to curse the darkness
The most direct walking route from work home leads me through some quiet (amazingly so for their proximity both to Arlington Boulevard and Columbia Pike), pleasant neighborhoods. The problem is that these neighborhoods, for whatever reason, have almost no street lamps. On a rainy evening like tonight, due to the combination of the return to standard time, the steadily diminishing days and the aforementioned lack of adequate lighting, is that one can't see where the sidewalk drainage is insufficient.
And hell must hold a very special place for the drivers along the major lighted routes which I cross and follow for parts of the walk; one driver tonight actually changed lanes in order to hit the standing water along the sidewalk near me, sending up a torrent I had to fend off with a deft sweep of my umbrella, and immediately changed back after passing me.
So I'm here at home, clammy and wet, with a very good pair of shoes and the bottom foot of a favorite pair of pants soaked through and muddy, wishing for my Prius to arrive soon, very soon please.
makes one reconsider certain public handgun laws, eh? But doesn't the drenching experience only exemplify the fireside comfort to come later? No? alright, I'll go away then...
How horrible. I intentionally slow down, often angering drivers behind me, when I see a puddle in the road with people near by, and having no way to avoid it.
Vernon: I always try to slow down and/or avoid puddles as well. Today coming to the office after lunch I experienced another one of my pet peeves: I was on a main thoroughfare, and a driver suddenly turned in front of me from a side street, cutting me off, and then immediately slowed down in order to turn at the very next intersection.
Paul: Ah, I wish I had a fireplace; when I was house-hunting, that was on my wishlist, and it's really the only significant wish I didn't get at the time.
Earlier this week, while sitting at the dining room table, Jeff looked over at one of my living room walls and commented that a fireplace would look nice there. I told him that I've often thought about getting one of those ventless, alcohol-gel fueled models (unfortunately, I live in a condo, and can't get a gas fireplace here); in the past few days I've started looking at them again.