It's 9AM

What did you do for fun growing up?

We went to visit my Dad when I was ten.

Somewhere between Arkansas and Mississippi there was a hill with a concrete ditch carved into the side of the dirt.

Slide down the water slide on a foam mat.

Pools painted blue so the water looked perfect.

Pools with floating inner tubes with motors attached to the seat.

Turn starboard or port and shoot your opponents with a water gun.

Possibly a pool for lounging adults and splashing kids, but I don’t remember that part.

I remember a picture of me, standing up from the bottom of the water slide, holding the foam in one hand and helping my step sister up the stairs with the other.

You’ve seen dozens since, and then an explosion of larger water parks that put the water slides out of business.

But progress continued and the water parks are going in decline as more people pick Top Golf and VR venues.

It’s air conditioned and a more controlled environment.

Doesn’t depend on weather, or people in swimsuits.

Back in Pine Bluff where I grew up, we missed the concrete water slide phase and had the plastic pipe for awhile.

It’s all gone now, nothing but weeds in the lot where the deck and stairs once stood.

But most of Pine Bluff is gone, or gone to seed, despite best efforts.

Which is frustrating because a lot of people are putting in best efforts to bring about changes.

One of the chances is a go cart track.

Which doesn’t appeal to me.

I drove go karts several times, and I get the joy of speeding along, wind in your hair, racing inches above the ground and hugging the curves.

I get it.

It’s fun, especially for kids.

But…

Should a dying town or dead town put their bets on a go-kart track to bring in tourists or townie dollars?

I’m trying to imagine a scenario where it’s financially viable.

It just feels like a square peg in a round hole.

Like it’s an approximation of an idea that might work, a throwback.

In North Little Rock, they’re building an entertainment site that’s like a Top Golf meets a Dave and Busters.

Across the river in Little Rock, they just opened the Main Event, which is a Dave and Buster’s type place, two exits from the Dave and Buster’s.

It is across the street from where the new Top Golf facility is being built, along with new shops, café’s and more on the surrounding area.

All brand new, and shiny and packed with virtual reality arcade games, and cheap prizes from Taiwan, and beer and neon and black light.

In the Bluff, they’re building a go kart track.

But not just one.

Another business owner has put in a request to build another go kart track on his property.

And if you’re saying, huh?

Why?

Then we are in the same boat.

Because I’m not sure if there’s enough financial support for one shop, let alone two.

I’ve been reminded that we’ve gone to the go kart place in Little Rock a few times.

It’s a site with mini-golf, an arcade, batting cages for baseball and softball and laser tag, plus a ropes obstacle course above it all, and the track that’s not much larger than my yard.

We went to one in Cocoa Beach Florida last year that was four levels, racing top to bottom and back again. There was an alligator farm that the track bridged over.

You could buy hot dogs for a dollar each to feed to the gators.

They’re not building that in Pine Bluff.

Just go karts, a snack shop and maybe room for expansion.

Later.

I have asked why we aren’t building something that is a destination for LA.

Lower Arkansas.

And been told that the go kart track is what people want.

I guess I don’t get it.

Which is okay because I don’t get a lot of things, and I think there’s so much room in the world for go karting, and top golfing and water sliding.

Except for the concern.

The concern that one city is doing a much better job at figuring out hometown entertainment while the other is playing at it and failing.

I think this go kart track will go the way of the waterslide soon with people left in the city still looking for things to do.

Unless I’m wrong and it is exactly what people have been wanting for years.

Where did you go for fun growing up?

Bayou Justice

The American (A Nathan Grant Thriller Book

Perfect Record: A DCI Jones novel

OPERATIVE – The Shadowboxer Files

"Who's the Spook?"

Brill sat at the back of a small room with seven sailors seated in front of him. An eighth man, their Lt stood beside a projection screen at the head of the room. None of the men turned around to look at him, though they all shot appraising looks as they entered in quiet order and took their seats.

"He's not a Spook," said the Lt as he nodded at Brill. "He's on loan to us from Homeland."

"Isn't Homeland a Spook business?" shot back one of the men. He was the tallest in the group, with a buzzed haircut and piercing blue eyes.

"You want to explain?" the Lt asked Brill.

He shook his head no.

His instructions were to say nothing and observe and he planned to follow them to the letter. This was his first assignment after nine months on the Farm, a CIA training facility in the Virginia countryside. He had been flown down this morning in an F 16 to Naval Station Key West to task with the SEAL team that operated from there.

"Loose lips sink ships, am I right?" one of the sailors turned to grin at him. He had dusky black skin and etched muscles. He held out a corded forearm.

"Washington," he kept grinning. "Like the President."

Brill considered the hand for a moment and leaned up to shake it.

"Pleasure," he disobeyed his orders.

It was the first handshake he had taken in over a year.

Nine months ago, he was picked up in South Africa and brought back to the United States. The man who met him when he was led off the plane in plastic zip ties and a hood was U.S. Senator Shelby Johnson, an old acquaintance from his home state.

Shelby didn't shake hands.

Instead, he ushered Brill to a private office for a meeting with the President, who conscripted Brill back into service for his country after absconding to South Africa.

Technically, he wasn't attached to Homeland Security or any government Agency. He worked for a private company called Barraque owned by Johnson that contracted with the government.

Brill wasn't supposed to know Shelby owned it, but the company, Barraque was named after a street in the hometown they shared.

"Let's zero in on the mission," the Lt called out. "Our guest can share over chow."

The sailors settled in and focused on their leader.

"Our target window is pretty tight," he started and pulled up a map of Africa on the overhead projector. "We're tasked with a smash and grab. CIA has intel that Abu Aish is in Nigeria working with Boku Harem."

He clicked a button and the projector advanced to a topography map of Nigeria.

"Abu Aish is under the protection of a platoon strength or more of Nigerian terrorists. They traced him to a town one hundred twenty klicks south of the border with Algeria, called Sokuto. We're doing a beach insert in the port of Lagos, and catching a ride North on a Red Cross plane. We will exfil in manner same."

He glanced at his men.

"This is not an easy mission. Nigeria is Africa's most populous nation, it's got huge oil field reserves and the leader of this group, Mohammed Yusif is no joke."

"What does the name mean?

"You wanna speak to this?" the Lt said to Brill.

"Boko Harem means roughly "Western Fraud." These animals are strict followers of the Qu'ran, and preach violent overthrow of the western influenced government."

"How are they armed?" asked the tall blue eyed man. Brill nicknamed him Sinatra in his head.

"They get arms from the old Soviet block, but don't be surprised if you see US munitions and equipment. We arm a lot of the governments that keep getting overthrown by rebels, who take the weapons and sell them. We're looking at AK's, and Vietnam era M-16's, mostly. The terrorists don't have access to planes, or any air support, but they are masters at making do with RPG's and Tank-buster's."

"You're our African expert?" asked Washington.

Brill shrugged.

"I've spent a little time in country," he said referring to the years he was with South African Recce's and then contracting under a mercenary group. "My purview is Angola, Sierra Leone, and other points, but the rebel groups operate pretty much the same way."

"Even Islamic terrorists?"

Again he shrugged.

"Africa has over two thousand religions, so Islam, Christian, Animist, Lion King, it doesn't really matter. These Boku Harem soldiers are going to be hopped up on stava or other drugs, so religion won't have as much sway as you think. What you will remember is a bullet from their gun will kill you no matter what you or they believe."

"Preach," Washington grinned.

"Alright, let's get on with the particulars," said the Lt as he pulled their attention back to the front of the room to lay out mission parameters.

Get the Rest of OPERATIVE - The Shadowboxer Files