COVID-19 CDC (Mostly) Walks Back Testing Guideline Changes | Who's Policing The Police? | "Donald Trump and the RNC are negligent, period"

 Flamingo at San Diego Zoo (Taken 1.20.2020)

I finished this post in the afternoon but had to wait for the County's statistics to post and then got distracted with a nap, making dinner, watching World's Toughest Race: Eco-Challenge Fiji, however reluctantly because producer Mark Burnett is a piece of shit. Still, the images are stunning and something about this pandemic has made me slightly obsessed with survival/outdoor shows in addition to the remodeling/backyard shows I've also been watching.
Obviously today was the last day of the RNC, and obviously I didn't watch. Time to keep moving forward and brace for whatever else comes our way this year and look forward to the election when we can finally imagine life out of this berserk hellscape. The good news was that the CDC walked back their guidelines that asymptomatic but exposed people didn't need to be tested. The bad news is that you still have to just look our for your own health, as increasing numbers of businesses, schools, health officers, and various jurisdictions refuse to share positive cases, even when people may have been in close contact. 

Covid-19 & Black Lives Matter Demonstrations: Covid-19 Counts Still Rising | Defunding The Police Takes Root | San Diego Council Budget Hearing

Today I was supposed to judge the Battle of the Bands at the San Diego County Fair (taken 6.17.2019)

When we look back at 2020, I hope we're able to refer to it as "The Great Awakening" or "The Metamorphosis" or something that appropriately defines and captures the energy of today's climate. The surfacing of deaths at the hands of cops that have never received proper media attention, like #MauriceCooper and #ElijahMcClain, and the spreadsheet showing the nationwide violence should have all of our heads spinning and activating in the ways that we can while still in a full-blown and maybe about to explode pandemic. On Thursday a woman appeared to be kidnapped at a bus stop by San Diego High, and by the weekend the cops are under investigation (though one day threatening to kill people should be formalized in policy that results in mandatory termination without pay and benefits) and the item to put an Independent Police Practices Commission ballot measure in November has officially been docketed for the June 23rd San Diego City Council meeting by Georgette Gomez. Things are happening. Keep pushing. Stay safe out there. Lots of weekend reading after the jump.     

COVID-19 & Protests: County Expecting Stage 3 State Guidance | County Lifts Beach Restrictions | Parking Lots & Reservoirs To Open

Today is World Environment Day (Mission Trails 5.25.2019)

I finally got some sleep today, but now it's time for me to head to the speakeasy with Darren, so be safe out there. The helicopter has been buzzing back and forth over our house for the last several hours, so as we've done for the last two and half months, and keep our butts at home during the weekend. I did want to mention I ordered these super dorky face shields, but they're also kinda awesome, they're cheap, washable, reusable, fit on any standard baseball hat, and just might be the future of drinking at bars. The shipping is a little ridic, but they're heavy in their flat pack. You can buy them here. Today's briefing notes after the jump.

Notes: Citizens Review Board on Police Practices Emergency Meeting (6.4.2020)

North Park at Night, taken12.18.2019

It's a little funny watching San Diego committee and board meetings. Obviously current circumstances brought new interest into these groups, but the fact that they're watchable on YouTube is making people finally step up and pay attention. It was almost funny hearing the comments from the public read out loud because you could feel the boardmembers seething...like "WHAT DO YOU THINK WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON FOR ALL THESE YEARS???" So all that to say that the board had already been considering a lot of the policies that people and organizations were demanding. It was a pretty interesting meeting, but if you don't wanna sit through a 90 minute video, I took notes. Meanwhile the marchers must've reached North Park because I can hear the police helicopter circling nearby. 

Notes after the jump. 

Covid-19 & Black Lives Matter Protests : Community Review Board of Police Practices TODAY | San Diego Beaches & Parks Reopening Schedule

North Park During the 2019 Rock n Roll Marathon 6.2.2019

I try not to think too much about my diet. I especially hate when people talk about dieting. I eat what I eat when I'm hungry and sometimes I eat junk and sometimes I drink and sometimes I try intermittent fasting but whatever, I cook, I eat, it's nothing worth talking about, but yesterday I don't know what possessed me to drink a little bottle of Starbucks mocha, a can of Coke, and then a bottle of Mexican Coke all in the same day but there's a reason I don't really drink coffee or caffeinated beverages. I was up all night long with the caffeine and sugar coursing through my veins. I finally got some sleep today, however, and am feeling much better. I suppose the anxiety of our new property management company coming by today didn't do me any favors, but he was chill and it was short and now it's behind us. There was no Governor's briefing or County briefing today, but the big news is that Community Review Board on Police Practices will be meeting today at 6pm and you can comment now online and watch live when it streams on YouTube. I haven't delved into the news much today, but there is a Downtown to North Park march today, and other links and stories are after the jump.

• There's a protest march happening today from Downtown San Diego to North Park at 5pm that is claiming to be youth led. Many people are vouching for the fact. I'm not here to silence voices, but it's unfortunate that the march starts at 5pm, when really all of the participants could be contributing to the Community Review Board on Police Practices which starts at 6pm. 
• The young protesters have made three demands: 
• (1) Ban military grade weapons on unarmed protesters (tear gas and rubber bullets) 
• (2) Terminate La Mesa PD Officer Matthew Dadge for unlawfully assaulting and detaining an unarmed man 
• (3) Reform police practices and enforce culturally competent training to prevent police brutality and deaths. 
• Again, I don't wish to silence these kids, but marching through San Diego while trying to have a La Mesa PD officer terminated might not be so effective?
• Meanwhile, a national campaign by Campaign Zero has been launched called #8cantwait with specific targets that all law enforcement agencies should aim to meet. 
• See the agenda of the Community Review Board of Police Practices
• Submit a public comment for the Board here (over 3500 comments have already come into the CRBPP)

• George Floyd Updates: Somber Memorial Gives Way to 10th Night of Protest - NY Times (6.4.2020)
• Why Aren’t We All Talking About Breonna Taylor? - NY Times (6.4.2020)
• Sign the Change.org Petition "Justice For Breonna Taylor"
• It shouldn't have taken Covid-19 or protests to make City meetings more accessible but hopefully the YouTube live broadcasts continue even after life returns back to 'normal' and whatever that looks like. You should take the time to peruse the committee and board videos that are now archived, and you can sign up for notifications for future meetings, too. Check out the channel here.
• I've posted a lot about protesting in the time of Covid-19, but I'll just remind people that the numbers of cases in San Diego are still growing, and the disease is known to have a 2-14 day incubation period while some people remain asymptomatic. You should monitor yourself for ANY symptoms (CDC): 
• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea
• City of San Diego Mayor Faulconer Briefing:
• Update on protests in San Diego (no new arrests on Wednesday)
• Keeping the peace in San Diego
• Community groups need to remain organized and Lead
• Police officers are working around the clock
• Sheriff's request for National Guard in La Mesa
• City of San Diego has not requested nor has used National Guard
• Responsibly invested in SDPD to not feel additional support is necessary
• More than a dozen law enforcement agencies have pledged to eliminate the use of the carotid restraint. (Not one has said what consequences for its use would be)
• City received more than 4,000 comments on emergency Board and Committee Meetings
• Phase 2 Beach Reopening Plan
• June 8- East and West Mission Bay Park. Fiesta Island open for peds, dogs, cyclists
• June 9- All piers and boardwalks open
• June 12-Balboa Park Central Mesa and all parking lots
• July 6- Fiesta Island open to vehicles

CoViD-19 & Protests: La Mesa Community Leaders Are Outraged | Covidiot In Chief Divides A Nation | Thoughts On Demonstrations

Mission Trails 1.9.2020

It's Wednesday and I had a lot of thoughts on my brain last night and am still catching up on all the press briefings today. I'm gonna have to get them into a separate post because the La Mesa press briefing was really intense. Meanwhile, our covidiot-in-chief is still a worthless piece of shit while my godfather's sociopathic wife--who herself is an immigrant and a person of color, which she seems to have forgotten-- is still posting memes of herself carrying machine guns in full fatigues in front of the American flag and it is so fucking gross I can't even believe that this is a person, albeit distantly, connected to me in real life. So there's a lot today. It's after 5pm and I have barely touched today's emails. There's a lot to unpack, so first some reading, after the jump. A reminder that the public meeting for the San Diego Citizens Advisory Board On Police/Community Relations starts at 6pm today.

Reading List: CoViD-19 | Black Lives Matter Protests | Extreme Night Owls | Cleveland National Forest Extends Closures

Bun Bun has gotten more used to me taking photos of her in the yard at night. (5.29.2020)

It's two a.m. and I still haven't worked my way through all of Monday's emails. I'd love to see the #blackoutTuesday mean that I could get a day of no new emails. I didn't really watch any of the protest livestreams today, so I really don't have a concept of how they went locally or nationally. The reality was that I just needed a day of family time so we watched Birdbox on Netflix which felt appropriate in this time of Covid isolation. There are really important things happening in our City and across the country and it really makes all other things trivial, but I sometimes gotta just take a minute off and deal with the ants that are trying to penetrate our house or take some photos of the bunny in the yard or call my mom and dad, you know? Lots of reading today. 

CoVid-19 & Protests: Daily Briefings | Mayor Bans Use of Carotid Restraint By SDPD | Beaches Reopen For Passive Use

9.9.2017

It's been a crazy few days. I definitely appreciate the local people who have been on the ground documenting and livestreaming the protests over the weekend to provide the rest of us with a window into what was happening in our own community. We watched live as protests turned from peaceful to violent, often at the hands of law enforcement. And while intellectually I understand how property damage is a tool by protesters to demand attention, I can't stop visualizing the woman who walked out of the La Mesa Vons with a mylar balloon or the teenage Chicana who broke a window of a small business with a bat, seemingly to impress her friends. Anyway, I haven't really gotten through the news and the 300 emails in my inbox today, but I thought I should post today's briefings and I'll follow up with more news and thoughts later. Looking forward to finally hitting La Jolla Cove soon for the first time in two and half months.

San Diego Leaders: Sorry to Disturb Your Weekend, But Some Shit Is Going Down In Case You Hadn't Noticed

Crowd Leaving Waterfront Park For 4th of July In Other Times (Taken 7.4.2017)

I pulled some tweets and Facebook posts from my elected officials around 9pm on Sunday night, so the time stamps are accountable from that point backward. All weekend I've been trying to follow our leaders for meaningful comments, and while a few did, the silence of our City is absolutely deafening. After seeing what was going on in La Mesa on Saturday, why weren't they all over social media on Sunday with a unified message? Why isn't there someone offering information and guidance for the protesters who wanted to keep things peaceful, organized, and still within the boundaries imposed by the City? It's a shame many of them were just nowhere to be found or merely offered the equivalent of "thoughts and prayers" with generic pleas for unity.

County of San Diego Facebook: Last Post 5.29.2020 5:41pm
City of San Diego Facebook: Posted on 5.31.2020 about POETRY and 5.30.2020 about the automotive museum.
San Diego Police Department: Posted around 4pm on 5.31.2020 to enact Unlawful Assembly order and to complain about protesters.

Protests Amid Pandemic: Curfews & Unlawful Assembly Orders In San Diego | Police Tensions |

Downtown San Diego at Night during Comic Con (Taken 7.18.2019)

I'm still watching events transpire downtown and things appear to mostly be calm and peaceful. With so many types of protesters, there have been some differences of objective even among the participants and it's hard to watch. I appreciate everyone's comments and sharing my posts. I'm so impressed by the vast amount of thoughtful dialogue happening and I hope we can get to the policy changes and advances in legislation and the healing without prolonged and additional damage and injury. As someone who documents everything, it is challenging not going out and shooting photos, but it's easy when I think of my family and friends and my responsibilities. Be safe out there.

Despite Pandemic, La Mesa and San Diego Join A Chorus Of Protests Against Police Brutality Across The United States

Forgive this picture of Mission Trails from 12.10.2019.
I never use stock photography or any photos I don't have direct permission to share. 

I recently started reading a book called Writers & Lovers by Lily King and things have been moving a million miles a minute, so I haven't gotten too deep, but I already know I love it. Through the protagonist she says, "I don't write because I think I have something to say. I write because if I don't, everything feels even worse."
And I guess that's where I am today.
I'm speechless at the images and live video I witnessed last night. Locally and nationally it is so much to take in, and on the one hand, "silence is violence" and on the other hand, there is so much listening (reading) to the voices of the people who are in so much pain that needs to be done. On one hand, seeing people's businesses destroyed is heartbreaking, on the other hand, those same business owners calling people "animals" and "thugs" and "cockroaches" demonstrates how many of us just don't get it.
There are more calls for peaceful protests today, and if you choose to go, please be safe and plan ahead. In the time I've taken to compile this post, news is already coming in about protests in San Diego and street and freeway closures as a result.
We are seeing images from all over the country and even from La Mesa that law enforcement has seen "unlawful assembly" or minor vandalism as cause enough to openly attack with tear gas, pepper spray, and other chemical agents, as well as rubber bullets, wood pellets, tasers, batons, and other means of violence. We are also seeing image after image of "instigators" and "accelerators" which may include law enforcement, anarchists, and alt-right operatives creating havoc.

I've read dozens of articles and stories in the past 24 hours, and I'm going to share much of that below. after the jump.

The Country Is On Fire. La Mesa Is On Fire.

SDPD Tactical Vehicle (Taken 9.2.2017)

I was copying posts onto my blogger earlier today because I thought it was important to save writings in case Facebook starts deleting posts, but I never would've predicted that the violence and damage would hit the City of La Mesa. It feels very different when this sort of thing hits the areas in which you live. By several accounts including on the ground reporters from NBC, the protest in La Mesa was peaceful for over three hours until the police responded to vandalism by spraying tear gas at the crowd and shooting a woman in the face with a rubber bullet. There are also numerous accounts that suggest that people who peacefully protested in the daytime are not the same people who are wreaking havoc tonight.

I've been watching streams for five hours and it is just heartbreaking. La Mesa brought out the "bearcat" in La Mesa Village and were pushing all people out around 1. Vons at La Mesa Blvd and University was completely looted, as were most businesses in the same strip mall, Walmart in La Mesa, BevMo in Grossmont Center. La Mesa Lumber, Randall Lamb Architecture and Union Bank and Chase Bank in La Mesa were all completely engulfed in flames. Sprouts, Game Stop, Target, San Diego Reef and dozens of other businesses have had windows broken and/or were looted. It's heartbreaking to watch, but it feels impossible to turn it off. If you want the links and other posts, click after the jump.

CoViD-19: Misinformation Continues | Obama Inspires with #GraduateTogether | Order FIDO Masks | More State Parks Open | Biden 2020

Yesterday was #EndangeredSpeciesDay, so here's a rhinoceros taken at SDZ Safari Park on 3.13.2020

I am having a much better day today, thanks to all who reached out in different ways. Losing a job sucks but the work I've chosen (or that's chosen me?) requires me to be more nimble and less emotional. I shouldn't be throwing a tantrum when I spend time to work on something and it gets scrapped to do something in a different direction, and I should be more grateful to have my main job. So yeah, I took the night off, watched the end of season 1 of survival show "Alone" on Amazon with the kid, then binge watched the Mindy Kaling produced "Never Have I Ever" on Netflix after she was in bed. I highly recommend both and I'll probably go back and watch "Never Have I Ever" again with Nova, I just needed to pre-screen for age appropriateness. It's warm and funny and emotional and is an accurate portrayal of high-school friendships and all of the awkwardness we felt at that time in our lives. And seriously, the male lead is hot af, and I don't feel funny saying that because he's 29 irl. And his actual name is Darren. Ha! Anyway, obviously no press briefings today, so I'm just gonna go watch the Obama (HS) commencement (HBCU) speeches online and cry silently. Some informative links after the jump.