That one time when I hit a bear...

Now that you've read the title, let's back up for a second. 

If you can cope with my tweets, you may remember that back in late August I cut through Canada on my way to Jackman, Maine. I ran into the nicest border agent ever, and he warned me to look out for moose. There were signs and flashing lights, that said Moose!

I got to where I was going, and had an amazing weekend. 

But I left out one key detail. 

I hit a bear. 

Whaaaat? Ben hit a bear? But, what? How? Why didn't you tell me?

Well, first, it's none of your business. Maybe you should have asked me what was new, and I would have told you. 

Anyway, earlier this year I decided to invest in a dashcam, because why not, right?

Here is the incident. (in low-res, because I didn't feel like waiting for the full HD to process)

Fortunately, the bear was small, rolled over a few times, and scampered off. 

As you can see, he literally darted directly at me from the dark abyss that is Maine at night. As much as I love my reflexes, by the time I realized what was happening, it had already happened. 

Thankfully, I had purchased the exterior regeneration package, so in a little over a month, the front end was good as new!

Alright. Glad we got this settled. 

Tune in at some indeterminate point in the future for more random tidbits about my life. 

Random thoughts from a Monday

Driving Stick

I think that at some point, every driver should make an attempt at learning how to operate a vehicle with a manual transmission. 
I mean, come on, you never know when you're going to find yourself in an "Amazing Race" scenario in a foreign country, where the only vehicle at your disposal is a standard. 
At least learn the basics, right? If not, at least make yourself useful and mow some lawns. 
Hey, remember four lokos?


Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice

Fresh orange juice is awesome. Not pasteurized not modified, just straight up orange juice. I like my juice all natural, I don't need "no pulp," "extra pulp," or "some pulp." Just give me whatever came out of the orange when you squeezed it. That would be just great, thanks. 

Making Your Money Work for You

Do you have cash money that's just floating around in a dumb checking account? Why?
Fix it. Put it in a high-yield savings account instead. Or a CD. Or 401k. Or Roth IRA. Literally anything that's not a dumb checking account. Do some research. Ask some questions. Make money by doing very little. You like money, right?

Plants

Why don't you have plants in your apartment? They're super cheap, you can buy them at the grocery store, and many are useful too! I recommend basil. You can add it to pretty much any meal, and it counts as one serving of vegetables*!

*I made this up

I want to start blogging again...

But before I get started, lets set a few ground rules. 

1. This blog is not for you, it's for me. It's a way to clear my mind. I'm not a writer, and the last thing I'm going to worry about is formatting or clarity of content.
2. As a continuation of the above clause, consider yourself merely a visitor. If you don't like it here, you can leave. 
3. The viewpoints and opinions I express should be considered "relatively accurate." If you do not know me well, I suggest you take these posts lightly. 
4. The content of these posts is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind, express or implied. While every attempt will be made to provide factual and accurate information, I bear no liability for any mistakes.  

Now that we've got that legal mumbo jumbo out of the way, let's jump into what's currently on my mind:

A Desk

I'd like a desk. My room currently lacks one. Sometimes, it would be nice to sit at a desk, you know? Maybe even to write more of these posts. I'm intending to get one from IKEA, hopefully in the coming weekends. The closest IKEA is two hours away, in Montreal. 

I hear someone flying one of those cute drone things outside. 

Laundry

Currently, the laundry is half folded and put away. I suppose you could say that my sudden excitement for writing this post was triggered by my lack of excitement for folding my clothes. 

Random People Asking for Money

Today I was approached, or rather cornered by a young woman on St Paul street who said she was pregnant, near tears, and needed help. She asked if I knew of any ATMs in the area that dispensed bills in less than $20 increments. She had her wallet open, and was displaying cash. Figuring she wanted change, but not yet convinced that I should check my own wallet, I asked if she had checked at any of the local stores. 

She said that she had asked City Market, and they refused. 

This woman was a bit frantic, was not making eye contact, and having trouble piecing together what was seemingly a straightforward request. If you know me well, you should have no trouble picturing what happened next.

I took a physically defensive stance (not that I wasn't in one already) and made my "not convinced"/"go on..." face. 

The woman then said that she needed $15 extra because her car was in for repair at Handy's, and she did not have enough to get it out. 

Aha. So she's gone from vaguely asking for change, to asking for $15. 

"Why don't you use your credit/debit card at Handy's?"

>>"Because I don't have any money left"

Alright. By not making your intentions clear from the get-go, your chances just dropped significantly. 

The interaction would have gone quite differently had I have been approached with "I'm stranded because XXX and need XXX because XXX, would you be able to help me?"

I apologized, declined to assist, and continued walking. 

Here are my issues with this interaction:

• She had a working iPhone. You're telling me that there are *zero* people that could have been called to provide financial assistance?
• She went wayy too far from Handy's. Why not stand outside of the actual location of issue, and request money? Then you could point to the vehicle of issue, and if necessary, I would be able to consult the staff in the repair shop directly. 
• Handy's is right across from City Market, and there is no lack of people in that area. Why go to an empty side street blocks away instead of a busy area? Why not stop at Church street, even?

In case you ever are truly stuck, here are my recommendations:

• Don't be stranded without money. What's the logic behind walking around with an empty wallet? Tuck an extra $20, $50, or $100 bill in there, and don't ever touch it. 
• Phone a friend. 
• Be honest, direct, and polite. 

Budgeting

I realized yesterday that despite my addiction to finance, I don't know how much I'm truly making each month, and therefore what is a safe amount to be spending. Things are less straightforward now that I am traveling for work, and expensing things. (I wouldn't trade the travel for anything, though)

End

I think that's enough for now, right?

I should probably get back to folding my laundry...

"You do realize that your car has New York plates?"

I like going for drives on the weekend. I wake up early, and just drive. I don't really ever know where I'm going, but sometimes I pick a general direction. Today, I decided to go North, and since we're so close to Canada, I took my passport just in case. 

I went North through Grand Isle, and decided that I would loop through Canada, and come back down on the East side of Lake Champlain. I checked my map, and decided that I would probably be in Canada for 20 minutes. Cool. 

I kinda like crossing the border; I somewhat enjoy being interrogated, and afterwards making fun of their obnoxious questions. I knew that my trip seemed relatively suspicious, but I had nothing to hide, so I went on....

I entered Canada through this little border crossing in the middle of nowhere. I stopped at the booth, and waited for someone to appear. 

This guy approached, and I handed him my passport. Standard, where are you going, where are you from questions. I told him I was just crossing through Canada, and didn't expect to be there for more than an hour. Instant suspicion.

Here are some of his questions:

"Why are you going to Canada?"

"Have you ever been to Canada before?"

"If you've been there before, why are you going today?"

"Why does your car have New York plates?"

"What are you majoring in?"

"You aren't meeting anyone in Canada?"

"Is the car empty?"

"Pull forward so I can have a look"

All this time, he's paging through my passport. I noticed that he did not run it through a computer. Interesting. 

So, he looks through the car. Right. Nothing. Okay, bye.

Since it's usually easier to get into Canada than back out, I know I'm probably in for an interesting conversation on the US side.

Just over 20 minutes later, I'm waiting to cross back over into the US at a different crossing. There are actually cars lined up at this one, even though it's just as small. The guy in front of me was held up for at least twenty minutes. They even had him get out of the car. Hmmmmmm.

An eternity later, it's my turn. There are two officers; an older one and a younger one. I give them my passport. 

"Where are you coming from?" At this point, I realize that I have no idea where I actually was...

      "Uhh, well, I was just looping through Canada, I came up through Vermont, and I'm going back down"

The standard where from/where going questions which are always a trap. I usually answer that I live Burlington, because, well I do. 

"You do realize that your car has New York plates?"

What a stupid question. Really? I had no idea!! Did I mention that I was a college student?? 

Throughout both questionings, I maintained that I

• Liked to go for drives on the weekend
• Most of my friends were home for Easter
• I like exploring
• I live and attend school in Burlington, but I'm from NYC

Upon hearing that I was just going for a drive:

"You have got to be kidding me, gas is $4.13!"

Yeah, I know, but I like driving. 
"You couldn't find anyone to go with you?"
Well, the ones that didn't go home went to Boston for a gaming convention.
"Oh yeah, I heard about that"


"Where did you cross into Canada?" (I honestly had no idea, because I wasn't paying attention)
After attempting to describe where I had crossed: "Look, I'm trying to help you out here"
I have no idea what he was trying to get at. Were they accusing me of something? Am I in trouble? No. So, shush.


"Can I see the registration?"
"You keep your registration in your wallet instead of your glove compartment?"
    Yeah, I do. 
"Are the doors unlocked?"
  They are now.


So, into the car they went. Pulling up the seats, revealing hiding spots that I didn't even know existed. 
Meanwhile, the other guy ran my passport and clearly has some questions. 
"When's the last time you went to Canada?"
"Who were you with?"
"Where did you go?"
"What about the time before that?"
and the same questions again.


This totally confirmed my hunch that me, the car I travel in, and the people I travel with across the border will forever be linked in their computers. 


Now they're standing over the engine, making gestures to each other, as if they want to look under it. I'm still sitting in the car, by the way. 


And eventually, ten minutes later, they seem satisfied. 


Cool.

My Route

This winter has been very confusing...

Completely changing the weather every day. It's 70 degrees right now here in New York. No one is used to it, and everyone is still walking around with jackets and whatnot. I can't decide if "winter" is over or not. 


In other news, my local TD Bank really needs to do something about their ATMs. At least reboot them every so often or something. The lag between me selecting something on the screen, and it actually registering my choice is wayyy too long. I was actually starting to get concerned that something sketchy was happening when it took a pretty long time to acknowledge that I had inserted my card. 


I realize that ATMs are sensitive computers, but they've become pretty much horrible. I'm glad that they are able to sync my preferences between NY and VT, but if it takes that long to load, I'd rather select it manually. The TD ATM on campus at Champlain that must be at least 15 years old is still the fastest one I've seen!


There, I just sent them an email. 


In other news, well, I don't know, is there other news? I went to see "STOMP" last night with my cousin Magali and her boyfriend. It was quite the awesome show. The choreography was super great!


I'm not really paying much attention to school work, because well, I'm on break. I don't think there's *that* much to do anyway. At least, I hope not!


Huzzah!

Jury Duty?

If you're wondering why theres a SIM card,
its covering my ID number.

Blah, Jury Duty. Everyone complains about it. I was actually kind of looking forward to it. Getting paid to hear other people's cases? Sounds pretty cool! 


Well, now I'm not so sure. See, I was under the impression that when they "summoned" me to show up at 9AM, that meant that I was pre-selected for a specific case. I would show up, they would ask me a few questions, and I'd either be chosen as a Juror, or sent home, and that would be that. 


Of course, Matt has delightfully informed me that in fact, I have to show up at 9AM and wait around until 4:30, with only the *possibility* of getting called. And then, I probably get to do the same thing again the next day, and maybe even the one after that. 


Well, I don't know about you, but I can't simply sit in a room for the entire day. No way. That's not going to work. I can't even do that at home with all my stuff. I need to get out and about. But that's besides the point, because apparently I have to anyway. 


See, I'm kind of concerned that for some dumb reason, they'll tell me that I am not allowed to go back to Vermont on Sunday, because I'll be selected for a trial. Sure, I'll serve on a trial, but not if it prevents me from getting my degree. 


The summons says I can't postpone it if it's less than a week from the date I have to appear, but I went online and tried anyway. It was rejected. For the heck of it, I called their automated phone line, and requested to postpone it until May. Without being clear, the system simply told me that I would receive a letter in the mail in about two weeks with an updated date. So, now I have no idea if it has actually been postponed or not.


There's a number to call with questions, but it is almost always busy. When I am able to get through to the menu and request an operator, it rings for a while, tells me no one is available at the moment, and hangs up. 


So there. I'm annoyed. I'd just like a straight answer at this point. 


Quarter Waters. 

Me ranting about driving in Mass.

I have returned home again, on Spring Break.


This time, I have identified what I feel is one of the main reasons why driving through Massachusetts is dangerous.


See, for my short trek down 91, I noticed that new traffic lanes would randomly appear on the right. Now, usually, when one of these lanes appears, it quickly disappears again, by merging or  becoming an exit ramp.

That lane is here to stay...

In New York, when one of these lanes appears, and its going to stay, we get one of these signs to give us a heads up. Otherwise, the lane usually merges.


In MA, what happens is as follows: Picture a two lane roadway, slow traffic is sticking to the right. Suddenly, a new lane appears on the right. Now, the slow moving traffic is in the center lane.


With the incoming traffic from the merge, or just due to plain stupidity, the slow movers in the middle do not shift over to the right lane. At this point, cars in the two outer lanes are going faster than the center lane. 




If you are driving in the right lane like a good person, and you approach a vehicle that you would like to pass, you need to shift left. BUT, the traffic in the center lane is moving even slower! This means that you'll have to move over another lane, into traffic going twice as fast. And when you pass those two slow cars? Well, you're stuck behind another dummy going way too slow again. 


If you are driving in the center lane, doing what I'll refer to as medium speed, and the person in front of you is driving at a low speed, you can either pass them on the left, where traffic is going twice as fast (typical high speed lane), or pass them on the right, which is generally counter-intuitive and unsafe, due to the wide range of speeds. Both are risky options.


Over all, this leads to drivers literally criss-crossing between three lanes of traffic. And when cars in the outer lanes are shifting to the center, they often don't see each other, because that isn't the standard way of traffic flow. 


The point of my rant? UNLESS YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN THE PROCESS OF PASSING ANOTHER VEHICLE, YOU SHOULD BE IN THE RIGHT LANE. 

Thursdays Aggravate Me

I have class from 8am to 5pm. My only scheduled break in between is from 1-2. I might get out of my science lab a little early depending on what we do, so the break can possibly be extended.


I didn't do this to myself. Well, not completely. Originally, I would have ended at 1pm, and gone to work for the rest of the afternoon. Work is relatively fun for me, so I would have been fine with that. Unfortunately, some last minute scheduling changes forced me to swap classes, leaving me with this undesirable 3-hour class in the afternoon. Grrr.


At 8am, I've got a ton of energy, and a relatively positive outlook on the day. Right after my Forensic Science lab at 1 (or earlier if we're doing chem stuff), I start to get more and more annoyed. This is when I realize that I'm only halfway through my day.

Anyway, I usually have something Thursday nights, so I guess that's something to look forward to. Free bowling night is tonight, so hopefully that is fun.


Fridays are relatively easy for me; work from 9:30-12, and class from 1230-145.
Week Ends.


Hopefully I'll head out to Sugarbush this Saturday, because snowboarding is simply awesome. 


I have some reading that I should be doing right now, but I dont really want to. I might just do it in the morning. 


Okay, let's see how long it will be before I post again. 

Here's uhhh, my bed.