PLOG 7: Violence

Personal Log (PLOG)
Summer Vacation: Day 7
Pandemic Emergency Day: 77

Last night violence broke out in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Riots. Fires. Destruction of buildings and stores (especially a local Target there). As far as I know, only 1 person died during the riots. But this was all the result of some cops using unnecessary force and killing a black man in custody. Does that make it a race issue? An anti-cops issue? Since the cops were white, it certainly seems to be both. If nothing else, what people need to understand, especially in the emergency pandemic mode we find out society in, is that stuff can hit the fan and people can break out into violence really easily. The stability of our society is on the edge of a knife right now.

And yet here I am, in my home, eating my sausage and shrimp jambalaya that I cooked. I'm hanging out with my spouse and my cats and just trying to stay safe and relax (as much as one can relax during such traumatic times).

Zatarain's jambalaya, boxed mix, is going to cost about $1.25 to $2.50 depending on whether you get the regular size or family size (or maybe use 2 boxes of the regular size mix). The sausage is usually about $2.50 per pound so if you use a pound of meat with the box(es), the meal could be just $3.75 to $5.00. The shrimp though, the shrimp costs $5 for a pound. That means adding shrimp effectively doubles the cost of the meal. It's delicious though and I highly recommend it. Cajun food is great for stress eating. And, in these strange times, stress eating is best done with home-cooked meals rather than going out for fast food, take-out, or even ordering delivery.

Note: After I wrote this blog, I turned on the TV and saw that the situation had gotten worse. The protesters are now burning down the police station and the fire has spread to the buildings across the street. The US National Guard has been called in. CNN is saying that hopefully 500 soldiers will be enough to help calm things down, but I'm not sure how they will calm this situation down; I'm not sure how the protestors will react to authority, especially since the local police have decided to do nothing in hopes the protests and violence will end.

Meanwhile, protests are spreading. In Louisville, Kentucky protestors are throwing tear gas back at the police. The fear is that the protests will continue to spread into more cities. It's crazy.

Try to stay safe everyone!