Tag Archives: safety

Fitness, Mental Health, Miscellaneous

I Hate Cyclists!

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I don’t. Let’s just get that clear off the bat. I’m a cyclist. I’m also a motorist, a user of public transport and a recreational (poor) jogger.

I hate that expression. I hate when it’s said to me because all I can think is “wow, normally people take a bit longer than that to hate me”. It’s the typical expression that people use as a blanket excuse to further this “them and us” bollocks that Irish people are so very good at.

It makes no sense to irrationality hate all of a particular group based on the poor actions of some who use that transport. Some who choose not to drive to work or get public transport. Some who have chosen not to add to your traffic jam or take up another seat on the bus.

“I Hate Cyclists” – It’s a worrying statement. It’s a statement which states that people are getting into their cars with hate and anger already in them. Hate and anger are not emotions which belong behind the wheel of a car. They are dangerous and cause people to make stupid and silly mistakes.

Yes yes, I know, this occurs both behind the wheel and behind the handlebars. Let me tell you though, those emotions are a hell of a lot scarier when you’re on two wheels at the end of someone else’s irrational hatred.

By the way, cyclists jumping the lights pisses me off too. It also pisses off most cyclists who obey the rules of the road. Try actually looking at the cyclists waiting at the lights before saying “All cyclists go through traffic lights” and notice the ones left waiting. Oh and I actually do have insurance for cycling. Road tax? Not a real thing. You pay an emissions tax for what comes out of your exhaust.

It’s not an easy change though, is it? Trying to make everybody see that the road is for everyone’s use, not just those in a hurry. It’s a behavioural change which will take time. Until then people will still keep dying needlessly because we can’t leave our egos at the door. We’re still a long way from where we need to be because we can’t see each other as people once we get behind the wheel.

As a cyclist and a motorist I’ll be one of the first to say that our roads are not suited for use by all forms of transport thrown in together. That’s simple. Ideally cyclists and motorised traffic wouldn’t share the same stretches of road. But, we do. Patience and understanding would help a lot in making that environment safer for everyone. At the very least it would help to make sure that more people make it home to their loved ones. I sure as hell wouldn’t want to be another father taken from another daughter just because somebody couldn’t let their ego go for a minute.

Why would I keep cycling if there’s so many people in cars, trucks, vans and buses willing to take a chance on whether or not they’ll hit me one day? If you have to ask then you don’t know. It’s a great form of exercise. It’s (mostly) relaxing and very low impact, unless of course somebody gets too close and you end up on the windshield, under a tyre or in a ditch.

So, next time you’re coming up on a cyclist, somebody out jogging, a tractor, a learner driver, somebody doing the speed limit and that ego kicks in just take a second to think. Think about who is in front of you. Think about their family. Think about the potential damage you could do. Think about your own family. Think about the implications of letting the immature ego make the adult decisions. Just take a second to think.

Safe travels!

Parenting

The Cat’s in The Cradle

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No, not really. Although it was one of the things we were worried about when we found out that we were expecting. You never really know how animals will behave around children, especially newborns.

We rescued a kitten a year ago and to us he’s great craic, albeit a bit feisty at times. But yeah, he’s an animal at the end of the day, so we absolutely had to remember that. He’s our little Shadow. He’ll purr and rub, but you don’t really know what he’s thinking. It’s all fine and well us batting him off, but a baby can’t really do that.

So we were a little worried. If it came down to it and Shadow reacted badly towards the baby then unfortunately he’d be finding a new home. Yes, we love him, but we have to make the right choice for our little one.

So the big day came and it was time to bring home the baby. Which would also be the first day my new wife would be coming home, but that’s a whole different story. We were nervous and unsure of what would happen. We brought little Anna-Marie in, gave Shadow a treat and let him relax. Shadow reacts badly to noise by the way. Yeah, newborns, they make noise I hear (literally). She shrieked and he just looked at her and went back into his nap. So far so good.

Apparently cats can enter a loving and protective mode with kids. We were about to see that. We did everything slowly and didn’t force her on him. We were upstairs feeding her and he came up, looked at her, sniffed her and then turned his back and watched the door for us, remaining alert. He continues to do this now, he’ll sniff, have a look and then stay nearby. When she cries he comes and has a look, sees that we are there and then he’ll just standby. Brilliant, we get to keep our first kitten with our first child.

Things are working out great with him and I’m genuinely delighted. However, that doesn’t mean I’ll make him head babysitter. He’ll never be left alone with her and she’ll have to learn his limits too, when she’s old enough of course. As long as we don’t forget that he’s an animal and that animals have animal instincts then I think we’ll be fine.

Overall, animals and babies, yeah, it can work out fine. Just keep an eye on them.

Insurance, Miscellaneous

Road Rage – When the Red Mist descends

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I don’t know what it is really, but lately I’ve been more alert to the dangerous drivers on Irish roads. There seems to be a lot of them. Maybe it’s that I’ve been driving around with a pregnant lady for the last 8 months and now with a baby that’s making me notice all the other drivers.

I’m becoming quite sensitive to it too. To the tailgaters, to the drivers who decide to make me a part of their risky driving and to the people on the phones who aren’t paying attention. I’m sick of it now. Maybe it’s because I have something to really lose and because they would lose me if somebody got over confident and messed up. Drivers in Ireland mess up a lot and hundreds of people a year are still dying because of other peoples stupid behaviour.

So every time I get cut off by a hairs width, have somebody try and drive into the car or overtake me on a blind corner I stop and think of what I might lose by reacting to their stupidity. Nowadays I also think about what’s going on in the other car.

Yes, sometimes some people are just fools on the road, but sometimes there’s other stuff going on too. You never really know what’s happening with them. They may be drunk, stoned, have had a fight with a loved one, had a bad day at work or be upset about something. Whatever the reason it doesn’t excuse terrible driving, but it should make you think twice about letting road rage take over or putting others at risk. You see someone being an ass? Let them be, your responsibility lies in your safety and your passengers safety. If they’re that bad then phone the Gardaí and report the reg and your location and move on.

You’re not playing GTA, this is real life. Get home safe, keep yourself safe and keep your family safe. Road rage and the feelings associated with it are temporary. Breath, let it be, carry on. Feel like you’ll lose your pride by letting someone bully you on the road? Let it go or you may lose more than that.

Miscellaneous

The Zombie Apocalypse

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A lot of people spend a lot of time planning for the Zombie Apocalypse. What they’ll do, who they’ll save, where they’ll go. I’d be one of them, I think it’s quite important.

So what do you do? You plan for the occasion. You’ve got a world of nastiness trying to get in to feast on your ever so tasty flesh. Best to not let that happen really.

What do you plan for?

  • Make sure you know what’s going on first. Be an awful shame if you just went around the house swinging a bat and knocked your Mother clean out. Imagine discussing that over Christmas dinner for the rest of time. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.
  • Do a roll check. Yeah, sounds a little bit like school, but it sure would be handy to know who’s still in the world of the living. Get people to sound off and if possible secure them in the one location. If it’s not possible then tell them to go to a predesignated safe spot, batten down the hatches and wait for help.
  • If the situation is truly dire and you have Zombie hands coming through the door then you need to bug out immediately. Have your escape route planned and make sure everyone knows the drill. If you live in your standard house then a jump out the window will probably not kill you. Don’t go head first. Feet first and try and roll when you hit the ground. Broken legs are far easier to recover from than a broken neck or the damage some house invading zombies will inflict on you.
  • Be prepared to defend yourself if you need to. If you absolutely have to fight the good fight then you do that. This should be used as simply a last resort. You’ve tried everything else. You can’t escape, you can’t account for your loved one’s, you’ll have to fight it out. Remember, you’re not there for the 15 rounds. Move quick and stay low. If you watch rugby then you’ll notice that the best and most effective tackles occur below the waist. This is the best way of taking someone to ground. Fighting is exhausting and you need your energy to live.
  • Know your escape routes. Know where the keys to the doors are. Know who’s in the house. Know where you agreed to meet when you get out. Remember to bring a phone, you’ll need to call for help.

So there ya have it. A quick guide to what to do if Zombies come knocking. It’s always a bit of craic to talk about that, especially with The Walking Dead coming back on our screens.

Now, I would like you to substitute “Zombies” for “Fire” and “Burglary”. When was the last time you planned for that?

Know your way out. Know your plan. Know who’s in the house. Know what to do. Know that your family’s safety is paramount above all else. Things can be replaced people can’t be.

Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.

The Internet

Why I’ll Never put a picture of my kid on Social Media

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So I’m going to be a new father, and yes, that’s very exciting. This is news which has made me excited, nervous, happy and afraid. A whole mix of emotions and sometimes all at once. I’m very much into taking photos and I believe my child will be one of the most photographed children ever and that I will take photos of all their little and big moments. He/she nearly rolls over? Yep, gonna be all over that! He/she does their first wheelie on a bike? Yeah, I’ll be there! I’ll pretend to be somewhat annoyed, but I know I’ll be proud of them! However, I will not be sharing any of my photos on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Vine or any other social network you may think of or that crops up in the mean time. I know, seems a bit paranoid. Have a look at these for a moment:

Yeah, they’re funny. But think about the fact that most of those photos probably had their origin in their parents just taking a cute, innocent and perfectly timed photo of their beloved bundle of joy. The resulting photo was probably shared online and was then copied by someone who decided to add a humorous twist to it. It’s not so funny when it becomes a little more real. None of the kids in the photos decided to become a symbol for a cheap and lazy joke, but there they are, up there for all the world to laugh at.

The internet is a funny auld thing. It’s a great place to learn, grow your horizons and connect with people. It’s also pretty scary. Once you put something up there, it’s never coming down. That’s a fact! Yeah, you can delete it from your own account, but the image you uploaded stays uploaded and that’s that. So, you’re in effect releasing your child’s image for all to see. No matter how safe you think your account may be, it’s not. It never will be. You’re also forfeiting the ownership around your photo. I upload a lot of photos, but that’s OK, I’m not making money from them at the moment. But do you honestly think that any of the parents of the kids in the photos above chose for their child to become the poster kid for a crappy joke? No, probably not. Do you think that child will appreciate the photo in years to come? No, I would imagine not. Do you think it will be easy to have it deleted from the internet? No, it doesn’t really work that way.

When my kid grows up and becomes an adult they can do what they like, whether I like it or not, but I will not be ruining their image before they’ve had a chance to do it themselves! They make a mistake and someone snaps a photo of it? Yeah, it happens, and they’ll learn from it. They could definitely do without me exposing them to that world before they have a chance to defend themselves!

There’s another far scarier reason I won’t be putting pictures of my kid online. If you were in a playground with your child and a dubious character comes up to you and asks if they can use your child to help trick a group into thinking they have kids so they’ll trust them and let them in, would you? No, not a bloody chance! When something goes online it’s there for everyone who can access the internet to see and keep. Trust me, your privacy settings on anything are not as secure as you think. You put it online, you’re giving it to the world and there are a lot of sick people in the world. It’s creepy, yes that’s a given, but you will never know when your child’s image is being used without your knowledge and you will never know for what purpose.

Yes, I may be being too paranoid, but there are a lot of freaks online and offline. I will do my best to protect my child in the real world, but you are very limited in protecting anything online.

So yeah, I’ll be paranoid, I’ll be weird, I’ll be obsessive about it, but I’ll protect my child.