It must be a rite of passage for oldsters. Buy a car that is too big for you so you can drive it too slow and too clumsily. Be it a Buick Park Avenue, the popular Ford Crown Vic, or the old standby Caddy; the big car with old people in it is a ubiquitous sight in Pittsburgh.
I had my own run in with one last night. It’s the same old story, two little old people in a big ass car attempt to parallel park using the brail parking method and they bang into your bumper several times in order to squeeze into a spot that should be large enough to fit an 18 wheeler.
If it’s not ok for a 16 year old to hit the cone on the parallel parking test, what then, makes it ok for a 70 year old to do it on the street? I understand that your reflexes are slower, and you just aren’t as sharp as you used to be. Well here’s a whacky idea ol’ timer: Get a goddamn Smart Car, or a Mini, or any other LITTLE car. Just not this behemoth that you don’t have the slightest idea of how to park or drive. Eventhough. You. Live. In. The. City.
So please dear old person, you still live in the city, and god bless you for that, but get a new car, a smaller car, it’s amazing how much room a smaller European car has in it. What is the point of all that luxurious room if you can’t drive or park the damn thing?
Showing posts with label Silvertops. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Silvertops. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Going Down the Tubes…or maybe not.
There’s been a lot made of the tomfoolery that occurs weekendly (I know it’s not a word) in the Saaaaaath Side. There’s also an increasing effort to curtail it. See a couple of examples here and here.
Here’s my take. The South Side is the youngest “hippest” thing(like Pittsburgh has such a thing) going on in Pittsburgh. Does it have its problems, absolutely, but so does every other neighborhood.
In my extremely well informed opinion, the rub in the South Side comes because it is the youngest neighborhood in Pittsburgh. In a lot of other neighborhoods, the silvertop to 20-30 something ratio is much higher in favor of the silvertops. In the South Side, it’s totally different. The 20-30 somethings outnumber the silvertops by a lot. When the 20-30 somethings engage in things that 20-30 somethings do (get drunk, fight, screw), it leads to friction. The silvertops want a quiet peaceful neighborhood. The South Side is not that place.
At the risk of sounding like an ass, maybe it’s time for the silvertops to move on. A great thing about Pittsburgh is how stay put, and while I don’t think that should change, we need to move forward as a city, and to do that our neighborhoods need to be allowed to do the same. If you don't like it there, maybe you shouldn't be there. There are plenty of 20-30 somethings who would be glad to take your place.
What makes the South Side crazy with a lot of urinators and occasional fighting morons is also what gives it its eclectic feel. The South Side is the only neighborhood in the city to boast everything from corner bars, to dance clubs, high end retail, high end dining, and corporate headquarters (to name just a few of the diverse aspects of the neighborhood). Other neighborhoods can claim a few of those things but no other neighborhood can really claim the mix of all those things (and more) which the South Side does. It’s also the only neighborhood to really “complete” a transformation from its industrial past to a popular present day destination.
You want to crack down on a lot of the negative shit; then by all means, get more police, put up more cameras, whatever. However, don’t change its character. This city is a lot less of a city without the South Side.
Here’s my take. The South Side is the youngest “hippest” thing(like Pittsburgh has such a thing) going on in Pittsburgh. Does it have its problems, absolutely, but so does every other neighborhood.
In my extremely well informed opinion, the rub in the South Side comes because it is the youngest neighborhood in Pittsburgh. In a lot of other neighborhoods, the silvertop to 20-30 something ratio is much higher in favor of the silvertops. In the South Side, it’s totally different. The 20-30 somethings outnumber the silvertops by a lot. When the 20-30 somethings engage in things that 20-30 somethings do (get drunk, fight, screw), it leads to friction. The silvertops want a quiet peaceful neighborhood. The South Side is not that place.
At the risk of sounding like an ass, maybe it’s time for the silvertops to move on. A great thing about Pittsburgh is how stay put, and while I don’t think that should change, we need to move forward as a city, and to do that our neighborhoods need to be allowed to do the same. If you don't like it there, maybe you shouldn't be there. There are plenty of 20-30 somethings who would be glad to take your place.
What makes the South Side crazy with a lot of urinators and occasional fighting morons is also what gives it its eclectic feel. The South Side is the only neighborhood in the city to boast everything from corner bars, to dance clubs, high end retail, high end dining, and corporate headquarters (to name just a few of the diverse aspects of the neighborhood). Other neighborhoods can claim a few of those things but no other neighborhood can really claim the mix of all those things (and more) which the South Side does. It’s also the only neighborhood to really “complete” a transformation from its industrial past to a popular present day destination.
You want to crack down on a lot of the negative shit; then by all means, get more police, put up more cameras, whatever. However, don’t change its character. This city is a lot less of a city without the South Side.
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