Mr. and Mrs. Geist began their adventure a year ago in New York City
Can you be homeless and joyful?
Mr. and Mrs. Geist would say yes. They found each other and happiness while on the street. During this interview, the couple laughed, finished each other’s sentences and described their time together.
Mr. Geist: We’ve been together for a little over a year, and met in (both chiming) New York City.
Mrs. Geist: Which is my favorite city in the world.
Mr.: And I grew up on Long Island, and she lived there for over 20 years. And we met in a soup kitchen …
Mrs.: Yes, and fell in love.
Mr.: Oh, we’ve got to have that (both laugh). So from there ...
Mrs.: I was losing my mind in Manhattan, and then I met him. He was telling me about his travels and where he’s been cross-country. ... He was like, “You’re depressed here, why don’t you come with me? Why don’t we have an adventure?” And I was so miserable that (listening to him) I was excited, intrigued. So I said, “All right, let’s do it.’”
Mr.: So I told her, “You know, while building a relationship, we could get jobs. You could go to your job and I could go to my job and we’ll never see each other, or we could spend all our time together. And that’s pretty much what we did.
To get to know each other, the couple decided to stay in one place for the summer and “sleep under the stars” along Manhattan’s East River. In the fall, Mr. Geist met Mrs. Geist’s family. They stayed at her parents’ house a few weeks, where Mr. Geist did work around the house to help her elderly parents.
Mr.: I’m not a bum, I’m actually a ...
Mrs.: He’s a handyman type, creative and crafty, and that was really sexy to see (laughs). Are you blushing?
Mr.: Yes. ... I used to be an industrial bridge painter, sandblasting and (painting) special coatings on mega-steel structures. I used to make $50 an hour, hanging upside-down, doing weird shit on missile launch towers.
Mr. Geist worked full time until his father died in 2008. That’s when he decided to drive a van across country. When the van broke down, he started walking. By the time he met Mrs. Geist, he had been to 46 of the lower 48 states and 31 national parks.
The couple zig-zagged around the country, taking the bus, hitch-hiking and train-hopping. A shopping cart came in handy when the couple reached Colorado.
Mr.: We did get stuck in Denver for three months.
Mrs.: Oh, yes.
Mr.: ... with 17-degree weather and 18 inches of snow and a camping ban – so you’re not allowed to have a tent anywhere in the city. We filled this shopping cart like a bear cave and we hung out with 18 inches of snow on us. And we laughed the whole time.
They eventually stayed at a mountain cabin offered by one of the friends they made in the area.
Mr.: We didn’t take advantage. We gave back to the people, friends that we’ve had along the way. Cook, work and play fair ball. Barter. And love, you know? No thievery or crime.
Mrs.: Actually I do hair, and one of our friends bought me a pair of scissors so that I could cut his hair. Now I have scissors, and I’ve been helping friends that live outside as well.
Mr.: Four in the last 10 days right here in Portland.
Mrs.: I got a hat for a haircut. I’d rather do that, than say “That’s $5, I’ll make it really cheap.” I’d rather trade.
Mr.: And know that she gets $150 for a haircut in New York City.
Mrs.: It’s like $150. It’s a lot. It’s overpriced. I mean really. So why not just do it for free? I’m quick. It’s easy. I can do it. I’m licensed. I can help out.
Mr. and Mrs. Geist sell Street Roots in Pioneer Square on the corner of Southwest Sixth Avenue and Southwest Yamhill Street. There they have fun entertaining the public and themselves.
Mr.: I always wanted to have a hard-core chick that would be able to run with me. All my previous relationships let me down because I’m strong-willed, strong-headed and strong-minded. And this girl, not only can she keep up, but ...
Mrs.: I put him in his place.
Mr.: ... She makes me belly laugh like nobody else has. She brings me back down from this Type A personality and makes me laugh at myself.
Mrs.: And I never could have seen myself ever leaving New York and doing this much traveling. So he kind of saved me. I’m totally in love with him. ...
Mr.: And I say “Live free or die.” So if the train’s going that way, then we can jump on it and make our way down to Mount Shasta and see the redwoods again. Or maybe cut through the desert this time.
Mrs.: Right, we’ll do that.
Mr.: Sky’s the limit.
Mrs.: Sounds fun.
