Despite claiming to be an optimist, I often rail against my fellow humans, politicians, the government, news media, and corporations about the way things are going. So I want to share some small positive moments.

I live in the small town of Ashland, Oregon. I’ve always enjoyed walking, including taking the steps instead of using elevators or escalators. It doesn’t always make me popular with my wife, but she grits her teeth and goes along with it.

This has nothing to do with steps, though. This is about drivers. While I’ve experienced several near misses each year while using crosswalks (and the number of near misses seem to be increasing), there are people who are the opposite. Example are shopping center and business exits. Because of line sights, drivers are forced to roll forward, covering sidewalks and crosswalks to see if it’s safe for them to proceed. This sometimes blocks my way as a pedestrian. I usually plan to wait or pass behind their cars, but this week, drivers are backing up to let me go by, putting down their windows, waving and calling out apologies.

I hope that it’s picked up by more drivers and starts trending upward across the country.