Detroit

Wang FTW

Crime

Dan, Kevin, and I saw a girl get mugged the other night.

Correction: we saw three guys running away with a purse, and ran towards the sounds of screaming until we found the girl who had just been mugged, crying and screaming while curled up in a little ball on the sidewalk, maybe 100 feet away from us. Apparently the muggers had a gun.

Chicago, you suck sometimes.

A Somber Note

I didn’t really know Matt Edmonds, but a lot of my friends did. When I found out that he was struck and killed by a drunk driver while riding his bicycle in Tulsa, Oklahoma, my heart naturally sank- in addition to feeling some sort of distant connection to this fellow Arkansas native, and feeling sadness for his family and friends, It feels awful to think that no matter how safe you are on your bicycle, no matter how many laws you obey and no matter how many times you turn the other cheeck towards motorists who treat you poorly, you can just never prepare for those ignorant and selfish assholes who make the decision to get behind the wheel of a car while drinking.

It’s also a terrible thing that most people aren’t aware of the laws that are in place to protect both cyclists and motorists who are sharing the same space, making comments such as “i think bicycles should be restricted to walking/bike trails… in fact most drivers are irritated with the bicyles on the road… this never would have happened like this if it were against the law to ride a bike on a highway” (taken from the comments section of a news story about the accident). Well, this sort of makes me naseous to think that this commenter is basically blaming the cyclist for the accident, for something that he and his friends had no control over and no way of preparing for.

While it may not be possible to prepare for something as awful as the actions of a drunk driver, I’m also concerned about the actions of people who aren’t inebriated- the actions of motorists every day who engage in conflict with cyclists over their supposed right to the road.

Motorists, I am sorry that our being on the road perhaps requires you to pay a bit more attention to what you are doing. I’m sorry that our being at a four-way stop creates an extra four to five seconds of waiting time while we pedal through the intersection. I’m sorry that you feel put-upon by the fact that while you are operating a 1,000+ lb. machine, we are on 20 lb. bicycles that dare to share the road with you- despite the fact that we’re confined to a lane less that five feet across that you shouldn’t be driving in anyway.

When you make the choice to operate a vehicle- whether it be car or bicycle, you are making a commitment to operate that vehice as safely as you can. You’re making a commitment to follow the rules and guidelines that are in place to keep us all as safe as possible- and if you aren’t willing to commit to that because you’re just in too much of a hurry to think about the safety of yourself and of other people, then you probably shouldn’t be on the road. And if, at the most basic level of common sense and decency, you aren’t willing to commit to at least being of sound and sober mind while operating a vehicle that is capable of injuring or killing another human being, then you yourself probably weren’t ever human to begin with- and I sort of think that you shouldn’t be allowed to live either.

Bowie Sang It Best

As of July 1st, 2009, Dan and I will be residents of Logan Square. Just up the street from our new apartment is a Tastee Freeze, which I ate at yesterday just after signing the papers. It was pretty much the best cheeseburger I have ever tasted, though I don’t know if it has anything to do with the establishment so much as it does the feeling of my accomplishment for the day.

As of July 17th, 2009, Dan and I will be married. Of course I spend some time fretting about whether we’re doing the right thing or not, but that mostly feels like fretting because it seems like the thing to do, rather than actual fretting. I’m happy to report that I feel fine and great about everything, and I’m pretty sure that he does too.