Sunday, January 30, 2011

In a round-about kind of way

I try really hard not to sweat the small stuff. To let things slide. To turn a blind eye.

There is, however, one thing that bugs the hell out of me. Round-abouts. Well, actually not the round-abouts - I love them - but the way people here drive in one. I realize that they are a fairly new thing to Canadians, at least here in BC, but come on!

It is really not that hard, actually it is a much easier system than the four-way stop procedure that is still quite common around here. For those of you who have a hard time when it comes to round-about etiquette, here are a few pointers:

A round-about is really nothing more than an intersection with rounded corners. If you need to turn right, indicate right. If you are going straight, go straight without indicating. And, if you are turning left, please indicate that you are indeed planning on turning left.

Also, it is customary to give the person already in the round-about the right of way. They do not, contrary to popular opinion, have to yield to you. And one more thing - when making a left turn, you actually have do so by entering the round-about by turning right, make a loop around and then exit.

There you have it. Now you know.


Thursday, January 27, 2011

A day to remember

Next time I feel like complaining about something I will remember January 27, 2011. That will help me put things into perspective.

I started the week by getting my finger smashed in the car door, which resulted in a broken bone and a finger tip that needed to be stitched back on. Today, that doesn't seem so bad. The reason? A very much unplanned renovation is now taking place in our house. A re-reno of the reno only a few years old.

You see, this morning we were greeted by water flowing though the ceiling in the kitchen. Not really the thing you want to be waking up to. The old plumbing in the upstairs bathroom has obviously reached its expiration date, so now we have a lovely big hole where our kitchen ceiling used to be. And to think that I just the other day was sitting on our couch in the family room, looking around and thinking to myself how lovely it is not to be looking at surroundings in various degrees of disrepair!

 Maybe I should go and buy myself a ticket for the big draw tomorrow night, for surely it must be time for some good things to happen?