weather thoughts

We had a fine early-spring thunderstorm last night, loud and bright and close.

The thunderstorm was an odd sort of comfort--because while the lightning was flashing and the thunder clapping, nothing large and loud was flying low overhead. When the first band of storm passed, and there were more low-flying craft, I wished out loud for more thunderstorm, and was glad when I got it.

I miss the days when my reaction to low-flying airplanes was no more than annoyance at the sound and realizing that the wind had shifted and we were on the takeoff or landing path for one of the local airports.

And yes, I know those planes are probably up there to keep me safe. But in the same way that I can't explain to the cat that the lightning isn't going to hurt her because she's inside a nice solid building with lightning rods, the nervous primate hasn't quite put together that the sounds she's hearing aren't enemies about to drop death out of the sky, they're her own tribe protecting her from that. They would sound the same, until they hit: a jet engine is a jet engine, and all the news is of war and bombs and missiles.

weather thoughts

We had a fine early-spring thunderstorm last night, loud and bright and close.

The thunderstorm was an odd sort of comfort--because while the lightning was flashing and the thunder clapping, nothing large and loud was flying low overhead. When the first band of storm passed, and there were more low-flying craft, I wished out loud for more thunderstorm, and was glad when I got it.

I miss the days when my reaction to low-flying airplanes was no more than annoyance at the sound and realizing that the wind had shifted and we were on the takeoff or landing path for one of the local airports.

And yes, I know those planes are probably up there to keep me safe. But in the same way that I can't explain to the cat that the lightning isn't going to hurt her because she's inside a nice solid building with lightning rods, the nervous primate hasn't quite put together that the sounds she's hearing aren't enemies about to drop death out of the sky, they're her own tribe protecting her from that. They would sound the same, until they hit: a jet engine is a jet engine, and all the news is of war and bombs and missiles.

anti-war march

It took us four hours to walk about two miles--but that includes over an hour to cover the first 3/4 of a block, while people fed in from the side streets ahead of us.

My feet are sore, from so much standing; I have two fine small buttons, saying "Surveillance undermines liberty" and "Stop the war", and two pages of notes on slogans and such. There appear to have been around 200,000 of us, and maybe 100 counter-demonstrators; a warm sunny day, news helicopters high enough overhead not to be unnerving. I'll write up more later.

anti-war march

It took us four hours to walk about two miles--but that includes over an hour to cover the first 3/4 of a block, while people fed in from the side streets ahead of us.

My feet are sore, from so much standing; I have two fine small buttons, saying "Surveillance undermines liberty" and "Stop the war", and two pages of notes on slogans and such. There appear to have been around 200,000 of us, and maybe 100 counter-demonstrators; a warm sunny day, news helicopters high enough overhead not to be unnerving. I'll write up more later.

When am I?

I was touched but not surprised by the marcher wearing a cap reading "Veteran against war in Vietnam", but the leaflets urging us to "Get clean for Dean!" were definitely a flashback moment. And I'm not that old, leaving me wondering whether whoever came up with that remembered the McCarthy campaign, or just hit on that rhyme on their own.

When am I?

I was touched but not surprised by the marcher wearing a cap reading "Veteran against war in Vietnam", but the leaflets urging us to "Get clean for Dean!" were definitely a flashback moment. And I'm not that old, leaving me wondering whether whoever came up with that remembered the McCarthy campaign, or just hit on that rhyme on their own.