This morning I was the recipient of a very weird insult, which was probably the result of somewhat confused road rage.
There are a few streets in Baltimore that one really should not, at any time, try to cross on foot. I, of course, live within a stone’s throw of two of them. I was crossing 25th street this morning (which, as you may have guessed, is one of those streets) when a white Smallmobile (TM) screeched around the corner and nearly turned me into street pizza. Now, in all fairness, we both had the light; so he wasn’t turning illegally, but you ARE supposed to yield to pedestrians. Especially pedestrians who are not morning people, have bad tempers, and know a couple of large humorless men with guns.
So I yelled something along the lines of “Watch it, jerk”, which got the response of “F*cking nigger!”
Well, that’s a new one. I was more bemused than anything else because...well, I’m not. There is an extremely wide variety of insulting words that DO apply to me, but that one isn’t one of them. I mean, hey, if you’re going to say something like that, get it right.
Anyway, the guy’s lucky he didn’t say that a few blocks further east or he’d have gotten some unplanned facial surgery.
The truly sad thing here is not one person’s ignorance (and apparently poor vision), but that most American cities just aren’t meant for pedestrians anymore. Everybody drives everywhere and so nobody expects someone to actually cross the street on foot. People at JHU are shocked and frequently pitying when they learn I walk to work. Come on now, doesn’t it seem more than a bit foolish to drive eight blocks? One of the major benefits of living in a city is the possibility of reaching a lot of amenities, maybe your workplace, on foot or by public transit. It’s also the most widely ignored benefit of city life.
A friend lately suggested that I should rent a giant yellow Humvee for a couple of days just because it would screw with people’s minds. I think I just might do it, if I can remember how to drive (like foreign languages, driving escapes your mind if you don’t do it for a long time). I have a feeling, though, that if I drove that stupid thing I’d liquefy a hapless pedestrian on 25th street.
There are a few streets in Baltimore that one really should not, at any time, try to cross on foot. I, of course, live within a stone’s throw of two of them. I was crossing 25th street this morning (which, as you may have guessed, is one of those streets) when a white Smallmobile (TM) screeched around the corner and nearly turned me into street pizza. Now, in all fairness, we both had the light; so he wasn’t turning illegally, but you ARE supposed to yield to pedestrians. Especially pedestrians who are not morning people, have bad tempers, and know a couple of large humorless men with guns.
So I yelled something along the lines of “Watch it, jerk”, which got the response of “F*cking nigger!”
Well, that’s a new one. I was more bemused than anything else because...well, I’m not. There is an extremely wide variety of insulting words that DO apply to me, but that one isn’t one of them. I mean, hey, if you’re going to say something like that, get it right.
Anyway, the guy’s lucky he didn’t say that a few blocks further east or he’d have gotten some unplanned facial surgery.
The truly sad thing here is not one person’s ignorance (and apparently poor vision), but that most American cities just aren’t meant for pedestrians anymore. Everybody drives everywhere and so nobody expects someone to actually cross the street on foot. People at JHU are shocked and frequently pitying when they learn I walk to work. Come on now, doesn’t it seem more than a bit foolish to drive eight blocks? One of the major benefits of living in a city is the possibility of reaching a lot of amenities, maybe your workplace, on foot or by public transit. It’s also the most widely ignored benefit of city life.
A friend lately suggested that I should rent a giant yellow Humvee for a couple of days just because it would screw with people’s minds. I think I just might do it, if I can remember how to drive (like foreign languages, driving escapes your mind if you don’t do it for a long time). I have a feeling, though, that if I drove that stupid thing I’d liquefy a hapless pedestrian on 25th street.
posted by Daniel | 3:41 PM
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