Hazards

Lots of hazards in our neighborhood today, with workmen in orange jackhammering the sides of major streets and the curbs and driveways over A. a broken watermain, B. immense potholes, or C. burrows of large alien beings. There is a massive hole right behind our driveway, which sits at a fairly busy corner. Backing out has become a life-or-death maneuver and no one can turn into our street until I have moved into the middle of the intersection to play a game of chicken with oncoming traffic. It's all fun and games until someone gets hit by a backhoe.

The orange cones and beeping trucks made me more aware of how hazardous driving can be any time other people are involved. People jaywalk (slowly) across busy streets without troubling their heads about the risks of a sudden halt in traffic. Folks in cars poke their headlights way out into the street to see if it's safe to make a right or a left turn, so intrusive that vehicles innocently cruising along have to make a startled swing out into the middle of the road to avoid them.

If my kids could learn to drive on empty streets I would happily look forward to the day when they got their license. Since they have to share the road with construction vehicles, looky-loos, passive pedestrians and aggressive turners I feel much more reluctant to ever let their hands grip a steering wheel. I'll need to work on my zen attitude a lot over the next four years - either that or move to Antarctica. (Speaking of Antarctica, you must read Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple. Absolutely fantastic book, one that I hated to finish. Mom, you get my copy next!)