When:  Friday–Mid-Afternoon- 3/30/2018

Weather: Very nice and 70’s

I put up with quite a bit when I am out walking.  I see guys walking topless.  I act as a pylon on some bicycles obstacle course.  And, I have been swarmed by a flock of bicycles as they trained for some sort of event.  (Did you notice a “bike theme”?)  But, there is one thing that bothers me more than any of those things.  I hate it when anyone sharing the sidewalk with me has their radio/iPhone cranking so loud I can hear it right after they leave their house.  And, as they get closer to me, the volume only increases.  I commit to doing no harm on the sidewalk.  I try and anticipate possible collision problems.  I try to move to the far right to give bicycles ample room to get around water puddles.   And, I can’t think of even once when I have walked down the path singing at the top of my lungs.  I try and acknowledge all I see.  And, if I even get a hint of my actions bothering anyone, I will stop doing it.  Why must I listen to someone blaring their music as I attempt to solve the world’s problems while usually just settling for getting clues how to solve a couple of my own.  I just wish people could ride/walk/run and take pleasure in the activity rather than the part of your activity that intrudes on what others might be seeking.  (Little bells on bikes are not as sweet as hearing a human voice announcing an upcoming bike, but they are far superior to the anticipating of the Doppler effect.)

When something interferes with my walk once or twice, I may be cranky but I am capable of taking it in stride.  When the same stretch of sidewalk seems to be infested with a plague of construction, I lean toward poor planning.  Such has been the case with the stretch of the sidewalk that parallels the train tracks.  Over the past year, there have been numerous inconveniences as new concrete railroads ties have been distributed and installed on the tracks.  Then, to better prepare for the train that will begin west of my present location and provide a “park ‘n ride” for people heading to the airport, the various roads have needed to be closed at various times to allow the tracks to be safe for the passenger trains to cross.  On top of these issues, there have been cables ran along the tracks that seem to have been destroyed by the construction equipment that was not quite careful enough.  Finally, this week the sidewalk was “closed” on both ends to allow for holes to be dug and sidewalks to be re-destroyed for some unforeseen reason.  As a pedestrian, there is usually a path–this includes crossing the train tracks and walking on the “non-sidewalked” side.  Bicycles can’t as easily negotiate these obstacles without walking their bikes.  The only comfort I take is knowing any further destruction will absolutely confirm the company managing this project has no planning skills.  I want to give them a little bit of credit. 🙂