Ped Xing
I have fight-or-flight adrenaline rushing through me right now, probably will for a while. It's what happens when you nearly get killed and then spend the next 15 minutes thinking about how you nearly got killed.
This isn't the first time this has happened in this exact same spot, but it's the closest.
I, along with most Capitol employees, park in the #1 Lot directly across Capitol Ave (which turns into Piedmont a few yards away at the intersection with MLK Dr) from the Capitol's back door. (see picture here) During the session, there is usually a crossing guard stopping traffic when things get ridiculous, as they do.
There are four lanes of one-way traffic, traveling north (left to right), plus street parking along the Capitol side of the street. There is a pedestrian crosswalk. Directly above the crosswalk are two flashing yellow lights and a giant "PED XING" sign; there is also a STOP FOR PEDESTRIANS sign in the middle of the road; there used to be another large sign on the right side, but so many trucks had knocked into it that when it finally fell down nobody bothered to replace it.
This morning, as I got to the side of the street to wait for a break in the traffic (the light at MLK was green, so it's usually only a matter of waiting until it turns red for most cars to stop), the first three lanes of traffic came to a stop, shockingly enough. "This might be a decent morning after all," I thought. "I remembered to bring my umbrella, and traffic is actually stopping for a pedestrian in a crosswalk."
I had forgotten about the fourth, and farthest, lane.
It isn't used very often. It's a tight squeeze between the SUVs along the curb, plus it's a left-turn-only lane up ahead. There usually isn't enough traffic to warrant using it when it's safer to use the second-left lane.
I was more than half-way across the third lane of traffic when a tan sedan flew through the left lane. I never saw it coming. It hadn't slowed down at all despite seeing three lanes of traffic come to a halt and the flashing yellow lights with the giant bright yellow PED XING sign.
If I had started crossing just two seconds sooner or if that car had arrived two seconds later, I'd be in the hospital right now. Another second, the morgue.
Instead, I chucked my umbrella at the motherfucker. It made a satisfactory thud behind the rear tire. That stopped him, despite the green left-turn arrow ahead of him. As I bent down to pick up my bent umbrella, a Capitol police car pulled out of the lot, lights flashing, and parked right behind the bastard.
When I got across and up the stairs to head inside, one of the construction guys ran over to ask if I was OK. He heard the thud, saw the car stopped and then me in the street, and thought the worst.
I'm calming down now. Walking up five flights of stairs expended some of the extra energy. I'm avoiding the donuts in the kitchen because I'm plenty jittery enough without the sugar, thanks. I looked out our office lobby window to see the cop giving the bastard a ticket, and taking his sweet time about it.
Gee, I hope the guy wasn't in a hurry.
This isn't the first time this has happened in this exact same spot, but it's the closest.
I, along with most Capitol employees, park in the #1 Lot directly across Capitol Ave (which turns into Piedmont a few yards away at the intersection with MLK Dr) from the Capitol's back door. (see picture here) During the session, there is usually a crossing guard stopping traffic when things get ridiculous, as they do.
There are four lanes of one-way traffic, traveling north (left to right), plus street parking along the Capitol side of the street. There is a pedestrian crosswalk. Directly above the crosswalk are two flashing yellow lights and a giant "PED XING" sign; there is also a STOP FOR PEDESTRIANS sign in the middle of the road; there used to be another large sign on the right side, but so many trucks had knocked into it that when it finally fell down nobody bothered to replace it.
This morning, as I got to the side of the street to wait for a break in the traffic (the light at MLK was green, so it's usually only a matter of waiting until it turns red for most cars to stop), the first three lanes of traffic came to a stop, shockingly enough. "This might be a decent morning after all," I thought. "I remembered to bring my umbrella, and traffic is actually stopping for a pedestrian in a crosswalk."
I had forgotten about the fourth, and farthest, lane.
It isn't used very often. It's a tight squeeze between the SUVs along the curb, plus it's a left-turn-only lane up ahead. There usually isn't enough traffic to warrant using it when it's safer to use the second-left lane.
I was more than half-way across the third lane of traffic when a tan sedan flew through the left lane. I never saw it coming. It hadn't slowed down at all despite seeing three lanes of traffic come to a halt and the flashing yellow lights with the giant bright yellow PED XING sign.
If I had started crossing just two seconds sooner or if that car had arrived two seconds later, I'd be in the hospital right now. Another second, the morgue.
Instead, I chucked my umbrella at the motherfucker. It made a satisfactory thud behind the rear tire. That stopped him, despite the green left-turn arrow ahead of him. As I bent down to pick up my bent umbrella, a Capitol police car pulled out of the lot, lights flashing, and parked right behind the bastard.
When I got across and up the stairs to head inside, one of the construction guys ran over to ask if I was OK. He heard the thud, saw the car stopped and then me in the street, and thought the worst.
I'm calming down now. Walking up five flights of stairs expended some of the extra energy. I'm avoiding the donuts in the kitchen because I'm plenty jittery enough without the sugar, thanks. I looked out our office lobby window to see the cop giving the bastard a ticket, and taking his sweet time about it.
Gee, I hope the guy wasn't in a hurry.