He Parked Like an A-Hole

Guess what I left for this guy? ??? hehehe

He is actually parked over not one, not two, not three – but FOUR parking places.  I took this picture in a parking lot near Cote Vertu Metro.

Respect ‘da Van

Props to C&C on their newest family member!

My Hero! “Jimmy Justice”

As many of you know, I have a little tiny teeny-weeny case of Road Rage. Just a little.

I blog about it often. My most recent entry was about a fabulous website I found called www.youparklikeanasshole.com. You can read my entry here.

Anyways, I’ve been hearing about this guy on a few places around the web. . . .

He calls himself “Jimmy Justice” and he’s goal – to catch the people who give traffic violation tickets in NYC BREAKING THE LAWS themselves.

You can read a story about him here. Here is his YouTube profile page, you can see ALL the videos he has posted there.

Seriously, it feels like a little bit of justice. . . .

I’m thinking I should become Jimmy’s Canadian counterpart “Joey Justice”

Has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?

Parking Ticket!

I have found the most brilliant website EVER. Ever. I mean ever!

As a big time road rager this website gives me a non-violent means of retaliation! Check out this website!

www.youparklikeanasshole.com

 

WHY?? Sick of a car taking up two spaces on the street? How about a car too close to yours? What about the car at the mall parked diagonally? Now you can do something about it. Simply download a notice and place it on the car’s windshield. The owner of the vehicle will be informed of their asshole status as well as the proper tips to improve their poor parking techniques. It’s time to put an end to asshole parking, or at least to make fun of it.

www.youparklikeanasshole.com

I’m stoked! I’ve printed out my tickets! How about you??

www.youparklikeanasshole.com

 

 

Monday Melee (June 25 2007)

A Fracas Project! You’re invited to participate. Get details and see the participant list here.

Joey The broken record : The Long Weekend Driving Edition.

This weekend was St Jean Baptiste in Quebec, this coming weekend is another long weekend for Canada Day (and Independence Day) .

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY BROTHER MATTHEW!

The Monday Melee Questions:

1. The Misanthtropic: Name something (about humanity) you absolutely hate.

I hate to sound like a broken record, but I really really hate this.

Long weekend drivers.

The traffic, the jams, the line ups. . . . The people with caravans/campers on the backs of the gas-guzzling SUVs. People in mobile homes. Kids who have just gotten their licenses going to the cottage by themselves for the first time.

All the cops on the roads. All the motorcycles on the road.

If its about driving on a long weekend, you name it, I hate it.

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2. The Meretricious: Expose something or someone that’s phony, fraudulent or bogus.

The false serge in gas prices. Buggers!

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3. The Malcontent: Name something you’re unhappy with.

The dead bug carcasses now stuck to the front of my car, that I will have to SCRAPE off

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4. The Meritorious: Give someone credit for something and name it if you can.

Colin – for doing most of the weekend driving, so I didn’t end up with an aneurysm caused by road rage

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5. The Mirror: See something good about yourself and name it.

I didn’t get road rage this weekend.

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6. The Make-Believe: Name something you wish for.

A teleporter like Star Trek, to avoid traffic.

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Parking in Quebec

This picture was taken from my table at La Belle Province last weekend with Colin, Cheryl and Michael. . . . check out where the cars are to where the lines are.  Let me say this is ‘good’ parking next to some places.

Yet another thing I hate about driving here. . .  .

NYC Yellow Taxis to Go Green by 2012

The New York City mayor, Michael Bloomberg, plans on having all yellow taxis replaced with hybrid cars by 2012.  He released his plans today, and I must say I’m well impressed and hope other large cities take note.

The plan is to replace 1000 yellow cabs by 2008, with the rest (13 000 in total) being phased out by 2012.  NYC already has over 300 on the streets now, more than any other metropolitian city in the USA. New York City law states that all commerical taxi cabs must be replaced every 5 years at max.

There are numerous and obvious benifits to this plan, but the negatives include cabs that are still not accessible to wheelchair and other handicaped riders and this scheme will also not govern call-for-hire cars (which moreso work in Brooklyn and Queens, opposed to the yellow cabs of Manhatten).

Getting Rear Ended sucks Arse.

We got rear ended this morning.

I was at a stop sign and the lady behind me just kept driving, up my arse.

There is no physical (to the eye) damage to the car, but I’m taking it in to be sure.  If there is damage the lady has been told to expect the bill.

My neck is stiff from being tense, and all I’ve been able smell all morning is “airbag”.

And anyone who has been in an accident of any size or magnitude that the airbag goes off knows you become very senstive to that scent.  I think it triggers fear and cold for me

I’m fine.  No bumps or bruises.  I’m shaken, as is expected.  

April Showers Brings May Flowers ::: Winter Snow Redux

Montreal got hit with another blast of winter.

I had started an entry earlier that I was going to post tonight when I got home about my purple crocuses starting to bloom.  I wanted to get a picture to post, and do a side by side from the earlier lightly snow covered buds I blogged about earlier here.

The drive home was dreadful, its like as soon as it melts (and subsequently comes back) everyone forgets how to drive in the snow.  Tons of accidents, very slow roads.

I’m grumpy tonight.

Here are the pictures of flowers. . . . .flowers make me happier, even if they are covered in snow.
April 6, 2007

April 12 2007 (this picture shows the same flowers as above)

Minou watching the snow

Périodes de Dégel & Potholes GALORE

With the spring thaw, its that time of year in Montreal where the roads are a little more trecherous than usual.  Putting aside the CRAPPY driving (as mentioned here, only last week), the thaw sees large amounts of water on the roads (that occassionaly still re-freezes with colder night time temperatures).  Also this time of year is when all the potholes created over the winter are ‘unearthed’

The quick and often temperature changes causes alot of road shifting, and the potholes here in Montreal are HUGE!

Please be careful when driving, watch out for potholes, and respect the workers in each of the degel areas . . . . .

Transports Quebec

Thaw zones and periods 

The ministère des Transports du Québec reminds heavy vehicle users and shippers that, as each year, authorized load limits are reduced during the spring thaw period in order to take into account the weaker load bearing capacity of the road network during that period.

For the 2007 spring thaw period, the revised dates the load restrictions start and end in each of the thaw zones are as follows

Zone 1

Zone 2

Zone 3

I’ll Pass on Passing Thanks.

I’m getting so sick and tired of the crappy driving here in Quebec.  Its just dreadful and applauling.

I’ve blogged about the driving here quite a bit.  here, here and here as examples.  That doesn’t include the two driving accidents I blogged about either (those were in Ontario).

 I just don’t understand how hard it is to follow some simple rules.  I am no saint when driving but just a few COMMON SENSE things I aways do, like signally and not weaving when driving.

When do people insist on changing lanes and passing in such an unsafe manner.  I bet these are the same people without seat belts on, smoking away as their baby cries in the back.  They turn around, and tell the kid to shut the heck up because they are on the phone.

Geeeesh!

I wish I could have a limo and driver every day. . . .

Kitty on the Keys

Colin and I went on a date night tonight.  We went to Montana’s for some steak for dinner, and off to the movies to see the new Frank Miller movie ’300′.  Totally not my cup of tea, and I’ve made it very clear to Colin he totally owes me a chick flick after sitting through all 2 hours of that movie.

In short the movie is about a war between the Spartans and the Persians. . .  .and thats pretty much it, battle scene after battle scene after battle scene.  I don’t mind the occassional battle scene, but when thats it, well – not my cup of tea.

Before we left the house we just couldn’t find the car keys.  We searched in all the usual places.  Marty and Minou watched in amusement from the front windows, Manny watched us from the front hallway stairs.  We were convinced we just wouldn’t find them, and that date night was a bust.

Then my mischievious little tuxedo thought he should be cute and roll over the stairs with his head cocked upside down, there underneath his 8lb frame were the car keys.

I swear I could see a little grin of satifaction on this face.

little bugger.

Date night was saved.