And The Band Played On

As I came in from the newspaper office, around 2:00 a.m., I heard an alarm going off up the street from our parking lot. Not only an audible alarm, but also a flashing light, much the same as what some people use as a medical emergency signal.

Odd, I thought; there seem to be no neighbors out checking. So I called 911 and reported it, apparently the first (and only) to do so, while the band played on.

One cop arrived within a very few minutes, then a second and a third. The narrow road was blocked with police cars, and the band played on.

You’d have thought the siren, the flashing light and three cars containing Officers of the Law would have brought out somebody, but even with three of said officers wandering around with flashlights and radios at the ready, I was the only person without a badge on the street. Still, the band played on.

Finally, the owner’s dog-and-pony show ended and Wilkes-Barre’s Bravest (if not partially-deafest by this time) stood around wondering what to do.

I didn’t have that problem. I let them know I was the person who called in the event, in case they needed me, and said it was time for me to be in bed. Having performed my civic duty and also given three cops something to do in the middle of a rather boring night, I trotted off to my apartment waiting for my medal.