I hope you’re having a beautiful day. ♡
We’re celebrating another ¤ JohnnyO Gratitude Day! ¤

The Chronicles of Johnny O’s Homelessness

I wanted to elaborate on my own personal bouts with homelessness, being unhoused, behaving badly, and self-sabotage, juxtaposed with the reality of really being a contributor, both to myself and others, frequently, despite the fact that I was homeless for many years. Off and on for 20+ years.

This situation, in and out of workable situations, maybe not pleasant, but workable, nonetheless was always exacerbated, if not directly caused, by abuse of alcohol and other substances, principally Cocaine. It was cocaine that caused me to lose my real estate license in or around 1990, when prior to that I had been an extremely successful young man.

I still remained a high-functioning alcoholic, or so I thought. I helped people fix their credit, save their homes from foreclosure, and really rebuild their own lives, all the while drinking myself into oblivion and exacerbating my own personal problems. My family was at the Bar, and any given venue’s many “regulars”. Several different venues and houses of “lower companions”.

The common denominator in all of my instability was my alcoholism. Further, like a lot of men from my generation, I would not accept that I needed anybody to help me with anything.

I just wasn’t having it. Various iterations of “I will fix this, mind your own business”.

It was during one such bout with homelessness/alcoholism that I met a woman, Nicole, at the Denver Central Library. Nicole and I developed a close friendship, and she really tried hard to help me get Sober. I still call her Saint Nicole for a reason. Again, I was just not ready at the time. By the time I was ready, Nicole had moved away from Denver.

Nicole introduced me to Niki Flow. At the time, I utilized the Library as a resource to keep me well. A place where I could go and belong. I wrote in a Group called “Hard Times Writers,” sponsored by both the Library and a dynamic nonprofit called Lighthouse Writers. I was a pretty good Writer, but at the time I felt like I had to get a buzz on before I wrote. Before I could do anything “Creative”.

For many years, I talked to Niki Flow weekly. She was my de facto therapist. Even though these calls happened at 6:00 a.m. my time, I anxiously anticipated them each week. There isn’t any question that her unbridled support of me was and is a very large factor in my wellness, both before and certainly after my Sobriety was achieved. 

As I write this today, August 18, 2026, the 2059th day of my Sobriety and long-term sustained Recovery, I want everyone to know you can ask for help, be worthy of it, and, most importantly, become a vessel to help others. Share the love.

Thank you. Thank you, Niki Flow

-John Olander