Yesterday, Patricia, Ward, Linda, Pasha, David and I joined the #MarchForOurLives protest, started by the kids at Marjory Stoneman Douglas School in Parkland, Florida, following the school shooting there that left 17 dead on, of all days, Feb. 14, 2018.

The Seattle march went from Cal Anderson Park on Capitol Hill, through downtown, from 4th to 5th Avenue, and on to the Space Needle and Seattle Center. There's no official estimate on numbers. The Times (both Seattle and New York), keep using the term “thousands,” which makes it seem rinky-dink. This protest was anything but. At one point, the march stretched from Cal Anderson to the Space Needle—meaning some finished the 2.2 miles before others got the chance to start—and my own observation backs this up.

When it began, I think we were close to the front but peeled off for a Top Pot break (coffee for most, raised glazed for me), then joined in again. At Seattle Center, we were directed down Harrison, and, thinking that was the end (per the recent Women's Marches), hung out against a wall awhile. 10 minutes maybe? Ward, checking twitter, said Gov. Jay Inslee was giving a speech, so we kept going, to the space opposite the International Fountain, and hung out and listened to speeches there for another 15 minutes or so. Then the walk home. As we passed under the Space Needle, we saw, over on 5th Avenue, marchers still streaming in, a street full of people moving at a steady clip. A half hour after we finished. 

“Thousands,” Seattle Times?

The more important numbers will be seen on Tuesday, Nov. 6. I've never seen my side so energized about a mid-term election. 

Start of the march just off Cal Anderson, under cloudy skies and low 40s.

Downtown Seattle. The Emma sign was made by the 13-year-old daughter of a friend of ours.

Looking up Pine toward Cal Anderson.

Great “Three Billboards” take

 My favorite sign. Under clear skies and high 40s.

The NRA posts.