Rounds discharged by firearms...

I sit here sipping a brew, listening to Rubén Blades and the firecrackers far and near. I'm not in a mood to reminisce cos I've since forgotten the value of such a thing. I'm in a vaguely somber mood regardless and it has nothing to do with the new year upon us and the old one fading into memory, no, it's not nostalgia that has me in a brooding state. It's firearms.

I was telling a friend last week about the practice some in this area have of firing guns into the air in celebration of midnight on 31 December/1 January. On more than one occasion, tragedy has resulted from these premeditated and negligent acts. A bullet will come through a roof somewhere and... well, you can figure the rest out. However, tonight, fate (and a psycho) decided to turn this on it's head. One fella decided to fire two rounds into the chest of a girl, who he had kidnapped the day before, in a grocery store. I don't know why this is having a particular effect on me, but it is. Perhaps it's age or the notion of impending mortality... who knows? I find it hard to try and pin-point exactly what it is. I don't even feel overwhleming animosity towards this guy either. Instead, I feel a vague numbness along with that question that's been floating about in my head constantly for the past two or three weeks- Where's the humanity?

Life is rendered so cheap sometimes.

And now I have to make it a point to write about something much lighter next time! I wasn't expecting all this. I was looking forward to harping on about what a travesty this or that was, or tell a story about when I went to this place or that. Life happens though... and has to be addressed.

Happy New Year.