Cold in Ballard, Seattle. 19° F this morning, just above freezing now 2pm in the afternoon. For the past couple days we have been consistently colder here than Dutch Harbor, in the Aleutians, sometimes by as much as 20°. Our diesel heater aboard DE keeps things warm while we're aboard, and we run several dehumidifiers to keep things from freezing, or mildewing, when we're not aboard. Thank goodness for shorepower.

Last week 4 officers (sergeant and 3 officers) from Lakewood PD (south of Tacoma, WA) were murdered sitting in a coffee shop, starting their dayshift with an informal briefing, paperwork etc. Laptops out, they were shot (apparently by an emotionally / mentally troubled individual who's been in/out of trouble since he was 17 years old, from Arkansas to Washington. Two of the four executed outright, the other two making some attempt to fight, one managing to get a shot off. Suspect was located several days later, by a Seattle patrol officer; the suspect went for a gun (taken from one of the murdered officers) and was killed by the SPD officer. Halloween night a Seattle officer, an FTO and his trainee were shot, sitting at the side of the road, doing their paperwork. The senior officer died, the trainee wounded.

Brother John emailed to express his concern for me. I wrote back that I was doing OK, not obsessing beyond doing what every cop and former cop in the country was doing, that being running through whatever we knew of the incidents, changing the scenario to create a successful outcome in our minds.

Yesterday was the memorial service for the 4 Lakewood officers, thousands of officers from across the US and Canada. I watched what I could on local TV, before heading off to class. Apparently there is not sufficient time or distance to escape the reminders wounds from the past. I recall a quote from a book or movie, something to the effect that whether you want it to or not, one's past shows up and kicks in the door; there's nothing to be done about it except deal with it. Lately the door between me and my past is about as effective as a shower curtain that is blown aside by every passing breeze.