themselves and incentivize treatment for others by giving people cash payments to get sober. He’s also optimistic about
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Care Court plan
to compel more people into treatment.
“There’s no single answer for everybody,” Dorsey said. “But there are a lot of reasons for hope and optimism, and we need to do the best we can on a lot of different strategies and keep trying new things.”
Jennifer Friedenbach, director of the Coalition on Homelessness, which sued the city over its tent sweeps and succeeded in getting an injunction against them, said Jessica’s case is an extreme one, and that most people do accept shelter if an appropriate placement is offered. She also said the city’s system revolves around emergencies — like Jessica’s hospitalization — rather than providing long-term, consistent care.
“Ideally, she would have a trusting relationship with a service provider and an intensive case manager working closely with her to find a solution,” Friedenbach said.
To Adam, Jessica’s homelessness isn’t the main issue. It’s her fentanyl addiction. He wants to see
a much bigger crackdown on dealers
and more treatment for users.
“I don’t know how you can ask somebody in a tent if they want services when they’re smoking fentanyl,” he said. “Really, she’s being eaten alive by fentanyl. The city is very good at hurting people.”
Laurie said she’s not giving up. She said that if Jessica is hospitalized again, she’ll fly down immediately and catch her before she’s discharged, offering her a prearranged slot at a detox center. That’s the plan, anyway.
“I love her,” she said. “I love how smart and creative she is. And talented. I want all these things to come out again. I want to see her be her.”
And so she continues to wait.
Heather Knight is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. Email: hknight@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hknightsf
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