The pedestrian crosswalk signals were in my favor this evening; as I approached intersections, and just before I reached them, the red hand repeatedly yielded to the white man–or the white men, it might be said, since there was the one in the sign and the one that was me. It was as if an…
My driving instructor raced cars in Germany four decades ago. He teaches a very precision-oriented, methodical, and engineering-friendly approach to vehicle maneuvering known as reference point driving. Rather than be at the mercy of the optical illusions associated with gauging distance by looking at objects through windows and in mirrors, reference point driving uses the…
Of the most distinguished homeless people in this country, one lives here in Fairbanks. I’ve written about him before, the character who speaks as though reading from a bible of endless passages written by a schizophrenic. And yet, in the midst of his signature style of oration submerged in an ancient grammar and spoken with…
As a pedestrian, I find it amusing how impatient drivers will sometimes use their vehicles as vessels for expressing their frustration at having to wait for me to cross the street. Mostly, this happens with drivers who are going to be making a right turn, as illustrated in the picture below, where the blue line…
1st mirror: There are some main roads with turning lanes in their middle. When I’m approaching these lanes from the lane which must be crossed by the people in the turning lanes, I experience a kind of relationship with the turning drivers. As I’m speeding down my lane, they have to decide whether to wait…
It has been some time since I last wrote, but for good reason. I got in an accident while taking the [screening for license] driving test with a DMV evaluator as my passenger. I didn’t yield to an oncoming Alaska Salmon Bake bus, but the jaws of life did a smashing job of providing paramedics…
If everyone observed speed limits all of the time, legislation would be passed to increase the limits. I would guess that people travel a speed exceeding limits by 6-10 mph most of the time. Slowing down to comply with limits, even if only having to slow by 6mph, would result in a marked reduction of…
When I was a kid I was afraid of being driven around at night in the dark because I believed that the majority of people driving during those late hours were troublesome teenagers and teenagers intimidated me. I was comforted at times, such as when I observed the taillights of cars in front of us…
While I was on the Boston campus I was often witness to empty cars parked near campus buildings with distress lights blinking. It’s tempting to believe that this was a precautionary measure taken by the driver to indicate to the university police that “yes officer, I know I’m parked illegally but as you can see…
On certain major highways you will find toll booths lined in a row and manned by state employees and/or state owned electronic systems. Each lane on the highway has its own notification of toll post sign to alert drivers of the upcoming slow down & pay requirement. There are two kinds of signs. One, red…
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