Monday Musings...

And what a much nicer Monday it is (until someone comes along and mucks it up), right?
I think we've had enough rain for a couple days.
Our Hoosierland weather for today will have us enjoying a nice break from last week's heat and humidity. Overnight temps were down in the 50s. Our sunny skies will give us a  high reaching around the mid to upper 70s, and no rain forecast.
That's a damn fine way to start any week.
(even if IS another Monday)
So, what say we get ourselves a cup or glass of coffee, tea or whatever else happens to wet our whistle as we see what's been going on elsewhere...
*** First out of the fridge is our "What the hell happens today, Bob?" feature.
(I made a F$CK UP...let's try this again with the CORRECT DAY...)
SEPTEMBER 12 -
---Today is NATIONAL VIDEO GAMES DAY

(just don't make a lifetime out of it)
---It's also NATIONAL CHOCOLATE MILKSHAKE DAY

(you had me at chocolate)
---And, it's NATIONAL DAY OF ENCOURAGEMENT

(thanks to Wifey telling me about the mistake here)
---It's NATIONAL BOSS/EMPLOYEE EXCHANGE DAY

(oh, to be a fly on the wall at Chris's shop...heh)
Cripes, that adjustment was painful. Sorry about the screw-up, folks.
*** Next up, once again, Fort Wayne's indigenous population of human refuse has managed to start this past weekend off with a BANG (and that can't be good).

And, a one...

---On Saturday, after Wifey and got back from a nicely mundane grocery trip, the newbies next door (middle-age black male and female) decided to "invite" several member of the FWPD over to the crib...because they were having a bit of a "domestic".

And a two...

Well, they were loud early on.
The final total was three vehicles on the FIRST police run.

And a three...

A bit later on, Wifey and I found Hobo in the shrubs sleeping behind the garage in the back yard, when a FWPD cruiser slowly enters and goes down the alley.
As soon as he went by, I told Wifey "He's coming back ...you watch." No sooner were the words out of my mouth, when he backed up to OUR yard. I asked if there was something I could help him with.

We also got a flyover from a "Herc".

He asked "what address is this?" I told him OUR address, and when he asked if next door was 4804, I told him that was correct. Seems the neighbors weren't done "entertaining" the FWPD just yet. The officer was there for over a half hour, but no one got a "cuff and stuff" (damn).
This is one of many stories we NEVER read or hear about.
---Later, the news said they caught TWO (black) perps involved with the shooting-homicides of three OTHER black males on Lewis St (February this year).

That was refreshing to hear.
Black lives don't seem to matter, that's for damn sure. Here's that story:
http://wane.com/2016/09/10/fwpd-arrest-two-men-suspected-of-february-triple-murder/

Punk-asses BUSTED!!!

Artavius Richards and Darrell L. McDaniel, both 19, or Fort Wayne are in jail WITHOUT BOND (also nice to hear) and are staring at three murder raps. Such a great way to waste one's life at so young an age. Morons!
--- And to top things off, we had another triple homicide at a house on the (where else?) SE side.

Times THREE. That's 30 so far this year.

Here's that story:
http://wane.com/2016/09/11/three-dead-another-critically-injured-in-shooting/

This took place early Sunday around 0355 hrs at 3006 Holton Ave.
Police responded to calls of a "problem unknown" and when on scene at the house, found 3 people dead (2 females, 1 male) and one in critical condition (female).

Here is a followup story that has one person in custody for the murders:
http://wane.com/2016/09/11/man-arrested-facing-four-murder-charges-in-holton-ave-death-investigation/

All the things to do in Fort Wayne and these mooks watch the "PO-lease"

In this case, it was another BLACK MALE (shooter) who is in custody (again, without bond) facing 3 murder charges and one ATTEMPTED murder charge.

He be BUSTED, too!

Willing to bet the victims were BLACK as well.
Marcus Dansby, 20, of Fort Wayne is the latest to "don the orange" downtown.
Young black males with nothing better to do...helluva state of affairs in many neighborhoods
Do black lives (really) matter?
Not one damn bit in the ghettohood, but you'll never hear about that.
You see what can be accomplished when people come forward to assist police in investigations...perps get arrested.
Now, if only we could find a way to pursue natural justice with such vermin.
*** Next, I read where Hillary Clinton took ill at a 9-1-1 memorial service and apparently has some form of pneumonia.

(that's so good, it has to be habit-forming...lol)
Couldn't happen to a "nicer" person...(imho).
*** Next up, and getting AWAY from all the crime, it was a pretty good weekend around the "Fortress".

Got to watch a crapload of classic Star Trek episodes (lots of great quotes) containing some very good writing for it's time. And the new CGI "exterior" shots of the ships and planets were fantastic.
Made the series look even better.
*** Next...yesterday, Wifey and I hopped in the "Silver-Streak" and drove out to Eagle Marsh for the Monarch Festival. It's our THIRD year there.

Nice new signage, too.

Now, parking was "dicey" as one sponsor backed out, and didn't pony up the $2K it cost to close part of Engle Rd for parking (along both sides) as they did last year, so Wifey and I went "hunting", and found a really CLOSE spot near this pavilion along the "towpath" next to the entrance.

We are off to the left of the structure.

Not that many spaces there (less than fifty), and we got a choice one next to a utility pole, so we only had ONE other person parked next to us. That was fortuitous beyond belief. Pays to get there early as we did.

No, the picture is NOT upside-down.

While attendance was lower than last year (no doubt due to the Airshow, which was all but rained out Saturday) and other sundry downtown fare, it was still nice to get out among nature and some really GOOD people.
I love chatting up folks with a level of normalcy that is strangely VACANT in our part of the city.

Always have to add our names to the tree.

While out there, we saw a heron taking off from one of the large ponds and were overflown by a golden eagle. He was pretty low, too.
(sorry, didn't get a picture of either...was a little too awestruck).

Saw-tooth sunflowers...all OVER the place.

We did see frogs, and LOTS of monarch butterflies, especially in the saw-tooth sunflowers,which are in abundance, and make for some gorgeous scenery (we snagged some seed balls in the hope of growing some ourselves).

You can also LEARN stuff.

We even saw some monarch caterpillars while walking, thanks to a very observant woman walking the trail with us.

There it is - dead center.

It wasn't as soggy as I thought it would be, so that made walking a lot easier.

That distant treeline was where we WERE walking.

A nice way to kill a couple hours...in style.
And, the food isn't bad, either, if a tad pricey. Pizza-Bomba is now on our list of "lunch-trucks" to frequent.

And they got Dr Pepper, too!

Then, unfortunately, it was time to come back to the ghettohood, and you can tell the demarcation line between neighborhoods as you approach. Yes, it's that obvious.
Still, a good time was had by both of us, and allows one time to take in God's splendor.
*** Next, another installment of "The Hobo Chronicles"...

"I found me a new hiding spot".

Our furry feline was just lounging about most of the time...when he wasn't disappearing and making me worry about WHERE he was at.,

"This is actually EASIER than it looks."

But, he always comes back here (he knows which side of his bread is "buttered").
You just gotta love it.
*** Last back to the kitchen counter...man has been and always will be a social creature.

I sure didn't say it first.

The problem with that assessment, is that every now and then, there are those who come along and want to upset that apple-cart.
Many of us relish contact with others of our kind, and just from a Biblical perspective, that's a good thing.

Yet, there are some among us who thrive on an opposite viewpoint. And we see such anti-social behavior manifest itself in the indiscriminate taking of human life, especially in certain sectors of our communities. Much of the problem lies with the lack of the right priorities.
Whatever reasons are given for such acts cannot begin to enter the arena of being "reasonable", but are usually predicated upon the ancillary facets of humanity...in other words, it's all about "STUFF".
It can be drugs, relationships, money...whatever, but when things such as THOSE rule your life, you are just asking for trouble. And you will usually get it, and always at the most inopportune time.
That's why maybe, after all these years, I find it more peaceful to my soul to spend time in God's creation, rather than among those people who live "for the moment" and never see the long-term big picture of life itself.

Sometimes, the path is obvious.

That's not to say I abhor human contact...quite the opposite.
I just am a lot more "selective" with whom I choose to spend my time with, for time is the most fleeting of things, and once gone, can never be recaptured.
(unless you happen to be from Gallifrey...or can slingshot a starship around the sun).

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