keep our streets dirty
today while i was walking, engulfed in the ipod-hipster-fad of the 21st century, i still had what little remains of my auditory sense to recognize a slight vibrational noise behind me. that coupled with a minor wind current circling my feet finally caused me to turn around in time to realize that i just barely got ran over by a street sweeper. A STREET SWEEPER?
do these things even work? i know they’re kind of big, make lots of noise and have the look and feel of a zamboni machine (which of course is a PRICELESS piece of equipment), but seriously, this has to be the most inefficient use of energy/parts ever. it’s essentially a broom with a huge motor attached to a car that maxes out at walking pace. i followed one of these things for about a block and noted NO improvement in the appearance of the pavement. sure i saw leaves flying around and stuff, and the driver looking intently at the ground like he’s trying to be all precise, but really, there was no order or cleanliness to the scene. and it took me like a block out of my way. i’m pretty sure the driver was just using the sweeper as transportation - to get “back to the shop” to hang out with his boys and talk about some “hot babe” he saw walking through the quad while he was “sweepin’ the streets.” yep, yep, the guy pretty much runs the place.
a street is pretty dirty - do people actually care if there are a few leaves floating around? will campus tourism decline? honestly - if folks are willing to swim in the fountains (which they are), then i’m pretty sure a twig on the corner of north-south mall and serra isn’t going to be a cause for complaint. unless it starts grading chemistry midterms. then we have a problem.