Gloomy Day

For several reasons. 

First, it's chilly. Currently 62 degrees (and this weekend up in Maine it was in the 80's!). 

Second, the overhead light bulbs -- those that we use now instead of incandescents, what are they called again? -- in my work room burned out, finally, after how many years? I thought I had more, but the ones I have turned out to be the equivalents of 75 watts, which isn't sufficient for someone with my vision. El V's bringing home the equivalents of 100 watters later, but all day it's felt dim and drear in here. 

As I'm reading through carefully a section of TASC ms. yet again, still hunting and seeking to kill irrelevancies, the phrases and sentences that may contain interesting information, but aren't necessary or part of the narrative focus of the book -- well, the seeming dimness of the light is leaving me anxious and sad. 

 

I just want to wear my tight-fittin' jeans and cowboy boots and re-watch season 2 of Nashville. Well, I can do the first two .... 

My boots do cheer me up. I feel grounded as I stride the sidewalks, confident again, in a way I haven't felt in ages. Well, at least not since the biker invasions .... 

The woman hit in Central Park two weekends ago has died, but she was brain dead immediately her head hit the crosswalk pavement.


Notice, this rider is going against the light,t through the crosswalk, while pedestrians are legally crossing.

While waiting at the crosswalk for a light down here this morning, I counted 9 bikers in a row run the red light -- and go the wrong way on the one way avenue. One swung around and rode up the sidewalk at about 20 mph, and missed hitting me by inches. 

But it's only pedestrians in Central Park that the Mayor or anybody is concerned about. 

That woman died, a man died earlier, several other people have died this year -- not to mention the many with broken bones and other injuries -- from being hit by bikers, but the riders haven't been charged with ANYTHING. If they'd been hit by cars, the drivers would have at least been charged with reckless endangerment and involuntary man slaughter. 

Bikers are far more dangerous to pedestrians than cars, for so many reasons, starting with the relentless way they break all traffic rules and ending with with being really hard to see.  They're nearly invisible at these times of the year when the sun glare is in your eyes most of the afternoon, and invisible when the sun starts to go down, and in the dark. They don't even have lights (or licenses) on these bikes.