Grand Junction Protested The Stay-at-Home Order Saturday

It was a nice, calm Saturday morning this past weekend. The doves were cooing, the neighborhood dogs were barking, and things seemed to be normal. However, things were not normal.

As I turned from 29 Road onto North Avenue I immediately noticed some things; some really cool, and some quite puzzling. There were a lot of cool cars out - almost as if a car show had broken out on North with old hot rods, muscle cars and show cars. In addition to the cool cars, there were regular cars with American flags attached to them, cruising North as if we were in a movie.

As if this wasn't strange enough, both the cool cars and the regular Joe cars were honking, which I quite enjoyed, but I still had no idea what was happening. It was then that I passed the Big Lots parking lot where I saw these cars congregating along with local police that I began to figure out what was happening.

Across the state, residents were holding protests this past weekend to encourage a lift of the 'Stay-at-Home' order implemented because of the Coronavirus pandemic, and that is precisely what I drove through on North Avenue that day.

There are obviously two sides to this argument; and because our great country was founded on freedom of speech, both sides are allowed to voice their opinions.

I'll be honest, I can't wait to be able to attend concerts, sit at a bar with strangers, and grab a nice breakfast from Randy's or Village Inn again. I also understand that a lot of people, many of my friends included, are out of work because of the pandemic and don't know when they'll receive their next paycheck.

However, I also have friends and family members with issues that compromise their immune systems, and constantly worry about what would happen if they contracted the virus. We're doing pretty well in Mesa County as far as not spreading the virus, and it's my hope that we continue to do so.

More than anything I just hope that we can continue to be as safe and prosperous as possible, and when this is all over, perhaps I'll see you at a bar and can buy you a drink.