[gmku]

Here's a real live walking mistake. I was walking across the street, minding my business, going with the walk sign, in the crosswalk, when a big pickup turning into the street almost doesn't stop and about runs me over.

He puts on the brakes and yells at ME, the pedestrian! I yell back, "Hey, I'm a PEDESTRIAN, asshole!" but the chicken shit speeds off.

So down the block a bit as I go on walking, some guy who's apparently just parked and is walking across the street grins at me, shaking his head, and goes, "Wow. What was up with that dude?"

He looks fairly congenial, and fairly cool, long-hair in a pony tail, rather intellectual-looking, confident, in his late 20s, heading for an engineering college building. I'm thinking, I can joke a bit with this congenial fellow. He'll share my angst.

"Yeah, I don't know," I say congenially, chuckling a little. "You know, big boys and their big trucks."

He chuckles and says, "Well, I can't say anything. I own a big truck," and points, and yeah, it's a big truck. And then I notice that yeah, he's kind of a stout guy.

"Oh, sorry," I stammer. "I didn't mean anything."

"It's okay," he says, not smilling as much now. "I usually just think when I'm walking and a big truck comes for me, I'm getting out of the way because it's going to kill me before I kill it."

Heh heh. (Me)

"Well, have a good day," he says, going on his way.

Christ, me and my big fucking mouth. Somebody help me extract foot.