Where Theres Smoke, Theres Probably Someone Throwing Water On A Fire

"Well, if crime fighters fight crime and fire fighters fight fire, what do freedom fighters fight? They never mention that part to us, do they?

~George Carlin

 


Yesterday, Monday, in a mad fit of "I CAN'T STAND IT ANYMORE" I put new batteries, and new SD cards in my cameras, got into my little blue car and went for a ride. The "IT" I was running from was overwhelming, mind-numbing, boredom! Oh, and the sound of my immature neighbor "Donny" throwing things about on his patio, because he was angry at himself for alienating yet another neighbor by letting his dog BARK and throw himself against his fence, 2 days in a row! At 5:45 A.M.! The neighbor in question has been a really good neighbor, is quiet and minds his own business, which is all I really require in a neighbor, so why Donny decided to be a jerk, yet again, is beyond me. Donny is simply... and we will focus on the word... simple... here. Simple.

The other thing eating at me is the media blitz that President Obama is engaging in, in his run up to that war with Syria he is aching for! TV yesterday offered very little for the weary viewer. Daytime TV is embarrassing to admit to watching. The news is just more of the same. I turned on both CNN and MSMBC and heard pretty much the same questions being asked about the Syrian situation, so off I went. I got myself a nice big order of FROYO and headed for the hills! Mt Diablo to be exact! Why Mt Diablo you ask? Well, because it was on fire! According to my handy dandy text alert messages on my phone contraption, the fire which had begun on Sunday, had doubled overnight! There was also a text message from Alan, who said he saw the fire from the San Francisco peninsula last night! Mt. Diablo is one of the higher peaks in the Bay Area, but to be able to see the flames from that far away, meant it had to be kinda spectacular!

Okay... off I went.

Here is one of the best shots I got. It really doesn't do much to show the gravity of the fire. I was closer to the western slope of Mt. Diablo. But it gives you some idea of how close I got. There is an amazing album over at the ABC/KGO website that really demonstrates the fire properly. If it is still burning later today, I might try to get a better angle on things. You never know. Today is probably going to be just as irritating as yesterday. Honestly! Sheesh! I can't do anything to force my neighbor Donny to grow his ass up and stop annoying people. And I can't do anything about President Obama and his inability to lead. So I am left hoping that Donny will just go to work tomorrow, rather than piddle around the property, acting like a jerk. As for Obama, well, later today he will be addressing the nation, hopefully to say there has been a legitimate deal brokered by Russia, to disarm Assad of his chemical weapons. Fingers Crossed.

GOD DAMN IT! Did you ever think you would see RUSSIA coming in to save the day with rationality?

Still, yesterday wasn't a total loss. I came home to the news of George Zimmerman being "detained" in regards to a domestic violence issue regarding his soon to be ex-wife Shellie, and her family. Poor George (I say sarcastically) anyone want to start a DIVORCE DEFENSE FUND? No?

I didn't think so!


Mood: Sarcastic

~Me :)

The Love Story Of Donny And Nina (Not Their Real Names)

"If I throw a stick, will you leave?"
~Unknown

True story. Only Certain Names Have Been Changed.

Okay, so Saturday night I was a bit out of sorts. It's been an emotional couple weeks over my way. The plane crash at SFO really upset me. It was depressing and scary.  It will be at least a year before we have any final word on the exact cause, and while some things seem obvious now, I am trying to wait and see what the NTSB says in it's final report. So I was feeling that stress. Now, the added element of that ridiculous mistake made at KTVU about airing those blatantly racist names as the true names of the pilots of Asiana 214, both embarrassed me and pissed me off! I would have thought that a network affiliate, hell any news outlet, would have checked, double checked, triple checked those names before they ever reached the anchor desk! It's sad. But the news networks have to fight each other to get the scoop. So, there you go. They certainly did get the scoop!

"When I look into your eyes, I see straight through to the back of your head."
~Unknown

As for Saturday night's verdict in the George Zimmerman trial, well, HELL! What do we have to do to get justice in this country? The jurors ruled, and reserving judgement about them because we haven't heard from them as yet, but I feel the prosecution team did a truly less than stellar job, and it was obvious. I am also hugely unimpressed with the forensics team that did such a bad job of collecting evidence, but even with all that, in my opinion, the jury still should have brought back at least a verdict of manslaughter. Zimmerman brought a gun, to a situation that could have been accomplished with words, had he not decided in his own mind that Trayvon Martin was up to no good. Why couldn't he have introduced himself throughout the neighborhood, to all his neighbors, as the volunteer neighborhood watch captain? Or taken similar steps. Why couldn't he have I.D. himself to Trayvon early on that night? Why did he have to assume anything?

"Don't let your mind wander, it's far too small to be let out on it's own."
~Unknown

So I am sitting at my desk late Saturday night, tweeting, and having a good cry for that poor child, Trayvon Martin, when what do I hear? Not Alan snoring, not the cats playing, but rather the shrewish cry of my neighbor Nina (not her real name) yelling at the love of her life Donny (not his real name).  See the above graphic. And for the next 5 hours there was various expletives, and thuds as object flung in passion hit assorted walls and gates. Love was in the air. And I don't know why, but in the middle of all the noise I just started laughing! I went from crying a deep down mournful cry that really hurt, to laughing my ass off! Mood swing much? If I could assign one word to describe the last couple weeks, that word would be ABSURD! It's just been one damn absurd moment, event, decision or discussion right after another, none of which directly affecting me, but still a poignant presence nonetheless.

"I used to think you were a colossal pain in the neck. Now I have a much lower opinion of you."
~Unknown

The last thing I heard from the love birds last night was the sound of the their gate slamming shut. Donny left around 2:15 A.M. or so. He hasn't been back as far as I can tell. It's probably a smart thing to remove oneself from a heated situation, so for that I applaud him! The thing is, this couple has been a pain in the ass to everyone on this property since the day they moved in almost 4 years ago. I would be lying if I said I would be sad if they moved. I wish. I pray that one day this property can just go back to the way it was before they moved here. But I now have a deeper insight into some of the problems. We have heard bickering going on for years. Lots of immature stuff. But, what occurs on me, about why they are so nasty to everyone on the property, is that fact that it all comes down to control. If you can't get along with the person you have chosen to live with, then you are going to go out of your way to not care about others around you. If you feel beaten down, chances are you will probably become a bully.

And they both have.

They have lied about people living here. They make noise after having been told to respect others quiet. They take things, that don't belong to them. They let their dog bark and throw his body against the fence we share, just for the purpose of disturbing others, especially me. I have asked more than once for them to put the dog in when running errands, for my well being as well as "Snoopy's." Not his real name of course. It breaks my heart to hear his little whelp as his body hits the fence. That dog loves Donny with all his heart, and when Donny leaves, "Snoopy" just wants him to come back. I overheard one day, Donny say to Nina... "The property management told us to put Snoopy in." To which she replied a resounding "FUCK NO! No one tells me what to do!" Donny... "But we're gonna get in trouble."

Donny sounded like a little kid just then. And I think I felt very sorry for him in that moment. Not that Nina had dictated to him how things were going to be, like it or not,  but rather I felt bad that an adult couple, both in their 30's, apparently had the emotional maturity of a couple of teenagers. Other people's children, what can you do? Thank GOD for better living through chemistry, thank GOD for Valium!

"Too many freaks, not enough circuses."
 ~Unknown

Mood: Tired/Emotional/Ok

~Me