Saturday, September 11, 2010

Life's too short

You remember precisely where you were and what you were doing when you first became aware of the attacks that occurred nine years ago today, don’t you? As sure as our grandparents remember the news of Pearl Harbor and our parents remember the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the heartlessness of the attacks on 9/11/01 shocked our spirits. The images are forever seared into the heart, mind and soul of America’s living memory. No one was unaffected by those events. No one. For Americans, the world as we knew it ended that day. Consider this: Is any one of us living the same life we were on 9/10/01? I’m not.

Each year on 9/11, I remember one young man who was lost in particular - John Reo. His father, Armand Reo, was my principal back in 1979 when I graduated from Troy High. I respected Mr. Reo. He was kind and fair. In 1992, I hawked burgers at Troy High’s cafeteria and John, a popular jock, was a regular in my burger line. He was always respectful and polite. He was a stand up kid. He went on in life to work for Cantor Fitzgerald. Today I’ll be thinking about The Reos and all the families mourning the sudden losses of 9/11. Today I’ll thank a fireman, an ambulance driver, an emt and a cop.  Today I'll mourn again.  Today, I'll cry.

My personal motto changed that day to “Life's too short to be miserable so get out there and enjoy it”.  I will get out there and enjoy every moment of every day. I will seek to treasure each life that touch’s mine, even if only in the slightest way. I will strive to show kindness whenever I can. I will live today because tomorrow is not a guarantee.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Learn from Their Mistakes

Just like my grandfather, I read three sections of the paper daily: the op-eds, the blotter and the obits. From these three sections, the vibrations of our city’s life can be felt. The op-eds speak to a variety of issues, keeping us informed of the public's opinions.  From the blotter, we are educated as to who got caught doing what where, sometimes how they were caught. The obits tell us who has left their families and friends with a void that can never be filled. Sometimes, reading the obits isn't necessary though to hear of someone's passing.  Some deaths make news. 

There were three deaths reported in The Record this past week or so that did just that.  In two of these deaths, the driver’s anti-social behavior caused their own death - fortunately, not anyone else’s. In the third case, the pedestrian wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings. All sad, all avoidable. There are lessons to be learned from these deaths.

The young man in such a hurry to get somewhere that he never made it to
Lesson: Driving like a maniac will not get you someplace any quicker.
              In fact, it could prevent you from getting there at all.

The druggie too scared to get caught that he ate his drugs
Lesson: It’s one way to avoid jail time – just not a good way

The pedestrian who stepped out from between two parked cars at just the wrong time
Lesson: Look both ways TWICE before crossing a street and use crosswalks. Even if they take you 50 feet out of your way, they’re there for your protection.

Monday, September 6, 2010

Heavy Traffic

Tell someone else that only people living in South Troy will be affected by the increased truck traffic generated should the requested expansion of the County Waste Transfer Station at our southern gateway be approved, I’m not buying it. Have ya ever lived on a busy road? I have more than once. Anyone now living on or near a heavily traveled road knows exactly what I’m talking about.

People living near Mr. Subb’s or Wal-Green’s on Hoosick can’t open their windows because of the exhaust fumes generated by vehicles waiting at the traffic light.  Residents along Oakwood get a little shake to go along with their noise pollution, with trucks coming down Route 40 so heavy and so fast, they make houses rattle. Neighbors where Pawling and Route 2 converge regularly enjoy the sounds of jake brakes being applied as drivers slow down for that traffic light. Route 378 is, at best, a daily traffic jam with trucks and cars jockeying for the roadway. These very different parts of Troy all have the same issue. Heavy traffic.

For the people living on or near these roads, noise and air pollution are something they deal with every day. It's no fun.  “Well, if they don’t like it, why don’t they just move?” you say. My answer is “So, how easy would it be for you to move?” Throughout Troy, you’ll find families that have lived in their homes for multiple generations. Many have been in their homes long before these roads were expanded. Simply put, they were there before the traffic was. Some are elderly, some disabled, some depend on social programs and some work three jobs trying to support their family. Some incomes don't allow broad housing options.

Many of Troy’s roads are main thoroughfares, traveled by big, heavy rigs. There are roads where the noise NEVER stops ‘cause traffic’s ALWAYS flowing. There’s reason for all real citizens of Troy to be concerned about increasing truck capacity down in the South End. As traffic increases, the potential for our infrastructure (both above and below ground) to fail also increases. Failures are expensive. Guess who gets to pay for them?