A number of years ago, I read an article in the paper that recounted how a fight over a parking space led to one man shooting another in New York City. It seems that one man was backing into a parking space the way you’re supposed to, and the second man broke the law of the New York jungle and “dive bombed” into the space from behind. You’ve all seen it happen but parking spaces in New York City are at such a premium — so golden, so valuable — that it isn’t unthinkable to imagine that a homicide could result from the competition for that prime real estate. Of course, the man who committed the murder had a gun. If that were not the case, the outcome would have been decidedly different because no gun, no murder.
I grew up in New York City and when I was a student, my Aunt Deedee gave me a car. I went to Hunter College which was free at the time and spent many hours playing the law of averages and just sitting double parked on W. 96th Streetwaiting for someone to vacate a parking space. The problem, of course, was that once you secured a valuable space, maybe by just a few requisite inches, you really didn’t want to give it up, so you had to think long and hard about whether the drive you were about to take was really necessary before you pulled out of your parking space. In those days, the idea of a lower middle-class college kid having a garage space was really unthinkable.
I write this because many of us who live in rural communities really have no idea about how the upstate driving and parking rules differ from those of the city. There are new laws that may not have existed in the old days. We are now legally obliged to move over to the passing lane on a two-lane highway if there is someone stopped on the shoulder. I don’t have to tell you that fines for breaking traffic laws can be very hefty. That seems especially true if you come from a different geographic area than that controlled by the local constabulary. Maybe I’m being unfair about that. I have, however, seen examples of towns and villages where those from elsewhere seem to be more vulnerable to traffic stops by police than the locals.
My point is that breaking parking and traffic laws can pose both personal and economic risk. Part of the problem is ignorance of the law and we all know that ignorance of the law is no excuse. You can’t tell the judge that you didn’t know that driving 80 in a 60 miles per hour zone was a no-no.
On another subject, Great Barrington, Massachusetts, is now known as Great Bearington. Bears seem to be everywhere. In fact, there were three bears that broke into a local house the other day. One was quite large, one was quite small and the third bear was just right. This may have a sort of familiar ring to it. You may think that this is just a recounting of the story Goldilocks and the Three Bears. It really isn’t, you know, but ever since the home invasion by a bear at our neighbor’s house, the Great Bearington legend has grown. Think about it. These bears have to live somewhere. Do they find caves or vegetative places? Where are they? You would think that we would run into these animals but how often have you stumbled over a bear?
This article started about driving. But somehow, as it often does, the column has now morphed into a piece about bears. Be kind and just bear with it. I mean somehow, some way, I really do have to come up with 650 words. If you don’t believe me, just count them.
