So, this morning I was out walking my dog, as usual. I leave my house at O Dark Thirty so when I get ready, I take the necessary precautions: I bundle up, I put my dog on her lead, and I wear a reflective belt. Or I should say, “I usually wear a reflective belt.” I skipped this step today. I thought I would be fine since I walk on the sidewalks and it is well lit since I stay on the main roads.

Big mistake!

We began our walk and everything was just ducky. Remy, my dog, was listening and not pulling too much. We make it about half way through the walk when we encountered our second crosswalk. I pressed the button and waited for the signal to cross. The “ampelmann” (German name for the crosswalk man) turned green and we proceeded to cross the street. A car comes whipping around the turn and almost hits us!

In my most lady-like words, I told him where he could go.

Undeterred, we continued on our walk. I don’t know if I was really undeterred or we had no choice but to keep going.

I pulled Remy closer and we kept walking. I’m talking to myself and wondering why people are idiots. There were street lights where I was as well as the crosswalk. I mean, what are people doing! I know it’s super early in the morning and maybe they haven’t had their coffee yet but driving is serious business. Isn’t that what is drilled into us?

As I’m musing to myself, we come to the last crosswalk before we get home. At this four way intersection the lights are bright so I’m assuming no issues. I press the button and wait for our signal. Now, I should tell you that waiting for a crosswalk signal isn’t easy for me. I went to school in Boston and NO ONE waits for the signal. But wait I did. It turned green and I had to pull Remy away from the lovely scent she found so we could get home. As we entered the crosswalk, a car comes around the bend and almost hits us!

AGAIN?

Yes, once again, we almost get hit. This time the person wasn’t turning left, she was turning right. Both times these people had either a red light or a solid green. This time the woman yelled at me as if it were my fault! What happened to pedestrians having the right of way? Apparently it’s not a thing anymore.

In the military, they are taught to trust their equipment. I should’ve taken that lesson to heart and wore my belt. That may have been the only equipment drivers understand. Forget a crosswalk signal. That is just background noise.