Sometimes I Drive Too Fast

 

Richard M Daley is probably the worst mayor Chicago ever had. He sold off the parking meters for one billion dollars. Actually a seventy five year lease that will return the company that got the lease well over five time that much money. Then Daley sold off the Chicago Skyway, a toll/expressway/bridge that is a shortcut to Indiana. Once again, a bad deal for Chicago because the people who now control it can raise the tolls to whatever the hell they want. Daley also sold off the parking garages under Grant Park downtown. In each of these cases the city would have made many times more money than the purchase price of the leases if they had kept control. What cost a quarter to park on the street now costs two and a half dollars. The toll to Indiana was two dollars. It is now six dollars and sixty cents. I'm not sure how much it costs to park under Grant Park, but I'll bet it isn't cheap. Oh, and Daley spent all that money immediately while he was in office. One more thing, the city is riddled with empty lots. Lots where houses and businesses used to sit, now empty and not returning any real estate tax money. Finding a way to improve those neighborhoods apparently just didn't sit well with the politicians.

I like to drive fast. Not all the time, it is inappropriate sometimes. But on the expressways, especially the Dan Ryan, I like to drive fast. Unfortunately, the City of Chicago realized the they could make a lot of money off of my driving. Before Lori Lightfoot the previous mayor of Chicago left office, she dropped the grace speed on speed trap cameras so she could meet her budget. Ever since, I have been a regular contributor to city funds. This is over and above my property tax, ten and a half percent sales tax, and parking in front of my favorite bars. Hey, this last ticket was because the green light was about to turn red, so I sped up to catch the green. Think about all the fuel I saved and exhaust that wasn't pumped into the air by sitting waiting for the light to turn green again. I'm very eco-friendly. 

Daisy, Daisy

 

When I hear the name, Daisy, I think of the HAL 9000 computer in '2001, A Space Odyssey' singing the song. Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do. But this is not about HAL 9000 or the song. It's about a dog. On Saturday a small dog named Daisy should be coming to stay with me and Scout. Yes, another foster dog. Her present foster mom brought her by last Saturday to see how she'd get along with Scout. They got along just fine.

A lot of people ask me how I can do that, foster dogs without falling in love with them. I can't. I do fall in love with them. I look at it like this, Bucky had a very happy time while he was with me. He became a star in our neighborhood almost immediately, hopping around on those three legs. We walked twice a day until he couldn't walk anymore. Yes I was sad when he passed away from the cancer, but I knew all about that going in. After Bucky there was Cricket. Never a sweeter dog in the world than that little terrier. A real cuddly love bug who went to a very nice couple. Once again, I knew going in that Cricket was already adopted and I was only a short stopover until her new family was ready. She now has the undivided attention of her new human mom and dad.

So now I'm getting Daisy to foster. She's small, about one fourth the size of Scout. She's also a bit older than Scout. Mature is the word. At least she has all four legs and hasn't been already taken for adoption. So if I fail at being a foster father to her by adopting her myself, all will be fine. Because I'm half crazy, just like in the song.

 

Daisy

The Heartbreak of AOGS

 

Angry Old Guy/Gal Syndrome.

The other day I was walking Scout and at the intersection where we cross to take our 'long' walk, a car whizzed through without stopping. There is a large red octagon made out of metal at that corner, and it says 'STOP'. Not, slow down. Not, speed right on through. Not, gently roll through and hope you don't hit somebody. It clearly says 'STOP'. So I did the right thing and screamed "Asshole" at the guy as he disappeared down Thorndale Avenue. His windows were all down, so there is a chance he heard me. However, this being Chicago. This being the United States. There is a good chance that asshole could be driving around with anger issues and a loaded gun. Also, I know better. A couple of summers ago the guy across the street took it upon himself to scream at all the assholes who sped down our street. At one point he ran after a car and threw something at it. It didn't work. It only got him into a very dangerous argument with possibly, a very dangerous asshole. Cars still speed down our street. Just today a UPS truck flew by the house, at least ten MPH above the limit followed closely by a woman in a small gray car. I think she was trying to pass him. We live on a very narrow street.

There is an old guy around the corner on Washtenaw Avenue who once yelled at me while I was walking Scout. He told me that the tree in front of his house died because Scout peed on it. The tree was old and very tall. Probably forty feet high. I think it just got tired of listening to that old guy. Scout still pees there. I think she's leaving her condolences to the tree.

Anger is a very bad emotion. It doesn't do anybody, any good, ever. People charge into wars because they're angry. People get killed every day because somebody is angry. So much of what is bad about human life is caused by anger. I should not have let the car that ran through the stop sign rile me up. There's not a thing I could do about it. I have called the police and told them about the cars going through that stop sign. The cop on the phone at the local precinct was very respectful and promised to let the proper people know. I'm sure he hung up, took a sip of coffee, and a bite out of a donut, then answered the next call.

So I now have a new outlook on things. If I can't actually make a difference, fuck it. Screaming at speeding cars will never slow them down. The police are very busy with assholes shooting each other, so I won't bother them with minor details. Oh, and I also stopped watching MSNBC. They market in anger. Just like Fox News, they market in rage. I know, MSNBC mostly uses facts while Fox twists facts then tells you a lie, but they both are doing the same thing. Getting people enraged over things they cannot control. I can vote, and I do. That is my responsibility. Hating people, neighbors, politicians, gets me nowhere. I vote and I trust my vote is counted.

By the way. On Monday I went to a cookout at a friend's house. Afterwards, when I returned to my car in the parking lot to leave, a big pile of steaming human poop was sitting next to my car. Right next to the driver's side door. I stepped over it, and got in. I could have got angry, but there was not a thing I could do about it. No matter how angry it could make me, it would still be there after I drove away.