Christmas Cactus painting

Every year our paint place (The Brush Bar) posts at least one new Christmas themed painting.  This year, I made custom greeting cards (Shutterfly) from two of the previous years' paintings. 

This year's offering was a cheerful Christmas cactus.  Quite appropriate in a state where people actually do decorate their cactus. 

This one will definitely be next year's greeting card.

Inattentive drivers paying no attention to pedestrians

It's a scary time to be a pedestrian, even in the suburbs.

Bogie and I walk daily pre-dawn.  Our route often takes us past the driveways to a gas station and to a grocery store.

Too many times, drivers pull into, or out of, these driveways without even looking.  I've had to pull Bogie up short so he wouldn't be hit.  Or hustle to cross so we wouldn't get run over.

Yes, I know it's dark out.  But there are lights illuminating these driveways.  And Bogie is big.  And white.  Hard to miss if you are looking at all.

Do drivers not expect there to be pedestrians?  Is there an arrogance of driver versus pedestrian?  The knowledge that a car trumps a pedestrian in any encounter so why should the car pay attention?

Or are they so anxious to get to their cup of coffee or gas tank fill that they don't even bother to look?  Am I expected to hear them coming from behind me?

Another place that is risky is a parking lot.  Walmart or the grocery store, I park my car away from the entrance, usually because I have the dogs in the car. 

Drivers should expect pedestrians in a parking lot.  How else do people get from their car to the store, and vice versa? 

And especially in the *specially marked* crosswalks.  I mean, that's why they are there.

But there have been many, many times I've had to abort my progress because a moving car made no attempt to stop, or even slow, for the pedestrian in the crosswalk.

Is it rudeness?  Inattention?  Is their time more important than the rules of courtesy?

I don't know the answer.  I just know that I have to be extra-aware, because other people aren't aware at all.