Aggressive Driving My Ass

I love the rhetoric the FHP uses to describe drivers like me. Aggressive.

Here's something I just saw a few minutes ago and applies to anyone who drives in South Florida:

FHP will be cracking down on those who tailgate, improperly change lanes or ignore traffic signals over the next two days. Troopers will also keep an eye out for drivers violating the Move Over Law or driving under the influence. http://www.justnews.com/traffic/20222628/detail.html

Wonderful. I tailgate, improperly change lanes, ignore traffic signals, and violate the Move Over Law. I do not, however, drive under the influence of alcohol. But it seems that I do drive under the influence of the stupidity of other drivers.

I tailgate behind people driving in the left lane at 65 or below who are passing NO ONE.

I am forced to improperly change lanes because slower traffic does not yield. Actually, no one yields. What is a yield, anyways? So, I am left with no other option except to pass on the right and swerve in and out of traffic if I want to get where I am going any time within the next century.

I must ignore traffic signals, because the douche-bags driving so fucking slow on the left hand lane are usually texting, half-asleep, day-dreaming, or a combination of the three, and have not noticed they have left their turn signal on for the past 5 miles. Not to mention, many people still have not discovered what a turn signal is, or what the difference is between left and right.

As for the Move Over Law. I cannot move over for stopped FHP because it is impossible to get out of the left lane when everyone around you has come to a complete stop because of this damn law. Yey to more fender-benders, pissed off motorists, and traffic stand-stills that come out of nowhere forcing you to slam your breaks and pray the driver behind you is paying attention! W00t!

Can't we enforce a SLOWER TRAFFIC KEEP RIGHT law, so the left lane is already mostly clear of traffic and safer for FHP and motorists who have to pull off the road? Isn't that the smarter more intelligent option?

I guess not, since Florida has no such law in place. I don't know why I am surprised.

Driving faster does not necessarily mean driving dangerously. A fast driver must pay more attention to the road. You cannot drive at 80 while being preoccupied with your phones, passengers, switching stations, reading, or putting on makeup. It's almost impossible. You are forced to pay attention at higher speeds. Going slower just means more time to comer mierda (translation= eat shit; context translation= be innatentive)!

Germany's autobahn has no set speed limit, although 80mph is recommended. They also have significantly less accidents than we do here in the states. Go figure.

So, I will continue to drive intelligently--uh--I mean aggressively. If you're cruising on the left updating your facebook status, I will cut you off so that you can appreciate the rear-end of my car and before I do that I will tail-gate your ass.

Hey, I can do that!

I'm supposed to be writing my thesis right now. There are over fifty library books sitting all over my floor and I need to sort through them between today and tomorrow. I much rather read stuff on the internet and catch up with all of the feeds I have neglected in the past weeks than tackle the gargantuan task of thesis writing that lays before me.

Anyways, in honor of useful and insightful procrastination here is another article from another great blog, Critical Miami, which relates both to my thesis in writing and Miami.

How, you ask--simple. This article exposes the elusive art of editing a la Miami Herald!

A little off topic...

This isn't about travel or things to do, but I just read a well-written article on Stuck On The Palmetto that I think everyone should read.

The article is not cheerful or uplifting--in fact, I hate thinking that such a thing is possible in this world.

Danger! Perpetual Road Construction

Well, as any true Miami native knows--it's not Miami unless the roadway you are driving on is under some kind of construction. The epidemic of constant roadway construction only seems to get worse and worse as the time goes on.

Here's an example of what happened to Tony and I returning home after a fun night out at a local restaurant this past Friday. We are driving north on LeJeune/8th Avenue when we hit some major traffic and come to a complete stop. We know there is heavy construction on LeJeune in front of MIA, but that's been the case for years. Nothing new. Well, we eventually see that LeJeune is closed to all through traffic. There were no signs warning us of the road closure up ahead and subsequently we are forced to reroute onto the 836, which is void of detour signs.

Ok...no biggie. We're natives. We know our way around. But what about tourists?

It was appalling that on a Friday night, whoever is in charge of deciding when construction gets done, would actually choose that time to close such a major thoroughfare.

It's ridiculous.

Well...we continue on our way and the exit off of the 836 that we wanted to take was also closed. Imagine that.

We had to drive all the way to the Palmetto Expressway and come back towards LeJeune via the NW 36th Street exit--which is sort of like driving in a "u" then cutting across the top part--a HUGE detour!

I'm not sure if these closures were announced ahead of time, but there still should have been plenty of signs giving drivers enough forewarning in order to allow them to decide on alternates. Instead, the lack of signs just dumped drivers on a highway with additional closures in the middle of the night. What a wonderful situation to find oneself in.

Oh...and it was raining!

My advice, get one of those GPS systems in your car, if you're a tourist--and even for people that live here that might not be a bad idea--or just be aware of different routes you can use to get to your destination.

World Market

Tony and I had a few errands to run today. First, I went to sign the deposit contract for our pre-construction townhouse at Montclair in Miramar! Then we went to buy some turtle supplies at Petsmart in Pembroke Pines. That was when we noticed a new store next door and decided to check it out.

World Market
11960 Pines Boulevard Pembroke Pines, FL 33026

According to their website there are only five of these stores in Florida, and this one in Pembroke Pines is the only one in south Florida. Tony and I wanted to check it out for a few minutes and we ended up browsing and buying for the better part of an hour. Their furniture is very Pier1esque; however, their selection is not as broad. What this store gets props for is their pretty heavy line of imported foods and beverages. We bought some Hawaiian chips, canned Salmon pate, an English chocolate bar, another imported chocolate bar, and some cool garlic stuffed olives. Their selection of foods is fun and whimsical, like the Pez candies they have on stock, or the 3 liter extra virgin olive oil jug. Also, on hand is a huge selection of teas, coffees, and imported wines organized by country.

This is a really cool store that both of us hope is still around when we finally move into our house. We'd love to decorate it with items from this store, and fill our plates with the fun food selection.

Virgin Post

Here is a quick little blurb about this blog:

My boyfriend and I grew up in Miami and we've been to lots of places, and are always visiting new ones. For a long time I have been upset about living in Miami (I hate the traffic, sometimes rude people, never-ending construction, high-rises...the list goes on). But, lately I have grown a bit fonder of Miami (perhaps because I am probably going to live here for many years to come). So I plan to post little blurbs about places that I visit so I can keep a journal of good memories about Miami and share with others some cool places to visit.

**UPDATE: haha, this post has a ton of views. Pervs!

What's all this about?

I need to voice some pent-up frustrations about Cuba, Cubans, Cuban-Americans, Castro, and injustice.

I can't believe that in America, a country so focused on justice, the concept of justice itself vanishes from discourses about Cuba. Within a system of justice, justice is ignored in order to perpetuate the status quo, in order to mystify the public of the atrocities that occur 90 miles from Key West, and in order to vanquish the voices of those who dare to notice and speak out.

I thought that the next best thing to getting an aneurism because of people's idiocy on this subject is to write about my feelings. So, I'll post articles, blogs, videos, things my friends write, and things that I have written over the years. At the very least, I hope that one or two people will stumble across my blog and be educated, and have the opportunity to voice their opinions about the subject.