(Shanghai metered child ride, 1998. Photo Socotra)

There was some controversy about the image this morning. We were going for something that conveys whimsy. There had been a brief discussion about her when it surfaced. It had been in an old directory buried two or three levels down in the little box that serves our modest archival needs at Big Pink. She was not controversial when the picture was taken some years ago. She waited patiently on a Shanghai street the last time any of us were there. She is- or was- a part of a ride for young children on the street between busy places.

Taken as she is now, she typified that trip. It was before that century turned. It was a time of remarkable mobility. In our group, the world ocean was not a liquid barrier but a path to other places. The heavens above offered rapid transit to virtually anywhere. When home, we could fill up the car and drive to Omaha or Salt Lake City if the notion struck us.

This morning in this place by the Potomac things seem a little more constricted. There is talk from the judiciary apparatus of the Southern Southern District of New York. A former President “may be arrested” for a criminal act allegedly committed several years ago. The matter had been litigated before, so it appears to no longer be judicial in nature but political.

It is another odd component in the curious parade of current events. There are apparently calls for demonstrations in response to something that has not yet occurred. We took a poll in the Writer’s Section about interest in street protests, particularly in light of recent disclosures about strange events with crowds. We asked twice but could detect none.

It feels a little like the mud in Ukraine slowing down the big Spring Offensive. We assume it will firm up shortly and things will move a little faster!

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