Pedestrian

I bet wealthy people don't struggle with decision making the same way the rest of us do.

For the last few months, I've been having to add antifreeze to my radiator regularly. Then the car started running rough, and exhibiting other symptoms that repairs were needed. I did some searching, and concluded that I was probably going to have to replace the head gasket, which is a pretty expensive repair. So with around 200K miles on my Subaru, I needed think carefully about whether I wanted to spend the money to repair the vehicle...or just go ahead and get a new car.

If I were some rich guy like Jimmy or Warren Buffet, I wouldn't hesitate -- just get a new Lexus or Maseratti or something. People like Ben Affleck and Tony Shaloub probably get new cars every week, and buy them based on which color matches the shoes they're planning to wear that night. But for me, such a decision requires much calculation, soul searching, and what-if scenario construction. In the end, I concluded that I'll go ahead and pay a couple grand to keep this vehicle running, and will defer the car-buying process for another (hopefully) two or three years. It's a gamble, but since I'm driving fewer miles now that my office is so close to home, it seemed like a reasonable bet.

Besides, I like my station wagon, and I hate car shopping. I took the wheezing old rustbucket into the repair facility, and told them to fix whatever was broken. I hope my credit cards can handle it.

This means that I'm on foot until the repairs are complete. I've been bumming rides for the last few days, and walking to work and back. I like walking. I have a few friends who would much rather run than walk, and I can understand that to some degree -- you get where you're going a lot faster -- but I know that I pay more attention to scenery when I'm not huffing and puffing.

I love walking in the pre-dawn darkness. But not so much after the sun sets in the evenings. I figured out why last night; it's my vision. After a long day of staring at a computer screen and working on proposals and presentations, my ability to focus tends to be diminished. Plus, the evening rush hour traffic seems more dangerous than the morning drive for some reason. And last night, I learned a lesson that we should all probably incorporate:

Beware of hybrids!

Since time began, humans have used both their eyes and ears to avoid danger in the wild. But stiff-necked city dwellers like myself have evolved to rely on hearing as the primary detection source for dangers when crossing driveways that intersect a sidewalk. After a day at the desk, it's hard to turn my head around to look behind me to see if anyone is planning to turn across my walking path, but motor vehicles are noisy enough that you can hear them coming up behind you. No turnaround was required.

Until now.

The stupid hybids don't make any noise. There I was, just happily plodding along the sidwalk, completely confident that the nearest traffic was hundreds of meters away (at least)...when I pretty much stepped right into the path of an oncoming Prius. It was if he had appeared by magic; I leapt back out of the driveway with a primal adrenaline surge, and managed to avoid becoming an asphalt stain. After taking a moment for deep breathing, I realized why I had been unaware of his approach. It was the silence.

From now on, I will look behind me before stepping into a roadway of any kind. I refuse to let the silent assassins find me as easy prey.

Of course, the whole thing is probably moot -- since I should get my car back this afternoon. Then I'll be the driver, not the pedestrian. Oh, I'll still enjoy walking, but will try to confine my foot-borne excursions to designated hiking trails, etc. Thanks to Global Warming, the rest of the world is just too dangerous.



Have a great day!