Like most of you, I woke up Monday morning to the news of yet another mass shooting, this time in Las Vegas. Fifty dead, hundreds injured. What a way to start a week.

Violence of this type is such a complete departure from what we experience here in Wallowa County. It’s one of the things that many of us appreciate about life in Eastern Oregon.

Yet you can’t help wonder, “could it happen here?” Call me weird, but I think about that on occasion.

Like when I’m shooting an event in a crowded indoor setting. My journalism training is always to know where to find the nearest exit. It’s part of the “expect the unexpected” aspect of life.

A U.S. Army buddy of mine taught me about “situational awareness.” Personal safety has a lot to do with observing –– and responding.

I doubt many of the thousands gathered for the Jason Aldean concert in Vegas were too concerned about a mass shooting, yet it happened.

The choices for all of us fall somewhere between becoming a hermit and never leaving home to complete disregard for personal safety. Like so many things in life, the answer is probably somewhere in the middle.

My wife and I have been to Las Vegas on several occasions. It’s a unique setting where unusual is often considered usual. Like the taxi driver who avoided the clogged main roads by careening through hotel parking lots and back alleys of the city to get us to the Thomas and Mack Center. Or the folks standing on the corners attempting to hand you literature of all varieties.

Vegas is probably no more unsafe than anywhere else of similar size, but the odd nature of activities there don’t escape even the casual visitor.

Our hearts go out to all of the families of the dead and injured. Yet another season of mourning is upon us. It will be a somber week.