Get the Picture..........

This is going to be a shorter entry then the ones that I've recently added to this extract. I haven't staged an Event recently, and I don't expect to hear from Givings, Doyle, or the People Upstairs until after the first of the year.

I don't intend to mention that the pre-Christmas season started before Halloween. I don't intend to mention that the post-Christmas season ended pretty abruptly on the 26th with The Snowstorm that Covered the East Coast.

Nor will I mention that I finally got my car dug out and on the road today - the 30th. Nor will I mention the trouble I had trying to return a pound of Starbucks Holiday Blend Coffee to a Barnes & Noble (actually, 2 Barnes & Nobles).

What I do intend to tell about is something that I've been thinking of doing for a while.......

ADD PICTURES TO THESE POSTINGS.

This is not a New Year's resolution. I don't believe in those. I do, however, have a new phone with a camera option and I think adding pictures is a good way to reinforce the reality of what I've written here.

To prove the point, here is the view from my living room window....

The building in the middle, back is the Adams Towers that I've mentioned in several previous postings.

I hope to have a picture for any new posting, where I think it might be helpful, in the future.

They do say that a picture is worth a thousand words.

Hark, the Herald.................
In the last two weeks, the entries I've made have been personal and have not had any impact on these matters. As I mentioned the last time, I had a biopsy done on the 2nd. I got the results on Friday, the 3rd - no signs of rejection. So far, two years and all is well. Except...they're playing with my tacrolimus level again. I've been for blood work on the 7th and the 14th and I'm scheduled for the 21st. If that's the only thing I have to worry about, it's all good.

There has also been Christmas shopping to do.

Oh, and I'm a Great-uncle (Grand-uncle?). My niece had a baby boy. We went to see them on the 12th. Cute kid. Just eats, sleeps, and - I presume - poops. Definitely one of the family.

Today is Sunday. I go to the 8:00 AM Mass on Sundays. It's not really altruistic. I get up every day around 7:00, do my routine (weight, blood pressure, pulse, temperature), take my pills and get on with my day. Sunday is different. I take my osteoporosis pill on Sunday, first thing. After that, I can't lie down for 45 minutes, and can't take any other pills for an hour. So I go to Mass. I do have a lot to be grateful for.

When I came out, there was Givings standing by my car. When I got within range, I used the remote to unlock the car and she got in on the passenger side. When I got in, I started up the heat - it was cold outside and in.

"This is a surprise." I said. "And you notice that I didn't say 'pleasant'. Are you here to hassle me for not doing anything for the last 2 weeks?"
"No, Mr. O'Neill. I'm not. We understand that it is the Holiday Season, and it has been unusually cold. It must not be easy to find someone out alone."
"To be honest, I haven't been looking. But you're right about the season. I did have some personal stuff to take care of."
"We know. Congratulations on the results of your biopsy, and the birth of your niece's son. Also, I am glad to see that you took care of your brakes."
Letting me know they still have a close watch on me.

"Anyway," She said, "I thought you should know of the progress that has been made since our last meeting."
"Progress? What progress? I didn't know you'd moved forward on anything."
"The People Upstairs liked your suggestion from last time. About fires...? You do remember?"
"Yeah. Of course. Just hold on a minute, OK? It's 9:00. Time for my pills."

She waited while I took them, then I gestured that she should go on.

"Over the last two weeks, we have staged two separate Random Fire Events - one in Perth Amboy and one in Rahway. Do you recall seeing anything in the papers?
 I thought for a minute or two.
"No. No, I don't remember seeing anything."
"Exactly. I believe the one in Perth Amboy was in the News Tribune. You read the Star Ledger, right? The one in Rahway wasn't mentioned at all. The People Upstairs were very impressed."
"Really? What happened? How did you set them up?"
"As I am sure you are aware, DHS consists of many previously independent groups. ICE has agents in many areas where the immigrant population converges."
"Wait. ICE? You mentioned them last time. I mentioned INS, and you said ICE. What's that?"
"Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It sounds tougher then Immigration and Naturalization Service. They are still responsible for seeking out and deporting undocumented immigrants."
"You mean Illegal Aliens."
"Whatever. They identified buildings in both locations that would make good targets, then we sent in an operative to stage the Events. Perth Amboy's was determined by the authorities to be a faulty space heater, and Rahway's was a Christmas tree too close to a heat source. Pretty much as you had predicted."
"Yeah, well, they happen every year, you know."
"Three people died in Perth Amboy and two in Rahway. Additionally, ICE has identified what appears to be five families that are now in custody awaiting extradition. There are a total of 22 family members."

She paused to let that sink in. I'd been watching the rest of the church-goers leave. We were the only ones left, but that would change when the 10:00 crowd started to arrive soon. I had no comment to make. She continued.

"Our agreement was for $1500 per person per Event. A $7500 deposit has been made to your account. The People Upstairs are debating about a monetary value for deportees, but no decision has been reached. Since they have recessed for the Holidays, I don't expect to have a resolution for this until after the First of January. Any questions?"

I looked at her. She sat there, calmly, her hands folded in her lap.
"Why did you come here? Why didn't you call for a meeting?"
She looked at me.
"I knew where you would be. If you hadn't showed up here, I would have called for a meeting, which would have postponed you're hearing this until tomorrow, at the earliest. This made sense."
"Oh. I see....So, what now?"
"Now, Mr. O'Neill, you go back to preparing for your Holidays, and we go back to preparations of our own. I believe that there will be 3 or 4 more Random Fires over the next month and a half."

She opened the door preparing to leave, then turned.

"Merry Christmas, Mr. O'Neill."

She got out, closed the door, and crossed to a black sedan parked across the street.

"Merry Christmas, Miss Givings." I said, even though she couldn't hear me.

I waited till she drove off before I left also.

I Read the News Today..............

I was waiting for this - Givings' call. I heard from her on Wednesday. She wanted to meet Thursday - yesterday - but I couldn't. I had a biopsy scheduled. Being scheduled for 8 AM doesn't mean anything because once you enter a hospital you're on "doctor's time". I got there at 7:20, and was out by 12:30 - biopsy, x-ray, and office visit all in 5 hours. That's enough for one day. I agreed to meet Givings this morning.

Usually, she likes to meet around 9 AM at the Menlo Park Mall. But since I put her off, we agreed on 11. I got there early so I figured that I'd pick the table. I got some decaf and a muffin, picked up the paper, and staked out a table in the back of the Food Court.

The local paper has a funny way of treating personal interest stories that happen in the area. The hopeful, happy ones make the front page with a nice picture. The not-so-hopeful ones get buried. I usually just read the banners, photo captions, and the location line. If it grabs me, maybe I'll read the opening paragraph. Today's paper had the follow up to an article I'd seen a day or so ago. Not a happy ending for the family.

It seems that a week ago Wednesday, the day before Thanksgiving, a man disappeared while out taking his morning exercise walk. There was a Silver Alert issued. Apparently he was an older guy with a history of heart-related problems. They found him Tuesday, or rather some guy walking his dog found him. He was found down the side of an embankment off Chain-of-Hills Road where it rises over a small stream. The coroner says it looks like a seizure, or heart attack. No signs of violence. No sign of a struggle. No sign of a guy with a Flasher or a bright light. First time I'd seen anything Event-related

Givings showed up and I put away the paper.

"Sorry I didn't get you any coffee. I didn't want it to get cold." I smiled. She got something from the Starbucks, and sat down.
"Mr. O'Neill, I want to apologize for the Adam's Tower situation. It didn't turn out the way I'd projected. In fact, it didn't do anything."
I kept smiling, and shrugged. I didn't think I needed to add anything.
"Anyway, Mr. Smith has informed me that he spoke to you.."
"Wait. Mr. Smith? Is that his name? Is he the guy who called me last week? He's one of the People Upstairs, right?"
"Yes. That's the name I know him by. He is one of the more important members, and the one that I get my instructions from. And Doyle, as well. I mean, he gives Doyle his instructions, too."
"What does he look like?"
"I don't know. I've never met him. I get my instructions via phone conversations and e-mails mostly. When we do meet, he tends to remain in the shadows. I take it that it's a security thing with him. But that's not the reason for this meeting. We need to discuss how to proceed."
"Discuss? You want to discuss proceeding with me? That's interesting. Usually you just have instructions."
"That has changed, at least for now. Mr. Smith feels that you might have some ideas on how to progress with Phase 2."
I sat back, using my coffee to stall a little.
"Let me see if I remember...Phase 2 was supposed to be an attempt to increase the number of victims per Event, correct?"
"Correct." She looked annoyed.
"And the Adam's Tower thing, you know, using Legionnaire's Disease, was supposed to do that only it didn't work, right?"
"Correct, again." Annoyed and a little angry. I let her stew a little, picking up my trash and dumping it in the nearest basket.
"OK. I've actually given this some thought. Do you know what you read a lot about this time of year?"
"The Holidays?..No..No, I don't recall anything specific."
"Fire. You read about fire a lot."
"Fire?"
"Yes. Fire. Caused by faulty wiring and dry Christmas trees, or candles, or space heaters in unheated rooms. There's always reports of tragic fires happening during the Holidays."
I paused and looked at her. She looked sceptical, but interested.
"Go on."
"There has to be any number of overcrowded homes in Perth Amboy, Rahway, Linden, even Edison and Woodbridge. Illegal aliens crowded into poorly ventilated, unheated houses. Any number of potential fire-traps. All you need to do is have someone who fits in - and I certainly wouldn't - go around and "Prime" the chosen sites. Then when a fire starts, an anonymous call to the Fire Department. I'd bet there'd be some loss of life."
"That does sound like it would work, but wouldn't they look suspicious?"
"I don't think so. You spread them out from now through, say, February, and I'd bet they'd only get some local coverage and they'd never be connected. And there may be a side benefit."
I left that idea dangling. She bit right away.
"What side benefit?"
"Since you'd know what was going to happen, you could have INS handy to round up the suddenly homeless. Those without papers get deported. Another reduction to the drain on our resources."
"ICE. They're known as ICE now. Not INS." But she said that distractedly.
"Whatever. It doesn't matter what they call themselves. They're still answerable to DHS, right?"
No answer. She was slowly nodding to herself, weighing the pros and cons. Finally, she pushed back her chair.
"Very interesting, Mr. O'Neill. It has a great deal of potential. Very little exposure on our part, instant results, good upside. I'll have to run this by the People Upstairs, of course, but I'm sure Mr. Smith will like it, and he carries a lot of weight with the rest."

She stood, and looked at me for a minute. Then she stuck out her hand. I shook it.

"Thank you, Mr. O'Neill".
She walked away.

Oh boy.