Lock the Garage!

Hey folks,

A few years ago I was talking to one of our "resident homeless" in 5 Points, and he told me something I have never forgotten. I was cold that winter, and I asked him how he stayed warm at night. He told me that he broke into garages, or just looked for one that was left open. He said he would then use anything he could find to cover up with, like paper or laundry, and sleep until he thought he needed to leave. I have always locked my garage since that day. As horrible as it is to imagine having to lay in a cold garage, covered in news paper to stay warm, It is also horrible to imagine finding a homeless person doing so in your own garage. Lock your garage or storage area, or put a pillow and blanket in there. P.S.- That's a stock photo, not my garage, mine is WAY way worse than that!

Bad Crash On College

I don't know what to do about this parking situation on our streets here in Riverside. Here is yet another result of someone hitting a parked vehicle along College. The best I can figure, he hit the parked truck, and then over-corrected the car, causing it to roll over. There was a couple in the car, and the woman was pregnant. It did not look good for her, but I hope everything turned out ok when they got them to the hospital.

All This For a Snake?

I hate to be such a pain in the ass, but, wow. I walked down Myra Street in Riverside the other night, pushing my baby as usual, and saw such a commotion. Three or four JSO (Jacksonville Sheriffs Department) patrol units, all looking for a large Python snake that someone saw and called in. On one hand, I was glad that the threat for that evening was at least a natural threat? I was saddened, however, when I thought about how many times I have called JSO and reported some disturbance or even a suspicious character. If I do get a response, it is normally half an hour or more after the call, and never more than one bored cop. They do their best to try to seem interested, and then tell me that "if I see them again, call us back". Sometimes, these strangers, the people on our street that we KNOW do not live among us, do horrible things. I just wish the police would move like that for every call, not just the ones that are exciting to them. Some of these guys sliding down our streets are snakes too.

Water Water Everywhere-

Just a couple of shots I took on Friday, before I went to the airport to take the most terrifying flight of my life to Ohio.




These were both on College at the Acosta corner.


This was on College near Goodwin.


King Street late Thursday night.

The school/storage building on College at Stockton.

What Are You Gonna Do?

If you walk around the neighborhoods of Riverside at night, you may notice something. If you know what marijuana smells like, you can not walk far before you smell it. And if you don't know what it smells like, you will by the time you get back home. Some nights I can not go one block without walking past a house where either the smell is coming from the windows, or the occupants are out on the steps or porch having a smoke. I suppose different people see this activity in many different ways. I have noticed that some folks are quite rattled by the blatant use of the controversial, and illegal drug. At the same time, many folks are very comfortable around the same "out in the open" use. I notice that most of the people out smoking seem very comfortable, and rather friendly. I cant really decide what I think about it. I cant speak of it as though I am from Mars, or a retired State Trooper- I have smoked "weed" plenty of times, though primarily as a teenager. I never saw much of a problem with it, and honestly I don't see what all the fuss is about. On the other hand, I do want law and order in my neighborhood. So, I'm out there every night, walking through the wafting trails of marijuana smoke, unable to decide how to feel about it. At this time, I choose to NOT do anything about the use of the stuff, though I may not feel the same about the open sale of it. Once again, I have to ask you folks what you think?

Can You See What I See?

I'm thinking about filming what seems to be gang related activity in our neighborhood. Not where I can be seen, of course, but from some vantage point. I have used this tactic to help prosecute criminals before, and if nothing else, it was always great back-up if all else failed. I have not decided how to get in close enough to get what I need, but I am considering many different possibilities. I do not want our "hot" corners to get like they were, and I intend to speak with JSO about them at the SHADCO meeting next Thursday.

As always, I would love to get your ideas about this subject, and any hot area you know of that I may not know of yet. Until then, I will be charging up the ol' Sony Super 8. Oh yeah, on the gang subject, has anyone else noticed that the "colors" have changed? Two years ago it was red (Bloods?) and now its all black. Thoughts?

Shananigans

I have never said that graffiti was not an art form, or that a graffiti artist is not an artist. I'm just saying that if it is art, my property is not your canvas. Neither is the property of my neighbors. I hold a special place in my heart for vandals. I just notice that as I am driving/walking around in Riverside, I see a LOT of petty vandalism. It is common in the "artsy" parts of any city, as well as in the more "diverse" areas. Lots of folks would tell you that its because we have a lot of kids in the area with nothing to do. I disagree. I have caught young kids doing horrible things to peoples homes and businesses in our area, but more often than not, it is adults that are the guilty party. In Riverside, we have loads of slackers living (?) among us. When you wake up at the crack of dark, after sleeping all day, and you don't have a dime to entertain yourself, what do you do? You could smoke some weed and go out throwing eggs, or rocks. You could also take some spray paint out of the shed, and paint a picture of a joint, for no good reason.

I saw a fire extinguisher laying in the street the other night, with all of the cars around it covered in the powder it contains. That must have been really fun. My point is, I hate this kind of crap more than even real crime. If a crack-head steals my extension cord, I know he sold it to buy crack. The slacker has no excuse for why he caused you to have to have a new window put in your car. He does not care that it costs you 400 dollars, and your bills were due. He does not care that your kids are scared to go to sleep because of his pointless action. I keep an extra sharp eye for these guys, particularly the older ones. I did vandalism as a young boy, and I am not proud of it. I think most everyone has done something along those lines at some point. But, I think when you are old enough to vote, the penalty for being caught doing this type crap should be severe. I call it "adult truancy" and I think they all need a place to be during the day, even if just doing volunteer work for others. I hate slackers, and Riverside is FULL of slackers.