646-TRAFFIC, funk, jerks from NJ & a cheerful vagrant

Came back into the city grooving to Pure Funk 2. Traffic everywhere, people driving like maniacs (especially the ones from New Jersey), cars weaving between trucks and jeeps and vans. Watched some guy almost kill himself after suddenly deciding to switch over four lanes of traffic to make an off ramp exit. Heart started beating hard after watching the man swerve across black asphalt. He almost hit a barrier wall, and right then I almost stopped breathing. Got mad once he made the exit safely -- the idiot risked the lives of everyone around him to pull some sort of James Bond stunt.

Had the windows rolled down as I cruised along the Westside Highway in Manhattan. Funk was pumping out the window and I was bopping my head and neck like crazy. Passed the Chelsea Piers, and a vagrant was sitting on a bench outside of them. He smiled and waved at me. Guess he liked the music.

My friend, who was driving, kept cranking the volume up on the dial. A subtle increase each time, but a method I heartily approved of. Sneaky and sweet. Sneaky because he did it so slowly, and sweet because he liked the music as much as I did.

Some old white lady in the next car over (again at Chelsea Piers) gave us a condescending glance, but it turned into a smile. No one can resist the power of a goodly groove.

By the way, the greatest well-known secret for anyone driving into the City: 646-TRAFFIC. Dial it and see what happens. It's free, automated and amazing. Also, great source of unintentional humor. If you speak with any kind of accent or quietly, a creepy computer voice will demand information from you repeatedly.

Hot sauce. I'm tired. New entry coming in the next day.

Oh yeah ...

big announcement in the following post.