Gregory Pike in the Marina

I have been spending more and more time in the Marina lately, not just for reporting but because I have a lot of friends who venture out into the area. I have found in the last few weeks it is the same scene with the same people. The majority of the people I have come in contact with are white middle-class people with a lot of money on their hands or so it seems that way. Bar hopping and going from restaurant to restaurant is a popular thing to do on the weekends in the Marina. This last week when I was out searching for contacts or something interesting to write about I started to get bored running into the same people with the same stories about the nightlife that the Marina has to offer.

Then out of the blue I see this dog and then on top of the dog was a cat and then on top of the cat was a rat. It was the most peculiar sight I had seen yet in the Marina. A lot of people around me were talking about it, and the man who was the caretaker of the animals seemed to know a lot of people that were out. I approached him figuring he would be one of the more interesting people I have come across yet.

His clothes were old and tattered, along with his bag that he carried. His name was Gregory Pike. He considered himself a street performer. He was telling a group of us that gathered around him that he has trained these three animals to love each other and get along. He was informing the crowd of the history of the animals and how long he has done this. He travels from California to Arizona to Nevada collecting tips in his small tin can from a variety of different people. My main question was, why the Marina?

“It has the best money,” is what Mr. Pike told me. He went on to say that he frequents different parts of San Francisco, but the Marina is where he has acquired a place to stay for right now. I can see where the money is good in the Marina, and there are always people out eating and shopping that are always looking for something to spark their interests. I know his animals and himself sparked mine.

Gregory Pike and his animal performance can be found on youtube.com. All he said was to type in dogcatrat, and he has a few demonstrations up for people’s enjoyment.