The Hell?

My thoughts exactly as Walter, his wife and I approached my neighborhood after dinner. There, parked flashing, and waiting nearby were roughly 20 police vehicles, to include S.W.A.T. vans and firetrucks. We parked, and we joined the growing droves of people on the sidewalks. After much listening in, we learned it was some kind of hostage situation or police standoff. A guy with a radio scanner even heard talk of a sniper having a shot, and being told to hold his position or something. Very exciting, but ultimately a waste of time. All the cops were gone in the morning, and I can only assume there was a peaceful resolution.

I got a funny feeling that this whole ordeal was bringing the community together. People who hadn't seen each other in months were sharing smiles, and someone even brought out a table and chairs. "Hey! I remember you! We met at the standoff last week! Let's network!"

Pictures of the lovely mess.

Apparently, the guy was simply armed and alone in his house. Waste of time.

-The0

I thought I was a public risk.

So I was barely awake for a shift that began at what I would call, "Obscenely Early." I was already minutes behind, but decided it would be far wiser to be a little late with some form of energy drink in hand than to show up on time wanting to murder everything I saw. I'm waiting at the traffic light, taking is what morning looks like, when the vehicle next to me starts charging forward by feet at a time. I see that the light is still red, and I'm wondering, "Where the hell this guy is trying to go?"

I take a better glance, and see that he has been rear-ended. More than that, he keeps getting hit and pushed a bit forward. This is a terrible way to start your day, especially for the person behind. You are invariably at fault, you've got damage to your car, and on top of that, the sun is shining and birds are chirping gaily like that's their freaking job. I look back even farther, rubbernecking to catch a view of the poor rear driver's face. I see her, she's not reaching for her insurance or her phone. No, she's busy having a seizure. The man in front reacts, calls 911, and tries to shut her car down. I think to myself, "I should get out and help, but he seems to have it. Plus, my light has just turned green, and there are people behind me."

I drive across the street, wishing there was more I could do, and pull into the gas station. To my surprise, there is a police car sitting in the lot, and the officer was standing right inside. I went in, made my selection, completed my transaction, turned to him and said, "There has been an accident at the intersection of ______ and ______, right down there. The lady involved is not well, you should probably get there." We both left, he was the third one on the scene, and I continued on my way.

I did a good deed today through no fault or effort of my own. Plus, I was only a minute late to work!

-The0

So Be It, Friend No More

I was going to do a piece about trying to find a happy medium between eugenics and dysgenics, but I have a new enemy. Fate.

I have been trying to get my shit all the more together so that I could stop leeching off my parents, and start paying my own fucking bills, and start dealing with my own problems. You know, actually turn myself into that "positive force to society." But it seems the more shit I can finally figure out and pay, the more gets loaded on my plate.

I was headed back to my delightfully overpriced apartment with my little brother and his girl/friend, when suddenly I see those begrudgingly patriotic red, white and blue lights. I had just gotten finished picking up my truck from the repair shop, which was no fucking picnic, a bunch of money for the next few months while I pay off my rebuilt transfer case. I had also just gotten over a bad bout of 24-hour flu. I get pulled over, for apparently going 54 in a 40. I had kept a solid eye on my speedometer the whole time i had been accelerating. I never saw the needle go past 40. I thought it was nonsense. Plus, since I was just finishing picking up my truck, of course I forget my fucking wallet which has both my license and insurance information.

I had a knife sitting in my glovebox, which I had opened to try and find my spare insurance information. Now I know that constitutes a search of my vehicle. So here I am freezing my ass off on the curb while some guy gropes me in my "I'm feeling sick" clothes (which look like "Let's get high" clothes), and then he searches my vehicle. I have learned tonight that not only is a switchblade illegal, but also that there was one in my truck (I haven't cleaned out the thing in 6 months). So, I will say happily that I dodged a bullet and wasn't arrested and put on a felony because of an illegal weapon that I wasn't aware of, but fuck man. Why is the shit hitting the fan now?

I got three tickets tonight, and I hereby officially no longer trust cops. Sure I was let off very easy, but I'm still fuming over the fact that I was pulled over in the first place. I'm annoyed that I couldn't get a chance to say my policy number or my license number. I never got a chance to explain my little circumstance. Shit, I can't even remember how many times he asked me if I do drugs. Motherfucker. I am offically going to regard every cop as someone looking to fuck me over. I'm keeping an eagle eye on my fucking speedometer, so that the next time I get pulled over, I will know exactly how fast I was going. I'm not scared straight you see, I'm taking every chance I can to prove you fucks incorrect. Fuck you, Police. 

-The0