Meet David King. A homeless musician living in Toronto Ontario Canada. Dave loves playing music. Spreading good vibes and hanging out with his deaf doggo "Boo".
Man. Music. Dog & God
I used to work in an office on Younge St. in Toronto just up the road form Finch station. It was a good area. Despite that there was a rather high population of homeless people. The building I worked in had access to an underground path which led you to the subway and a little mall. This made it the perfect place for those who were down on their luck to congregate. This is where I first met Dave sometime in early 2014.
He was a mess to say the least. Guitar on his back. Wiry hair tied up in a pony tail. Eyes bloodshot. Clothes torn and stained. A beer gripped tightly in his swollen hand. He was homeless & addicted to whatever drugs he could find - My assumption based on our conversations - Heroin and alcohol seemed to be his vices of choice.
At first I kept my communications with Dave to a minimum - Trying to feel him out. I'd toss him a few bucks here and there. Maybe buy him a pack of cigarettes - OR - Get him some munchies from the connivence store around the corner. He really liked chocolate covered raisins and Barks root-beer.
Fridays at the office were called "Fam Fridays" -Everyone would either go out for lunch at ta local restaurant or we would grab take out and come back to the office to eat. One time - On such a day, we made our way to the local Shawarma place. I passed dave sitting outside of Best-buy. I asked him if he'd eaten yet and he said no not since the night before around 7.
I told him not to go any where - I'd be right back. I got a plate of shawarma for my self and another for him - His with double meat and an extra pita. Luckily they also had Root-beer. My co-workers went back upstairs to eat and I sat and enjoyed my lunch with Dave. While talking I got to learn a little more about him and his situation.
Some time went by and it had been a while since I saw Dave. That was nothing new. The homeless in the area (like most) were transient. So I didn't think much of it - said a quick prayer wishing him the best and moved on.
One day in around September of 2015 - While going to get a coffee I saw Daves belongings next to a trash can - Also - Some thing new. A White Pit bull sat on a blanket peacefully chewing a bone. I waited near by for dave to come out of whatever store he was in. When I saw him - To my surprise he looked much better. Brighter. Pep in his step. He said he wasn't entirely clean but doing his best. He was focusing on providing for his new friend Boo which kept his finances tied up and mind occupied. She was a Godsend.
Fast forward a few months. It was Sometime around march of 2016. I ran in to Dave again. We talked for a bit. I learned that shelters were not letting him bring the dog inside - So the pair had been spending every night on the street when Dave couldn't raise enough money throughout the day to pay for a motel room. That wasn't something I was comfortable with. If you know anything about Canada - The last place you want to be in the middle of the winter is stuck sleeping on the street.
Over the next few days my office put together a collection for Dave & Boo. Just about $1000 was raised. We gave it to him right after I shot this video. He cried - I cried - Boo looked confused. I made him promise that the money would go to finding a place for them to stay.
It was another 2 months before I saw him again. Don't remember exactly when it was other than things were starting to warm up. He told us that he'd found a motel nearby that haf let him stay with Boo - The two had been hanging out watching tv and keeping warm since I had seen him last. He told me how he was looking for work/ doing his best to stay clean and keep positive.
Dave was kind beyond words. Despite his troubles I don't think I ever saw him anything but happy. I no longer work at that office. I've heard multiple stories and theories from people regarding the condition & whereabouts of the pair. Everything from him having become sober and living in an apartment downtown to him overdosing and dying on the street only to have Boo be picked up by animal control. If you're a Torontonian and have any knowledge about Dave or Boo please drop me a line or reach out on discord (Same Username) because I would very much like to know how the pair are doing.
LETS HAVE A QUICK CHAT
Over the last week Ive been playing with it. Little tweaks here and there. Stabilize this. Crop that. Fixing exposure. Adding sharpness to shots that were a little soft. Exporting the audio to Adobe Audition to clean up the messy dialogue.
I'm sharing this in an attempt to inspire people on a number of levels. One listen to him talk about his outlook. Look at his face light up when he talks about his dog. Hera the hope in his voice when he talks about someone hearing his music and helping to change his life.
The other way I hope it inspires people is when it come to the idea of embracing your failures. I think I cleaned this up pretty good. Even if I wasn't able to get it to a point it is now - It still serves as a reminder as to how much I've grown. When it's held up against my current videos the progression is clear. I've learned and grown exponentially and that feels nothing short of amazing.
This footage is from a couple of years ago. When I shot this interview I had just gotten my camera a few days before and had no idea what I was doing. It was one of the most humbling experiences of my life. The footage was insanely bad. Shaky. Over exposed and to top it all off - The audio sucked because you couldn't hear anything due to the street noise. Defeated I put the footage on a hard drive and decided I would never look at it again.
Over the last few years I've become a much better shooter and editor so I decided to pull the material out of its hiding place and see if there was anything I could do with my new found skills to try and make the video any better - Maybe get it to a point where it might actually be watchable.
NOTE: When I first got the footage into Premier I cut the footage together in a way I think I would have done - had it of happened way back when I originally shot it. If you want to check it out click here. This video is unlisted so I ask that you not share it. However - Feel free to share the DTUBE version all you want.
That's all for now!
All the best.
E.
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