Tuesday 6 March 2007

A Bad, Bad Day

Last night my ex (still can't quite get used to calling him that) was on his way home from the pub with a couple of friends, one of whom wanted to try and get some food in town. They got to the high street and were passing a chip shop when a youth (and I spit the word contemptuously) threw his chips at them. My ex looked round and innocently exclaimed "They threw their chips at us!" out of sheer surprise.
This was taken to be an invitation for a beating, and he and his friend (the other one was female, so they most courteously left her out of it) were set upon, punched, kicked and the friend had a bottle smashed over his head.
Things were starting to get really nasty when the police happened to drive past (there are a lot of police driving around in our area at night, so this is not necessarily a miracle, just a necessity). They broke it up, took everyone down to the station and the main assailant spent a night in the cells as he was too pissed to give a statement, only to be let off with a caution the next morning, because he was sorry.
This was an unprovoked assault. If the police hadn't showed I am sure the injuries sustained would have been worse. There were two 12-year-olds looking on, watching and learning for when it's their turn in a few years time to show their mates how hard they are. And the police dish out a caution?
It makes me sick. Sorry everyone but I was already flagging with staying positive, and this has just sent me over the edge. I came down this morning to find a bruised and vulnerable looking man in the kitchen bravely soldiering on with the task of making breakfast. I gave him a hug. What else was there to do? I throw up my hands and admit "I feel like shit, life's a bitch, everything's a mess." Time for an intermission. Cut to pictures only for a while. My head's not up to posting anything else, and I do want to keep this site a positive space if at all possible.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm so sorry. Pointless violence-how do you wrap your head around that?

This is a lovely site, but you also have the right to talk about upsetting things.

(((seahorse)))

The Goldfish said...

Sorry Seahorse, that's really grim. Especially at this time when there must be a fair amount of tension between you and your ex, and yet clearly it still matters terribly what happens to him.

Perhaps the worst thing is the what if; someone who is as callous and idiotic to behave in such a fashion is undoubtedly capable of causing far worse harm than bruises. :-(

As Spotted Ele says, you have the right to talk about uspetting things. Sometimes it is the darkness in life which makes the light so very precious.

fluttertongue said...

Gosh this sounds difficult. When I broke up with the man who was my only support at a difficult time and at the end of my tether a friend gave me some advise. At secondary school we always had to go outside at lunch no matter how cold or rainy it was. I was a skinny young thing with bad circulation and it was sheer torture to have to sit around in the freezing wind. The only way you could really endure it was to face it full on and let it filter through your coat instead of huddling, and be invigorated. Sometimes the only thing you can do is let the bad stuff in, let it do its worst. Then it stops being an enemy and starts being something managable.

seahorse said...

All of the above helps and thank you. I am weathering a storm, so yes, Fluttertongue, your analogy rings true. Goldfish, thanks for your understanding and insight, and Ele thanks for the hug xx