(12 West Of Main Street details the most interesting people and situations I encountered while working in a group home for the mentally ill.) Dave is a sweet kid most of the time, he aims to please from the minute you meet him. He wants to be your best friend before he even knows anything about you, and he's got the scent of desperation on him from the start. He has even taken to asking "I'm a good person, right?" and telling everyone "I really like you, you're a good person ," with seemingly genuine enthusiasm. Dave has trouble expressing himself, and he mostly does so now when worked up into a rage; at which time he raves for long periods. These are the most difficult times to help and/or understand what these unfortunate souls are going through. In a group home environment, we attempt to teach the residents how to live alone, with regularly scheduled visits from representatives of our states' mental health department, of course. The hope is that they will be able to take well enough care of themselves, by learning basic skills like cooking and cleaning, etc; and eventually, become relatively productive members of society. (The names have been changed, and some of the characters are composites, but the stories here are all true.)