I try not to use my column space to vent. A spot in the newspaper is hardly the most effective outlet to release my private and, admittedly, often overblown complaints. No, I'm typically content to keep my negative thoughts to myself. Not today.
There's no better time than the beginning of the school year to address what I believe may be one of the University's chief safety issues. It's time for a lesson in sidewalk etiquette.
This takes me back four years to my very first visit to the University. My father and I did not take the traditional tour, opting instead to explore Grounds on our own terms. Class was in session that Thursday, and I was stunned by how many students were still making trips to class in the freezing rain. It seems even more amazing now.
What was especially startling, however, was the complete lack of consideration that my father and I were given as we navigated the sidewalks. I was shocked as walls of North Face jackets refused to budge as they moved toward us, and the Sperrys below never considered deviating from their straightforward path.
I remember one specific group of three girls that day who were taking up the entire sidewalk while engaging in their gossip down Rugby Road. I'm not actually sure it was gossip, but I tend to believe the worst about people who have done me wrong. Regardless, I remember becoming increasingly nervous as they noticed us approaching but opted not to alter their formation to let us by. I kept looking up and waiting for an opening, but no such luck.
At about five yards away, my father got behind me so that we could try to pass them without a collision. Shuffling to the right, I was still perfectly in line with one of them. Surely she was about to notice and move to the side, right? Wrong. With five yards to go, she actually looked up at me and, without moving an inch, said, "Excuse me?" as if I was encroaching on her personal space.
I stepped into the road so that she could pass, and she continued on her way. She probably knocked a few people into the road. There I go assuming the worst again.
Regardless, we were dumbfounded then, and I'm no less upset each time that I'm forced off the sidewalk because of someone's refusal to move. I vowed then that I would make sure that I was accepted into the University, that I would become a columnist and that I would use my amplified voice to decry the abuse of sidewalk space.
I think we've all been there at one point. It shouldn't be so hard to move from one class to another, but even the short hike from Clark Hall to Gilmer Hall can be full of frustration.
The worst offenders are the slowpokes. Just the other day, I was moving briskly in the flow of traffic when the person in front of me took a phone call and nearly stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. I'll never understand that correlation, really. We are at one of the most impressive universities in the world, and I am in a constant state of wonder at how many of us lack the focus to do two things at once. It's walking. We've been doing it for most of our lives. We've been using cell phones for almost that long as well.
Maybe I'm blowing the issue up again. I realize that we're all moving at different paces. Some students are comfortably strolling down McCormick Road while others have 10 minutes to make it from McLeod Hall to Gilmer Hall (based on a true story). All I ask is that we exercise some sympathy. Pay attention to those around you.
I'm not asking for much. Just move along or give me some space.
Tyler's column runs biweekly Mondays. He can be reached at t.deboard@cavalierdaily.com.
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