HARE KRISHNA; FRIED CHICKEN & BEER

Ahhhh....Winter! CHRISTMAS!! , full of old sweet memories. Hare Krishna. Well. Ok. Not that. 

But...in the distant past, when I was a policeman on midnight shift, in Miami, (keeping people safe) every year, when it got cold up North, many drifters would head to Miami. They could live without being too cold. Sleep outside. When we ran out of stuff to do, we would eat free food at a hamburger place on Us 1. But that's another story. We didn't have 'police hero parades' either. a sign of the times! I'm afraid.

Anyway, among Christmas wayfarers were the ubiquitous "Hare Krishnas"-- In robes and carrying blankets. They walked around begging, singing and being nuisances. Interfering with shopping.

They also would sleep inside. INSIDE any place they could get into. Bastards. Coming to Coral Gables to keep warm in the holidays. So...in the interests if keeping citizens safe, we kept watch!! We wouldn't want them staying warm!

One cold night, we were rousting 20 of them, from fast asleep, in their robes, out of the always-open Episcopal Church sanctuary. It was maybe 3 am. Anyway, we hustled them outside, explaining they were not to sleep in the church, in the pews.

Jesus didn't allow that, in Miami. 

One of the male ones turned to me and said "Melly Clistmas" -- I responded, in kind, "Merry Christmas" -- over the clanking of nightsticks and the creak of gun belt leather.

GET IN THE CAR, DIRTBAG

One of the other policemen said to me, " he didn't say 'Merry Christmas, you know' -- I was dumbfounded. "He said Ha Le Kris Na" -- I said, "what the hell is that?" - then I heard it...as they trundled out, and we shoved them out of the church, unwelcomed by Jesus....tossed out... They sang, "Klishna, Halle Klishna -- Rahhma, Rahhma Klishnsha..." Happy to be rejected by the soldiers of Christ.

In this way, we kept everyone safe. We laughed about it after we got off work and chanted, in derision, combining the words, Mehhlee, Mehhlee Clismasss, Hahhhle Hahhhla Klishna..." 

While we drank beer and ate cold fried chicken at 10 AM. Heroes. Whew!