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I Met This Guy At Dinner Monday. Thursday He Killed 3 People. WTF?

This is a true story, based on actual events in Manatee County Florida.

Imagine you are at a dinner party. You are at your friends house but you only know a few of the more than thirty people that fill the room. Look to your right, now to your left. Three days from now, one of these faces is going to kill three people. Who will it be? Could it be you? Could it be me?

It’s like a scene out of a movie, something you’d never expect to experience in real life. You never image you’ll get a call telling you to turn on the news because one of the guys you were at dinner with a few nights before is accused of going on a murderous rampage.

It is not something you think about while sitting at dinner with friends and great food enjoying the camaraderie of a family birthday celebration. But this particular party would quickly be overshadowed by the actions of one young man.

He wasn’t a murderer at the time, but a few days later Andres Avalos Jr. would murder his wife, a neighbor, and the pastor of a local church they attended.

He left his 6 children without a mother, 2 more wthout a father, a church without their pastor, friends without friends and family without family. And after confessing, he will probably spend the rest of his life behind bars.

Andres-Avalos-Jr-with tattoo

Image credit – Bradenton Herald – https://www.bradenton.com/2014/12/07/5517903_andres-avalos-jr-has-first-appearance.html?rh=1

At one point, he was trying to convince me that Mexican hip hop was better than American hip hop, but that argument was settled quickly as the crowd decided that the music coming from another friends phone was more worthy of being plugged into the small set of speakers that were sitting on the countertop in front of him.

He had a tattoo on his neck, coming up from underneath his shirt, something that looked like a cross with a name on it, but hey, lots of people have tattoos.

I never got a warm and fuzzy feeling while talking to Andres but I didn’t get a bad vibe from him either. He was just another guy in the room.

I could tell he was street savvy because of the way he talked and carried himself but I have a varied past myself so I try not to judge anyone based on first appearance.

Most of the nights conversations were centered around the home made Thai food that was being prepared in the kitchen and outside on the grill. It was delicious and there seemed to be so much love in the room.

I guess that’s what makes this all so hard to take in, what makes it all so difficult to comprehend. How can the same guy, who sat there talking to me about lettuce wraps and bad beer, be the same guy who just ripped the lives of three families to shreds?

I don’t know the guy other than the few hours we spent hanging out that night so I am not going to assume to know what was going through his head, but if you ask me it was not murder. Not that night, not in that moment.

So what causes a person to snap like that? What causes someone to gun down three people in cold blood? Could anyone else in that room have snapped like he did or was it his destiny to be a murderer? Was there something in the stars that said it was his time to go, or was this simply the hand of someone’s god?

Does that mean that I am capable of murder? Does this mean that we are all one missed step away from fatally falling apart?

How is it that we can seem so normal on the surface but be falling apart inside? Why are humans so good at hiding their pain? How come we wait until it’s too late before we let someone know that we are about to blow?

There have been no reports on a motive, but what motive can there be for a crime so heinous other than self hate? And if you have so much hate that you are willing to kill, then why not kill yourself instead? Why not end your own pain as opposed to spreading it like a plague by killing those you love?

I’m not one to advocate for suicide, but if it means saving the lives of innocent people, at the expense of assholes who can’t express anger, other than through the barrel of a gun, then I say go ahead and blow your fucking brains out.

Because no one’s life should ever be cut short by the actions of another man. That’s the one gift that no one should ever want to give. We have no ability to create life and should therefore think twice about taking it. Shit, you should think three, four, five or even more times about doing something so stupid. And once you think you’ve thought it through, then write about it and think about it some more. Tell a friend about it. Do something to get it out in the open and please, give someone a chance to stop you before it’s too late.

You might just learn to understand and love the dark parts of your soul. And you might just save someone’s life in the process. Maybe even your own!

 

 

Breaking News: Proposals For Sarasota Quay Property Leaked To Public

An inside source has leaked internal documents from the city that reveals alternative proposals for the Sarasota Quay property in downtown Sarasota.

This article was originally published on Sarasota Day

After reviewing the documents…

we can only assume the six proposals are being seriously considered by the City Commission as viable options. And although the staff at sarasotaday.com remain uncertain as to the identity of the whistleblower, our source revealed that each proposal could have links with local organizations

Until these leaked documents were presented to SarasotaDay.com, the only other legitimate proposal announced to the public to date had been by GreenPointe Holdings LLC of Jacksonville whose intention is to build numerous high-rise buildings on the property.

Trust us, we will be covering this potentially ground-breaking story as it unfolds at #CityLeaks.

Proposal #1: “Unconditional Surrender”

Due to the constant debate over the location of “Unconditional Surrender”, it appears a local organization is proposing to have the sculpture moved permanently to the Quay Property. This, of course, would allow more space for tourists and visitors alike to admire the statuesque conversation piece.

Proposal #2: Super Walmart

Due to last year’s denial of Walmart’s desire to build a store on Ringling Boulevard, it appears the Arkansas-based retailer has rethought their original proposal and now intends to submit plans to build a new Super-center atop the Quay Property.

We reached out to Walmart for confirmation of the proposal, but a company spokesperson declined to comment. However, an anonymous source with knowledge of the negotiations did make contact stating Walmart believes the Quay Property would be “ideal for great savings and rollback prices.”

Proposal #3: Parking Garage.

The parking garage proposal seemed to be the most ambitious and potentially best use for the property. According to experts, revenue from parking and parking meters could shunt millions of dollars into the City’s coffers.

Proposal #4: Rowing Facility.

This proposal appeared to mirror the current rowing facility in Lakewood Ranch. We can only assume the City Commission is seriously considering digging a large hole and filling it with water as a way to ensure Sarasota can compete for business and tourism with East County.

Proposal #5: Piano Park.

The recent proposals being reviewed by the City of Sarasota to place pianos downtown to encourage more vibrant activity have apparently spread to the Quay Property. It’s unclear how many pianos will fit on the property, but after talking with a City Development consultant, he predicted that upwards of 3,000 pianos could be comfortably accommodated resulting in a mellifluous by-product of tourism.

Proposal #6: Tube Dude Memorial.

This final proposal came as no surprise to the staff at Sarasotaday.com 

Let’s face the fact: everyone loves Tube Dude. It has proven to be one of the City’s main drivers of tourism. The proposal shows a larger rendition of Tube Dude which will allegedly scale over 500 feet in height. This would be the largest Tube Dude known to man, and experts predict it will be visible from Longboat Key.

As this story continues to develop, SarasotaDay.com will make sure to keep you abreast of events behind the closed doors at City Hall.

#CityLeaks.

What do you think about these plans for the city? Let me know in the comments below. 

Events

Hot Topic Lunch – Meet the Candidates

Manatee Tiger Bay is hosting all qualified candidates in contested County Commission and School Board races with an August primary.

Following introductions, candidates will be put on the spot with a rapid fire question and answer session.

Cost to attend is $20 for members of MYP, $25 for all other guests.

RSVP Online or call Kimberly, 941-748-4842 ext 139 to sign up, be sure to have payment ready.