Thursday, June 16, 2011

Talking Heads Day / Casey Anthony Trial

The Casey Anthony Trial has taken over most of daytime TV at the loony bin to the extent that many of the inmates moan and complain when they're pulled away from the TV for individual or group therapy. In group therapy, we use subterfugal tactics; we answer any question with a "Casey Anthony Trial"-related answer. How well our tacticss are received depends upon the skill or sense of humor of the therapist or psychological intern. Some storm off and get Chairman Mao to rebuke us. Others play along and try to get legitimate and pertinent dialogue going related to the topic on which we're insistent upon focusing.

I don't think anyone here thinks Ms. Anthony is guilt-free, although some think it was an accident, but that she's sufficiently without a conscience that she was able to carry on as though it was Mardi Gras on Bourbon Street while her tiny child lay dead in the trunk of her car or elsewhere.
No one seems to believe the "swimming pool drowning" theory, at least not the way it's portrayed, whereby the child's grandfather plucked a drowned child from the home swimming pool, then handed her off to Casey and basically said, "Deal with it." I hadn't really thought about it, but I don't suppose it's beyond possibility that if someone intended to murder the poor little girl, it could have been done by dropping her into the pool, then retrieving her hours later. Everyone here seems to doubt that the baby's grandfather had anything to do with either the child's death or with a cover-up.

Among the inmates -- and there are those among us here who have been sexually molested -- there is considerable skepticism regarding Casey's, or her attorney's, claims that she was ever sexually molested by either her father or her brother. From the mouths of those who have experience with such matters, it doesn't have the ring of truth. I would suppose that not all molestation victims react in the same way, much as not everyone grieves the loss of a loved one in the same way, but it does seem oddly coincidental that this is the time for Casey's alleged molestation to come to light.

I will admit that the trial is getting to me. I woke up a little over two hours ago screaming, "I didn't do it! I didn't do it!" A psychological intern on duty opened my door that I'm allowed to keep closed when I sleep because I'm not suicidal. He asked what was wrong from the doorway. He isn't allowed inside my room without another staff member for both our protection, so he had to talk to me from the doorway. I told him that I had just dreamt that a chapstick belonging to me was found at the crime scene of little Caylee Anthony, and that I was to be arrested for the murder.

"That's what you baboons get for obsessing over that trial," he said to me. I expected a bit more sympathy. I am , after all, suffering from PTSD. He told me to go back to sleep. No Klonopin, no Ativan, no consultations with any MDs. Just, "Go back to sleep." When I announced that I couldn't get back to sleep after about 45 minutes, he handed me a laptop to use. Mine is currently being debugged by the Geek Squad.

The "Talking Heads Day" was actually a compromise. Some people wanted to have a "Casey Anthony Trial Day," where we portrayed people from the trial. That seemed too morbid to me. At some point, I may become desensitized to the morbidity of it all and go along with "Casey Anthony Trial Day," but I'm not yet sufficiently callous for that.

My aunt is picking up a cheap short blonde wig for me so I can portray Nancy Grace. I've been standing in front of the mirror, practicing her mannerisms. I've got the "Goodnight, friends" down pat. If we ever become so desensitized to the horror of it all (a real little girl, almost a baby, was killed by somebody, even if it wasn't by her own mother), I would choose to portray Casey Anthony herself. Morbidity notwithstanding, I could do a great Casey Anthony imitation.

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