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Jaywalking is wrong. I know that but I still do it. In my defense, I make a point of only doing it when I perceive it to be safe and not inconveniencing others. I'm surely not unique in that. Perception is the key here - there are times I've jaywalked when it wasn't safe because I missed that a car was coming. It's pretty rare, since I'm fairly vigilant in this situation.
I've been at risk from cars more often when I legally have the right of way. Times I've been in danger while jaywalking in the last ten years? Less than a handful. Times I've been in danger while crossing a street legally in the last ten years? More than I remember - it happens two or three times every winter. Learning to drive had made me a better pedestrian because I know have a better idea of how many thing drivers have to pay attention to. I have a very Russian faith in street lights now. Trust but verify that the car is going to stop before stepping in front of it, because you can be legally in the right while simultaneously being dead from a high-speed impact.
Today I was in the wrong and car driver was more in the wrong. I crossed an intersection that was still green for traffic going my way, but the "Don't Walk" sign had begun to blink. I quickly assessed the intersection and determined that traffic could only come from one direction and there were no cars in that way. Traffic couldn't come from behind me, because that would require a left-hand turn into my crosswalk, and the sign clearly said "No Left Turns". Naturally, someone turned left.
Now this wouldn't have bothered me except they decided to point at the "Don't Walk" sign to make the point that I was in the wrong. In return I pointed at the "No Left-Turns" sign. They didn't turn to see it and were no doubt concluding that I was pointing at some irrelevant thing. Hopefully they'll notice it tomorrow when they come to the intersection again, but I doubt it. More likely, if they consider the sign at all, they'll think "there shouldn't be a restriction on how I turn".
So I was in the wrong, but I contend that they were more wrong, based on this simple formula:absolute-degree-of-wrongness = individual-wrongness * mass * velocity
Therefore cars are always more wrong then pedestrians, trucks are always more wrong then cars, tanks are always more wrong then trucks. The only exception to this is trains, which can't veer and have trouble stopping. If you get hit by a train, it's not the train's fault.
As if to illustrate this fact, I found a twoonie on the ground five minutes later. Will I be extra lucky today, or was this evidence that I have been lucky today? Certainly I'm $2 richer, so I have that going for me. Perhaps I'll use this windfall to buy a lottery ticket. I'll think of it as a half-way point between my own lottery method and![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bungle_lord's method.
Over the weekend another piece of the mental jigsaw puzzle fell into place. Some friends and I were wandering through CrossIron Mills (aka Mallzac) and we went into the Tommy Bahama store. TB is a store I've always wanted to buy stuff from. I sense that it would look good on me. I almost never venture in there though. Saturday I figured out why - the staff is too efficient.
Every time I go into a TB store, a staff member is on me in seconds. And they are oh so very eager to help me in any way possible to make a purchase. It's unnerving for two reasons: First, it triggers my you're-being-scammed reflex and makes me distrust anything they say. Second, I feel it obligates me to buy something, because they're putting in an effort. I don't like feeling obligated to strangers. I take my obligations seriously, and efforts to trigger that instinct bother me.
The whole thing causes anxiety in what should be a normal transaction. Except they're try to make it more then a normal transaction aren't they? Is it too much to ask that I go into a shop, browse and - unless I have a specific question or request - have the staff keep their distance until I'm ready to make a purchase?
I'd like to buy something from TB, but they keep chasing me out of the store.
I've thought of solutions, but none are satisfactory.
Scenario 1: Completely ignore the staff, even in the face of questions. When forced to respond, say something like "Oh I'm sorry, were you talking to me? I didn't realize since I hadn't actually asked for help."
Pros: The staff will probably avoid you like the plague after this, whether you want them to or not.
Cons: I'd be a passive-aggressive SOB.
Scenario 2: Immediately preempt any attempt at conversation with the statement "Salesman freak me out. If you bother me I will not buy anything". This is more or less what I did Saturday. In my defense it was a completely knee-jerk reaction.
Pros: It's true!
Cons: Still pretty rude. Exposes me as the neurotic I am.
Scenario 3: "I'm just browsing." Follow this up with non-verbal stop-bothering-me cues.
Pros: It's one of those polite social-lubricant phrases we use, so it's well understood.
Cons: You have to put up with the stock responses.
I'm guessing #3 is the one to go with until I come up with something better. People admonishing me to not-be-short-by-being-taller, will be ignored.
In other, completely mundane and unrelated news:
I've been at risk from cars more often when I legally have the right of way. Times I've been in danger while jaywalking in the last ten years? Less than a handful. Times I've been in danger while crossing a street legally in the last ten years? More than I remember - it happens two or three times every winter. Learning to drive had made me a better pedestrian because I know have a better idea of how many thing drivers have to pay attention to. I have a very Russian faith in street lights now. Trust but verify that the car is going to stop before stepping in front of it, because you can be legally in the right while simultaneously being dead from a high-speed impact.
Today I was in the wrong and car driver was more in the wrong. I crossed an intersection that was still green for traffic going my way, but the "Don't Walk" sign had begun to blink. I quickly assessed the intersection and determined that traffic could only come from one direction and there were no cars in that way. Traffic couldn't come from behind me, because that would require a left-hand turn into my crosswalk, and the sign clearly said "No Left Turns". Naturally, someone turned left.
Now this wouldn't have bothered me except they decided to point at the "Don't Walk" sign to make the point that I was in the wrong. In return I pointed at the "No Left-Turns" sign. They didn't turn to see it and were no doubt concluding that I was pointing at some irrelevant thing. Hopefully they'll notice it tomorrow when they come to the intersection again, but I doubt it. More likely, if they consider the sign at all, they'll think "there shouldn't be a restriction on how I turn".
So I was in the wrong, but I contend that they were more wrong, based on this simple formula:
Therefore cars are always more wrong then pedestrians, trucks are always more wrong then cars, tanks are always more wrong then trucks. The only exception to this is trains, which can't veer and have trouble stopping. If you get hit by a train, it's not the train's fault.
As if to illustrate this fact, I found a twoonie on the ground five minutes later. Will I be extra lucky today, or was this evidence that I have been lucky today? Certainly I'm $2 richer, so I have that going for me. Perhaps I'll use this windfall to buy a lottery ticket. I'll think of it as a half-way point between my own lottery method and
bungle_lord's method.Over the weekend another piece of the mental jigsaw puzzle fell into place. Some friends and I were wandering through CrossIron Mills (aka Mallzac) and we went into the Tommy Bahama store. TB is a store I've always wanted to buy stuff from. I sense that it would look good on me. I almost never venture in there though. Saturday I figured out why - the staff is too efficient.
Every time I go into a TB store, a staff member is on me in seconds. And they are oh so very eager to help me in any way possible to make a purchase. It's unnerving for two reasons: First, it triggers my you're-being-scammed reflex and makes me distrust anything they say. Second, I feel it obligates me to buy something, because they're putting in an effort. I don't like feeling obligated to strangers. I take my obligations seriously, and efforts to trigger that instinct bother me.
The whole thing causes anxiety in what should be a normal transaction. Except they're try to make it more then a normal transaction aren't they? Is it too much to ask that I go into a shop, browse and - unless I have a specific question or request - have the staff keep their distance until I'm ready to make a purchase?
I'd like to buy something from TB, but they keep chasing me out of the store.
I've thought of solutions, but none are satisfactory.
Scenario 1: Completely ignore the staff, even in the face of questions. When forced to respond, say something like "Oh I'm sorry, were you talking to me? I didn't realize since I hadn't actually asked for help."
Pros: The staff will probably avoid you like the plague after this, whether you want them to or not.
Cons: I'd be a passive-aggressive SOB.
Scenario 2: Immediately preempt any attempt at conversation with the statement "Salesman freak me out. If you bother me I will not buy anything". This is more or less what I did Saturday. In my defense it was a completely knee-jerk reaction.
Pros: It's true!
Cons: Still pretty rude. Exposes me as the neurotic I am.
Scenario 3: "I'm just browsing." Follow this up with non-verbal stop-bothering-me cues.
Pros: It's one of those polite social-lubricant phrases we use, so it's well understood.
Cons: You have to put up with the stock responses.
I'm guessing #3 is the one to go with until I come up with something better. People admonishing me to not-be-short-by-being-taller, will be ignored.
In other, completely mundane and unrelated news:
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 was a good, if somewhat grim film. The screenwriter and director (who is finally growing on me after pissing me off with the Half-Blood Prince) are embellishing Rowlings work for the better.
- CrossIron Mills has a really nice, if moderately more expensive, movie theater. Given it only takes me ten minutes to drive there, I might go more often.
- Shaganappi Trail now connects to Stoney Trail! Glee!
- Gaming was fun and I should do it some more.
