Tim Roller has spent so long camped out on the same stretch of East Hollywood street that Google\u2019s cameras have turned him into a recurring character.<\/p>\n
For nearly two decades, the homeless former math teacher has lived near a cul-de-sac off the Hollywood Freeway.<\/p>\n
Every few years, a Google Street View car passes by, capturing another snapshot of Roller\u2019s setup \u2014 showing him curled inside a cardboard box, stretched beneath a blanket or sitting beside makeshift shelter.<\/p>\n
Tim Roller has spent nearly 20 years camped out on the same East Hollywood cul-de-sac. London Entertainment<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been out here 19 years,\u201d he told The California Post, describing life on the street as \u201ca roller-coaster ride.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of drug addicts, a lot of violence, a lot of crazy stuff has gone around me.\u201d<\/p>\n
At one point, a homeless encampment took over the area \u2014 with trash piled up and people digging holes through the night.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got angry with them,\u201d Roller said. \u201cI said, \u2018There\u2019s a rule here: no digging holes at night.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
At one point, a homeless encampment took over the area, Roller said. Jonathan Alcorn for CA Post<\/p>\n
A Google Street View snapshot of Roller\u2019s setup in 2009. GoogleEarth<\/p>\n
He later discovered why.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt turned out the reason why they were digging holes at night was because that\u2019s where they buried their drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Roller said he does not use drugs or alcohol. Instead, he has developed his own rules for surviving outdoors.<\/p>\n
One is simple: Don\u2019t eat where you sleep.<\/p>\n
Roller said he once taught math and is the father of four grown children. London Entertainment<\/p>\n
A Google Street View snapshot of Roller\u2019s setup in 2011. GoogleEarth<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you eat at the spot, it attracts critters,\u201d he said. \u201cSo why would you eat at the spot?\u201d<\/p>\n
Roller\u2019s own path to homelessness has been complicated. He said he once taught math and is the father of four grown children, all of whom he said are gainfully employed and remain in regular contact with him.<\/p>\n
He said he was addicted to gambling, fueled by his need for stimulation.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt got me,\u201d he explained. \u201cI like adrenaline. I get bored easy. It keeps me going.\u201d<\/p>\n
Roller said he was addicted to gambling, fueled by his need for stimulation. London Entertainment<\/p>\n
A Google Street View snapshot of Roller\u2019s setup in 2015. GoogleEarth<\/p>\n
His phone provides another source of stimulation. When the Post caught up with him this week, he had been playing online chess.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just finished losing when you got here,\u201d he joked.<\/p>\n
His phone is also a survival tool. Roller uses apps to find cheap food and deals.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI have it down,\u201d he explained, saying he gets gift cards from UCLA for completing monthly questionnaires.<\/p>\n
When asked what homeless need to get off the streets, Roller said the solution isn\u2019t complicated.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t need an independent bathroom or our own room,\u201d he said. \u201cWe just need a place to live like this, indoors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Roller envisions small private rooms where people can sleep, rather than traditional shelters packed with bunk beds.<\/p>\n
A Google Street View snapshot of Roller\u2019s setup in 2025. GoogleEarth<\/p>\n
Roller uses phone apps to find cheap food and deals. Jonathan Alcorn for CA Post<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a pretty good life,\u201d Roller said. \u201cIt\u2019s just a way I prefer.\u201d London Entertainment<\/p>\n
\u201cAll you need to do is create a building with a lot of rooms not bigger than this, with a door,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you have your own room, that\u2019s good, but you don\u2019t need to have your own shower. You don\u2019t need to have your own kitchen. You don\u2019t need to have your own TV.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll you need is a bed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The most difficult part about living outdoors is the weather, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hardest part about being homeless in this weather is the occasional rain and cold that comes around,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Everything else, he believes, can be learned.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing homeless is natural \u2014 as natural as being a squirrel,\u201d Roller said. \u201cIn fact, I learned how to be homeless from the squirrels and the raccoons and the skunks.\u201d<\/p>\n
Roller has also watched the rules surrounding homelessness change. When he first started living outside, he said people had to get up before sunrise, around 6 a.m., and go to sleep after 9 p.m.<\/p>\n
He followed those rules for years \u2014 until COVID changed things and homeless encampments swelled.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey made it kind of open during COVID and it never really closed down,\u201d he said. \u201cThey started to enforce the different rules, but they didn\u2019t actually enforce the laws.\u201d<\/p>\n
His corner of Hollywood has changed as well. A large fence now stands above the area where he sleeps.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore the fence, there was a big encampment here, but this has helped a lot,\u201d he said. Now there\u2019s only \u201cpeople here and there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Buildings have risen around him, encampments have come and gone, police have chased people down his street, and elicopters have circled overhead.<\/p>\n
Through it all, Roller has stayed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a pretty good life,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s just a way I prefer.\u201d<\/p>\n
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