Transportation | Piss and Moan

Tax revolt

Posted on November 8, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Once again, in WA state, there has been a tax revolt.

People are tired of paying unnecessarily high taxes on things like car registration tabs.

We have had two initiatives in this state in the last several decades where the people have clearly said, “ENOUGH!” Twice the citizens of the state (not just one city and county) have said, “$30 – no more, no less.” This is one of the very few times that the rest of the state has told Seattle and King County what it wants versus the other way around, where the population of Seattle and King County out vote the rest of the state to dictate what happens in areas around the state.

So, the latest version passed of the car tabs issue passed on Tuesday, again.

And for what will be the second time, the government is going to sue (yes, you read that right, the government) to get their taxes back. Let that sink in. The government is going to sue to stop the will of the people, who used the democratic process and voted on it, just so they can get their funding back.

If that doesn’t smack of government abuse and overreach, I don’t know what does.

It just goes to show you, once you give the government the ability to oversee your rights, freedom, and money…

…you’ll lose all three.

Defrost

Posted on October 14, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Programmers for my car’s electronics got it wrong. Not sure what the thought behind it was, but it’s irritating nonetheless.

My 2018 Kia Niro has been a great car, but after having it a year now there are a few things that bothersome. They are probably small things, but you know when you spend that much money on things you want to make sure people have spent time on the little things because that’s what makes it stand apart from the others.

Well, there are two issues that both have to do with the way the Defrost functions work.

First, the defrost for the windshield has a weird setting. When the function is set to be used, the fan automatically comes on at Level 3, EVERY TIME you start the car and no matter where it was previously set. Thus, it starts blowing cold air the second the car starts. I am constantly turning down the fan. I do like to always have the fan running for air glow, but it would really be nice if it just stayed at the level I set it rather than resetting itself every dang time.

Finally, the Rear Defrost button does’t have an automatic turnoff timer. It just stays on and on and on, until you look down and see it is still on and turn it off. How stupid is that? I think every car I have own previously had an automatic timer on that function.

I was recently asked if I had found anything I didn’t like about the car. There are very many things I could name off. These were two that came up right off the top of my head.

Two Thursdays

Posted on September 26, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

My regular telecommute days are Wednesday and Thursday. However, that last two Thursdays have had meetings in the office that I have had to attend, so I telecommuted on Tuesday instead.

As such, this is the second Thursday in a row that I have made the hour (+/-) trek to the office. And this is the second Thursday in a row that the traffic has been less that tolerable. More than an hour to work, again.

Seriously, what is with Thursdays?? Why can’t people drive on this day of the week?

I am seriously starting to contemplate calling in sick on Thursdays if I have to go to the office and can’t telecommute. Think they would notice?

Lack of memory

Posted on September 9, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by veeterzy on Pexels.com

Rain.

We have it here in the Pacific Northwest about nine months of the year. Yeah, it’s probably less than that, but it sure feels that way at times. Anyway, it’s something we have a lot of and we spent a good portion of our year getting it.

So why, when summer ends and the rain returns, do NW drivers have such a hard time remembering how to drive in the stuff? It’s not like it’s a mystery and it isn’t a new skill that has to be obtained. This should be “old hat” by now!

Seriously, people, get a grip on that steering wheel and slow down. It won’t hurt you unless you’re stupid…

Maybe what little optimism I have is being too generous.

I keep hoping.

I’ll stop.

Park not!

Posted on September 4, 2019 by backuphill

photo of brown labrador retriever sitting in front of driveway

Photo by Chris F on Pexels.com

Get your #@$%&#! car off my driveway!

Alright, bear with me here. I am trying really hard to not be an arse-hole, but when someone does something blatantly just because they can when they know they shouldn’t…well, that just burns the hell outta me. Do you think I am being unreasonable?

When I first moved into my current house, it had a gravel driveway. I didn’t like it (call me a sissy if you want) because when I washed the car I would drag the hose around and then it would be covered in small bits of gravel and dirt and not very pleasant to pick up because it was all grimy.

Anyway, I happened to fall into an opportunity to get it blacktopped. So, now it is a nice smooth and surface to park on and to wash the cars on. Now, it’s been nine years since the blacktop was done. It has been seal-coated twice in that time and it continues to show signs of wear over time. It’s starting to crumble on the edges. Its starting to crack where tree roots exist under the driveway. It is starting to sag in one spot where a heavy city truck decided to turn around in our driveway. And, there are some spots of the driveway from where vehicles have dripped fluids.

There’s where the rub comes in! I know EVERY single drip spot on the driveway and pay close attention to them. They are signs to me. They tell me if something on the vehicle needs attention. At a time in the past there was a car that parked in the driveway (because it was mine) that dripped an awful lot until it was replaced. Why did I park it in the driveway and let it leave spots on the driveway? Because it’s MY driveway!

So, now the issue. There are others who have parked on the driveway who also have vehicles that drip fluids. They know this. It isn’t a something they didn’t know about. It wasn’t new to them. I have asked them not to park in the driveway because I don’t want extra spots on the driveway that need to be cleaned the next time maintenance needs to be done. Plus, it causes me stress not knowing if it came from one of our vehicles or not and then I have to figure it out. So, there are several other places to park that are close to the house that is in gravel or grass where they can drip away and it isn’t inconvenient at all.

But NOOOOOO, they still park in the driveway like they live here! It just burns me up. The disrespect is irritating. Are they doing it on purpose? I don’t know. Did they honestly forget? I don’t know and I don’t care.

Just don’t do it! It’s mine and I don’t wanna share with your POS car! Go away and take your car with you! Don’t come back until you figure out where to properly park!

Am I being unreasonable? Unfair? Possessive? Or, is what I have requested reasonable?

Really bugged

Posted on August 27, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Valeriia Miller on Pexels.com

No indicator.

No indication something bad was about to happen.

Strangely odd in a modern car filled with tech and sensors.

On the way home during the latest road trip across the state, I was flying along the highway (in one of those sections that isn’t under construction) and bugs are splattering all over the windshield. One particularly messy bug (must have been a big, fat, juicy one!) messed up the windshield.

I went to clean the windshield and the washer fluid spurts a few times and then nothing. Nothing! So the wipers pretty much spread all that juiciness all of the windshield. Now my semi-obscured view of the roadway is worse than when I turned on the wipers.

That’s odd. I didn’t get a warning indicator on the dash or anything. How can I be out of wiper fluid? I thought to myself. As it turns out, this modern car that is only a year old has no such thing. NONE! As I filled up the fluid last night (a whole gallon) I took a look at the owner’s manual. Lot of dashboard indicators are shown and explained. None for wiper fluid. What??

I like my car. I did research and I feel like I got a good deal when I purchases it. But, this one feature sullies the otherwise good feelings I had about it. The 2018 Kia Niro has no windshield wiper fluid indicator. What was a five star car is now a three star car. I feel cheated. Scammed. I may have to trade the thing in now.

What feature on your car were you surprised it didn’t have, either before or after you bought it?

Road trip

Posted on August 23, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Nextvoyage on Pexels.com

I’ve got a half day of work today and then I am taking a road trip across the state. It’s for pleasure, but I am starting to wonder why I did this to myself.

This will be the third weekend in a row where I hit the road and cross the mountains to the other side of the state. If you have have been following along, the state of our roads is constant road construction right now…so I just know I am asking for more abuse on the road with traffic and travel time.

Thus, I will try to put on my “patience pants” and not get road rage.

OK, I probably won’t and you’ll be subjected to yet another blog about the perils of travel on the road and the stupidity of Washingtonian drivers.

Sorry, not sorry.

Lane closure

Posted on August 19, 2019 by backuphill

low angle photography of orange excavator under white clouds

Photo by Anamul Rezwan on Pexels.com

I have said it in the past but I am going to say it again. Sorry if it sounds like I am a broken record, but WADOT (Washington State Department of Transportation) seriously has to do a better job – not just them, but the contractors they hire as well.

It was another painful travel weekend. It think it was three weeks ago I mentioned the reduction of lanes on a major interstate highway (it’s actually I-5, a federal highway) and how badly it affected the traffic on a Friday night. Well, this last Friday was no different. Miles and miles and miles of lane closures and not a soul in sight doing any work! While progress may be getting done, it surely doesn’t appear like it and they are in no hurry to get it done. It’s kind of ridiculous really.

So, yesterday (Sunday for those of you keeping track), a major north/south highway had ALL of the northbound lanes closed. That’s right, I-405 was closed with only one lane (a collector/distributor lane) getting by. That means five lanes diverted to one. To top it off, they didn’t close on-ramps that directly affected that one diverted lane, so merging traffic and diverted traffic had to fight for the same space. Ultimately, that mean five lanes got bottle-necked and didn’t have a steady flow. Kind of a CF if you ask me!

Look, I get that construction needs to get done. I am fully aware of the condition of the roadways. But, let’s be honest here. These days, there is never a good time to close highways and there is never a good time to avoid the hassle.

BUT, what doesn’t appear to be happening is that WADOT isn’t requiring construction crews to complete the work in the fastest time possible (overnight work, 24/7, until it is done). Traffic volumes are much lower at night and it affects for fewer people/travelers when work is done then. And, let’s face it, with the technology that is available these days there is no reason work can’t be done at night.

Get it together WADOT! You are costing people money and time.

Delayed

Posted on July 19, 2019 by backuphill

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

This post is officially brought to you by road construction delays.

It isn’t a sponsored post, but should be.

Road construction on my commute route that was supposed to completed by 5am this morning wasn’t done at the appointed time. This is on a major North/South interstate highway, mind you. Three lanes reduced to one. When I finally went past the choke point, the newly laid asphalt was still steaming. So, the delay was going to be at least another hour.

So, you know, just by that description, that you are going to get thousands of commuters and travelers who are going to get stuck in that backup. It took me 45 minutes to get through a section of roadway that normally takes less than a minute at highway speed.

I knew about the construction, but figured I would be going through the area almost two hours after the supposed wrap-up. No problem, right? Not so much.

So, my question is…do these construction companies get fined for not getting things done at the appointed and planned times? I mean this delay caused me (and I am sure thousands more) late for work. That’s lost time, lost production. So who pays for that?

Who answers and how for these sorts of things?

Where ya’ll going?

Posted on July 9, 2019 by backuphill

people crossing in pedestrian lane in city during daytime

Photo by Saya Kimura on Pexels.com

It seems more of you, many more than usual, are going somewhere today.

It’s a Tuesday. Where could you possibly be going? I mean, yes, I have gotten to know those of you who take the route daily…I mean, I see you every day but I don’t really know you.

However, today, there were a bunch of people I didn’t know and you were all in the way. Traffic kept moving, which is good, but it was way slower than usual because there were so many of you.

If ya’ll could stay off my roads, especially my commute route, that would be great…