The other day Jen and I were stopped at a light on Grand and saw a guy roll down his window and throw a whole bag of fast food garbage out the window, roll up the window and drive off. This is not the first time I have witnessed this kind of behavior. It makes me wish they allowed caning in the city of St. Louis. I have an anti-death penalty stance, but would love to see more extreme punishment on these kinds of crimes. What kind of filthy pig behaves in this manner? Nothing says "ghetto" quicker than trash blowing down the street. I didn't see the license plate on the car, but from my recent run-ins with the police, I would not expect them to behave appropriately to my complaint. This is going to have to be the last of my rants. I've got to get out and enjoy something before I (or a vein in my temple) burst.
I grew up in the suburbs and for the first time since moving to St. Louis I'm wondering if that is where I belong. In the suburbs people hurry across the street, they do not creep and glare at you as they cross the street. People throw trash in containers, and if they don't someone WILL say something since they don't live in fear of retaliation. I love parts of the city. There are some benefits, but do they outweigh the drawbacks? Will the things that are out of my control change for the better quick enough? Will I be allowed to raise my child in an urban environment free from fear? Will I turn my home into a fortress/prison to save myself from the nightmare that is rush hour traffic? I will be thinking hard about these things in the next year or two. City don't let me down. You've come a long way, Baby!
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Listening to music, watching tv, opening a coffeehouse, and raising a preschooler and a newborn!
2 comments:
I think you're brave to live in the city...especially as it puts you outside of your comfort zone. I'd say as long as it's not killing you, it's making you stronger. It's definitely prompted some serious thought and response in you and that's probably a good thing. Where it gets complicated is when it affects others...if it's just you can always take the "toughen up" attitude and plow along. But when your family is potentially at risk things become more complicated.
Like everything in life, I reckon it's about finding a workable balance that won't drive you to an early grave.
Wait, is that way too heavy?
That 337is is just so smart! What a guy!
Anyway, I agree with you that I get so pissed off when I see people dumping garbage anywhere. I never have the nerve to call them on it, but it's still something that pushes my buttons. My buttons get pushed by people leaving trash laying around anywhere: church, stores, shopping carts, buses, airplanes, etc. It's like a whole cross-section of Americans think there's a full-time group of workers to clean up their personal messes.
In some ways, this makes me idealize the stereotype of the neat and tidy Americans of the 1940s and 1950s. We have a hilarious old classroom movie from this time period which deals with cleaning up your room. All I can say is, the kid depicted in the movie would be the perfect husband when he grew up. Assuming he's not just a fantastic actor!
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