The Journal of Madie Beartri

Journal 96

The wearing of colors to support the mail carriers was suddenly the thing to do. I have to admit that people in Bear Country took up this ritual.  The UPS Gang delivered our mail. I knew most of the carriers and they were good people. As far as I was concerned, the propaganda about the UPS carriers was false. They weren’t capable of the atrocities other gangs accused them of performing.

Billboards and signs began to appear all over town. “Support UPS” “Support USA” “UPS carriers steal your mail.” USA wants to control your life” the billboards were everywhere and most of them were spreading hate messages. Local businesses began to choose sides. If you wore the wrong color, local businesses denied you entrance into their establishments. This began to make getting food and the necessities of life difficult.

Friends began to argue with each other. Fights were breaking out all over town. Protest rallies began to popup all over town. Protesters from both gangs purposely schedule their rallies to be next to each other. It was a race to see who could get the most people to attend and yell the loudest. I attended some of these rallies. I barely escaped serious injury on more than one occasion.

Journal 95

I don’t have all the details of the mail war and this is only my recollection of what happened. The feuds between Gang USA and Gang UPS began small. At first, no one realized that there was even a problem. A couple of mail carriers had their mailbags stolen. This was one of the first efforts to keep the mail from delivery. Gang USA and Gang UPS responded by sending their mail carriers out in teams instead of single mail carriers. This declined the number of stolen mailbags.

It didn’t matter what side of Pass Road you were from, if you were a mail carrier people worshipped you.  People began to volunteer to be mail carriers. The more mail carriers there were the more location coverage. The leaders from both gang USA and gang UPS both set their goals to cover a majority of the surrounding areas. A few other gangs attempted to set up mail depots but they were put out of business. Rivals gangs burnt down their kiosks and the proprietor beaten to discourage mail delivery. The mail carrier occupation was suddenly an extremely dangerous job to hold. People began to take sides with either Gang USA or Gang UPS. Small bands of sympathizers set out to destroy the opposing gang’s mail carriers. Propaganda spread detailing the awful deeds of Gang USA and Gang UPS. Fights suddenly became commonplace over which gang was the actual victims in the mail war.

Journal 94

Gang wars are an unpleasant fact. They occur probably on a daily basis. Not so much around Bear Country but the farther away, you get the more likely you will stumble into something dangerous. Most of the conflicts are small but occasionally things get out of hand. The conflicts occur because two or more gangs want to have control over something, the block, the local grocery, or the mail route. The list of conflicts and the reasons for those conflicts could fill an entire encyclopedia. We try to avoid conflicts these days by forming Gang Associations. Local gang leaders join associations to work out their problems. Of course, sometimes the different Gang Associations have conflicts and difficulties.

Lost and I were on our walk yesterday and we stumbled across a burned-out building.  400 Mason Street was previously a mail depot. That fire took many lives. Mail carriers are a unique breed. They take their jobs and their positions in the community very seriously. The mail war was the largest gang war to take place in this area. This war didn’t just involve the mail carriers it involved everyone in the community. Gang USA and Gang UPS both wanted complete control over the local mail routes.

In the beginning after the virus mail delivery wasn’t possible until a couple of gangs decided to start mail depots. At first, delivery just occurred in the local area. If you lived on one side of Pass road, Gang USA delivered your mail. If you lived on the other side of Pass road, Gang UPS delivered your mail. Everything was going well. Getting mail became a special occasion. People started writing mail to other people just so that they would get mail in return. The mail carriers continued to expand their businesses.

A war began between Gang USA and Gang UPS when a letter was innocently delivered to the wrong mail depot. A gang USA carrier delivered a letter to a gang on the Gang UPS’s side of Pass road. The UPS leader got angry. He felt invaded by the USA mail carriers. The war that occurred after that innocent mail delivery was deadly.

Journal 93

I slept in late. Joshua dropped by to see me. He said he heard thru the grape vine that Aleece’s mom had returned to Bear Country and that I was having a hard time.  I hate the grape vine. All of Bear Country probably thinks I am off my rocker. Joshua was sweet. He gave me a hug and asked if there was anything, he could do for me. I assured him that I would be fine and that I didn’t need anything except for diversion to keep my mind off the events from the last couple of days.  He invited me out to the Spurs Campsite. I told him I would think about it.

Marty, Gretchen, and Cecelia are a unique couple. The three of them are rarely seen but informative. They dropped by shortly after Joshua left. They were on their way to Casey’s room. Marty asked for the books back that they had lent me. I forgot I had the child rearing books. Cecelia thought Casey would have more use of them. Gretchen agreed. Those three are odd, helpful at times but odd. Just a thought but Gretchen and Cecelia are looking very plump. Those two are eating either very well or… I’m thinking that Marty is a very lucky man.

Pete our local sheriff also dropped by. He generously offered to leave a guard outside my door. Just in case, I didn’t want to be disturbed.  I declined his offer. There is a rumor circulating that I am mentally stressed. A guard outside my door would just make things worse.

Matt and Hemy invited me to dinner at the Central Campus. I took a rain check for another day. They didn’t look as if they needed my company. The offer for dinner came between intense moments of PDA (public displays of affection). They haven’t finished with their honeymoon yet.

I think Lost and I will go for a walk.

Journal 91

Tony and Casey stood outside my door and knocked for a couple of hours. The knocking was making me insane. Casey’s crying was making me insane. I couldn’t take one more knock or one more “please let us in”. I considered jumping out the window and running away. However, I was too high up. I unlocked the door.

Casey stepped into my room. I tried to ignore her by making myself busy. Casey stood there crying. She asked if Aleece was getting big, and did she have any hair? She said she missed her deeply. She thanked me for taking care of Aleece while she was away. I turned around to face Casey and snapped. “How dare you abandon that sweet little baby and then come back here and expect me to give her back.” Casey tried to tell me she didn’t abandon Aleece. I yelled for her to get out of my room. I told her she wasn’t getting Aleece back.  Casey ran out of my room sobbing. I didn’t care. I was in the right and she was in the wrong.

Tony stepped into my room next. He was calm and spoke quietly. He said he understood my concern. I stood there staring out the window. I didn’t want to hear what he was saying.  I asked him to go away. I wasn’t giving Aleece back. Tony said I had to give her back. She wasn’t mine.  He said I didn’t know the whole story. Tony stepped up behind me and put his arms around me. I was trying not to cry. Tony quietly spoke into my ear and said that Mathias sold Casey into slavery. She spent more than a week in his jail. He sold her to a gang that needed people to dig tunnels and excavate ore. I turned around and cried into his shoulder. I didn’t want to give Aleece back to Casey.

Journal 90

I’ve locked myself in my room. The day began ordinarily. Aleece and I woke up early. We ate breakfast and then I read Aleece a little bit of Winnie the Pooh. I was feeling happy and alive. I decided to share my happiness. We went down to the basement to see Tony and asked if he and Runt wanted to go to the park.  Tony declined our invitation. He said that today was the day Runt was going to begin his lessons on reading and writing. Runt didn’t look to happy about the idea. He was sitting at a table in the corner sulking. He thought learning to read was dumb and a waste of time. I assured Runt that it was not a waste of time. Reading and writing would someday keep someone from taking advantage of him. Tony said that if Runt finished with his lessons, they would meet us at the park later.  I could work with that. Aleece and I trotted happily to the park.

Aleece and I walked around the lake, looked at the ducks and watched Lost chase squirrels. No one was under the big Oak tree, so I spread out a blanket. It was a beautiful day, sunny with a slight breeze. I was getting ready to give Aleece her midmorning bottle when I heard Runt yelling my name. My first thought was that somehow Tony had gotten hurt. I stood up and yelled back at him “What’s wrong? From halfway across the park, Runt yells back that Casey is home. At first, I wasn’t sure if I heard him correctly.  Then panic struck. Casey is home! I have to give Aleece back!  Runt finally reached the oak tree. I tried to sound excited about her coming home. I asked Runt to run back to Bear Country and tell everyone that I would be back in a little while. I needed to make a quick stop and pick up some formula. I didn’t have any more in my room.

My heart was beating out of my chest and my mind was racing. I had to figure out what to do and I only had a few moments to come up with a plan.  It took me a little more than an hour to return to Bear Country. Casey and Tony met me at the front door of the school. Casey looked a little sad when she saw that I didn’t have Aleece.  Casey and Tony both asked simultaneously “Where is Aleece?”  My good day had turned into a bad day. I looked at Casey and calmly said that she was at a friend’s place. Tony grabbed me by the arm and asked, “What Friend?” I didn’t answer. I left the both of them standing there and went straight up to my room. I can’t tell them where she is.  I won’t give Aleece back over to the woman that abandoned her.

Journal 88

I spent the morning playing with Aleece and thinking about my childhood. I was thinking mostly about my father. He was a good man and made my life incredibly interesting. He never let a learning opportunity pass. I miss those unexpected lessons. For example, one day when I was about seven years old my father and I were driving to the Home Depot to pick up a new faucet for my mother. My mom loved to redecorate. A hooker was soliciting customers on the corner. My father stops the car and points. “That is a hooker.”  I remember thinking. “Ok, what is a hooker?”  My father gave me a little speech about hookers and the difficult life they chose. I am not certain if he actually said what a hooker did for a living but I remember staring out the window and thinking “that is one ugly woman” and “she must be really cold.”

In memory of my father, I have been teaching Aleece little life lessons. I realize she is a little small to remember anything I tell her but she looks at me as if she is really listening.  I have been trying not to let her forget about her mom Casey. I tell Aleece that her mom will return soon and I show Aleece her mom’s picture.  Sometimes I am not sure if I am doing this for Aleece’s benefit or for mine. If Casey comes back tomorrow, I will have to give Aleece back to her mom. I find myself hoping she doesn’t return.  I am deeply attached to this little girl.

Aleece and I are meeting Tony and Runt later. We are going to go shopping for baby shoes and a few other things. Aleece is becoming mobile. She hasn’t started crawling but she does lift herself up to her hands. She hasn’t been able to get to her knees but I don’t think it will be long. I don’t want to her scrap her little toes when she does begin to crawl.