Lesson Learned: Safe Merging

I was pulled over today for unsafe merging. I wanted to get off the freeway, so I looked for a place to move into the right hand lane and signaled. There was not enough space as everyone in that lane was practically on top of each other - tailgating - so when the sheriff seemed to be the only car providing enough space, I merged. Lights flash, what the hay?!? I got off with a warning that there was not enough space to merge.

There is a quite a bit of irony in this event. I rant and rave over the idiocy of people merging in this area. I was taught that when you merge into oncoming traffic, you accelerate. I was apparently taught incorrectly. On a somewhat daily basis one of two things happens: (1) A car in front of me on the on-ramp putters into oncoming traffic reaching a maximum speed of about 50mph, or before reaching max speed is seized by the fear of rushing traffic from behind pulls into the shoulder and brakes - what the holy Hannah?!? (2) Cars merge into the fast lane on the highway and fail to accelerate or better yet, BRAKE!

I merged into a space of about 2+ cars, having previously signaled for almost a quarter mile to indicate my need to do so, and maintained my speed at a reasonable pace so as not to interrupt the flow of traffic. And I get pulled over. Ah, the irony. Wish that numnut sheriff was following me when people merged in front of me because most of them scare the living poo out of me!

To put my karma back in the balance and also to repay an overdue debt to the powers that be, I did a good deed. After my run in the forest, a woman at the parking area asked if I might give her a ride because she somehow dropped her car key on her walk. Since this has also happened to me, yet during a race when I fell, I knew my time to restore the balance had come. I had the good fortune of someone recovering my key by sheer luck and coincidence, so even if the gods were not looking out for her today, at least I felt good that I could.

On another note, I am currently listening to the State of the Union address and trying to decide if I can stomach anymore of it or if I should just turn it off. It is truly annoying the way they stand and clap after every point. Why have we reached a point when mediocrity is met with resounding applause? Crikey.

To the makers of that idiotic American Idol show...

I like to watch House on Fox. It is one of two televisions shows I enjoy, the other being Battlestar. However, I do not have cable. I do not watch enough TV for it to matter. I turned on to watch House on Tuesday and, what's that, oh it was a two-hour Idol show. It has sunk to new lows. It actually carries on for two hours, less commercials of course, to follow and showcase person after person after person after bloody FREAK that sounds like a talentless version of, oh, someone talentless. I do not honestly believe that anyone enjoys the "journey" anymore to the next American idol. It was horrifying. The people were horrifying, even I know that and I'm, well, talentless. But at least I'm not horrifying. Ah, yes, but lest I forget people do not care how they get their 15-minutes of fame. I personally do, I have several thoughts one of which is to...oh, you thought I would tell you my deepest secrets and fantasies. Nope.

It is certainly not possible for the judges to watch every single person. They are probably screened prior to seeing the not-so-fab three and, of course, to make it juicy they let the FREAKS slip through for the entertainment value, right? Because then, talentless bloggers and those of us who find ourselves "above all this nonsense" can sit around and bash it. Honestly, it has been some ungodly number of seasons and I just do not think any part of this nation should have to stomach it. So, please, put back the programming that is on when Idol is not because there are enough talentless dopes in Hollywood to entertain me, I do not need a whole slew of singing ones, and fugly to boot. For the love of Hannah, deliver us from this evil!

Oh, and a little piece of geography people, America is the continent, actually there are two -North and South. Canadians and Mexicans are Americans too, technically. So, I think perhaps Idol needs to travel North or South, lord knows South has some better looking people and North probably has more talent - what else is there to do with all that snow but sing around the hearth fire?

Just a little rant on some weirdly "popular" US culture. Alas, there is so much to love, too. I decided I needed to think of 5; so 5 reasons to love our culture:

(1) Bluegrass and jazz (okay yeah its infused with that other stuff, but its still local);
(2) Ethnic food (or technically choice, Chinese food everyday was tough on me);
(3) Sports (yeah, they are overpaid, but who doesn't love a great game of US football or basketball, I will skip the baseball, however);
(4) uuuhhhhh...this is getting harder...books...the classic "American" novel, who doesn't love Mark Twain and Harper Lee, lots of good books out there...ookkayy, so;
(5) Crap. I can not be this jaded and hateful of our great nation...Do national parks count? Help me out here, I must be forgetting something...laissez-faire?

Mom teaches a cultural geography class and has some list called the seven elements of culture. Maybe we should ask her.

Women v. Men: In sickness

I noticed a trend a while back and I have slowly been confirming my suspicions. I am reading the second of the Sweet Potato Queens - amusing, but she's correct in her self assessment as not being a "real" author. Its a sort of blog in book form. I chuckle here and there, but when I got to the part about men v. women when they are sick, I just about died with laughter. BT and I were talking the other day about this and how we just couldn't understand why men were such freakin' babies when they get sick. (Granted, my father has NEVER complained when he was sick and both parents pretty much sent you to school unless you couldn't walk...) However, men I date (and in her case marry) are insoportable when it comes to a little sickness. To quote Conner-Browne "...and everyone can go up in a puff of smoke for all I care-just deeeliver me from a man with a fever." Amen. And so true. When I get sick, I want the whole world to just leave me alone. Slide some buttered bread and water and a box of tissues under the door, but whatever you do, DO NOT COME IN HERE! For most of my adolescence and adult life, I get these annoying hanger-on colds (which I am finding are allergies or sinuses) that last for weeks. The few times I get really knocked out - pneumonia or the flu - I want nothing and no one near me. And just the thought of someone catering to my nasty, sticky, mange of a self, with breathe that would skin a cat, was down-right horrifying. But with men, its like they are helpless. They become whiny and downright unbearable. My new solution for this problem: "Darling, I left you a pitcher of juice/water, and some sandwiches in the fridge, going to the spa, keep hydrated and warm and sleep, back tonight, kiss-kiss, TA-TA!" There will be none of that.

(What?!? That's how they know you love them, you say?!? They want to be cared for like mommy, you say?!? What in the world do you know?!? I didn't sign up to be a grown man's mommy, get over it!)

What can I say, I am just not the nurturing kind.

Cell Phone Annoyance

I was the last person on Earth to get a cell phone. Okay, maybe not, but I delayed a great deal of time before I decided that I would get a cell phone and wireless instead of bothering with that archaic land-line/DSL business. GASP! So my two year cell plan is soon to be up and, of course, I get the "You get a phone upgrade of up to $100." Ooo. There is just so much to choose from - v-cast, videos, camera phones.

But, I like my phone. Its durable, so when I drop it it doesn't break. Its practical, about three features to speak of. And its kind of like my car, its my first one. (Yeah, I was late on those firsts...you don't need a car in the Bay Area or Mexico.) But darn it if it didn't start having battery problems this past week. Okay, convenient, my two year contract up and my battery is suddenly not holding up as before. ANNOYING. Surely it seems that they are forcing me into a new flashy phone, but I don't want one. Considering that I leave it on and before the charge was still full by the end of the day, and NOW its less than half. Cheeky. And of course, there is no new battery for my phone. Its all a conspiracy if you ask me. I am somewhat tempted to switch companies. Why not? I'm the kind of person who likes to buy things and keep them for years. Why shouldn't my phone last four or five years? Is this common? Do problems typically occur right when they want you to upgrade? Why do I need to upgrade? My phone works fine.

Decadence

I spent a few days before having to go back to work at a spa on the coast of California. If you have ever driven the coast between Santa Barbara and the northern state border, you know how stunning it it. It was that and I had perfect weather. When I arrived Monday afternoon, I took a walk down to the beach, then lazed about until dinnertime. And after dinner, lazed around some more. Slothful.

Tuesday, I had a massage that was long since overdue. Then, to completely counteract the efforts of the masseuse, I rode my bike. Much further than I had planned. Despite running (although I haven't kept up with it these past weeks due to my getting sick) I am in no shape for biking. I used to bike across the Golden Gate and down into Marin and think nothing of it, but that was another time. I haven't ridden more than 8 miles on a bike in two or three years. Its easy to forget how horribly painful being in the saddle for two and a half hours can be. I remember being used to it and could ride half the day, now its just utterly uncomfortable. Another thing I learned on my ride is that you have to be a complete moron to think riding along Hwy 1 is a fun experience. Its completely terrifying and not at all enjoyable. I was smart to have taken the back roads on the way there, but thought the Hwy ride would be shorter on the way back. No thanks. If you want to pretend that riding Hwy 1 is thrilling and feel hard-core about it, hats off to you. But you're a blimey idiot. Despite all that, I immensely enjoyed my ride through the valley and loved being out in nature with all the creature comforts.

There was something quite decadent about being there in the middle of the week with very few other visitors. The hot tub was empty, I had two massages, the second of which was divine. I had two great dinners. My dearest friend came and joined me for the second night and we enjoyed good food, breathtaking scenery, the hot tub and good conversation.

I feel plenty relaxed and ready to begin working. Now, if I just didn't have to go back to my job. Alas. (oh, and happy birthday to me!)

Serves me right

For having gloated that I am on vacation, I spent the majority of it sick. Not as sick as some, however, so I should feel fortunate. I actually slept through New Year's eve with an ear infection. I thought I was more clever than the infection. I was so diligent. Sudafed 12-hour in the morning, saline rinse at night and lots of liquids and lonzenges. Everything seemed to be in my favor. Unfortunately, emotional turmoil tends to exhaust the body and make it susceptible to infection. Add in a night of no sleep and you can pretty much forget staying healthy. The ear ache was so painful, I finally had to get antibiotics. I really don't like taking antibiotics. Also while the ear ache has cleared, signs of sinus flare up have surfaced and I am beginning to wonder if climbing chalk is making it worse. Chalk has a tendency to get into passages and trap icky bacteria, so my guess is, yes. When I lived in Mexico, the classrooms had chalkboards. I had several bouts of bronchial pnuemonia because the chalk dust. Perhaps steering clear of the climbing gym while recovering is a good idea.

I have managed my goal of saving money this break, considering the only thingsI have done have been to sleep and read a lot. It is sort of normal. When the body is given time to rest and recover, it pretty much wants to do just that. I am of the opinion that getting sick is a lot of mental stuff telling the body its time to break. Oh, I also realized something over the break. I don't like teaching first grade. In fact, I downright hate it. I thought it was a time thing and you just had to find your stride. No stride here, I truly am not a match for first grade. Plain and simple, its just not a good fit. It was a good thing. I do not have to beat myself up that I am not doing a good job or put in more hours to make it better. No amount of time is going to make it better. Lets just consider it a bad relationship, we just were not meant for each other. And like many of my bad relationships - as it has been pointed out to me - I tend to invest a lot more time into than they do and it really just makes me miserable. Therefore, I guess my goal for 2007 is to make efforts towards ending/mending bad relationships and asserting myself and my own needs. Cheers!