Just Another Wednesday
Hump day; go ahead and ask Alexa about it. My personal version of her stuttered before delivering a message proclaiming her ignorance. Of course, she has no idea what it is. Why would she? She is not self-aware (at least not yet). She doesn’t know what is going on outside of her wiring.
Unusually warm today. Is it global warming? I mean, climate change? I am educated enough to know that local weather has little to do with international climate tendencies. Only Republicans bring snowballs to the floor of congress and gloat about how stupid scientists are. Not much I can do about that; limited intellects exhibit tunnel vision. They are loyal to the first thing they learned as children, and if that was all about Jesus, then no data would change their minds. Same with economic systems. I have seen lots of those people clutch their snowballs while yelling as loud as they can that Jesus was not a socialist (should that be “is?”). Not sure where they are getting that, either. I have to admit I don’t care as much as I used to. I am going to use my remaining time to influence the changeable.
This post is more convoluted than most. I am all over the place, but I have a good explanation. I am back at the library, and intrigue is afoot. Please give me the benefit of the doubt while I explain what is going on here in my section of Hillbilly Land.
I am on the cusp of getting up from my table at the library. I need to save one of the librarians from a smelly, bald-headed dumpster fire of a guy who is trying his best to chat her up. The fact that, unlike him, she has her front teeth, a college education, a shower, etc., is not discouraging him. He is apparently on a mission. If only she could see beyond his outward appearance and smell, she would realize they were made for each other. His smooth rap can not be denied, or so he seems to think.
Look at the way he is leaning on the counter. He is making a fool of himself. I don’t care about that. Who would? He is making her uncomfortable, and she needs rescue. Or does she? Aren’t we at the point where women don’t need saving, and heroes are not all white men. What if I were a woman of color? Would I approach him, or would I even notice what was happening? Perhaps the more interesting question is – Would I care if she weren’t young and attractive?
I don’t see any security guards in here tonight. Earlier, a couple police cars were parked conspicuously out in the lot. Not near the door but close enough to let the education-starved know that there would be no shenanigans today. Maybe someone created a diversion in another part of town so that the authorities would be engaged. If I were a rap master like this guy, that is what I would have planned. Of course, I might have taken a shower when it was clear the plan was coming into focus.
What possible reason would this guy have to believe that this woman is interested in talking to him? Did she save him from an opioid overdose? Those kits are on every wall in this place. No busts of Mozart here, just opioid overdose rescue kits. There is one growth industry in this part of the country.
She just moved away from him. She is carrying a half dozen books that need to be reshelved. From my perspective, that is what the people do here. They take a book and put it on the proper shelf so that it can be removed again at the appropriate time. How does that work with digital books? Probably just a folder on a server, right?
He didn’t come after her. I still hear him talking at the counter. Maybe another woman has drawn his attention. My vision is partially blocked, so I can’t be sure who he is talking to. It very well might be himself. That has been known to happen here in this part of Hillbilly Land. It is part of the local charm, like waterfalls or sidewalk cafes where you might live.
I am unsure what I am to do. I still hear him talking over my headphones. I am still listening to that new CD by Arctic Monkeys. Yes, I am on my 300th listen of The Car. Sigh…it really is craptacular.
As soon as I settle my nerves, I will get up and walk to the front of the library. I am going to hit a Kung Fu pose about 10 or 15 feet away from this dude. One Kung Fu Panda yelp later (wwwwaaaahhhhhh!), and it will be over. This poor soul has never seen the likes of me.
Reprieve! I don’t have to engage this man. Some guy just walked in and clocked Romeo in the head with a beer bottle. He is down. I don’t see him getting up soon. Beer-bottle-guy is standing over him, chest puffed out, smiling with accomplishment. Still no security; they are on the phone with the police. The station is only a quarter of a mile away, so they should be here soon. They probably are bringing an ambulance, don’t you think?
I am ready to go home but must sit here until the police take my statement. I doubt I will mention any Kung Fu; I’ll probably just tell them what I saw, not what I thought. That is what they would want anyway. They don’t need any of the other stuff to muddy the waters.
I asked the officer why they couldn’t open the gym at the new high school so that these people would at least have a place to stay on cold nights. He looked at me crookedly and thanked me for my statement. I nodded and went back to my table to collect my stuff. No, I didn’t leave it unattended; I had eyes on it the entire time.
If I had my druthers (I had an uncle from Hillbilly Land who pronounced it “drathers”), I would end with a grand statement on the state of humanity. I can’t even come up with something related to the state of libraries in Hillybilly Land. I wonder what future archaeologists will say if a graduate student is ever tasked with excavating this mess a few hundred or a few thousand years from now? I guess I need to know how this place gets abandoned. Does it go out with a bang, or is it neglected into oblivion? The scientific analyses performed in the future would depend significantly on which scenario is historically accurate. That is, if they can even figure it out. Maybe all that will be left is a thin layer, a hint of something happening in the distant past. This much I know, they will never be able to reconstruct my experience here on what, by all accounts, was just another Wednesday.
