NRA rights violated

Guns are banned during Trumps's upcoming speech at the NRA conference.

Another missed opportunity.

Shootings south of the 49th

There were mass shootings (again) in the Excited States of America.

For some reason, this is news worthy (yes, I'm jaded).

A person buys a semi automatic weapon and is, what?, going to mount it in a frame over their mantlepiece?  Did the weapon seller check that the purchaser was in fact a member of the NRA and that mounting the weapon in a frame IS exactly what is to be expected (isn't that what loyal NRA members do with their purchases)?

I suspect not (I did note that I'm jaded).

This is an example of clear ignorance of "cause and effect".

Also, what was the shooters end game?  Did they expect to make the news?  Did they expect to survive the day?  Did they figure what's works for Vladimir Putin will work for them?

More hand wringing.  More rhetoric.  More empty promises.

More innocent people dead.

It will happen again.

And it will continue to happen while "flat earthers" continue to bitch about their "god given" rights and ignore their responsibilities to civilized society and continue to put their ilk in positions of power.

What's not reported is that the above has been happening for centuries.  Protecting people from random violence is a recent idea practiced in only a minority of countries.  One just has to accept that the large country that we share this continent with, in spite of its claims to the contrary, does not subscribe to that recent idea.

Seven

AE and I visited LE at Chilliwack hospital Friday evening (as we planned in my previous post).  He and his wife ME are our neighbours immediately to the west.  LE knew who we were and I managed to get him to chuckle a couple of times.  We only stayed about 10 minutes as he was having trouble breathing and was coughing frequently.

On our way to visit RMS on Saturday, AE and I stopped by to pick up the hanging baskets from my cousin DW.  I hadn't checked my email for about a day and was sadly informed by her husband AW that CDB had passed away the day before.

We went to visit DW and had some tea and just tried to support each other over the loss of her sister and my cousin.

We met up with RMS a bit after noon and, after some tales of gardening exploits, embarked on what turned out to be a four hour walk (likely 16 - 18km) through various neighbourhoods and the east side of Burns Bog.  We had ice cream at the local Dairy Queen and had dinner at the Vietnamese restaurant we had been to before.

This was probably one of the nicest afternoons AE and I have had for a while.  RMS is a portly fellow, but he walked AE and I off our feet.  Hats off to you RMS!

(But please don't walk so close to the traffic - you spooked AE (and myself) a couple of times).

We spoke about all manner of things (including Roe vs Wade) and RMS mentioned that he had read this blog and asked how I was doing with the multiple recent deaths.  I don't think I said very much about it and I did not mention that my cousin was now gone.

AE and I were quite tired and certainly enjoyed our hot tub when we got home after dark.

Sunday we went to her folks place for mothers day and again arrived home after dark.

On arriving home Sunday, AE noticed that K across the street was still out (her car was not in its usual spot).  We know what she had been frequently visiting her husband M, who unfortunately had to be placed in a home due to violent tendencies made worse with dementia.

This morning we found out the LE had passed away Sunday.

Not long after that, AE got a phone call from K that M had passed away Sunday.

Two neighbours on the same day.  Two grieving widows of the four neighbours we know reasonably well.

My cousin (who I went to school with) also gone.

I'm somewhat numb.

Dandelions

 I just read CDB's husbands blog post and CDB was admitted to hospice just yesterday.  His blog post notes the moment that CDB left the house for the last time.

He noted the coat hanging on the wall that she will never wear again.

He noted that they will never share lunch in their house again.

At about this point, I had to stop reading because I couldn't see through the tears.

I read more, but I had to stop a few more times.

As if this (and the previous post) wasn't enough, my east neighbour (LE) has been sick for some months and is in the hospital.  I spoke to his wife briefly this morning just as she was driving away to visit him, with tears in her eyes she managed to say "he's not coming back to the house".  I doubt I even replied and just waved her good bye.

When AE and I moved here back in June LE was one of the first people I met.  A quiet man but quick to chuckle about things (not unlike AE's now passed uncle in England).  One day we spoke at length about all manner of things over the fence that separates the two properties.

I hardly got to know him, and he's already being taken away.

AE and I plan to visit him at Chilliwack hospital tonight.

Tomorrow we're going to visit RMS after we pick up the hanging baskets from my cousin who is CDBs sister.

The days aren't getting any longer, but they're getting tougher.

I spent Sunday and a couple of evenings pulling up dandelions from the yard.  It may be futile, but it looks like I was able to accomplish something regardless how short lived the end result may be.

I can likely carry on doing mindless dandelion pulling as my spirit requires.