It is cold out there. The incident on the Patio brought Security into the picture. Management has a contract with a local man who provides what the contract specifies a “roving patrol” in the hours of darkness, so there is no specific uniformed presence and there may be justification for additional measures, given the other news.

But that is why security was there. Splash attempted a re-enactment of the terminal maneuver of his F-4J Phantom II jet prior to its impact near Catalina Island some years ago. He made a successful recovery from both, and thankfully this involved only the interaction of the base of his HurryCane walking stick on the ice in front of the patio chair in which he was attempting to huddle.

Despite the flurry here, there was some peace across the River. President Carter had been President when Splash’s jet went into the Pacific. He made his last visit to the Capitol in the frigid chill. There was only dignified coverage of the procession from caisson up the stairs to the chamber under the Rotunda to be place on the catafalque first used to support the casket of Abraham Lincoln.

So, the seven-foot flatscreen at the end of the conference room radiated a chill peace as Melissa and Eddie were trying to sort out who would track the Reyes story. It had started as a vivid crime vignette with real estate implications, which is to say the attack by a man on a woman with two children near the Ballston Metro. She later died, which provoked the discussion about what was happening by the two Orange Line stations and the impact on housing prices.

Which is where the rice-bowl issue started. The murderer was revealed to have been on probation for armed robbery at the time of the vicious assault. That led directly to the discussion of fires as Security rapped on the door to help Splash in from outside with a smile. Then the coverage from the Malibu fires flashed on screen and the room froze in the dramatic coverage of a modern designer home on a great lot being transformed from showcase to ash.

That was the backdrop for the story about the brushfires in the Fifteen Minute County. We knew the County Fire Department had trouble between Chief and Union deep enough that the Union put a “For Sale” sign on their busiest engine to express their lack of confidence. The one in the Police Department is between the uniforms and Commonwealth Prosecutor Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti.

She defends her decision to release Reyes, saying the gun he used in the robbery three years ago only looked like a gun since it could only fire blanks and the 7/11 Clerk should have been more aware of the threat before casting stones.

There is actually a fairly interesting argument about the leniency in this one that cost a woman her life, but the messaging was saying that the winds in Malibu may be gusting up to a hundred knots again. We have pals out there, and besides sending prayer, we are putting out thoughts together about what might be done to handle things like this a little better.

Try to chill the fires a little. And bring some peace.

Copyright 2024 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com