I'm just the Middleman.

 Okay, so, for this week's photo post I have only one video. I felt guilty at first, but at least the video will grab attention.

 Emily took it off our dash cam. You might remember that camera got a really good view of the terror-inducing moment when our car caused a deer to go from 0 to 60 in one second. The deer lived, although it took a few years off of my life.

I cut this video down to 20 seconds, using an editing program (the kids apparently call them apps) that I learned to use in less than five hours, which is a record. In the video Emily is driving east on SR 8, in the area (I think) of around C.R. 700 East. That big bright thing is, yes, the sun.

Now, you'll notice her pass a construction ahead sign. Then a car traveling in front of her activates its left turn signal, on a hill, in an area that is not only no passing, but double yellow--no passing either way. (It was probably the driver who activated the turn signal, but these days who knows?)

There's a pickup truck behind Emily, being driven by a guy who, from this point forward, will be known as the Stupidest Human On the Planet, or SHOP. This is in no way meant to imply that they're stupid while shopping. They may be very good at price comparing, when their truck is sitting still and the little hamster wheel inside their head is allowed to cool down.

So he passed Emily. On a hill. On a double yellow line.

Then, as you might expect, the person who was turning left turned left. Just as the SHOP passed them.

If I hadn't watched Emily download the video, and reviewed it multiple times myself, I'd think it was AI. I have never in my life seen two objects actually pass through each other without touching. It was that close. Sure, theoretical physicists say it could happen, but in real life you don't expect a turning car and a moron in a pickup truck to actually pass through each other.

I actually called work to find out if they'd received any 911 calls at the time about a hit and run accident, since the truck kept going and the car went on down the side road. No, they hadn't. We had witnessed a moment that proves, beyond doubt, that angels watch over stupid people. 

 I feel for our left-turning person, who probably had to wipe a big brown stain from their driver's seat. I don't feel for the pickup driver's imbecilic nitwit twit, who probably just laughed, popped open another beer, and took that as proof that all traffic laws are just suggestions.

I do not want the SHOP pinhead to find out the hard way--too much chance that he'll hurt other people. Would a couple of expensive traffic tickets slow them down? Probably not.

We can only hope that if he does get into a crash, it's with another SHOP.

Don't forget, the e-book of Coming Attractions is still free over on Smashwords! Here's the link:

You can also find adventures in our books:

·        Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO

·        Barnes & Noble:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/search?attributes.contributorId=13727646

·        Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4898846.Mark_R_Hunter

·        Blog: https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/

·        Website: http://www.markrhunter.com/

·        Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ozma914/

·        Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarkRHunter914

·        Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markrhunter/

·        Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarkRHunter

·        Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MarkRHunter

·        Substack:  https://substack.com/@markrhunter

·        Smashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ozma914

·        Audible:  https://www.audible.com/search?searchAuthor=Mark+R.+Hunter&ref_pageloadid=4C1TS2KZGoOjloaJ&pf

 I'm interrupting my normal mid-week photo post to give you my normal mid-year free book giveaway from Smashwords:

While we have plans to add more of our books to that platform (we have twelve now, which in my opinion is also cool), it's been kind of an insane year and we're way behind. But for now it's a great chance to get the Coming Attractions ebook for free, right here:

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ozma914

Which is cool. I think I mentioned that. (I'm sitting in the air conditioning right now nursing an allergic reaction, so it literally is cool.)

The sale is over soon, so get your copy now! Okay, it goes on until July 31st, but if you wait you might forget, and that would make me sad. What's Coming Attractions about, you say? Well, it's a romantic comedy:

At a dark drive-in movie theater, Maddie McKinley returns from the concession stand, gets into the wrong van, and is tackled by the father of the kids inside. Logan Chandler’s embarrassed about roughing her up, while also intrigued by the beautiful woman from Boston, who came to the movies alone in an expensive dress. But he’s the local businessman leading a battle to save the drive-in from developers—and she’s the attorney sent to make sure it’s torn down.

This young lady demonstrates that it's perfect summer reading.

Maybe you also want to read other sale books. After Coming Attractions, mind you. No problem, because the Smashword summer sale has more free and reduced price books than there are stars in the sky, and I counted, just to be sure:

https://www.smashwords.com/shelves/promos

Compare that with 9,096 stars. Boy, were my eyes tired.

Naturally, you can still find our various books in other places:

·        Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO

·        Barnes & Noble:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/search?attributes.contributorId=13727646

·        Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4898846.Mark_R_Hunter

·        Blog: https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/

·        Website: http://www.markrhunter.com/

·        Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ozma914/

·        Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarkRHunter914

·        Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markrhunter/

·        Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarkRHunter

·        Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MarkRHunter

·        Substack:  https://substack.com/@markrhunter

·        Smashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ozma914

·        Audible:  https://www.audible.com/search?searchAuthor=Mark+R.+Hunter&ref_pageloadid=4C1TS2KZGoOjloaJ&pf

Remember: Free books cost less than a cup of coffee, although coffee table books can be very expensive.

 It's been said a nation has a life cycle, just like people do.

Perhaps our American gestation was the period when European powers first started planting their little colony seeds along the coast of this great continent. The new communities were unorganized, not entirely sure what they were meant for, and prone to doing things like throwing their rattles at the natives and turning New Amsterdam into New York.

 Look, it's not a perfect metaphor. Um, simile. Either. 

Like cells building themselves into an infant, people came to North America; for religious freedom, for land, for adventure, and sometimes just to be left alone. Even then we were a contrary bunch. As Benjamin Franklin said, "All nations have some citizens with high ideas, some who actually get things done, and some who are full of crap."

He probably said that. Or maybe it was Alexander Hamilton.

Our birth was a painful process, especially if you wore a red uniform, or were a Hessian soldier. The British doctor slapped us and then presented us with a bill, at which point we turned around and bit him. He was expecting cash. "Hey, I've been taking care of you for nine months! I protected you from Indians and the French, and all I asked from you in return is taxation without representation."

Our reply:

So we moved out of the house and into our own place. Actually we stayed where we were, maybe in the vacation cottage, and kicked our parents out. Every other nation in the world thought it would never work. It's like we were legally emancipated at the age of three, after spending a whole year throwing tantrums and spitting on our babysitter. Then we called up France and said, "Do you want to come over and play?"

France did, and they brought their toys.

But we got to live by our own decisions, despite our still developing minds. As we grew up, we started fighting with the neighbors and blowing things up.

 It turns out we had good intentions, although that didn't prevent us from doing stupid things.

So we waded in and tried to make the world a better place, and sometimes we succeeded. Sometimes we failed. Sometimes we got our noses bloodied and wondered why the heck we were there to begin with. Sometimes we mistreated our neighbors and sometimes we saved them, and every now and then we did both at the same time. Oddly, some of the people in the neighborhood who didn't like us would still ask for our help when they were down and out. We helped them.

As we entered middle age we had to wonder: What were we doing with our lives? What was really important, and what was not? We were of two minds on how to live our lives; sometimes three minds, or six, or a dozen. We started to feel a little creaky when we got out of our red, white, and blue bed in the morning. We started wondering if we were closer to sunset than we were to sunrise.

Then somebody starts yelling and throwing rocks at our windows. Suddenly we're a family again, because if you mess with one of us, you mess with all of us. And you don't want to do that.

So, what's next for us? Twilight years of bland food, bingo, and fighting with Medicare? After all, lots of other people would be happy to take our house over.

But I don't think so.

The United States of America still has life in it, yet. We may have to take some bitter medicine, get back into shape, and have healthy conversations again (imagine that!), but we can still get off that couch and be a strong people. It could be that sunset is really a sunrise.

We just have to face it together. 

 “Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government; when this support is taken away, the constitution of a free society is dissolved, and tyranny is erected on its ruins."

                                                --Benjamin Franklin 

You can find us here in America:

·        Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO

·        Barnes & Noble:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/search?attributes.contributorId=13727646

·        Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4898846.Mark_R_Hunter

·        Blog: https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/

·        Website: http://www.markrhunter.com/

·        Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ozma914/

·        Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarkRHunter914

·        Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markrhunter/

·        Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarkRHunter

·        Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MarkRHunter

·        Substack:  https://substack.com/@markrhunter

·        Smashwords:  https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/ozma914

·        Audible:  https://www.audible.com/search?searchAuthor=Mark+R.+Hunter&ref_pageloadid=4C1TS2KZGoOjloaJ&pf

Remember: Freedom isn’t free.