winjim
Smash the cistern
As I've mentioned before, I used to be a bit of a shouty cyclist, one of those self-righteous types calling out any motorist's transgressions. Then I chilled out, for many reasons but partly because I realised that I was only shouting at people who I wasn't afraid were going to get out of the car and thump me, which made me a bully. Now I ride along in a state of zen-like bliss, but assertively and making sure I ride in a way that accounts for and mitigates for people's mistakes, and I only shout when I'm being put in direct danger and need to call a warning, which is very very rarely.
Recently my daughter has been asking me about all the lines painted on the road so I've been telling her what they mean. I've also been telling her that cars shouldn't be parked on the pavement and making sure that she understands that when we ride on that little bit of pavement on the way to nursery that we are being cheeky and we must be slow and safe, and give way to pedestrians, stopping if necessary.
So anyway... as we rode home yesterday and drew level with the taxi that was waiting in the *bike lane, on the double yellows with the no loading marks, she shouted from the back of the bike through the open window, 'oi **car, you can't ***park there!'. I wonder how drivers are going to react to being shouted at by a four year old girl?
* admittedly advisory
** I always say 'driver' rather than 'car' when talking about stuff like this but hey, she's only four.
*** Technically they weren't parked, they were waiting, but it was within the operating period of the no loading marks.
I've just realised that all those asterisks make it look like she was swearing. She wasn't, but that would have been even better.
Recently my daughter has been asking me about all the lines painted on the road so I've been telling her what they mean. I've also been telling her that cars shouldn't be parked on the pavement and making sure that she understands that when we ride on that little bit of pavement on the way to nursery that we are being cheeky and we must be slow and safe, and give way to pedestrians, stopping if necessary.
So anyway... as we rode home yesterday and drew level with the taxi that was waiting in the *bike lane, on the double yellows with the no loading marks, she shouted from the back of the bike through the open window, 'oi **car, you can't ***park there!'. I wonder how drivers are going to react to being shouted at by a four year old girl?
* admittedly advisory
** I always say 'driver' rather than 'car' when talking about stuff like this but hey, she's only four.
*** Technically they weren't parked, they were waiting, but it was within the operating period of the no loading marks.
I've just realised that all those asterisks make it look like she was swearing. She wasn't, but that would have been even better.