No good deed…
A Beaconite who recently bought a car decided it was only fair to pick up hitchhikers as often as possible, given that she certainly hitched her share of rides in her time. It was only this week, however, when she finally felt comfortable enough on the roads to stop and carry others. So far it’s been going well, but she has a few concerns. First of all, she is frustrated with the impatience that so many drivers seem to exhibit even at a mere few seconds’ delay, even when it’s clear that the driver ahead of them is picking up or dropping off someone, occasionally with a child or a lot of luggage, and that they are moving as fast as they can and not just standing there chatting or deliberately attempting to hold anyone up. Drivers, if you have to go around, do, but don’t mash your horn impatiently. It doesn’t help move things along but just makes everyone even more annoyed. Secondly, it occurred to her that picking up mothers with young children, which is the demographic of hitchhiker the Beaconite prefers, is maybe not the best idea. It seems unsafe, and apparently having an unsecured child in the front seat can prompt the police to issue a ticket. A mother she picked up on Monday glimpsed the police and immediately took her child off her lap and “hid” him underneath the dashboard just in time. The Beaconite thinks the backseat might be fine, but her backseat is currently covered with various belongings. She will have to find a solution, because it would be just the Beaconite’s luck to somehow end up getting punished for an attempted good deed.
Mural magic
A Beaconite was happy to see that artist Reuben Vanterpool is touching up the mural at Fahie Hill, which had faded with time and suffered damage during Hurricane Irma. In recent weeks, Mr. Vanterpool often has been sitting on a small bench at the retaining wall, patiently painting over faded areas of the many historical scenes on display there. And on a recent afternoon, he was accompanied by an assistant who had volunteered to help out. The Beaconite thanks them for their work. He has driven past the wall hundreds of times, and he always enjoys it. He also knows that the mural is a popular sight for tourists.
Irma honours
Beaconites are pleased that some of the emergency responders to Hurricane Irma were recently honoured in the United Kingdom. Seven members of 66 Works Group, a specialised group of British Army engineers, flew into the Virgin Islands on two small planes following the hurricane. They had the airport up and running within 24 hours, according to the UK media outlet Nottinghamshire Live. Last Thursday they received the military’s highest humanitarian award, the Firmin Sword of Peace. The group’s commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Gareth Walker, 41, said, “The physical damage by a Category 5 hurricane is shocking. I have been to Iraq and Afghanistan. I have seen the effects of war, but this was on a different scale.” He saw shipping containers thrown hundreds of meters and attested to the boats that were strewn about throughout the island. “When you land you realise the situation that people are in. I remember seeing a lady sat with her head in her hands on a pile of rubble where her home should be,” Mr. Walker said. “Around 80 percent of homes were destroyed. They were in a world of hurt and their lives were destroyed.” The goals for the group’s mission were to open the island’s airfield to allow humanitarian and military aid flights, produce water that was safe to drink, and restore electricity.