Fun News Items!
- two sandwich artists, working in a Subway Sandwich shop, had a man come to their establishment, with a plastic wrapper, covering his face, demanding money, intent on robbing the place . . . the workers, just ignored the robber and went about their work, as if he didn't exist! LOL! He got increasingly agitated, frustrated, as seen on video cameras, until he just gave up and left the shop! Totally funny, way cool!
- some guy, approached a vehicle, with two gentlemen in it, holding up a knife, telling the two occupants of the vehicle, that he intended to steal the vehicle and they better be compliant . . . the two men, just happened to be undercover, detectives, who both pulled guns on the guy, chased him down, arrested him and sited him, with four felony counts, from attempting to steal a vehicle, auto theft, running from an officer, resisting arrest and brandishing a dangerous weapon, used in the attempt! Nice . . . lol.
- presidential candidate, Jeb Bush, little brother of former, President George W. Bush, is being considered the most mature candidate in the field of 16 or so GOP presidential hopefuls, taking positions, often in opposition to some of the most extreme members of this new crew of hopefuls, separating himself from the bad boy of the Republican candidtates, the Trumpster, who through his Trumpsterism which many people either love or hate, is gaining points, just for speaking his mind, and standing his ground! But there is a new political term, as applied to Bush . . . Grownupism! Gotta love politics . . . Washington, D.C., is literally, the entertainment capitol of the world! LOL! When the Brits were holding their lastest elections, and accomplished so much in their short, election season, spending, like $38 million on the entire campaign, and a mere few months, compared to our outlandish, like $680 million, and a good, 2 years, prior to the actual elections, we start hearing about the presidential campaign, before the last one is even cool and laid to rest! LOL! But, as I thought about it, even in light of Citizen's United, unleashing on the American elections, an ungodly amount of money, giving people with means, an ungodly amount of potential influence, that never played out last elections--with Karl Rove, having a cool $250 million to spend, and not having one candidate he vetted, win, don't ever separate a fool and their money . . . they don't like it, but I dig the elections, get addicted, and go through withdrawls after it is all over . . . so, while practical, as the Brits are known for being, I choose to stick with the sick, extended, very expensive, drawn out process, that we, the American public, get to be entertained by . . . stuff funny, sad, pathetic, great, amazing, inspiring, but always, always, always entertaining! Gotta love this American ride . . . or get out!
The Case of Ann . . . My Little Buddy at the Poverello Homeless Center . . . What the Bus Can Do to Heal this Woman!
Ann is an Ohio farm girl, whom I met, a year or so ago . . . she is funnier than hell, the one who wants to become a carny, and travel with the carnival around the country, doing county fairs or in the alternative, become a rodeo clown, going across the country with the cowboys, livestock, and rodeo crowd--dodging bulls--like right, she can't even hardly move--I had to help her off her bunk, above mine this morning! Ann is as good, as the heartland can produce--born on a farm, spent 8 years in Catholic schools, but had abusive, and to all appearances, very evil parents, who kept her, basically, as a slave, out on their farm, for three months, denying her the access and use of her food stamps, trying to poison her, with the food they cooked, her father has been a pervert her whole life, hitting on her, while not sexually abusing her, but denying her use of their washer and dryer, taking showers, and making her cook, clean, take care of her parents, but basically being forced to get up when her parents get up, and go to bed when her parents go to bed, and making her sleep on an old mattress, that has left her, at age, 55 tomorrow, her birthday, looking like an 80 year old woman, with the knarled hands of a woman, that age also, with knuckles, bulging, painful, and aches and pains, befitting of her 80 year old something parents.
Ann, has been around Missoula for about 20 years, off and on, many people know of her . . . she used to work at the University of Montana, and other places around town, but when they see her this time, she is shocking to see . . . wrinkled, shrunken, sad, hurting both physically, mentally, and spiritually, to the point, people on the streets are offering to purchase meals for her, since her whole body has gone into starvation mode, being miles outside of town in Ohio. But, she has lived in Missoula, this whole time, and has never known that Rattlesnake Canyon even existed, nor that she was so close to sitting down by a river, being up in the cool of the mountain pines and breezes, so close to nature, deer, and relaxation, that we all crave and love, living here in Montana! But, due to the new free bus fare . . . the only money this woman has, at the current time, is food stamps, and not a dime to spend from other sources, although she is feeling better, and starting to look for jobs . . . but, as I helped her aching body, get off the top bunk, her clothese were damp, and I said, we need to catch the number 5 bus, get you up in the mountains, to the river, too cool off . . . no air conditioning in the upper Pov, woman's dorms, or anywhere, but the main floor. She said, I just want to get into the river, clothes and all, and sit and relax, get cool, get my hair wet, and that will do me good!
There Has To Be Some Reason They Call This Rattlesnake Canyon!
Ann was excited to get on the bus, and get out of town, not knowing the bus routes, having to pay in years gone by, so this is a new experience for her, and she doesn't really know the bus routes, so getting out of town, has been something she hasn't been able to do, since, well forever, when her boyfriend, she found out after he was, allegedly burned, in their trailer, having had mafia connections, being from New Jersey! People who have cars, don't know, how much it means to someone without one, to just jump on a bus, and get up to sanity, beauty, nature, and out of the 10 block area, you tend to live in, when you don't have a car or other means of transportation, which is many of the Poverello Center crew. But, one of the new riders, a very attractive gal, in her late twenties or early thirties, professional looking got on the bus, about the time, I was warning Ann, about the wild life up here in the forest . . . back east, it is the dreaded beaver! LOL! So, I told her about the bushes, the large branch snapping, the sound of a snake or human, trailing me through the deep, dead pine needles, and she said, oh, I hate snakes! I told her there had been a Missoulian article, Run in with a Rattler just a week or so ago, about a local man, and a snake, rattler he killed.
The young woman, jumped into the conversation at that point, and said, there are no rattlesnakes up in this area. I looked somewhat surprised and said, well there is some reason, they named this Rattlesnake Canyon . . . oh, that is because the road, snakes up the canyon, just like a snakes path. Well, I know, there are rattlers, somewhere in the Missoula area, because it was in the newspaper, my all knowing, source of news and information, the Missoulian would not lead me astray. The girl said, that must have been out in East Missoula? I don't know, but every teenage boy, took time to read that story, cover story on the bus. So, the issue is unresolved, because, I only know that I read about in the newspaper, or hear on the Internet! LOL! And, I am not sure, this woman knows, or whether, she was just trying to calm Ann's fears, or protect the name of her neighborhood from bad press! There have been a lot fewer hikers, bikers, and people walking up Rattlesnake Canyon, since I reported in by blog on dangerous beauty of nature, bears, mountain lions, and now, she probably thought, snakes! I alway error on the side of safety . . . young boy scout drown, mother and son burned, and auto crashes! We are all in need of caution, safety, and smart actions!
Take Me Down By the River!
As we got off the bus, up at the top of Lincoln Park before the bus, starts its decent back down the snakey canyon, Ann, could not believe her eyes, the pines, so close, the parks on both sides of where we were going, a group of teens, were up running in a large group, cheering each other as they finished the running course, followed up by their leaders. Colorful, fun and alive group of kids, bright clothes and having a great time, man are that they might have joy . . . and I am going to make sure, Ann, gets some! You would have thought that Ann was going to Disneyland, as her eyes, just took in, what she had not known about for fucking 20 years! She said, I can't believe this is here, I never heard of it, never had a friend or anyone tell me about it . . . and she was almost silent, in the surprise to know, that she could have been enjoying this beauty all her years in town. But, for this woman, it is the bus, and the down town, merchants who have made this possible, and made healing, health, psychological health, a cool, calm place to relax, possible for someone on, not even a fixed income, but someone, who exists on less that two hundred a month, just for food, right now!
Ann can talk up a storm, and she has been, not able to communicate with anyone for months, alone, out on a farm with abusive, parents, but walking through the pines, on the trails, smelling the fresh mountain air, was almost like Christmas to her, and new world, a world of wonder . . . and as I told her this is my sanity, right here, my place, I love, where I go to get some alone time, some peace . . . she said, I love nature too! When we got to the river, which is not more than a five minute walk, unless you are crippled up with pain, from being abused physically, sitting for endless hours, one of the worst things you can do to your body, it took about 10 minutes, or more . . . but, she saw the rocks, the water, the moss, the vegetation, the pines, pine cones, the stone grey table, the alter looking rock structure, probably formerly, used for fires and BBQs, but she could not believe it, was completely silent, told me to go do what I normally do, walk, hike, and she is going to go in the river, clothes on, and bath . . . she seems terrified, and I can't get her to relax enough, to know that she is safe at the Pov., can wash her body and her clothes, without her parents coming unglued!
You Look Like Elvis . . . Your Cool Shades, Hair Slicked Back . . . A New Woman, Bathed in the Healing Waters of Nature!
I told her, that this, above all else, other than maybe seeing her priest, at St. Francis Xavior's Catholic Church, maybe giving her a blessing, or doing an exorcism . . . she appears to have taken on all the evil of her family, the family scapegoat, the sacrificed one, much like Isaac of Old, son of Abraham, being laid on the alter, and almost killed, like Christ . . . Annie is in good company, but she needs to be healed, and this short bus trip, free, walking just minutes, bathing, sitting and thinking, getting out in nature will do more than her appointment with her doctor, whom she thinks is going to give her something, that will erase the 20 years of aging she has now, after just three short months with her evil parents, that this, eating normal, healthy food, going to do fun things, most free, right here in Missoula, where she now sees as home, provides, and she will start to feel the healing balm of a better life, and new life, a fresh life, looking forward to the best time in her life . . . the best is yet to come! Christ often referred to himself as the water of life . . . water is one of the most healing of all earth's elements!
Ann and I went to Taco Johns for 79 cent Tuesday tacos . . . I can tell, she is not used to getting a full meal, that was not part of her upbringing, not something that was standard fare in my world, but a rare occasion in hers. Due to her starvation survival mode, she could barely eat one taco and a few mexi-fries, but, I see the color coming back in her sunken face, a bit of sparkle in her eyes, she looked for jobs in the newspaper, and is bound and determined, she is not living at the Pov. and they will be shocked at how soon she will be out! I just want to thank, the downtown merchants, for buying three years worth of free bus fare, for the entire population of Missoula, and guests . . . you have no idea, just what one short bus ride to freedom did for this woman, and for many others! SOB.
Freedom for Elderly Parents Who Fly Into Town
Seniors of the last generation, who are not doing the bus for green reasons, are slowly taking advantage of the free bus service, but slowly, being unsure, what this is all about. The other day, a very styling couple, jumped on the bus, up Rattlesnake Canyon, really not quite sure if it was really free, and where they were going, but willing to explore and get out on the town, because they fly into Missoula, from back east to visit their son and his wife. The wife, had this and that to do, and she couldn't take them out to see the town, or to shop, or even to get off the hill, the opposite of city dwellers, they wanted to get to the mall, down town, and get out and about. The bus is not just for the newly wed and nearly dead! This couple got a few tips from me, and they were off exploring and they didn't have to rely on their daughter-in-law, work around her schedule, nor be house bound their whole vacation . . . and they could not believe that any city would provide this type of service! That is when I learned from the bus driver, that it was actually the merchants, who provided the bus service, for the NEXT THREE YEARS! HOW COOL IS THAT, AND YOU HAVE NO IDEA, HOW APPRECIATED!
Slowly, but surely, husband and wife teams, depending on each other for security, are venturing out of their homes, all over the city, and trying the bus, and to most of them, it is a delightful, fun experience, and they are learning what in the hell is going on, in their community, with posters, bill boards, advertisements of events, and activities, services, and businesses! A bus service, like the Mountain Line can bring a community together, there are just as many, intangible benefits from the service, as tangible, like just getting from point A to point B! Just like our conversation about Rattlesnake Canyon, don't know if it is right, or the girl was right or just being defensive, or maybe she reads my blog, and thinks that I am scaring everyone to death, and she is going to spread the other side of the animal kingdom and wild life up in the dangerous beauty of the area! But, I have hooked up with old friends, like Pat, whom lived across the street from me, in Kalispell, and who was on the verge of suicide, due to alcoholism, and it was to the point, it was either the bottle won, or he did . . . he has now been sober for two years, since I saw him last, and I ran into him on the bus! Pat, wants to be an alcohol counselor to high school kids, telling them the perils and dangers of the drink, and how lucky he is that he didn't either die, or kill someone else!
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