The most amazing combo delivery

Yesterday morning, around 7:30, I packed up and headed out for my last solo week in WV before I pick the boys up at camp. Tom is joining me on Friday. I feel joyous being here, though in a subsequent post I will write about listening to the profoundly upsetting, moving, and horrifying testimonies from Sgt Godell and Officers Fanone, Hodges, and Dunn yesterday in the opening meeting of the January 6 Commission. If you missed their statements, please do yourself the enormous, albeit difficult, favor of finding and watching them. Those men are incredible heroes and the very best America offers. The Republicans who enabled and continue to support the insurrection are the very worst.

Jinx, Spot, and I sat in the driveway for a while in a tangled love fest of purring, fur, and satisfied meows. Spot loves to step on me with his back two paws while being petted. It cracks me up. Ruby is also an absolute delight though still a bit more reclusive.

Anyway, I attempted to garden to process my grief, actual feelings of pride to be an American because of the four policemen, disgust in being an American because of all the Republicans who refused to even listen to those policemen’s statements (and the shill who called them all Crisis Actors), and so forth. But I was foiled after a short while because it was 105 degrees. Undeterred, I went inside, called a local farmers market, Spring Valley, and asked if they delivered mulch. As the woman from whom we bought this property told me, “out here you don’t buy bags of mulch; you order a truckload.” I laid down about 8 bags of mulch before realizing the wisdom in her words.

Spring Valley said they absolutely do deliver mulch and asked how much I’d like. I told them and then asked, in hopeful jest, if they might also bring out a cinnamon roll. THEY SAID YES!

Y’all, for about $119, I am momentarily being delivered the equivalent of 52 bags of fresh mulch AND a freshly-made cinnamon roll (theirs are the best other than Molly Wizenberg’s). It’s like the best gift I could imagine! It’s the little things. I love it out here.

Off to receive!

Accountability in Minneapolis

Oliver and I clutched each other’s hands this afternoon as we waited for the verdict in the George Floyd-Derek Chauvin trial to be read by the judge. Jack texted from crew practice to check in. The original estimation was that we’d hear between 3:30 and 4, but as the minutes ticked past 4, 4:15, we got antsy. A friend told me that Minneapolis had released kids early from school and was trying to make sure all were home, should the verdict not go the way of justice.

That’s heartbreaking, really. On so many levels.

Suddenly, the CNN talking heads segued to the courtroom. Oliver and I squeezed our bound hands so tightly that they began to sweat.

Count 1: 3rd degree murder.

Guilty.

Count 2: 2nd degree murder.

Guilty.

Count 3: 2nd degree manslaughter.

Guilty.

All the while, Chauvin’s eyes darted from jury to judge and back again. That murderous bastard in his baby blue tie.

Guilty on all three counts. Ol and I hugged. I texted Jack who was enormously relieved.

And THEN the judge revoked bail and remanded Chauvin to jail. As he was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs, texts from friends began pouring in-“Thank god.” “Finally.” “Thank the lord.”- and I started to cry. Soft tears of gratitude for this bit of accountability. For the bit of peace or closure it might provide Floyd’s family, his friends, his community, Minneapolis, a city that is still reeling from Floyd’s murder in May of 2020 and from Daunte Wright’s murder just last week, also at the hands of police.

Earlier today, I was in the car and got to listen to most of this excellent 1A episode about the Chauvin trial. It’s worth your time. The stats on police violence are staggering, and the point made that even though we all watched, too many times, as Chauvin killed Floyd over those interminable 9 minutes and 27 seconds, the outcome of the trial remained unclear up to the end is a terrible indictment on the racism in America and the way it persists and poisons everything, including our system of “justice” and those who are tasked with protecting and serving us.

This case should have been a slam dunk. Black Americans should not have to hold out hope for brave teenagers to record murders on their phones in order to get justice. Chauvin has been held accountable, and rightly so. But too many aren’t, and so real justice remains elusive. We must keep fighting.

And, if you didn’t hear Minnesota AG Keith Ellison’s statement after the verdict was read and Chauvin taken away, please do. It’s superb.

Impeachment 2.0

Thanks to everyone who has sent me funny shit and responded with laughter and/or “I am with you” to my recent posts.

If you didn’t watch the impeachment hearings today, you missed something. They’ve recessed for dinner until 6:15, and I am so grateful for this reprieve, because I am sick to my stomach and shaking with rage. Literally, I am both. I have stress-finished an entire embroidery piece, and I have opened a bottle of wine. I have ignored my kids for four hours because I am riveted. I managed to clean up cat puke while watching Swalwell close. It is worth finding his and Stacey Plaskett’s speeches today, all of which were brilliant and powerful. The new footage and information shared is as horrific as all you’ve already seen and read, but when put into timeline order and explained over hours, nothing by any sentient, fact-based human can be known or understood but that trump is guilty 100 times over, must be impeached and banned from ever holding office again, and he, his enablers, and all the insurrectionists must be punished to the greatest extent possible.

We should all give repeated thanks that the January 6 insurrection wasn’t worse than it was. We should thank the enormously brave members of Capitol Police and DC MPD that did their jobs. And we should all wish to hold accountable all who planned, supported, and perpetrated malicious intent and are to blame for loss of life, destruction of property, and violence.

Lastly, if you still wonder why Black Lives Matter matters (and if you do, I don’t like or respect you; sorry, truth), watch/listen to this.