Please, make a separate mothership or thread for the graphic images. I don't know if there's a spoilers tag that can hide text, but if there isn't, we need one that's easy to use so that people can hide graphic images and NSFW stuff in their comments and posts.
I know how to find graphic images, at places like Rightnow.io and elsewhere. I'm not looking at my infostreams right now. But when I was looking for comfort from my community today, I saw a gif/video in the comment section of the detonation that was playing on repeat. I just kind of watched in shock for a few moments. I kept seeing this man fall to the ground as if struck by debris.
Pardon my rambling here, but I'm filled with dread right now.
My roots in Boston go deep.
There's photos of my Brother and I all done up in Red Sox Gear when we were children. My parents met in Boston. My roots in Massachusetts go back to the Mayflower, and like Elizabeth Warren, we have some family stories about ancestry that may reach back even further. I'm no Boston Brahmin by any means, and though I can't remember at the moment, I think I'm related to Bartlett, Smith, and Hancock who signed the Declaration of independence, so I can go toe to toe in the pedigree game with even the Snottiest of the DAR Brahmin. I think there's actually five in the declaration, and a number of others on the Mayflower, but I can't remember right now.
I made a post in shock about the fact that I have loved ones in Boston. I was so shocked by the event that my shaky hands misspelled Massachusetts. My family's history is so woven into the tapestry of that state that you can find relatives of mine close and distant alive and in graves in places like Northampton and Amherst.
The events in Boston hit home for me. I love that city and its people as much as I love anywhere else on earth. As soon as my wife is done with School, I'm going to try to convince her that we should move there, as soon as is practically possible. I want to live there more than I've wanted to live anywhere else.
I... There's a free whisky tasting at a place I frequent tonight, but I'm not going because I don't think I should be drinking right now. Although maybe I should still go, because keeping to one's normal routine is important.
I don't know.
Just before posting this, I was able to talk to my Father. Our loved ones in Boston are all fine, including a family friend who runs the Marathon. All of my Occupy Boston Contacts are also fine. So that's a weight off my shoulders, and the sense of dread is lifting.
In any case, thank you for reading my Meta ramblings.
4:30 PM PT: Okay, well, I'm off to that tasting. That's the advice I got. sense of normality and all that. I'll be back soon to answer comments.
Thanks again for your kind words, everyone. My thoughts are with everyone in Boston tonight.
9:08 PM PT: Had a cathartic time talking with some old friends. It was trivia night at the bar. I came in second place with the team name Boston Brahmin. It was good advice to continue with my normal routine, and I was smart enough not to get impaired.