Here I am, stuck sitting in the middle of the crosswalk again, with time to contemplate these things.
Okay, I’m not actually parked in the middle of a crosswalk right now, but I was when this most recently started the pistons firing inside my brain.
And this is where the rage strikes. It’s somewhat hard to capture how fuming mad I get, and how painful it is to contain all the swearwords with my five-year-old daughter and two-year-old son in the back. There is no outlet. It just festers and boils until I squawk like a deranged chicken.
Why am I stuck here? Because of selfish, greedy abusers.
You see, I wasn’t the first car in line of the left-turn lane. I was second. Car #1 was timidly only an inch past the crosswalk lines of this massive six-lane arterial meeting a four-lane road. Me like the dumbass that I am, inched my way into the middle of the crosswalk expecting reasonable gaps in traffic for two cars to make it on that light. Of course, traffic is packed, and oncoming cars see yellow, gun it, and keep driving through the light right until it turns red. And then another car races through. The car ahead of me finally clues in and skitters through his turn.
Me?
No way am I crossing that intersection when my light is red and cross traffic already has a GREEN!!! It is also my strict policy not to back up in crowded intersections (or almost ever, really), so there I am, looking like a jerk as the pedestrians give me the cut-eye as I obstruct their path. Hey buddy, you want to complain, go chase down the guys that ran the light. Or the yellow. Truly, they may have just entered the intersection on the yellow, a light they could have stopped for, but made no effort, and in fact made effort to avoid being stuck at the red for 30 seconds.
We’re living in a selfish-ocracy these days, where everyone is out to take advantage of rarely enforced offences, and to hell with our beautiful, structured, courteous road etiquette.
Those yellow-light speeders will never read this. They’re likely too busy avoiding paying attention to their family, getting to the grocery store 15 seconds earlier and parking in no parking zones while texting as they speed through school zones.
A recent survey we conducted about Canadians’ driving habits and pet peeves revealed that 56 percent of Canadians disobeyed traffic signs at least occasionally, but only about 10 percent admitted to doing so regularly, and only 8 percent here in Ontario. I call BS. No way is it that low. First of all, traffic signs include stop signs, and no way are that many people coming to a full stop when approaching a quiet intersection. I just do not believe it. I constantly see people crossing solid lines, blowing through light, disobeying speed limits, driving solo in carpool lanes, etc.
Anyhow, I’m not suggesting we all start driving the exact speed limit or stopping for three seconds at every stop sign, but to use caution and courtesy and avoid high-risk behaviours like running red lights, speeding up for yellows, talking or texting while driving and so many others.
