Stop. Think.

I realized what my real wish is while I was driving home from work today:

That motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians in Santa Barbara would start paying attention to what they're doing on the road.

How much would it cost to send that to Iceland?

I really don't understand what it is with this place. Is it just me? I've lived in Utah (which I think has an undeserved reputation as bad driver central) and DC (home to some of the worst traffic in the nation) and my memories of driving in those places are calm and happy compared to my daily experiences of driving in Santa Barbara. Are the drivers here terrible because people walk or bike more often than they drive? Do cyclists and pedestrians do stupid things because they think they own the road? Or are they all victims of this city's awful street planning?

So here's the latest scene: I was waiting for a left turn arrow. The arrow turned green, and the cars in front of me proceeded to make the turn. When it was my turn, I had to slam on my brakes because a guy on a bike zipped in front of me, oblivious to the fact that if it weren't for my cat-like reflexes (I'm channeling Tobias here) he would've ended up trampled under my front tires.

I could honestly write a book about stuff like this.