Tag: WashingtonDC

Margerumalia – Assault By Music

Eric Margerum

Newsletter – October 24, 2025

A Phone Call

I had a good laugh recently when I saw this sequence on line. A citizen of DC decided that he would protest the unnecessary invasion of the military into his city by following around the National Guard playing “The Imperial March” on his phone.

Sergeant Beck here got a little fed up with it, broke ranks, and confronted the deejay protester with a threat to call the Metro PD. 

Can you see the guy over Beck’s shoulder biting his lower lip as if to suppress a guffaw? He’s thinking “Don’t do it, Beck, just keep walking.” But the Sergeant has had it and the video ends with him whipping out his cell phone to call the police. 

I figure the call went something like this… 

Hello? Yes. This is Sergeant Beck with the National Guard. I need you to send an officer down to—[aside] Where are we?

[First National Guardsman says] Kingman Park.

Kingman Park, to arrest a civilian.

What’s he doing? He’s walking around following us, playing music, that’s what he’s doing! 

Um, I don’t know. Classical, I guess. [Asking the three other National Guardsman.] That’s considered classical, huh?

[First National Guardsman says] It’s the soundtrack, from Star Wars.

[Second National Guardsman says] John Williams won an Oscar for that. Since then he’s conducted the Philharmonic. 

[Third National Guardsman says] Definitely classical. 

Okay, shut up you guys. [Into the phone] It’s classical music. [Pause.] No, it’s recorded. It’s just one guy. You think we’d have an entire symphony orchestra following us around?! [Rolls his eyes.]

What do you think? We DID tell him to stop, and he kept on playing it! 

Because I’m not here to arrest people. That’s YOU’RE job! [Stomping his boot.] I want you to send someone over right now!

What? No, we don’t do police work.

Because we’re not trained for policing! We’re here to ensure the safety of the citizens of Washington, DC!

I don’t know! [To protester.] Hey, fellah, are you a citizen of Washington, DC? [Protester nods.] Yeah, he’s a citizen. 

But we’re not threatening his safety!! 

But it’s Darth Vader music! 

But…But…okay.

[Whining.] I said okay, jeez.

[To protester.] You’re free to go. [Protester starts up the same music.] 

Can you at least play some Taylor Swift, or something? 

[Other National Guardsmen snicker as he resumes the head of the formation.] 

What, she has a good voice!

TTFN

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Evidence of Tabitha’s Kittens

We haven’t tried to trap Tabitha yet, we’re still regaining her trust. She’s at our back door every morning meowing for the canned food (with the medication). 

The other day Tabitha lay on the back deck with her belly facing towards us. I saw two teats that were definitely enlarged, so we’re confident that she’s still nursing at least two from her recent litter.

If you want to see the kittens we’re currently feeding, I posted a short video of them playing on the back deck. You can find it on Instagram (@ericmargerum), Bluesky (@margerumeric.bsky.social), or Substack (@margerumeric.substack.com).

Next week we’ll try to capture Tabitha again.

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Book Signing

I’ll be at Main Street Books, my favorite indie bookstore, on October 25 from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. I’ll be signing books, giving away mazes and bookmarks, and can sell you a MAMLA coffee mug. Smiles are free.

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My middle grade novel, The Most Amazing Museum of Los Angeles is available through The BookBaby Bookshop at https://store.bookbaby.com/book/the-most-amazing-museum-of-los-angeles

Margerumalia – You Have The Lindbergh Baby!

Eric Margerum

Newsletter – March 21, 2025

Do you know the famous story of the Lindbergh Baby who was kidnapped out of his crib in 1932, with a ransom note left where the child had been sleeping? It was called “The Crime of The Century” and, in an era before social media or even television, everyone and their neighbor was on the lookout for the Lindbergh Baby.

The whole world was horrified by the thought that this cute curly-haired innocent had been grabbed by someone nefarious, someone who would bring harm to the little son of an American Hero. Ever since Lindbergh flew his single-engine, single-seat plane, The Spirit of St. Louis, across the Atlantic from New York to Paris, he had earned his way into the hearts of the American Public and the world.

Here is a picture of my mother, Sonya, who was born in 1930 when Charles Lindbergh, jr. was born. 

You see the resemblance, don’t you?

My Mom’s father was a lawyer working for the government in Washington, D.C. and the family was living nearby in Maryland. 

People literally stopped my young grandmother in the store or on the street to gasp, “You have the Lindbergh Baby!” The two babies were the same age, after all, and they both had a generous mop of white curly hair. Everyone was on the lookout for the child, picturing themselves as the hero who would would bring him home.

She wasn’t the Lindbergh Baby, of course, and people were disabused of that idea when they learned that she was a little girl. She sure matched the description, though. 

Unfortunately the story had a tragic ending when a truck driver found the little boy’s body by the side of the road. An immigrant was accused of the crime and was found guilty in “The Trial of the Century.” He insisted that he was innocent of the crime but all appeals failed and he was executed in 1936. 

Agatha Christie was moved to write a murder mystery inspired by the kidnapping of the Lindbergh Baby, without actually naming the famous aviator. It was called Murder on the Orient Express and I won’t give any spoilers but the story provides some poetic justice to the story of the kidnapping. 

In that story, the kidnapped baby is a girl, and her mother is named Sonia. 

It’s one of Christie’s most famous novels, and her readers knew all about that kidnapping. Now you do, too, so you can read or re-read the book with new appreciation. 

TTFN 

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I found the WANTED poster and additional facts about the Kidnapping of the Lindbergh Baby on Wikipedia at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lindbergh_kidnapping. The article also discusses the many theories about the guilt or innocence of the accused kidnapper.

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