The wallet above is more than 20 years old. It has a history and I've had it for so long, I keep forgetting its history.

I bought the wallet on April 19, 1995 at Potomac Mills Mall in Virginia. Why do I remember the exact date? Because it was the day of the Oklahoma City bombing - but I did not know about the bombing until I was driving home from Potomac Mills.

My son and I went to that mall more often than I'd liked because, in 1995, it had the only IKEA within striking distance of Washington, D.C. and it had a Chico's outlet - as well as many other outlet stores. And that week was his Spring break - so we went shopping. 

While walking throughout the mall [which is large,] I saw the occasional television set in store windows showing a bombing. I didn't think anything of it other than all of the TVs were showing the same movie. On the way home in the car we heard about the bombing and that's the first my son and I knew of it. [And that's why I remember the exact date I got the wallet.]

Since that time, the wallet has led a long life in my pocket, in my backpack, in my fanny pack. or in whatever. In those 20+ years, the wallet has been drenched in the Connecticut River, been dampened by Atlantic and Pacific sea air, been dampened by New England and mid-Atlantic snow and thunderstorms and by the Pacific North West rains and Cascade snow.

It's been part of my life through many moves, lots of mileage in cars, lots of ski trips and lots of life. My son has gone from a teenager to a young adult in his late 30s. Latly, as part of my end of year cleaning, thinking of cleaning stuff up, etc., I took a good look at the now very dirty [almost Velcro-less] wallet and saw it was no longer a bright purple and decided I finally needed a new wallet. 

And here it is. A black wallet! My very first thought on opening the wallet was wow - I forgot how good Velcro can be when it is new. And I saw on the tag that it's made by the original Swiss Army Knife makers. I think it might outlive me and it will have its own history to tell at some point.

​

I grew up in New York City.
It’s where I first learned to walk, and learned to be a pedestrian.
It’s also where I learned to drive.

I left New York in my early 20s, and since then have lived in other cities where there are lots of cars, lots of pedestrians, and these days - a growing number of senior citizens.

It dismayed me to read the following in a blog post about a section of Brooklyn's way to "combat" senior citizens being killed by drivers.

As of early September, eight of 15 pedestrians killed by drivers in the Brooklyn South command were age 65 or older.

To combat the trend, precincts in the area have distributed fliers and notices to residents giving tips to older pedestrians on how to navigate the streets safely.

The fliers suggest wearing “light or bright colored clothing so drivers will notice you,” waiting for a fresh walk signal to cross and treating driveways with the same caution before crossing as if they were roads.

​

What this first reminded me of was the negative commentary in the news and elsewhere blaming rape on women. "Women should wear longer clothes," "women should not have too much of their body exposed," "women ought not to be out after dark," "women ought not to walk outside alone, etc." Basically a litany of all the things that women should not do in order to not put themselves at risk of being raped. 

Nowhere do we ever ever read anything like “how about we teach the boys to not rape women? or "not see women as sex objects?” Nope - it’s blame the victim - NEVER blame the perpetrator!

So now - taking a page from that same type of commentary, we blame the victims themselves for being hit by cars. They didn’t wear the right thing, or maybe they were out after dark. Or they did not wait for a fresh walk sign?

These pedestrians were in the crosswalks, obeying traffic rules… but let’s blame them and tell them how to behave… Can’t blame drivers can we?

I’m still a pretty fast walker - even for my age. And, yes, I cross the street seeing the countdown clock is not fresh - it may be midway through the cycle. I know I can cross that road in that time. So why should I wait for a fresh cycle? Does my time not count? Maybe I have an appointment. Maybe I have a train or bus to catch. Why is the driver’s need to hurry more important than my life?

Comments? Thoughts?

My heat wave has been over for a couple of days and I took the dog for a few long walks today. I realized again that "we" walk 3 to 4 miles a day. That means I walk 3 to 4 miles a day but she puts in a lot more mileage "playing tennis."

I also realize that having a dog, especially a young dog with a lot of energy is a good model for me. She keeps me energized and she certainly keeps me getting a lot of exercise.

Is my exuberant dog below but even if you have one like in the picture above enjoy your dog get out and exercise with your dog get energized with your dog.

Comments? Thoughts?