I Jaywalk No More

I Jaywalk No More is part of the TPOL in NYC ongoing Trip Report.

Lately, I have been reading about freak accidents resulting in deaths. Whether it be the man killed by a deer or the countless people dying on account of trying to capture a perfect selfie (see Selfie Death in Bhutan), lives are meaninglessly taken.

As TPOL has found sustainable happiness (see TPOL’s Search for the Point of Life in Bhutan) and as I am now the Creepy Old Guy, I am more paranoid about doing something stupid that will result in my premature exit.

I used to jaywalk recklessly. This bad habit started at the University of Michigan where pedestrians always have the right of way over cars. It became worse when smartphones came along. Texting and walking is a surefire way to end up as roadkill. My jaywalking was temporarily halted when I went to Shanghai. Attempts to jaywalk when there is a guard in the intersection will result in loud whistles. Following the whistling,  the authority figure will walk you back across the street, even if you had already made it all the way across. Singapore is much stricter. Those that dare jaywalk in Singapore do it at their own peril (see “You can get anything you want here”).

Back stateside, I have grown into a responsible person. With only seconds to go on the timer, I knew I could make it to the halfway point of the intersection. Young me would’ve tried to get there and turn on the jets to see if I could go all the way. Older and wiser, I took a different approach. Why not wait on the safe corner a few feet away from the curb instead of waiting in the intersection, while vehicles weighing thousands of pounds driven by humans who are doing everything but paying attention? When the walk sign came on, I first looked both ways before I crossed the street. Then I crossed in peace.

You can call me old, but that’s a compliment.