Rebekah and I live at a very busy intersection of two major streets in downtown Toronto. Really busy. And literally right at that intersection, well, three doors down from the lights.
There's a lot of traffic, pedestrians, cyclists and streetcars at all hours (well not so much at 6 am but other than that...). For the most part it doesn't bother me. Not even on Friday and Saturday when I can hear all the drunk kids screaming and puking and fighting. Actually, I usually find that the hum of the city puts me at ease especially the bass player who sits at the corner nearly every night from 12 until 2 (although I wish he'd play another four chords). What I cannot stand is the honking. The incessant, petulant honking when a driver either doesn't realize or doesn't care that they cannot turn left. One person, the person behind the jerk ignoring the traffic signs starts, with a not so gentle reminder. Then another chimes in and another and before you know it there are at least five drivers just laying on their horns. Now, I understand that it's irritating when someone blatantly ignores the rules of the road and that in doing so they can delay someone else by another, oh, three minutes (!) but what really sticks in my craw is the total disregard for the other people in the vicinity who have to listen to the noise pollution. Those who are working, those who are walking by, who are eating in one of the many restaurants in the 20 meter area and those who live right there. If that jerk doesn't get that they can't turn left after the first couple honks, then they're not going to. Leave it and suck it up. Ugh, cars.
There's a lot of traffic, pedestrians, cyclists and streetcars at all hours (well not so much at 6 am but other than that...). For the most part it doesn't bother me. Not even on Friday and Saturday when I can hear all the drunk kids screaming and puking and fighting. Actually, I usually find that the hum of the city puts me at ease especially the bass player who sits at the corner nearly every night from 12 until 2 (although I wish he'd play another four chords). What I cannot stand is the honking. The incessant, petulant honking when a driver either doesn't realize or doesn't care that they cannot turn left. One person, the person behind the jerk ignoring the traffic signs starts, with a not so gentle reminder. Then another chimes in and another and before you know it there are at least five drivers just laying on their horns. Now, I understand that it's irritating when someone blatantly ignores the rules of the road and that in doing so they can delay someone else by another, oh, three minutes (!) but what really sticks in my craw is the total disregard for the other people in the vicinity who have to listen to the noise pollution. Those who are working, those who are walking by, who are eating in one of the many restaurants in the 20 meter area and those who live right there. If that jerk doesn't get that they can't turn left after the first couple honks, then they're not going to. Leave it and suck it up. Ugh, cars.
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