Yesterday a freshman at the university apparently committed suicide via self-inflicted gunshot wound. Very sad. When kids have so much life and potential ahead of them, to see it cut short for any reason at all is depressing. Especially if you're a parent and know that your kids are going to have to face these same pressures when they reach that age.
There's not much you can do in these situations. You do your job. You answer the media inquiries. You gather the victim's personal information and a photo for release once next-of-kin have been notified. You hope the area newspapers and television stations are too preoccupied with the election to take much of an interest. You whisper brief prayers for the family, and try to keep an emotional distance without being callous.
You answer phone calls from worried students who've heard through the rumor mill that a gunman has killed a bunch of people in the library. Stupid rumor mill.
Then there's the whole election thing, and the fact that my encyclopedia entries for Giants and Insects are proving more difficult to write than I anticipated. I guess you could say that I'm a veritable barrel of laughs today. Or not.
Now Playing: Emerson, Lake and Palmer Return of the Manticore
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