January 30, 2017, 10:00 a.m.
A woman stood on the corner of Wyoming and Las Vegas Boulevard wearing a black and white paisley-print blouse and very roomy white pants, her head and fleshy parts all angled down towards the gum-spotted, exhaust-stained sidewalk. A harsh desert light ignited her every physical flaw, of which there were many, especially the thin patches of white hair on her head, the pink scalp shining profoundly through. Her blouse was low cut, the arms tailored short, both exposing large quantities of flesh that sought the safety of the ground against the onslaught of gravity. Her abundant exposed pink flesh advertised her weight and age.
A kind observer would note that we all wrinkle, sag and drop gobs of hair eventually. An ignorant observer would use her appearance as a window on her interior world and make all kinds of assumptions about her that might be totally false, using labels like "white trash" to simplify her life and categorize her. Perhaps God would see a woman made in his own image, a spiritual child who had given up a glorious immortality and temporarily taken on a body of flesh and blood by choice to experience such grand experiences as divorce, working minimum wage jobs after you're sixty, and standing on an ugly street corner in Las Vegas, Nevada at 10:00 a.m. as a means of slow, soft enlightenment, a wearing down to empathy and understanding. He would know her dreams, see the money she slips into an envelope and mails to her grandchildren on each of their birthdays despite the fact that her children seldom visit, and so she hardly knows her grandchildren, and when her offspring do come, they spend the week asking dehumanizing questions like, Why don't you pay your bills on time?, Why don't you clean up once in a while? and Why do you save all this junk? Then they ask for money and leave.
But a mind-droplet detached from the host mind only sees the way a camcorder sees. It detects only light, form, movement and sound. And so the mind droplet floating above the middle of Las Vegas Boulevard the morning January 31, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. only saw what the Google Earth van would see if it were passing at that moment: the street and its objects, including the woman.
The corner of Wyoming and Las Vegas Boulevard is about as ugly as any corner can get, even by Las Vegas standards, but the mind droplet only saw details removed from aesthetic evaluation. On the corner, a single palm stood in between a wood electrical pole and metal support pole for the traffic lights. The palm tree and the traffic pole stood in a square of smog-stained gravel. A yellow plastic-coated support cable angled up to the electrical pole. There was a button on the traffic-light pole to push to cross the street. Across Wyoming was a parking lot, a nondescript white concrete block building, and a giant three-sided billboard on stilts--one side advertising the law firm of De Casterverde at (702) 222-9999; on it two men in dark gray suits smiled towards the traffic.
However, directly below the sign, literally tucked under its giant four-pillar scaffolding was a tiny bright colored food shack boasting in bold black letters the name Puerto Rico Express. The small structure was bright red at the base, just above the parking lot, above which it hovered slightly, sitting on unseen two-by-four skids. Above the red, the plywood sides were a bright Caribbean blue. Above that, a thin stainless steel counter, about nine inches deep, wrapped around three sides of the structure, creating a bar. On the side facing Las Vegas Boulevard were four bar stools, three of which were the same shape and height, all stainless steel. The left one, the odd one out, was wider, wood, and painted white. The almost unity--but not quite--added to the island feel of the food shack, intended or not.
Above the bar were two large plate-glass windows trimmed by red wavy molding. The one on the left facade had a neon Open sign in it and bright colored posters advertising the various dishes. Through the one facing Las Vegas Boulevard one could see stainless steel napkin holders, a salt and pepper shaker set and a small flat screen TV facing out towards the four empty bar stools.
The mind droplet noticed it was on. A speaker mounted to the plywood wall allowed the sound to come outside.
The mind droplet hovered right outside where nobody sat and observed the TV.
On the screen there was a woman in her late 40s or early 50s with short brown hair with a few random streaks of gray. Two men in suits stood behind her. At the bottom of the screen, across the left and center were bright red letters: BREAKING NEWS: TRUMP FIRES ACTING ATTORNEY GENERAL. On the right, it said MSNBC.
The screen changed, making a swooshing sound, and showed pictures of the supreme court as the audio continued... "hours from now Donald Trump will be announcing his selection for the Supreme Court, likely setting off an epic battle with senate democrats. The screen changed again and showed a computer generated museum-like setting showcasing large pictures from the upcoming stories in the broadcast. As the camera zoomed down the gallery hallway it came to rest on an image of a woman in her late forties or early fifties sporting blond hair with silver-frosted tips. She glanced to the right, to a red vertical graphic bar and the name ANDREA MITCHELL REPORTS in large blue letters.
The camera then zoomed in on a live, speaking Andrea Mitchell seated in front of an image of the white house. She appeared older than the still-shot Andrea Mitchell in the previous picture. Her eyes were deeper set, dark shadows angled over them, and the lines on her face and neck more pronounced. She wore a simple green dress and a big gold colored necklace. She said, "Good day everyone, I'm Andrea Mitchell in Washington. We are awaiting John Kelley's first press conference as Secretary of Homeland Security. The cloud of controversy surrounding Trump's travel ban and top cabinet secretaries, including Kelly, being kept out of the loop. Joining me now, NBC National Correspondent Peter Alexander at the White House. NBC Justice Correspondent Pete Williams in our news room".
There was a slight swoosh sound as the image changed to a split screen with Alexander on the left and Williams on the right.
"Peter, first to you. We have a situation where Steve Bannon and Steve Miller, the two top White House aids, along with other top aids, excluding the cabinet secretaries, as well as the state department, which is now without a leader--of course, Rex Tillerson not yet confirmed. What do we know about that, about how they're trying to fix the situation, and their very close connection with Attorney General Senator Sessions, who of course, is up for confirmation, and has been apparently working behind the scenes on all of this?
Peter Williams said, "Yeah, what's notable here is that we can report that house judiciary aids, not the actual bosses, not the members of the congress and house judiciary committee, but their aids, were party to this effort to draft an executive order that was announced, and is now controversial, not only because of the policy itself, but because the way it was communicated. There is reporting today that James Mattis of Defense, John Kelly of Homeland Security, and even Rex Tillerson had no idea this was coming, and certainly didn't know the details, only the wide concept until it was announced".
The screen showed a man with gray, receding hair and wearing a black suit while standing at a podium, next to two flags--one for the U.S. and one for the Department of Defense.
On the bottom of the screen it said, "BREAKING NEWS: HOMELAND SECRETARY SPEAKS ON TRUMP'S IMMIGRATION BAN." On the right bottom of the screen was another box that said, "Trump Supreme Court Pick Today" Next to it there was distinguished picture of the president.
The Homeland Security Secretary began to speak: "I would like to clarify what the most recent executive order does and does not mean. This is not a travel ban; this is a temporary pause that lets us review the refugee and vetting system. Over the next 30 days we will analyze and assess the strengths and weaknesses of our current immigration system, which is the most generous in the world. We will then provide our foreign partners sixty days to cooperate with our national security requirements. This way we can ensure that the system is doing what it is designed to do, which is protect the American people. This analysis is long overdue and strongly supported by the department's career officials".
As the mind-droplet continued to observe the TV, the woman wearing a black and white paisley-print blouse and very roomy white pants crossed Wyoming and headed towards the bright colored Puerto Rico Express. Perhaps she would stop, order, and have a seat under the shade of the scaffolding of the giant billboard advertising the law firm of De Casterverde at (702) 222-9999. More likely, she would pass on by. It was January, only 48 degrees. Shade and drink were not likely high priorities. Unless she came especially for the food at that particular stand, there would be no reason to stop.
Dino's Lounge was a more likely destination, not because of how the woman looked, but simply because it had four cars in front of it; Puerto Rico Express had none. Statistically speaking, more people in Las Vegas need a strong, dry drink at 10:00 a.m. than whatever flavors Puerto Rico Express serves up. A small Mexican man in a worn over-sized black suit with very baggy trouser legs walked up the street as well. One could not tell though if his destination was the bar or some place well beyond.
Millions--no billions--of people moved around the country and planet on January 31st, 2017, except, of course, those singled out by the travel ban.
The Vegas sun was very intense even in the dead of winter.
