Panhandler Franklin & Lombard

So I'm on my motorcycle, stoplight at the corner of Franklin and Lombard. The pandhandler is a polite guy -- just stands at the side of the road with his sign, "hungry, please help" or something of that nature. He's wearing what look like second-hand clothes, but they're clean, so he seems down-and-out, but not homeless.

After a few seconds, the guy in front of me rolls down his window and hands him a bill. Then the lady in a van next lane over, opens her window and hands him a sandwich bag half full of coins. As he walks back to the curb with a slight limp, yes, polite, doesn't hang out in the lanes, I say, "Wow -- are those all coins?"

He glances at me with a friendly expression, "ah, just pennies... a few silver though..."

I reply, "well, coupla bucks maybe."

"Ya."

It all just seems like nice polite conversation with a stranger. No tugging at the heartstrings, sad-sack story, whatever, just a civil exchange.