Suspicious man triggers evacuation of Macy's and Nordstrom.
It's an interesting story for anyone in the Skokie, IL or Chicagoland area.
It's especially interesting to me because I was IN Nordstrom about 2 hours before this happened.
I was visiting my old friends from the Espresso Bar (I used to work in that particular location before being promoted to a different store), talking with my old boss whom I'm friends with. After she got off work she invited me to her house for food and video games, as well as meeting her seven-month-old mastiff, a playmate to her older pitbull.
Both dogs were extremely friendly and welcoming, and she as always was a good host. We were in the midst of playing Call of Duty 3 when her cell phone rang.
"What do you mean the store was evacuated? What explosion??" she asked.
I stopped playing, as I have many friends in that particular Nordstrom. Plus, I was just fucking there.
We heard about the bomb threat I linked above the fold. She and I discussed it, marveled at the odds of me visiting that day, when I hadn't visited for weeks. We found it kind of entertaining that one of the employees who had just been promoted and was working his last day at Old Orchard would have one hell of a story to tell his new co-workers.
After this, we got a couple of updates. Everyone was safe as far as I heard, they did find one bomb and detonated it (this was not in the link I said; call it hearsay until confirmed, but I believe the person who told me, as I know him well), all of the employees got home safe. I didn't hear if they caught the guy.
This is really just an interesting and kind of scary anecdote. I mean, I was just THERE a couple of hours before this happened. And though I heard everyone was OK, it's a sobering thought to know that I was close to a bomb scare.
It puts the whole idiotic primary season in perspective, and it certainly makes me examine my behavior lately.
I honestly believe I've behaved decently, but there's always room for improvement. And I can remember several instances when a kind word would have served better than my usual assholish remark.
So, to be brief, I'd like to apologize if I've offended anyone this season. I like to think I've been a fair critique, have spoken out against baseless smears against both our wonderful candidates, but I'm obviously not objective.
So no more qualifiers or rationalizations.
I apologize to those I offended, and I offer the following:
- I will not use my TU status at all until primary season is done UNLESS IT'S CLEARLY A TROLL.
- I will try (I promise, TRY) to refrain from being a dick. It's difficult, because I have many years experience being a dick and I think I'm particularly good at it, but I will try to be more polite and constructive in my critiques.
Uhh, that's really it.
It may sound silly to offer these notions and promises up after what really wasn't a big scare in the scheme of things, but in retrospect and in light of my thoughts BEFORE all the details were known (remember, we heard brief news from frightened workers and thought a bomb DID go off only a couple hours after we had left), primary season means precisely nothing.
I'll happily support either candidate. I trust both of them far more than McCain (or a mystery candidate, should the GOP pull one out its collective ass), and I look forward to a day when we have the majority AND the White House.
All this petty bullshit I see from people I used to respect is worthless in the scheme of things, and especially in light of what could have happened today to myself and my friends.
So, apologies all around, and I will honestly try to not be so negative and confrontational.