Noticed things

Ok, I just met with some of the Prospective Students, and they're not that bad. This whole mess isn't really so horrible, I guess. Although it's just started. I may change my mind again before today is over.

I really love seeing a ton of male grad students hovering around, or even hovering over, the desk of a female grad student. Part of why I think it's so funny is that it's just SO damn obvious. If I'm honest, another reason it's funny is that I have little doubt that it's something I've done myself. But I hope I was more subtle about it.
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I drove to school today. It's raining periodically, and the thick blanket of snow is thinning, but also becoming more homogeneous and blanket-like under the pelting. What I noticed, and have surely noticed before, is all the ridulously stupid people who didn't have their headlights on. The thing I noticed today is the strong correlation between having the headlights off and having a car whose color is quite similar to the color of the surrounding sky and land.

It was dark and stormy looking today, and all the cars I saw with their headlights off (excepting the parked ones) were black or grey. I remember during some of the strong snow showers we've had recently that most of the cars that didn't have their lights on were white, or light grey.

Incredible. Darwin is rolling in his grave.

Another thing I noticed, this while driving last night, is how caught up I get by watching pedestrian crossing lights when they start blinking. You know how the light shows a white pedestrian when it's ok to cross (walk), and a red hand signaling "stop" when it's not ok (don't walk), and when changing from the former to the latter it shows the red hand flashing. I am absolutely fascinated by the flashing red, especially in that moment when the pattern of its flashing is interrupted early by its change to a solid red. It blinks on off on off on off on off on off, and during one of those "off"s it switches to "on" an instant too soon, and then stays "on".

I find that unless I concentrate, I habitually watch the blinking light, waiting for the pattern to be broken so abruptly. It's not a problem yet for me, but it might become one unless I watch it.

By the way, one of the coolest names for a cafe or bar or whatever it was that I ever saw was The Corner of Walk and Don't Walk. It's on the corner of two streets (of course) in Manhattan, one of which is Bleeker Street. I don't remember what the other one is.