The rioting started early following the 2nd afternoon of protests. Once again, I opted out and stayed at home. As much as I like night skating, I always end up taking a fall in the dark. Teargas and bullets between cops and protesters increased the odds of injury exponentially.
No insurance policy could cover the loss of three people who were shot to death that night. One man was killed at the bank next door to my office on the NE corner of Ohio and Penn.
All the homeless people I talked to were starting to feel the heat on the street. Like everyone else, Covid 19 had stressed them, but the riots were putting them over the edge.
Early on Sunday morning, I finally ran into John P. Schmitz, Candidate for the Indiana House of representatives district 97 seat, who I have been following online because of his unique approach to problems and persistent video making. We, along with many others, were feeling the melancholy vibe on the street as we speculated on where the city was heading next.
Later that day I ran into Charles Smith who revealed to me that he was a Hebrew Israelite. He shared his thoughts on the current protests while taking a break from trying to rescue his drone from the second story ledge of what used to be Carson Pirie Scott.
After leaving downtown, I stopped by to work on my old house in SoBro in preparation of a new renter for the first time in 7 years. After finishing up, I took the board out for a ride in the old neighborhood where I ran into a guy in his early 40’s who got excited about seeing me skateboarding and wanted to give it a try. In the video, he refers to himself as “King We (or Oui, Wii).”
For a person who often looks for signs and wonders, coincidences have always intrigued me. I slowly seem to be cultivating friendships with an abnormally high percentage of Hebrew Israelites who I keep meeting around town without even trying. I too am on a mission from god. We all are. It is to love my neighbors. Please love your neighbors too.