Where to begin...
Well, it's been an interesting couple of days to be sure.
Really, I'm not sure what to blog about first. The woman I nearly killed? The one who hates me? My experience with road rage?
Let's start with the middle one first.
Single Gal seeks Oompa Loompa
There's a woman in my new acting class, whom I've met a couple of times before. I think we were also in a class together a year ago or so. She's one of these people that feel the need to comment on my weight. "Tall and skinny... wow, I hate you!" she likes to say.
This sort of comment doesn't usually bother me. It's all genetics for me, not any conscious effort on my part. Plus I've been hearing it since I was about 12, so I've built up a tolerance.
Except, there's something about this woman that just sets my teeth on edge. Not sure what it is really, but her mere presence in a room bothers me. There's no reason for it. She's never done anything to me to merit ire. Maybe it's her voice, or the way she shuffles her feet, or the way that she feels every exercise we do in class calls for hysterics. The way she sniffs dismissively when certain people in class get up to perform.
I'd very much like to tell her off. But, it's a small community, so I'm left in the uncomfortable position of biting my tongue. But the next time she tells me she hates me because I'm tall and thin, I'll let her know it's her prerogative to love short squat men.
Road Rage
Driving in this city takes a great deal more concentration than driving back east. I do prefer it for the most part, but I can certainly see how road rage happens. There's something about putting someone behind the wheel of a car that turns them into an idiot. Not that most of us have far to go.
In T.O. everyone is in a rush to get every where. I'm sure it's the same in most large cities. This often means that you'll have three or four cars turning left through a yellow light. Which means the last car will inevitably be going through a red. This slows up the cars which now have a green. This creates impatience, meaning that now 3-4 four cars will run a red/yellow in the opposite direction in order to turn left.
I guess I find it surprising that there aren't more advanced green signals in T.O. particularly at major intersections. If 3-4 cars can only turn left if they go on the yellow/red, then isn't there an issue. Now I'm not a traffic engineer, but it seems silly. Of course, I came from a city where almost every stop light was traffic actuated.
The worst is pedestrians though, which brings me to my final story...
Pedestrian vs. Car: Best 2 out of 3?
Saturday afternoon I was driving to pick up Gal from work. The roads are a little slick from the recently unleashed torrents of rain, so I'm taking my time.
I approach an intersection, looking at the opposite crossing light to determine if the light is going to turn yellow before I get there. It's still the walk sign, so I figure I'm good. I'm about to apply a little more pressure to the accelerator when I notice a well dressed woman standing on the curb, staring directly ahead of her. Be it precognition, or a finely developed sense of other's idiocy, I unconsciously switch my foot to the brake pedal.
Without looking around at all, living in her own little world, she steps off the curb and right in front of me. I tap the brakes to bleed some speed before applying them completely. I manage to stop about a foot from her. The Acura behind me gives me the gentlest of taps to my rear bumper.
The woman is standing in front of my car, gaping like a fish. I slam my car in park and pop out the door.
"Jesus Christ lady! What the hell?"
No response.
"Fuckit, the next time you step out in front of my car, I'm gonna fucking hit you. Pay attention for chrissake!"
Still no response, but she turns and walks back the way she came. The other people who were standing on the curb are looking at her like she's crazy and/or stupid. They also look a little surprised at my outburst.
Acura and I check out our respective cars; no sign of damage, so I hop back in the car and off I go.
Nothing is worse than anger born out of fear. I mean, if you're looking to off yourself by stepping in front of a car, use your head. A Saturn doing 40 klicks is not going to do the job. If you have trouble understanding the crossing lights, then wait for someone else to go first.
Jeebus, my heart hasn't raced like that in a long time.
Really, I'm not sure what to blog about first. The woman I nearly killed? The one who hates me? My experience with road rage?
Let's start with the middle one first.
Single Gal seeks Oompa Loompa
There's a woman in my new acting class, whom I've met a couple of times before. I think we were also in a class together a year ago or so. She's one of these people that feel the need to comment on my weight. "Tall and skinny... wow, I hate you!" she likes to say.
This sort of comment doesn't usually bother me. It's all genetics for me, not any conscious effort on my part. Plus I've been hearing it since I was about 12, so I've built up a tolerance.
Except, there's something about this woman that just sets my teeth on edge. Not sure what it is really, but her mere presence in a room bothers me. There's no reason for it. She's never done anything to me to merit ire. Maybe it's her voice, or the way she shuffles her feet, or the way that she feels every exercise we do in class calls for hysterics. The way she sniffs dismissively when certain people in class get up to perform.
I'd very much like to tell her off. But, it's a small community, so I'm left in the uncomfortable position of biting my tongue. But the next time she tells me she hates me because I'm tall and thin, I'll let her know it's her prerogative to love short squat men.
Road Rage
Driving in this city takes a great deal more concentration than driving back east. I do prefer it for the most part, but I can certainly see how road rage happens. There's something about putting someone behind the wheel of a car that turns them into an idiot. Not that most of us have far to go.
In T.O. everyone is in a rush to get every where. I'm sure it's the same in most large cities. This often means that you'll have three or four cars turning left through a yellow light. Which means the last car will inevitably be going through a red. This slows up the cars which now have a green. This creates impatience, meaning that now 3-4 four cars will run a red/yellow in the opposite direction in order to turn left.
I guess I find it surprising that there aren't more advanced green signals in T.O. particularly at major intersections. If 3-4 cars can only turn left if they go on the yellow/red, then isn't there an issue. Now I'm not a traffic engineer, but it seems silly. Of course, I came from a city where almost every stop light was traffic actuated.
The worst is pedestrians though, which brings me to my final story...
Pedestrian vs. Car: Best 2 out of 3?
Saturday afternoon I was driving to pick up Gal from work. The roads are a little slick from the recently unleashed torrents of rain, so I'm taking my time.
I approach an intersection, looking at the opposite crossing light to determine if the light is going to turn yellow before I get there. It's still the walk sign, so I figure I'm good. I'm about to apply a little more pressure to the accelerator when I notice a well dressed woman standing on the curb, staring directly ahead of her. Be it precognition, or a finely developed sense of other's idiocy, I unconsciously switch my foot to the brake pedal.
Without looking around at all, living in her own little world, she steps off the curb and right in front of me. I tap the brakes to bleed some speed before applying them completely. I manage to stop about a foot from her. The Acura behind me gives me the gentlest of taps to my rear bumper.
The woman is standing in front of my car, gaping like a fish. I slam my car in park and pop out the door.
"Jesus Christ lady! What the hell?"
No response.
"Fuckit, the next time you step out in front of my car, I'm gonna fucking hit you. Pay attention for chrissake!"
Still no response, but she turns and walks back the way she came. The other people who were standing on the curb are looking at her like she's crazy and/or stupid. They also look a little surprised at my outburst.
Acura and I check out our respective cars; no sign of damage, so I hop back in the car and off I go.
Nothing is worse than anger born out of fear. I mean, if you're looking to off yourself by stepping in front of a car, use your head. A Saturn doing 40 klicks is not going to do the job. If you have trouble understanding the crossing lights, then wait for someone else to go first.
Jeebus, my heart hasn't raced like that in a long time.
posted by Surly Canuck at 12:47 p.m.
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