Today while driving...
In San Jose you get used to people sauntering across streets with busy traffic. Drivers here are so desensitized to the jay walking that they just stop or swerve around the people. I get annoyed by this, I see it everyday and I think its so freaking dangerous.
Today was exceptionally annoying because my light had just turned green and I had to stop in the middle of the intersection waiting for some weird guy to slowly get across the street against the light. Lately I have taken to honking, a lot of times they are street people, and I don't know if they are always aware where they are, but honking usually speeds them up and gets them off the road. This particular person today was just some punky looking guy. When I honked, he just stopped in the street and stared at me so I honked again, with more irritation. As soon as the guy got passt my car I drove forward and he kicked the side of my jetta as hard as he could, and than walked off casually.
Within seconds I had called the police, at this point I wasn't sure if damage had been done but I was scared enough to justify it I guess. While on the phone I examined the shoe print on my car, a man who was looking out from his porch witnessed the thing and was chatting to me while I was waited for the patrol car to come around. There was no real damage to the car that I could tell, which meant I couldn't file vandalism or anything else for that matter. I had a good description of the guy (sine he stared me down in the street) and the police promised they promised they would keep an eye out and give him a talking to.
So I got in my car and started to drive home trying to forget the thing had happened. I wasn't even two blocks down the road when the officer called me and said they had a guy in handcuffs and wanted me to ID him. So I drove to the 7-11 which wasn't even 100ft from where the incident occurred. I had and still have this really sick feeling in my stomach. And having to come back and see this guy again only made it worse. I think I regretted calling it in in the first place just because I didn't want to deal with it anymore or see this guy ever again. I drove by the 7-11 and sure enough it was him . Apparently he confessed before I had arrived so my ID wasn't necessary. The police kept their promise and gave the guy a talking to and asked me if I would like to hear his apology, which I really didn't. But apparently the man “really wanted to apologize” so I went over there and listened to him. The guy had mental issues. He tired as hard as he could to explain himself but half of it was just frantic mumbling, he told me he had hard times with drugs and apparently with traffic and cars and went off on some unrelated weirdness like that he should stay in his backyard and never come out. But he was sorry he scared me. I don't know if it was sincere but obviously he was upset about being in handcuffs. I imagine after I left the police just let him go, the intention being to scare him a little.
I'm not angry, I was when he kicked my car but honestly I was more freaked out by the whole thing. I admit I get annoyed by people in the street, and maybe I should of only honked once and let it be. I feel guilty for some reason, though I shouldn't. I always feel like I deserve these things, like the guy was justified for kicking my car because I honked at him. I'm not trying to feel bad about this, I just hate the it had to come to that.
Today was exceptionally annoying because my light had just turned green and I had to stop in the middle of the intersection waiting for some weird guy to slowly get across the street against the light. Lately I have taken to honking, a lot of times they are street people, and I don't know if they are always aware where they are, but honking usually speeds them up and gets them off the road. This particular person today was just some punky looking guy. When I honked, he just stopped in the street and stared at me so I honked again, with more irritation. As soon as the guy got passt my car I drove forward and he kicked the side of my jetta as hard as he could, and than walked off casually.
Within seconds I had called the police, at this point I wasn't sure if damage had been done but I was scared enough to justify it I guess. While on the phone I examined the shoe print on my car, a man who was looking out from his porch witnessed the thing and was chatting to me while I was waited for the patrol car to come around. There was no real damage to the car that I could tell, which meant I couldn't file vandalism or anything else for that matter. I had a good description of the guy (sine he stared me down in the street) and the police promised they promised they would keep an eye out and give him a talking to.
So I got in my car and started to drive home trying to forget the thing had happened. I wasn't even two blocks down the road when the officer called me and said they had a guy in handcuffs and wanted me to ID him. So I drove to the 7-11 which wasn't even 100ft from where the incident occurred. I had and still have this really sick feeling in my stomach. And having to come back and see this guy again only made it worse. I think I regretted calling it in in the first place just because I didn't want to deal with it anymore or see this guy ever again. I drove by the 7-11 and sure enough it was him . Apparently he confessed before I had arrived so my ID wasn't necessary. The police kept their promise and gave the guy a talking to and asked me if I would like to hear his apology, which I really didn't. But apparently the man “really wanted to apologize” so I went over there and listened to him. The guy had mental issues. He tired as hard as he could to explain himself but half of it was just frantic mumbling, he told me he had hard times with drugs and apparently with traffic and cars and went off on some unrelated weirdness like that he should stay in his backyard and never come out. But he was sorry he scared me. I don't know if it was sincere but obviously he was upset about being in handcuffs. I imagine after I left the police just let him go, the intention being to scare him a little.
I'm not angry, I was when he kicked my car but honestly I was more freaked out by the whole thing. I admit I get annoyed by people in the street, and maybe I should of only honked once and let it be. I feel guilty for some reason, though I shouldn't. I always feel like I deserve these things, like the guy was justified for kicking my car because I honked at him. I'm not trying to feel bad about this, I just hate the it had to come to that.