March For Our Lives, Raleigh - March 24, 2018

Saturday I went to the March For Our Lives in Raleigh, it was great! The organizers put the tally at 13,000 - which is really awesome!, and considering there was another march in Durham and another in Fayetteville, really impressive that we got those kind of numbers.

I took pictures, not very many because the crowd was really big and the signs were not, um, really interesting and they were for the most part really serious in nature, mostly because of the theme "Please Stop Killing Us" of the march - it really didn't lend itself to the more zany creative expressions that the other marches had. Thus fewer fun signs to get.

Also, it was really crowded and hard to get around and it was cold. But this is what I did get. And, also I noticed other people were much more zealous about going around and getting photos of signs than I was and those photos are everywhere, search  for "March For Our Lives Photos".  My photos are primarily of the march itself.

Stop censership

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These is your tax dollars trying desperately to work.

Women's March on Raleigh January 21, 2017

'I marched with my family in Raleigh, and I  found my parents run-away cat.

I went to the march with the idea that I would see other people I knew, I knew several other people going, not including the air horn people who I assumed would be there and I figured I would see. I also figured that I would be able to see them because there wouldn't be that many people there because this is Raleigh after all, I mean come on, how many people would possibly show up. I've been to many protests here and frankly, Raleigh is not a big protest town. It throws a lot of protests but the attendance rate is not great. But then Trump got elected and the times are not normal.

Sunday, while I was a Lowes doing some grocery shopping a girl who came up to me because she saw the Hillary sticker on my car in the parking lot ,  told me 30K was the final count.  We had a quick bonding session because we were both there and that was fun, she told me there was another march on Feb. 11, I also got a flyer for that one but hadn't thought about going, maybe I will. Note to self, get pussy hat prior to march.

I thought there were a lot of folks at the march, we were walking up the street and there were all these other people also walking up the street and I was "Wow, there are going to be a turn out for this, how neat!" and then we got to a stopping place and lo and behold, we were several blocks from the place we were supposed to be because there were so many people already there. Thousands of people already there.

I saw that it was thought to be about 17K, I saw a report on my phone while we were still at the march that gave the attendance number and it seemed like a good figure on  Saturday while it was still happening, but that was preliminary . That seemed like a really big number to me. Later on they revised the figure upward and they were saying 20K but, people were still streaming in even as we were leaving so the 30K number could be good.  The people just kept streaming in! So many people! We were leaving and new people just kept streaming in.

We were leaving we had been there for a couple of hours at least, the signs are the crowds of people streaming in from Fayetteville Street hours after the march started. The cars are parked because they could not pass due to the sheer number of pedestrians.

It felt like 30K. I really did think that it was going to be just a handful of people and I was going to be able to easily find my friends and we would all have lunch together! I didn't even bother to set up any kind of meet up because why bother? We would be able to see each other, I had no idea it was going to be like that. And by "that" I mean shoulder-to-shoulder-across-the-street-for-blocks-we-got-there-late-and-we-were-among-the-first-to-Moore Square-and-we-still-could-not-even-see-or-hear-the-speakers. We were pretty sure that there were speakers but we were never sure if they were speaking or why periodically we all got very excited. We did a lot of cheering and chanting. Chanting is fun.

Buzzfeed dropped the report a couple of hours ago,  here it is . Read it, don't live it because you were raised better than that, learn it. Call you representatives both local and federal and demand action.

#Resist

Well, Happy New Year!  Last year was awful and 2017 isn't going to be better, it will not be worse. This year we have knowledge our our side, and we are done being surprised. No more mourning, it is time to resist.

Boots on the ground boys and girls! You know where you are supposed to be, go there. I suggest we put away our widows weeds and take up really good helmets and shoulder pads because we're all going to spend a lot of time running head first into a solid walls of shit over and over again until we break through to the other side, wear protective gear and don't be stupid.

 But if we all work together, we will get through those first walls of shit and we can  start on the next walls of shit and they are going to to be harder and taller than the first ones and they are probably going to be full of razor blades... Mazel Tov! But we have to get  through those too, we have no choice. The only way through it is to do it. Go Fight Win.

Do not stop being angry, no not give up. We did not lose. We will come out the other side and we will be victorious. One fight after another. We survived before, we will survive again.

We will be called to make a statement with our numbers, over and over ladies and gentleman, and you must answer these calls if you do nothing else, answer these calls and attend these rallies! Get comfortable shoes because we're going to be doing a lot of  marching. I suggest leaving the big signs at home, they make you look clever and you will get your picture taken, but they are a bitch to carry and become burdensome quickly. Bring water and food instead,  still, go to rallies, be seen, be heard!, there will be one near you, sooner or later.  Join a resistance group. Go Fight Win.

Air horn Orchestra Week 14

I have to admit, I was suffering from air horn ennui. Its hot outside now and standing in the sun bleeting is not as fun as it was. People started going on vacation, we had a memorial for the people who died in Orlando and the drums sounded like gun shots, then the General Assembly went home without overturning HB2. The summer was shaping up to be long and hot and pointless.

What's the point. No one is listening, the crowd is thinning and there are a lot of things to be outraged about- and to be honest? Standing around in the sun dressed in black is not a great time. Its hard to care as deeply about it as necessary when something new and more awful seems to happen every day.

And then.

Canceled Party  . A progressive group had rented out the mansion for a party - this is done by many non-profits, its a common thing and it's not real expensive. The group is also involved with the Air horn orchestra. But the AHO was not a party to then contract for the space, did not sign, was not named and was not part of it. The Governor's office canceled the party due  to a Face Book post by a member of AHO about the party  and summarily  canceled the other groups event - That I was going to attend, it was going to be fun and a change of pace from the somewhat moribund honking week after week.

Two hours before the event The Progressive group was contacted by the Governor's office that their formal, written guest list of two hundred and fifty people needed to be pared down to fifty - and this was done and then the the Governor's Office canceled it, by claiming they were in breach of contract. They weren't.

Suddenly, instead of another week of bleeting at windmills, the press trucks are back and the TV cameras are back and suddenly, we are interesting again! We have been dissed! Not only are we not just honking into the ether, We are actually annoying Pat! He knows we're here and he DOESN'T LIKE IT! He Blinked!

OMG! How wonderful! He cares! He cares so I care again! This isn't just making noise to make noise! We're making noise to irritate Pat and its WORKING. 

The press trucks were there and the cameras and the talking heads. It was like a refreshing breeze! There was a really nice turn out too, the last couple of weeks the head count had been dwindling and we were sounding a little peaky. This week we ROCKED! We're back baby! Thanks Pat!