Daily Dose of Common Sense

I recently began driving again after a sixteen year car-free existence. I have one question: What happened to the friendly “thanks a lot!” driver wave? No one seems to bother anymore. If another driver does me a solid by letting me in, I give a friendly wave to show appreciation. Some days, I feel as if I’m the only one.

This also applies to pedestrians, cyclists, roller bladers, people on scooters…really everyone. But, there seems to be something about being in a car where people feel they can be rude without repercussion. It’s no wonder there are so many incidents of road rage.

Come on, drivers. Just remember to be polite and people won’t key your car later.

Photo courtesy of Flickr: tedkerwin

In the recession, one suggestion I’ve heard over and over again has been to borrow books and DVDs from local libraries instead of purchasing them. Makes sense, right? Well, if you live in Philadelphia, you may not have the option any longer. All of the libraries in Philly will close on October 2nd if the state Legislature does not act on the budget request.

Yep, a legislative deadlock is to blame. The city has requested a temporary sales-tax hike and a two-year deferral of pension payments in order to generate funding. If this doesn’t happen, the Philly libraries will all shut down at the beginning of next month. Hard to believe, but it appears to be true.

It is so important to support local libraries. Libraries aren’t just for kids. Many adults need libraries, too. In addition to access to books, movies, and other media, libraries provide computer access to many people who otherwise would not have the option. They host great programs and serve as a resource for the community. To give you an idea of what the closings would mean, just read this excerpt from the notice posted by the library:

All branch and regional library programs, including programs for children and teens, after school programs, computer classes, and programs for adults, will be cancelled.

All Parkway Central Library programs, including children programs, programs to support small businesses and job seekers, computer classes and after school programs, will be cancelled. We are exploring the possibility of relocating the Philadelphia Author Series programs to other non-library facilities.

All library visits to schools, day care centers, senior centers and other community centers will cease.

All community meetings at our branch and regional libraries, and the Parkway Central Library, will be cancelled.

All GED, ABE and ESL programs held at Free Library branches will be discontinued, students should contact their teacher to see if other arrangements are being made.

If you live in the area, here is how you can help.

So, get it together, Philly legislators. Do your jobs and keep the libraries open.

I just spotted this child’s Halloween costume at Target.

Yep, it’s a “sassy” vampiress for ages 4 and up. Not only is the costume creepy, but the “sassy” pose by the young girl is also creepy. She looks like a cross between a madame, a riverboat gambler, and a wiccan. And some people wonder why kids today seem to grow up so fast?

Who thought this was a good idea? I know vampires are “hot” this year, with True Blood and the like. But, I really hope parents show a little more sense and let this one sit on the shelves.

Ever driven an ashtray? If you’ve rented a car that has been driven by a heavy smoker, you know exactly what I’m talking about. The smell lingers and gets stale. It’s awful. Hurray for the two major car rental companies who just announced they will ban smoking in their rental cars. It’s about time.

Beginning Oct. 1, Avis and Budget will become the first major rental-car companies to ban smoking in their entire North American fleets and to impose a cleaning fee of up to $250 on customers who smoke in the cars.

“The No. 1 request we get is for a smoke-free car,” says John Barrows, spokesman of the Avis Budget Group, the parent company. He says a common customer complaint is a car that smells of smoke, adding, “We’re addressing both concerns.”

Barrows says employees who drive the vehicles are no longer allowed to smoke and the cars will undergo a new inspection upon return. He says it costs the company more to clean a smoky car, because it often has to be taken out of service longer.

Now, we’re not saying people don’t have a right to smoke. They do. But, it’s one thing to smoke in your own car, where the stink is your own problem. It’s a whole other ball of odor to smoke in a car that doesn’t belong to you. What you do in a rental car affects a lot of other people. And, smoke is one of the worst pervasive odors. That smell cannot be completely removed. Ever.

Just ask hotels. The smell of cigarette smoke is so bad over time that you can’t even have non-smoking rooms next to smoking rooms. They had to create entire FLOORS where smoking is prohibited. And, a hotel employee once told me that in order to change a room from a smoking room to a non-smoking room, everything in the room had to be replaced: the furniture, the carpet, and even the wallpaper and/or paint.

So, smoke ‘em if you got ‘em. Just do it in your own space.

Photo courtesy of Flickr: johntrainor

My grandfather always paid in cash. Never with a check, never with a credit card. He believed that if you didn’t have the cash on hand, you shouldn’t buy it. Well, my grandfather wouldn’t be welcome to eat at the New York City restaurant Commerce. The upscale Greenwich Village restaurant no longer accepts cash.

The owner sited security as a big reason for the policy. Whether he fears getting robbed by thugs or his own employees isn’t clear. Regardless, with no cash around, there’s less chance that some will go missing.

How about the customer’s security? When you use your credit card, you are giving vital personal information that could be sold or misused in the wrong hands. Having waited tables myself, I have witnessed other servers change totals on credit card receipts. I have also heard of servers who tracked down bad tippers (via the internet or phone book) to harass them. How did they track them down? The name on the credit card.

Speaking of waitstaff, I can only imagine that the servers at Commerce are none too pleased about this policy. Yes, the restaurant allows diners to tip in cash if they wish (thank goodness), but most people probably won’t. Why does this matter? Servers get a very (very) low hourly rate and the rest of their income comes from tips. When people tip with cash, the amount a server must claim for tax purposes is nebulous. The IRS assumes the tip was 15 or 20%, but they can’t prove it. However, credit card tips are there in black and white, which means the server pays more in taxes. (On the flip side, I’m sure the restaurant’s accountant is pleased because it makes doing the books a whole lot easier.)

The “privilege” to accept American Express, Visa, Master Card, Discover Card, etc. isn’t free. The restaurant pays a fee to the credit card company on every transaction. So, it would seem in this economy that businesses would be moving the other direction: cash only. Leave it to a New York City restaurant to buck the trend.

What really bugs me most about this policy is that it smacks of elitism. The restaurant’s co-owner said,

“If you don’t have a credit card, you can use a debit card,” said the restaurant’s co-owner, Tony Zazula. “If you don’t have a debit card, you probably don’t have a checking account. And if you don’t have a checking account, you probably shouldn’t be eating at Commerce to begin with.”

Yes, most upscale diners have credit cards and debit cards. But, this attitude is just plain snobby. Besides, shouldn’t the customer have a right to pay however he or she wants? The policy seems a little out of step with the old “the customer is always right” mantra. My guess is that this restaurant isn’t going to bend over backwards for your dining experience.

So, even if you stop by the bar at Commerce to have a $13 cocktail, plan on paying with your credit card. I could tell you what my grandfather would have said about that, but I’ve forgotten how to spell my Italian curse words.

Photo courtesy of Flickr: Andres Rueda

Today’s common sense quote comes courtesy of an old friend, who happens to be wise beyond his years.

“There is little difference between a bathroom stall and a voting booth. One really shouldn’t try to hold conversations between them.”
–Constantine Soteriades via Facebook

Right on! LBJ famously used to host meetings while he was in the bathroom. Gross! Good if you want to make everyone super uncomfortable, I guess. But, for us regular folks, it’s best to not talk to others while doing your business.

Photo courtesy of Flickr: ttarasiuk

If you’re wearing a microphone, it’s important to know when it’s on and when it’s off. Especially if you’re a married politician. An Orange County, California GOP lawmaker forgot his mic was live, and his bragging about various trysts was broadcast to everyone during a committee hearing.

In the KCAL report, Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee Vice Chairman Michael Duvall (R-Yorba Linda) appears not to realize that his microphone is on during a lull in a July committee hearing and talks about his conquest of two women.

Reporter Dave Lopez then reports that Duvall says on the tape that the women with whom he has been having sex are lobbyists.

The report alleges that one of the lobbyists works for a utility with business before Duvall’s committee but does not name her.

Sleazy? Check. Conflict of interest? Check. Incredibly stupid? Check.

The video can be seen on Gawker.

Someone nominate this guy for a Darwin award. Or, at least get him fired.

Summer is officially over. With some stores putting up their Christmas decorations in August, it seems as if summer is getting the bum’s rush. Besides getting shorter, summer is changing before our eyes. There are some traditional summertime staples that are fighting for survival.

The Clothesline

Remember your grandmother hanging her wet laundry outside to dry? The practice started to go out of fashion a few decades ago. But in the recession, you might consider hanging your clothes outside instead of running your dryer. Not so fast, say many towns and cities who consider clotheslines an eyesore. The opponents worry about the reduction in property values if everyone starts putting their skivvies outside. So, across the country, folks are fighting for the right to air their dirty laundry.

And, who can blame them? Summertime electric bills are no laughing matter. So, in not running the dryer, a reduction in power use would add up over time:

More than 5% of electricity used in homes goes to power clothes dryers, according to a U.S. Department of Energy report that looked at energy use in 2001.

Besides, have you smelled clothes that have been drying in the sun on a clothesline? There’s a reason why fabric softeners and laundry detergents try to bottle that fragrance.

Ease up, community powers-that-be. A few clotheslines here and there does not mean the neighborhood is becoming a tenement.

The Ice Cream Man

The sing-song jingle of the ice cream man is a memory we all share from childhood. You heard it and you ran like hellfire to find the truck. Well, the ice cream man is taking a beating these days. First, parents complained about the song the trucks play. It was too loud, was played when the truck was stopped, or played after dark. Now, many parents are railing against the continued presence of the ice cream vendors, especially if it happens to be nearby some kids. (I hate to point out the obvious, but isn’t that the target audience?)

The bottom line is that some parents want those sweet treats as far away from their kids as possible. (Apparently, the word “no” is hard to say to some kids.) And, in the times of rampant childhood obesity, people are listening. However, “according to Mister Softee, its typical small vanilla cone is 170 to 190 calories.” A lot of other snacks are much worse for kids than that.

We understand your kids drive you crazy when the truck shows up. But, the ice cream man only shows up a few months out of the year. Don’t ruin it for the rest of us who want the occasional frozen treat.

Reruns

The lazy days of summer aren’t that, well, lazy anymore. TV is no exception. It used to be that you could catch up on all the shows you missed during the year. Forget to see a few episodes of The Love Boat? This was no problem because you could see them (usually starring Charo) again and again over the course of the summer.

Reality TV mostly dominates the summer line up now. So, instead of reliving my favorite 30 Rock episodes, I had to run screaming from More to Love. Or, when I might have had a chance to check out struggling shows like, “Dollhouse” or “Parks & Recreation,” I had to take a shower after seeing the ads for “I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here.” Yes, I have a DVR. But, it’s nice to flip around and catch an old episode of “The Office” or “Ugly Betty”. Catching up is all too rare in the new summer “reality” of TV.

Some scripted shows, like Mad Men, come back during the summer, too. So, while summertime used to be a time to forget about TV for a while, you really can’t anymore.

Photos courtesy of Flickr: Cyron, duluoz cats

As summer comes to a close, parents can breathe a sigh of relief that long days at the park are over. As I reflect on these past few months, I have to wonder about some of the things I observed about other kids while at the playground. Some are mildly annoying, but some are downright infuriating.

1. Unsupervised Kids
Yes, I saw plenty of parents and nannies turn small kids loose at the playground. One afternoon, I saw three kids hurt themselves in various ways on the play equipment. The caregiver would then appear from out of nowhere and tell the child it was time to go home. How about paying attention to the kid before he/she gets hurt? Making the child leave after an injury only punishes he/she for something that is the caregiver’s fault: not paying attention.

2. Too Old for the Park
What, exactly, are tweens and teenagers doing at a playground for small children? While I applaud their attempt to get exercise, it’s just not safe for the smaller kids. The bigger kids run around and push past the toddlers, and I’ve seen plenty of teens do dangerous things on the play equipment. Isn’t there a soccer field or basketball court you kids should be on instead?

3. Up is Down, and Down is Up
It really drives me crazy when caregivers let kids go up slides the wrong way. Yes, it’s fun to climb. But, when your kid is climbing up the slide, other kids can’t slide down. More important than the kids who are waiting, every time a kid climbs up the wrong way, he/she risks an injury. I saw plenty of collisions where a kid was going up and another kid was sliding down. And, this happened with supervised kids, too. Come on, parents.

4. Swing Hogs
Usually a playground only has a few swings and they are in hot demand. Lines form with anxious kids who try to wait patiently for their turn. However, some parents act oblivious to the line and let their kid swing as long as he/she wants. Move it, swing hogs! Let everyone have a turn.

5. Inappropriate Park Toys
I actually saw a toddler with a baseball bat at the park this summer. Kid swinging a bat + other little kids = BAD IDEA! But, also in this category is any toy that your kid doesn’t want to share, lose, or damage. If it’s a family heirloom, it has no business at the park.

I probably sound like a curmudgeon. But, I’m not. I think everyone should be respectful of the all the kids and parents at the park. For most parents, not doing the above is common sense. For others, however, please read and learn. You’re ruining the park for the rest of us. So, let’s do better next summer.

Photo courtesy of Flickr: foundphotoslj

A man in Florida claims he opened a can of Diet Pepsi, took a sip, and got a mouth full of rotting frog. Hmmmmm…. The FDA confirms the can contained amphibian parts, but I’m sure skeptical of how the frog got into the can in the first place. Chances are, based on the packaging process, the couple put it in there themselves. If not, the frog’s presence would have to be the result of a worker placing it in the can deliberately. Seems unlikely.

Most claims of this sort turn out to be hoaxes. Remember the woman who found a severed finger in her Wendy’s chili? Turned out the finger came from the husband’s friend, who lost it in an industrial accident. The big tip off? The finger hadn’t been cooked, so investigators smelled a scam.

The FDA has launched an investigation into how the frog got into the can. They have already checked the Pepsi bottling plant from where the can originated. No “adverse conditions or association to this problem” were found. Next, I assume they will be looking at the couple involved with a more discerning eye.

Speaking of the couple, they are seeking legal advice. Even if it were a legit case–which I doubt–is suing the company appropriate? To me, it just smacks of a desperate play to extort money from a big corporation.

So, drink up! The chemical additives and acid in the soda will do far more harm than anything else you might find in there.

Photo courtesy of Flickr: sailorbill