Rants & Raves

As a New Yorker with a sometimes quick temper, I tend to get pissed off by certain things I see around me every day. But after thinking about it a while, I realize that it’s wrong for me to get angry. So this post is to say “I’m sorry.”

I’m sorry for getting mad at the people who run across the street to beat the fire engine that’s barreling down upon them trying to get to an emergency. I also shouldn’t get mad at the drivers who think that because some people pull over when there’s a siren, they have a right to go as fast as they can to beat the fire engine. I see now that your destination is so important that you couldn’t possibly wait another 15 seconds for emergency vehicles to pass. It must be extremely important if you need to go past someone who might save lives. It was wrong of me to assume that, since I have to wait diligently, you should have to wait as well. I truly hope that when you are in need of an emergency vehicle everybody graciously sees that you are incredibly important and gives the fire engine, etc. the right of way it so justly deserves.

I also apologize for getting irate at those drivers who conveniently forget to slow down while turning a corner, thereby almost running me over. I’m sure that, whether you’re a 16 year old driving your dad’s convertible or a livery cab driver, someone is in grave danger and only you can help him or her. Otherwise, you would obey the law and look out to see if a pedestrian with the right of way is crossing.

How about those co-workers who don’t reset the copy machine so when I get there I end up making 25 copies of something? Should I be annoyed with them? NO! It was my fault for not looking at the screen and pressing the reset button myself. That goes too for programming the copy machine to make 200 copies of a document, and the second you leave it runs out of paper so that I can babysit it so everyone else can make copies sooner. I understand now that your job is so vital that one second cannot be wasted to check the machine. As a (still) entry-level person I should just refill the machine, press the reset button and be glad I still have a well-paying job in this economy.

And how do I get to this job? By the subway of course! I used to get so livid at the lack of courtesy displayed by other people, but how can I be mad at people who are blind, deaf and have no ability to form intellegent thoughts? It’s impossible! If anything, we should pity them. The person who stands by the door and can’t hear me say “Excuse me.” The one who pushes her way past everyone to get into an almost empty train where everone will easily fit. The man, and this happened just today, who won’t move away from the doors at a busy express stop, so everyone needs to push by him, then gets off at the next stop where the doors on the opposite side of the train open, so he has to push by everyone in the middle. This man obviously needed to lean on the door because his back hurt and it feels much better to lean than it does to stand in the middle where he has to support his body all by himself.

To all these people and more, I apologize. In the face of so many people doing the same thing, I must admit that I was wrong. In the future I will reflect on these thoughts and act accordingly.