Things That Pee Me Off #32: Dawdlers

How easy is it for someone to walk down the street without getting into other people's way? Very it seems. Now admittedly, I have a very fast pace, but this isn't about speed. I have nothing against people who wish or have to walk slowly, and there are people who walk faster than I do anyway.

No. This is about etiquette and awareness of other people on the street. I'm talking about the people who stop or change direction suddenly without warning, the people who think for some reason that it's a good idea to walk the long diagonal along a pavement, the people in groups who take up the whole width of the sidewalk, and even the people who insist on walking side by side instead of behind the stranger who walk the same speed as they do and so make it difficult for those of us who want to get on with it to overtake.

Yes this is a trivial thing that is irritating me, but that's exactly the point. It doesn't take much effort to be aware of the people behind or around you - it's easy to tell when someone is trying to get past you and even easier to stop and allow them to do so. And of course we all get lost and disoriented, but we don't have to become lost and disoriented in the middle of a station platform, right?

Bleh. I dunno.