Not Managing my Anger Right Now

The O’Day offices are in the heart of midtown Manhattan. It’s convenient, because you can walk to pretty much any subway or bus you would ever need. It’s harrowing, though, because the neighborhood is very congested with aggressive drivers who are in a big hurry to sit in traffic at the Lincoln Tunnel and with buses full of people who want to tour around our city. Our offices are also a stone’s throw from The Port Authority, which is the biggest bus depot in the USA.

Recently I was walking to my office and crossing the street at 9th Avenue and 41st Street. 41st Street is where buses exit the Port Authority and cross 9th Avenue to get to the Lincoln Tunnel. It is also an intersection where people frequently break the “No right hand turn on a red light" law. Sure, they might not have the light, and there might be pedestrians in the way – but it’s more important that they HURRY UP and get to that tunnel so they can bask in the glory of bus fumes and road rage while they rush home to their miserable lives and ugly children.

Luckily, we have a lot more cops out on that corner now, because people keep getting run over in my neighborhood. Because drivers don’t realize that people actually live in my neighborhood and that pedestrians are just as important as drivers from the suburbs. But people who are in a big rush to get back to their lawnmowers and PTA meetings don’t really care about people who live in cities. They think we battle rats using sharpened sticks and duke it out over dumpster scraps. WELL, THEY’RE WRONG!

So I have the green light, and I’m crossing the street on the corner of 41st and 9th Avenue. And a BUS runs the light and almost HITS ME because the driver of the bus was TEXTING! He was TEXTING while DRIVING A BUS.

But there’s a cop on the corner, right? RIGHT! Thank goodness! Someone cares! But wait, what’s this?! THE COP IS TEXTING TOO so he doesn’t see anything. Were they texting each other? Was the bus driver texting, “Ha ha cop, I’m going to sneak past you again today!” and the cop texting, “No way bus driver, I’m gonna bust your ass!”

People, road rage is going to take on whole new proportions if folks don’t get their shit in order, ‘cause I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore. Our city is HOT, it’s filled with bus fumes and we sure as hell don’t need “VISITORS” driving like drunken rickshaw pullers all over us.

SO BACK DOWN and mind your manners! WE LIVE HERE. Don’t make us key your cars and push you down the subway stairs.

I look forward to hearing your stories of immense personal struggle and will continue to inspire you.