You're SO ORGANIZED

Another story of my mom at the big meeting. She was sitting there and a sheet was passed around. The dos and donts of an ADAPT action. This was covered at the new person legal training @ 9am, but I guess they thought everyone could use a refresher. I dunno. There were things on the sheet like do NOT bring illegal drugs or alcohol on the march and bring all your medication in their original bottle so that ADAPT leadership / cops / other emergency personnel know what it is. That keychain I have doesn't cut it. They also reminded those who have not, that they needed to fill out their emergency forms ASAP.

My mom also asked why some people have things on their chairs and some do not. "You mean the flags?" [there's Ray, right, with his purple flag] "Yes." They're color leaders or day leaders. There are 4 color leaders per group and 2 day leaders per group. There are 6 groups. Ray is a color leader. He has one purple flag on his chair. His day leaders have 2 flags. A purple and a white. I then pointed to my left arm rest, where until just now when the thought crossed my head to take it off, there was a piece of yellow tape on my chair. That is so that everyone knows I am in the yellow group.

1) Day leaders know all about what is going on for the day & color leaders know some of what is going on. Everyone else knows NOTHING. We play follow the leader all day. 2) More importantly, day/color leaders are in charge of everyone's safety. They have a list of everyone in their group, stand over potholes so no ones chair gets broken by one, and make sure that there are no gaps in the line. If a gap in the line was caused by a broken down chair, they make sure someone comes to help and that this person isn't left behind alone. There is a reason why we are so stringent about making sure we are SINGLE FILE, NO GAPS! [left, on constitution and 7th] SAFETY. If there is a gap, some idiot driver might try to make a run for it, and no one wants to get hit by a car. Day leaders, I didn't know, wear walkie talkies with headsets so that they can communicate with each other.

I hope that my mom didn't think we charge on a target and burst into a building in mass chaos. I hope the country doesn't think so. Maybe it looks like it? [that's Jay on the cover of Roll Call, right, being man handled by cops] That's NOT what we're about. We're actually quite militant [outside post]. We have everybody's safety and our image at stake. Those lunch counter protests in the south 50 years ago had strict rules too, for image and safety. Would you put YOUR family member in danger? ADAPT is one giant extended transcontinental family.

"You're SO ORGANIZED," she said. "Yes," I answered and chuckled. That's an understatement.