Two Naked People. One Hour. Capitol Hill.

In the span of one hour today in Capitol Hill, and all before 1pm, I came across two naked people. Coming to Reddit to just vent, because my brain is still a bit broken by it all.

The first was heartbreaking. I was walking my dog on 15th when I saw a woman completely naked on the sidewalk while a man was calling 911 trying to help her. I couldn’t believe people were just walking past. I approached her, gave her my sweater to cover up, and another woman brought clothing after seeing her remove it earlier.

I stayed with her until the crisis team arrived. I’m a social worker, and it was clear there weren’t substances involved and that she was experiencing a severe mental health crisis. She kept trying to remove her clothes, was disoriented, and incredibly vulnerable. She wouldn’t speak much but played with my golden retriever, which seemed to calm her. Thankfully, the man who first stopped to help treated her with dignity (including pushing off another fucking sick man who was trying to film said woman), the woman who brought clothes showed compassion, and the crisis responders handled her respectfully and got her safely to Harborview.

Honestly, in a city where people can become so desensitized, those moments of humanity mattered. That woman could have easily been ignored, mocked, or taken advantage of. Instead, a few strangers stepped in to protect her dignity.

Then less than an hour later, while walking home through Volunteer Park, I see a man sitting on a bench with his pants at his ankles masturbating fully in public, in view of god damn everyone. I immediately started yelling at him and called the police, but he ran off before they arrived.

I’ve lived here three years and somehow managed to encounter two naked people in under an hour today. Capitol Hill really living up to its reputation of wtf today. B seriously, thank you to the people who helped that first woman. And to the men exposing themselves and masturbating in public parks: JUST GO THE FUCK AWAY. The absolute worst.