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Call me lazy or disenchanted but I'm passing on the End the War March in Seattle today. Like Jim Yeager, I wonder about the value of public demonstrations in an era where nobody cares. Even then, I would go just to be counted. Olympia has about four shuttles and various carpools heading up, so transportation would be easy. But it's an all day affair at a busy time.

Maggie and I found a pretty good deal on an apartment near downtown Olympia and are moving in this weekend with a minimal complement of household items. Overall, my housing cost here will be about the same as in the Large Central Arizona Amorphous Area. Our place is on Legion Street, where each of the oak trees that make a canopy over the route is a memorial to a Washington WWI casualty. When the leaves are down, I will have a view of the state capitol dome, which being a very large building in a small town is visible from most any place with a little elevation and open view.

So I will let my personal affairs take priority this weekend. I look forward to moving in to my own place. Maggie and I have been staying with a retired friend in Olympia's senior housing project, also very close to downtown and adjacent to the waterfront. Our friend, Mel, who is our recent next door neighbor in Phoenix has been very generous in sharing his small apartment with us. We immediately installed a wireless router and have three computers in one room. Mel drove us all over town looking at housing last week and gave us a good overview of the area; we can navigate around town pretty well on our own now.

In return, Maggie has repaired his electronic air filter and removed the base of a broken light bulb from fixture so that a replacement can be inserted. She and I assembled a new piece of furniture for him. Maggie is appalled at the poor design of the housing project, especially its lack of accessible design and the "just stupid" features like the massive mirrored closet door panels that not only present a hazard (senior + fall = glass shards + blood) but are designed to limit access to the closet space. The doors are large and, if not properly aligned (Mel's weren't when we arrived), are very difficult to move. She thinks I should do an audit of the project.

Thursday night I listened to the local Veterans For Peace broadcast on KAOS community radio. The Rachel Corrie VFP chapter here has a regular monthly spot on a program called Free and Fair. This week they interviewed a Vietnam Veterans Against the War counselor who works with soldiers in upgrading personality disorder discharges caused by PTSD related behavior. From what I've seen so far, Olympia has an active progressive community. I think I will find much to like here.