Monday Musings...

And, it's a wonderful start to another week here in the Hoosierland. It's going to be a fine fall day with temps topping out in the 70s, and no rain to speak of. Sunshine will permeate the day, so it might be a fine time to take in the fall foliage.
Now, as we top off our morning beverage, let's see what's been going on as well as what's been on my mind...
*** First up today is proof that I happen to be correct more often than in error (and that never gets old).
We had another shooting this weekend on the (where the hell else?) SOUTHEAST SIDE of Ft. Wayne, resulting in one teen in serious condition.
Here's the story link:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20131012/LOCAL07/131019806/1043/LOCAL07
I started Friday's post off with the "I'm ready for another shooting"...and it's got NOTHING to do with prophecy, my friends, but it has EVERYTHING to do with "being aware of your surroundings" (and the vermin that infest those surroundings).
This latest shooting happened in the alley near the 800 block of Colerick (815 Colerick to be exact), around 2010 hrs Saturday night (which apparently is STILL alright for fighting, as the song goes).
Police say it's possible that the vic knew the shooter, and are following up on that potential lead.
Police were alerted to the shooting when several people a couple of blocks north of Weisser Park Ave. heard several gunshots (don't we all pretty much hear that all too often down here?) and called it into dispatch.

The vic was found in an alley just south of Colerick and transported to hospital in serious condition, but was downgraded to critical. (I heard "B minus" on the radio) The ID is being withheld due to the age of the victim.
Police stated that it wasn't clear HOW the shooting occurred, and were still trying to determine if anyone saw anything.
And as of this posting, no motive has been determined (you think these thugs need MOTIVE for being the violent cretins they are?).
Moving on...
*** I also heard about a shooting late FRIDAY night located at 4723 Lillie St (near Rudisill). EMS was dispatched to assist police, but no mention of THIS shooting appeared in ANY media source.
Now, either no one was around to cover this, or it wasn't an actual shooting, but why roll an ambulance IF there was nobody that was hit?
Maybe TWO shootings in the same part of town is too much for regular folks to handle and the city want;s to minimize the fallout?
Who can say?

--What I CAN say is that I received a comment from one low-information "woman" (?) that had nothing but f-bomb rantings about my post on Friday, when I mentioned addresses of perps and such (as I always do AND which is ALL PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE available online)
IF she had a few brain cells that WERE working, she would know I DO live in the badlands of Ft. Wayne, and OWNS a house (she sounds like a government-sponsored individual) AND is trying to do something to change the nature of this area BACK to something resembling NORMAL...and people like HER aren't helping one damn bit. She also doesn't know that I have a  MODERATION FILTER and a DELETE button (for trolls and morons) when it comes to comments...LOL.
Thank people like HER for this part of the city AND the state of this nation.
(just don't thank her too often).
Like I always say...you toss a rock into a pack of angry mutts and the the one that YELPS is the one that got HIT.
*** And this brings me to the center of today's shrubbery maze.
Would it surprise you if I said that everyone has THREE lives?
Think about it.
We hear about "one life to live", or "one life to give for our country", and there are those that have both a public life and a private life.
But, there is one more life few ever hear about, and with good reason...
It's called a secret life.
Gabriel Garcia Marquez actually even quotes this verbatim.
And there are those that state that we LIVE one life, DREAM the second, and REMEMBER the third
When you come to consider it, I think God has a say in this, because HE is fond of the number THREE (Father, Son and Holy Spirit, for example).

We are creatures that operate on THREE distinct levels (primarily) - Physical, Mental, an Emotional.
And, it's the various combinations of those 3 aspects of us that define us.
Now, we know about our PUBLIC lives...that which we portray in the arena of life itself. It could be our profession, vocation, career...call it what you will.
Then, we have our our PRIVATE lives...that which a lot fewer people happen to see, because this occurs during our "off-time" as it were.
It's more what our FAMILY sees...or our group of friends.
Thirdly,.we have our SECRET lives - that which is know to ONLY ourselves (and our Creator), and that is often the most complex life we lead, because it's often that which we keep bottled up inside.
It's the life we often display to ourselves alone and usually by ourselves. It can be called "quiet time", or whatever you decide to name it.
To be more concise, let's put it this way...A man runs a nice business and is rather successful (public life), and he is a good family man and neighbor (private life), but it turns out his business is a front for the mob and launders money and runs numbers (secret life).
Now, that is a SEVERE (and illegal) interpretation, but, you get the general idea.
Now, I said all that to say THIS:

A city is a living being, of sorts....many say "it has a pulse" or is VIBRANT and ALIVE...so be it.
But a city...ANY city also has those same THREE LIVES...
The PUBLIC life is what is displayed to the citizens and the rest of the nation or world. It's the "facade" that is put forth.
"Look how NICE this place is" could be the tag phrase.
The PRIVATE life of a city is what goes on behind the scenes...the people tasked with keeping the infrastructure going...making sure that what works DOES and when called upon to do so.
But, it's the SECRET life of a city that goes unseen, because you're not supposed to know about it.
This is what goes on BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.
It's all the things that occur because the city is too busy "putting on it's best face"
It's the secret life of a city that determines WHO gets WHAT...and HOW MUCH of that "what", like when it comes to retail shopping.
(great example, Bob)
The secret life of a city is the part that ignores the obvious, and that usually includes the problems, in lieu of something ELSE to keep the citizen's minds OFF of said problem...like improving that "facade" in the PUBLIC life of that city...

It's this diversionary tactic that too often pulls a lot of wool over a lot of eyes, but that's what it's designed to do, people.
The BEST example of this would be how this nation's current administration is always seeming to jump from ONE thing to another, never fixing ANY of them, but keeping our minds SO distracted as to never see what's really going on.
And for a lot of folks, it's working (and they're not).
The SECRET life of a city is the part that rarely gets the "press", and if it does, it's done more as an afterthought, and is soon forgotten.
The problems that have been allowed to get a foothold down here (and thrive) give off "bad vibes" and therefore are hurtful, to this city. People would rather feel good than be told the truth, and that itself is inherently wrong.
Then again, what is wrong is what is needed to be made right...right?
*** Last back to the barn today...three lives...lived concurrently...we are amazing creatures indeed.
How often do we take time to work on ALL aspects of our lives?
Sure, we might try to break a bad habit or two...or perhaps mend some fences with a distant family member, but what about the things we keep to ourselves?
It's been said that internalization is not always a good thing...it causes undue stress, creates ill health, and in some rare cases, contributes to a much shorter life span.
And when you stop to think about ALL that life has to offer, and ALL that you can take in, wouldn't it be better to do everything in your power to make it all last a bit longer?
I suppose this is what you tend to think about as you grow older (and hopefully wiser).
Yet, it's a shame that it takes us THIS long to realize it...still, better late than never, hmm?

Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay SAFE out there, America.